CRF Reveals Draft of New DRM Technology

scubacuda writes "PC Advisor and others report that the CRF (Content Reference Forum), a new, cross-industry standards organisation that boasts Universal Music Group, Microsoft, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT) and VeriSign among its members, has unveiled a new specification for a DRM technology. A draft of CRF Baseline Profile 1.0 is available for public review and comment." According to a report on CNET News, the "the [CRF-created] file would set up a process that automatically delivers files in the right format and potentially triggers an automatic payment system that could be changed moment to moment by the content distributor."

Change the law

[MichaelCrawford]

While the United States Constitution allows Congress to enact copyright laws, it doesn't require Congress to do so. Copyright could be repealed, and file sharing made legal tomorrow if you could just get the votes in Congress to do so.

If you think this couldn't happen, consider that more Americans use p2p filesharing applications than voted for George Bush.

Change the Law [goingware.com], from my article Links to Tens of Thousands of Legal Music Downloads [goingware.com], discusses the background of copyright law in the United States, and suggests steps you can take to reform copyright law. Among the steps I discuss are to Speak Out, Vote, Write to Your Elected Representatives, Donate Money to Political Campaigns, Support Campaign Finance Reform, Join the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Practice Civil Disobedience

Thank you for your attention.

It's not really much of a surprise...

[Anonymous Coward]

...that Microsoft wants to have a hand in the "standard DRM", you know, in light of their upcoming digital music service [slashdot.org]

Re:Scary

[dekashizl]

A lot of people who don't read places like slashdot would be equally concerned if they knew what was going on. They need to be educated, its why democracy works, and why it fails when it doesn't occur.

Democracy works fine without education. The problem is mob-rule where the whims and impulses of social consciousness determine policies that are often short-sighted and dangerous.

This is one reason why we (U.S.A.) have a representative democracy (as opposed to direct democracy). A filtering layer of responsibility prevents horrible things from happening.

I actually think our democracy would work better if people were uneducated. Our education system now is broken, serving to indoctrinate political and cultural agendas far more than impart any useful knowledge.

At least if we acknolwedged this fact and focused our efforts on useful propoganda for our youth rather than bickering with school boards and burned out teachers and still having no consensus on morality, ethics, history, or even current events, then we might have a chance of generating good voters.

As it stands now, kids in school learn mostly how to fight and how to memorize trivia for short periods of time. If our country was a giant game show with a fighting round followed by a quiz round, then we'd be all set.

Re:Change the law

[penguinoid]

I think copyright should be restricted. For example, a software copyright should last only less then 5 years, or software cannot be copyrighted if you do not show the code. Something that will allow copyright to recoup for expenses, but not be abused.

Because it's what the consumers want!

[forevermore]

Last night, I got a worried IM from a younger cousin of mine. His mom had "cleaned up" their computer, and he was having trouble sending some wmv/rm files to friends of his. Windows Media Player kept giving him and his friends errors along the line of "I'm sorry, but you don't have a license to play that file." Of course, I immediately knew what was going on, and explained to him that Windows was just trying to prevent him from making illegal copies of music. The problem is, the files he was trying to share were of his band, off of their own demo CD. At that point, I pointed him to xiph and enlightened him about ogg vorbis.

Re:Scary

[Anonymous Coward]

Educate the people all you want! But if you live in the USA, don't educate them within 60 days of an election. Telling people what canidate favors what is a FEDERAL CRIME [washingtonpost.com] for everyone but the big media monopolies. Ain't that strange...

Songwriters own copyrights too

[tepples]

The problem is, the files he was trying to share were of his band

Actually, he might not have the right to distribute those files. He needs the songwriter's OK to distribute a recording of a song. And if he is the songwriter, he needs a professional musicologist's OK, or else what happened to George Harrison [columbia.edu] might happen to him.

Re:Error in your dystopia

[certron]

"Punishments too light. Expect life jail sentences, extension of liability to family, friends, and unlimited fines, all to be determined by the copyright holders."

One thing that I found quite interesting when watching it again, in the movie Aliens, the whole thing is a corporate wonderland! 40-odd years ago you forgot to do your maintenance on that one motor-spinny-thing? We'll have to fine you $3,000! The whole military / corporate trial was really scary, and I don't know why I didn't pick up on it the first time I saw it. So this is a little OT, but the arbitrariness of the sentences (and resulting bargaining) may be something we'll see more in the open soon...