DRM: The Weakest Link? An Analysis of Why DRM Isn’t WorkingGenerator Research LimitedDecember 11, 2006 15 Pages - SKU: GS1397544 |
Over the last few years nearly 10,000 indie labels have licensed their music to eMusic for sale without DRM. This online music store has done a fine job building its brand around DRM-free indie music and is the second largest online music store in the U.S. and Europe, currently selling over 5 million downloads per month. It is clear that the winds of change are blowing across the DRM landscape and the pro-DRM consensus shared by the major record labels a few years ago is now showing the first signs of cracking. This report analyses whether DRM might a broken technology, perhaps at a conceptual level, in terms of its implementation or both. The report first provides a detailed explanation of the process used by the industry to define the requirements for DRM, which has resulted in a range of non-interoperable technologies that impose visible usage restrictions on consumers. The report then looks at the implications for online music retailers and device brands - including Apple - if the industry migrated to a new regime where music was supplied without DRM. The report explains that this strategy might have an unexpected outcome. Finally, the report asks whether DRM needs to be repurposed: perhaps the technology’s first application - rights management - needs to give way to its true role as the enabler of a digital media ecosystem. |
Related Markets
Internet Security Reports
- The Future of Information Security - Markets & Technologies Outlook - 2012-2018
- Worldwide Messaging Security 2011-2015 Forecast and 2010 Vendor Shares: Content Is King
- Worldwide Web Security 2011-2015 Forecast and 2010 Vendor Shares: From Surfing Police to Strategic Security Platform
- United Parents Private Vendor Watchlist Profile: Protecting Children Online Using Community-Driven Knowledge
- IAM Market Forecast to 2013
