14 DAY TRIAL // The DRM (Digital Rights Management) system allows the companies and consumers to produce digital entertainment without worrying about piracy. Administering such a protection system has already started numerous controversies regarding the limitations imposed by suppliers on buyers.
The DRM subject became a subject of media interest once a series of administrative attacks was launched by a group of Norwegians hackers on Apple.
This week, the IT press, but especially the iTunes music download service users witnessed a ping-pong game between Apple and the online music outlaws. The main condition to download songs in digital format using iTunes is preventing the copying of files on another support and this interdiction is applied using the DRM FairPlay system.
Jon Johansen, aka DVD Jon, is a Norwegian hacker famous for breaking the CSS protection system (Content Scrambling System) of DVDs.
He is also the maker of the PyMusique solution, the one that gave Apple so much trouble. This solution is presented like as an alternative to the iTunes interface and allows the buying of music files before they are protected by the anti-copying system.
Apple struck back after PyMusique, but DVD Jon created a new version. The faith of the files is not decided by Apple, each user being able to choose what's legal and what's not. The users have the opportunity to backup or copies usable for personal purposes.
Despite DVD Jon's efforts, the PyMusique solution is obviously breaking the rules imposed by the iTunes Music Store service, which establishes that the only way to download legally is by using the iTunes interface. So, everyone downloading music using the PyMusique solution is breaking these rules and the acquisition becomes illegal although the files have been paid for.
Still, the solution for a user to copy music which can be played at several locations (for personal purposes) is buying the CD and ripping it. In this way, excellent audio quality copies are obtained without the user taking any risks. The solution for decreasing the DRM influence is for everybody to stop acquiring music from virtual stores that distribute music in this way.