Controlling Copy Control written 4 years ago

I love listening to music, barely a minute passes when I’m not listening to something. For the past year or two I’ve been in a bit of a dilemma. I wanted to get new music, and do it legally:

Legal Music downloads:

• MSN Music store

  • Uses proprietory WMA + DRM techniques, meaning that downloaded music will be difficult to play on other OSs.
  • Requires use of Internet Explorer for purchasing.
  • Must use Windows Media Player to copy to MP3 Player.

• Itunes Music Store

  • DRM AAC, means playing on alternative OSs difficult.
  • Requires use of itunes for purchasing.
  • AAC files incompatible with my MP3 Player, transcoding means poor quality songs, and slow transfers. ALSO requires removal of DRM, making this process illegal.

• Real World CD Buying

  • Too darn expensive for something that’s going to sit on a shelf for its entire life.

However, recently I’ve noticed that some stores have been offering cheaper prices for CDs. This is because they’re usually from another country, such as the US or Hong Kong. How a CD can be cheaper after being shipped half way round the world is beyond me. But I decided to have a go regardless, and see what happens.

After enduring the wait for them to arrive, then suffering such enticements as broken CD cases, I finally popped one in my computer.

originally posted by

To listen to the CD a number of files need to be updated on your PC.

Are you sure? It’s only a CD? Wah? A look at the CD case revealed the “Copy Control” logo. Some googleage later found the EMI Copy Control Info page.

EMI Copy Control

The disc is not designed to be digitally cloned using Microsoft? Windows Media? Player

Had I just paid ?7 for a coaster? Well… no. Turns out it’s actually very poor Copyright Protection, and the average CD-ROM doesn’t have a problem with it. But I would have been a very angry man had it prevented me from copying it.

But what about if it had failed to copy? Record labels are creating more and more draconian DRM techniques. Meaning that soon I’m going to have no choice but to steal music.

Over christmas there’s going to be lots of cheap mp3 players going up for sale. If the record companies had their way, there would be absolutely no legal way for people out there to put any music on them. In this world where digital entertainment systems are rapidly becoming introduced into people’s homes, I don’t understand how the music industry can continue with this insanity.

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