Hi All,

Self-destruct files to secure DVDs, CDs
New digital format aims to give firms their due

Tuesday, June 17, 2003 Posted: 10:31 AM EDT (1431 GMT)


LONDON, England (Reuters) -- If technology firms like Sony and Microsoft
have their way, songs and movies will expire after a single play -- unless
you pay the copyright holder their due. 

The technology that makes this possible -- known as digital rights
management, or DRM -- will forever change the way we consume media and
software, experts believe. 

Software and media companies continue to push new content security
initiatives, each plugging their own version of DRM that aims to protect
content from unwelcomed eyes. In the near future, e-mails, spread sheet
programs and Webpage content alike will be secured with digital locks. 

Sun Microsystems said this week it plans to roll out new software to
protect copyrighted content stored on mobile phones and smart cards.
Meanwhile, Warner Music, a division of CNN's parent company AOL Time
Warner, released the new Steely Dan album "Everything Must Go" on
CD and DVD Audio, the latter being an encrypted, "rip-proof"
format. 

The biggest market for content security is expected to be corporations,
government agencies and hospitals who need to keep sensitive data from
falling into the wrong hands. But so far, it's the media companies that
have made most noise about DRM. 

Piracy kickstarts the market

Ravaged by piracy, movie studios and recording labels have been fitting new
CD and DVD releases with layers of computer code with the aim of preventing
or limiting users' ability to copy, or "rip," them onto a blank
disc and trade online. 

Consumer electronics companies such as Sony and Nokia have stepped into the
mix too, installing DRM systems into new hi-fi systems and hand-held
devices to ensure copyrighted materials aren't reproduced and transferred
from gadget to gadget without consumers paying for it. 

The media barons insist that if consumers are going to listen to music and
view movie clips and news headlines on any gadget with a screen, then the
rights holders must be paid. 

Media firms acknowledge they are treading a sensitive line between
preserving copyrights and satisfying the consumer. A system that introduces
too many limitations will most certainly end in bad PR and a consumer
backlash. 

Celine won't sing

"We have to find ways to mitigate piracy caused by open [technology]
formats. But at the same time we have to meet consumer demand for these
formats," said Barney Wragg, vice president of Universal Music's
eLabs, a technology R&D unit for the world's largest record label. 

Last year, record label Sony Music came under fire when new European CD
releases by artists Celine Dion and Shakira wouldn't play on a PC or
Apple's Macintosh computer. 

We have to find ways to mitigate piracy caused by open [technology]
formats. But at the same time we have to meet consumer demand for these
formats.  
-- Barney Wragg, Universal Music's eLabs  
 
  
A lot of the early bugs have been dealt with, and record companies say they
will continue to roll out new copy-protected discs and offer online
downloads that expire after a few listens based on the latest DRM systems. 

But a large complication still looms -- the lack of unified standards. 

Bringing gadget makers onboard

DRM technologies come in a variety of flavors, pushed by device makers such
as Philips or software firms like Microsoft, which will equip its Office
2003 software suite with user controls designating who can print, copy or
forward data. 

Last year, Sony and Philips acquired Intertrust, the pioneering American
digital rights firm and holder of the most DRM patents, for $450 million.
The duo's clout, it is hoped, will bring gadget makers and software firms
onto the same page. 

"It's very important to have collaboration and not confuse the
consumer," said Mike Tsurumi, the European chief of Sony's electronics
arm. 



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