The following pieces are strong resources for investigating the strengths and weaknesses of Digital Rights Management in its current uses. They have been arranged by author.
“The Darknet and the Future of Content Distribution” by Peter Biddle, Paul England, Marcus Peinado, and Bryan Willman.
“We investigate the darknet – a collection of networks and technologies used to share digital content. The darknet is not a separate physical network but an application and protocol layer riding on existing networks…. The last few years have seen vast increases in the darknet’s aggregate bandwidth, reliability, usability, size of shared library, and availability of search engines. In this paper we categorize and analyze existing and future darknets, from both the technical and legal perspectives. ”
- My Thoughts: At first glance, this paper may seem quite dated. After all, it was published in 2002 when Napster was still fresh in everyone’s mind. But the predictions of Biddle, et al., have certainly held up to the test of a very tumultuous seven years in the history of e-publishing (which has seen the dawn of the Sony Reader, the Kindle, the Twitter, and .epub, not to mention the copyright litigation). Strangely enough, seven years hasn’t taken us as far as I think Biddle, et al., assumed it would. This is a must-read for anyone who doesn’t know what life was like before PCs (“Sneaker Net” anyone? I got a good laugh out of that until I realized I was just the demographic to needthat kind of wake-up call) and a great refresher for everyone else.
“Point-Counterpoint: On Digital Book DRM” by Peter Brantley
“There is increased interest among trade publishers in pursuing some sort of “interoperable digital rights management” (DRM) for digital ebooks. There are many unlikely allies, who think that achieving a little DRM encourages publishers to move into digital spheres, and gives them breathing room. I think this is a really bad idea, and I wanted to publicly detail a few reasons.”
- My Thoughts: Brantley looks at the technical, social, and business implications of an industry-standardized DRM system. He hits many traditional points of argument against DRM and expands his coverage to include more specific challenges like upgrading when technology improves. This article was written near the end of 2008 so it tends to be more on-the-mark than the “Darknet” article above while also reaffirming some of its findings.
Content by Cory Doctorow, particularly the following chapters
Microsoft Research DRM Talk: “I’m here today to talk to you about copyright, technology and DRM, I work for the Electronic Frontier Foundation on copyright stuff (mostly), and I live in London. I’m not a lawyer — I’m a kind of mouthpiece/activist type, though occasionally they shave me and stuff me into my Bar Mitzvah suit and send me to a standards body or the UN to stir up trouble. I spend about three weeks a month on the road doing completely weird stuff like going to Microsoft to talk about DRM. ”
The DRM Sausage Factory: “Otto von Bismarck quipped, “Laws are like sausages, it is better not to see them being made.” I’ve seen sausages made. I’ve seen laws made. Both pale in comparison to the process by which anti-copying technology agreements are made. This technology, usually called “Digital Rights Management” (DRM) proposes to make your computer worse at copying some of the files on its hard-drive or on other media. Since all computer operations involve copying, this is a daunting task — as security expert Bruce Schneier has said, “Making bits harder to copy is like making water that’s less wet.”
- My Thoughts: Doctorow is nothing if not gutsy. I think his Microsoft DRM talk must have made jaws hit the floor pretty hard. Both articles define exactly why he sees DRM in such a negative light, though “The DRM Sausage Factory” doesn’t apply so directly to e-publishing as other articles may. Doctorow certainly keeps his articles and talks entertaining–though a little more reined in than his blogs.
“Point-Counterpoint: Digital Book DRM, the Least Worst Solution” by Bill McCoy
“Now, let me say up front that I don’t think ebook DRM is “good good good” any more than I think that of taxation, standing armies, or the proliferation of nuclear technology. But although one may dislike taxation, one may dislike even more the likely consequences of eliminating taxes (diminished schools, roads, law enforcement, …). Peter’s post focused on negative attributes of DRM in isolation. But to me, the important thing is to look at likely outcomes given various scenarios…”
- My Thoughts: McCoy’s approach of looking at the consequences of ignoring DRM and fighting some sort of standardization is an eye opener. With all the voices insisting that DRM protections are bad and actually encourage more piracy than not, this article gives us a baby step the industry might actually be able to accept now without forcing the “horrors” of open content on reluctant publishers. Most importantly, McCoy notes that “personally, my goal is to see everything available digitally, for all people worldwide, as soon as possible, with a net positive effect on author and publisher revenue.” So you know, going in, that he is invested in the success of publishing as an art and a business.
“E-Publishing’s Ticking Time Bomb: DRM” by Bill Rosenblatt (Seybold Report, 2002)
*note, this article was accessed via the Academic Search Premier on EBSCOhost.*
“George Alexander’s piece in this issue on the rise of the IDPF ePub standard in this issue coincides with other evidence and press coverage’ heralding the resurgence–or for those who don’t believe the first wave amounted to much, the “surgence” — of ebooks. I’m not ready to believe the (re-)hype. I’ll believe it when I see angry, self-righteous blog posts complaining about e-book DRM. To be clear, I’m OK with a well-designed DRM that provides a decent consumer experience, while helping publishers preserve their rights and launch innovative business models.”
- My Thoughts: Rosenblatt theorizes that DRM offerings won’t diversify unless publishers “step in and take control of DRM for e-books.” He sees two possible consequences of continued publisher apathy: a “fragmented” market seen as hostile to consumers and market growth or a single-vendor world dominated by a company with the power to determine all licensing terms to publishers and users alike. I agree with his proposed solutions: a recognition of “the power that DRM has in achieving platform lock-in” and the involvement of publishers in “the development and economics of DRM.” All this, of course, is well-supported by Rosenblatt’s credentials: he is editor of Copyright and Technology at GiantSteps Media Technology Strategies and has recently published Digital Rights Management: Business and Technology.
