The Third Alternative - The End of DRM

Every now and then we are reminded of the fact that we live in great times. Steve Jobs of Apple Computers, who might be considered one of the great visionaries of our age or at least one of the great actualizers of a vision, recently posted his Dialogue Concerning Two Possibilities: Life with DRM and Life without DRM titled Thoughts on Music.

A visionary of the past named Galileo also expressed a series of Dialogues. The difference is that Steve, who has not risen to the level of using a single name, did not need to hide his dialogues behind the names of hypothetical Greek characters. Instead he laid out his case in front of the world opting to describe his frustration apparently in controlling a dominant market share of MP3 players.

As the European union breathes down Apple’s back about anti competitiveness, Steve seems to think that this is not fair or at least fairly targeted.
So he lays out three simple alternatives to the degenerating state of Digital Music.

The First Alternative
Continue with the status quo of individual manufacturers like Apple, Microsoft and Sony providing a proprietary digital music ecosystem system.

The Issue: This strange system only provides about 3% of all the music held on apple iPods. Ergo Apple is not selling 97% of the music that goes on their devices. People are getting music from other sources and its not being protected and Apple and the other manufacturers do not get a slice of that pie.

The Second Alternative
Steve offers up a second alternative where Apple could out of the goodness of its heart license out its FairPlay DRM technology for a small profit to other Manufacturers so that everyone could get on the same sheet of DRM Music. Apple would be the sole gate keeper of all DRM security and technology.

The Issue: Steve states that he does not want this and I do believe him. He very eloquently points out that if this were to happen, Apple would be hard pressed to be able to insure that all the other manufacturers could receive any necessary updates or upgrades. This is a real issue and we only have to look as far as Microsoft XP to see how difficult it can be to keep an important piece of software updated and upgraded around the world on many different devices and computers and systems and networks. Apple does not want that headache nor the bad press that comes with it. Plus, if Apple can not do it, then its very unlikely that anyone else can.

The Third Alternative

Abolish DRM as we know it.

The Result: All stores online all over the world could sell digital music DRM free. All players and devices and computers around the world could all play the same media.

Imagine all the People . . .

Why is Steve Jobs pitching the termination of DRM with prejudice?

He states that it doesn’t work, despite Apple’s contractual obligations that he acknowledges earlier in his letter to make it work. His argument is that Apple is doing their job, but that the music industry is not. He rightfully points out that the music industry is responsible for selling 90% of the music sold in 2006 without DRM. He is right. The music industry is selling CD’s, which can easily be copied and shared and distributed (regardless of which option you check in Windows Media Player.)

He goes on to point out that DRM serves no purpose if DRM sales are dwarfed almost completely by non-DRM sales. He does a very good job of convincing everyone to take the locks of the bicycle and leaving it by the curb, but will the music industry go for that option?

The Hook with Barbs

After he has done such an eloquent job of making the case for the end of DRM, he comes closes his letter with a nice sharp hook with barbs. He points out to the European investigators and governmental bodies threatening Apple with Anti Trust motions that Apple is not the controlling force of music. No for that he points to a cartel or oligopoly of big four music companies, Apple’s partners by contract. He points out that its not us, its them. They are controlling music.

The implied hint and threat together is that the Anti Trust sabers should be pointed not at the dominant marketplace symptom in the form of iPods, but instead at the cause in the form of a music industry that almost 18 years after the commercial launch of the CD is still struggling to get with the Digital times. Its almost a plea to force the music industry to abolish DRM so that we can then imagine all the people living in DRM free harmony possibly even listening to The White Album downloaded from iTunes.

Perspective
Its an interesting letter. Its open and to the point and provides an argument for regulators to use to strong arm Apple’s partners. Its an escape route for Apple to navigate past the thorny issues of Anti Trust. Instead of convincing his partners to mend their ways, Jobs is looking to some higher authority.

Galileo wanted to share the knowledge of the stars and the heavenly bodies and the principles that guided or measured or predicted their movement. He had to hide is words in a code of words disguised as a balanced dialogue with three perspectives. He had to do this to avoid religious persecution for spreading heresy.

Steve Jobs wants to sell music made by the stars. He however did not have to hide his words. His dialogue was open and almost transparent. He has to open up and display the wizard of the music industry behind his Apple Curtain so that he can avoid legal persecution for spreading too many iPods. The world has come a long way in a few hundred years, but our dilemas are still very similar to those of our ancestors as we continue to see that those groups that attempt to possess and control knowledge will constantly be at battle with those that try to make it free.