What are your thoughts on Freeing the Music?

[johnastovall]

With Jobs broadside at DRM, now up on the Apple website, what are your thoughts.

I wouldn't affect my in the least. I would still keep buying CD's, in fact DRM is one reason I don't buy iTunes.

[kenw]

I don't buy iTunes for several reasons, but be aware that the issue is common to all downloads, iTunes, WalMart and Target as just a few examples. All use the same or similar licensing overhead.

Like most folks, I don’t mind paying for things I buy and use……

The simple way around this however, is to download legally (implying pay) then use something like MusicMatch, etc to burn your own audio CD. It’s permitted and perfectly legal. You then take your audio CD and rip the .wav back to .mp3 format. Once in .wav/audio CD format, you’ve removed the license tracking stuff. MP3 files made from that audio CD will have no tracking overhead.

Your burned audio CD then becomes your “hard copy” archive. Just in case the question ever arises, I keep the downloaded MP3 files (with licensing data) in a separate drive location.

Also note that used CDs are plentiful and almost always less than the going price of $1/tune. In fact that vast majority of my music purchases over the last year or so have been used CDs, they usually run $5-8 with a quality guarantee. My classical CDs run even less.

[Bartman01]

I think Jobs' statements are a bit disingenuous given the current state of iTunes. Apple currently DRMs EVERYTHING from iTunes - even podcasts (per podcasters that are not happy with the practice). This is second hand info, but my understanding is that people have asked that their content not be DRMed and Apple has said "NO". I would be happy to learn that this is not the case, and based on Steve's comments this may change in the near future.

Personally I will not generally purchase content that is DRMed unless the purpose of the transaction is a rental type agreement or a 'subscription fee' based transaction (access to a large volume of content for a fee).

DVD's are an exception since for all practical purposes the DRM is broken.

HDDVD/BlueRay I am up in the air on. I have not purchased a player yet, and the type of content that I would buy in this format is only likely to get played on my home theater setup. However, there are things that I do with my DVD's (like rip the audio of concert discs for use on my iPod, or make a demo disc to try out new equipment) that currently can not easily be done with the HD formats.

[Bartman01]

Originally Posted by kenw

The simple way around this however, is to download legally (implying pay) then use something like MusicMatch, etc to burn your own audio CD. It’s permitted and perfectly legal. You then take your audio CD and rip the .wav back to .mp3 format. Once in .wav/audio CD format, you’ve removed the license tracking stuff. MP3 files made from that audio CD will have no tracking overhead.

Only problem with this is that you are taking a lossy file, expanding it out, then re-compressing it with another lossy process. If I buy the CD, I get a DRM free 'lossless' (except for the data lost in the mastering/digitizing to CD quality process) copy. For my purposes, I would rather have CD (or better) quality recordings - not a lossless version.

[ZeroTX]

Removing all DRM is the only true universal way to have all players work with all digital music.

That being said, I own a 60gb iPod, I run iTunes and I *rarely* buy songs from iTunes. 99% of my music is ripped from my own CD collection. As mentioned, CD's generally cost less per-track than iTunes, you get the full, uncompressed, undegraded version of every track + a permanent hard copy + a nice case + cover art and the right to do with it anything within reason (e.g. make a backup copy for my own use, put it on my iPod, put it on my computer, etc.).

Believe me, people who are buying digital tracks now will, by and large, have absolutely nothing to show for it 10 years from now. Me? I'll have hundreds of CD's on a shelf that I can play at any time, without a computer and at a higher level of quality.

-Michael

[Tapper]

Originally Posted by Bartman01

Only problem with this is that you are taking a lossy file, expanding it out, then re-compressing it with another lossy process. If I buy the CD, I get a DRM free 'lossless' (except for the data lost in the mastering/digitizing to CD quality process) copy. For my purposes, I would rather have CD (or better) quality recordings - not a lossless version.

Apples AAC format is lossless, if I recall.

[OversighT]

Personally I have no problems with DRM and in fact iTunes gives you a way around it. Much like Ken illustrated above you can buy a song through iTunes, assemble a list of purchased songs in a playlist, burn that playlist to a CD (directly in iTunes), and then rip that CD back out as MP3's (loss of quality really isn't an issue for most of us). Do I do this? No because both my wife and I have iPods and love them. I really enjoy iTunes because I don't normally buy full CDs and really only want to get a song at a time.

If DRM stays around I much prefer buying into a system and sticking with it rather than having many companies share their system. It makes life more simple and I'm all about simplicity now. I know that my iPod will work with iTunes, but in a shared world who knows if MP3x95 music player will work with iTunes.

T.

[Bartman01]

Originally Posted by Tapper

Apples AAC format is lossless, if I recall.

AAC can be lossy or lossless depending on encoding options. The files available for download from iTunes are in lossy format.

[kenw]

as if anyone can hear the real difference. It's not a JPG saved 43 times with a 20% compression..........

[ZeroTX]

I always buy ALBUMS, that is complete works by an artist. I feel that's how they were meant to be heard. So, I can buy most of the new releases for $10.99-12.99 or so from Best Buy/Target, etc, on CD. Then I rip it into iTunes in MP3 format. Then I have the original, hard-copy CD, artwork, etc, and an MP3 file I can use on any MP3 player ever made, without a special license file.

I'm w/ Steve Jobs on this.

As for the quality issue, there is definitely a difference and anyone with a good ear and a decent sound system can hear it. Of course you can't hear it on the crappy little earbuds that people use with their portable MP3 players. I have a 60gb iPod and it is strictly my portable format, but not my only format. My preference is listening on my full-size Onkyo stereo at home. If you ever thought there was no difference, listen to a DVD-Audio or an SA-CD on a good system sometime... even CD can sound inferior :)

Yeah, I can see everyone sitting around 10 years from now reminiscing flipping through their......... iPod files?.... nah. I will keep my CD's. Disposable society can keep their electronic-only distributions.

-Michael

[Steelsun]

I think of DRM like we photographers watermark.

Just like we don't like people copying our photos willy-nilly and doing whatever we want with them, the music industry feels the same way. I can understand that.

Now do I think the music industry is corrupt, top heavy, and full of garbage? Yes, but that's another story. If the artists got the lions share of the money from music sales I'd be fine, but alas it's not the musicians at all that make the money from their music, and that is just sad.