Digital Rights Management or Digital Restrictions Management

This article is mainly about why the use of Digital Rights Management is always controversial.

Overview of DRM:

Digital media files can be copied numerous times without declining the quality. With the popularity of personal computers, Internet and file sharing tools, digital piracy is becoming more and more universal. In this occasion, a lot of manufacturers, publishers and copyright holders use Digital rights management to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale.

Although many famous companies joined the ranks of DRM protection at beginning, they all gave it up in final. Sony BMG is the last one among the four global record companies that announced to provide non-DRM music for consumers. And in the year of 2007, Apple's attitude towards DRM to a 180 degree change. Steven Paul Jobs declared that Apple would like to completely quite DRM technology and called for other record companies to stop using DRM technology.

The Controversy of DRM:

The use of DRM is controversial. Content providers claim that Digital Rights Management is necessary to fight copyright infringement online and that it can help the copyright holder maintain Artistic control or ensure continued revenue streams. According to the Nielsen SoundScan company's survey, the meridian income of US record industry is more than 200 billion dollars a year. However, the annual turnover sliped rapidly when pirated music was popular.

On the other hand, many organizations, prominent individuals and computer scientists are opposed to DRM. DRM technology limit users' access to digital data. As the different companies use different DRM protection technology, consumers could only play music on specified devices. What's more, some companies put DRM software inside the CDs, when people attempted to play music on their computers, the DRM software would install secretly and Windows would crash. Since DRM is aimed to restrict consumers, it is more accurate to describe DRM as Digital Restrictions Management.

Conclusion:

Why so many companies gave up DRM in final? It is a fact that the DRM restriction make the relationship between companies and consumers more and more far. Even if they use the DRM to protect their digital data, the problem of piracy is still popular. This action hurt their consumers and at the same time the income of the company doesn't improve at all.

Does it mean that the DRM technology is vanquished now? Absolutely not! DRM is still a growing problem for all computer users, and by extension all of society. The commercial competition is continue, so the DRM will not completely disappear. RealNetwork's Rhapsody music subscription service provider and ads in support of Ruckus will continue to use DRM to ensure that the music is not played after the subscription expires. But these services just a minimum share in the music market.

The Ultimate Package to Rip, Burn and Convert

DRM Media Converter for Mac

Most online media stores provide DRM protected media, so if you want to put these media on different players you must remove DRM at first. Total Media Converter for Mac is a blazing fast combination video converter/DVD ripper that lets you convert video or DVD to any popular standard or HD format. Convert video to import and edit in your favorite applications like Final Cut Pro, or watch on almost any mobile device, including iPhone, iPad, PSP, Android, etc. Learn More +