You all know I hate DRM. Well it looks like Apple has followed through with the open letter Steve Jobs released last month about iTunes and DRM free music. Bringing EMI along with them, next month EMI is going to release their entire catalog DRM free, which includes iTunes. Hurrah for EMI. I finally have a reason to buy some music on iTunes.

Today saw a some interesting papers about DRM and piracy on the internets. First, Bennett Lincoff, an IP law attorney released an open letter to Steve Jobs and the RIAA in a sort of response to the open letter Steve Jobs released last week. Second, a study reported by ars technica found that the effect P2P networks have on legal music sales are "not statistically distinguishable from zero".

In an open letter Steve Jobs says its the Music Labels who are pushing DRM not Apple. Ars Technica with the summary.

I'm sick and tired of the Music Industry. The CD is dead, long live Vinyl. Hurry and catch up with the rest of us: Microsoft, Real, Apple. You can't expect to milk us forever with your restrictive DRM infected media. Stop hurting the many of us who are legitimate by preventing those few who would use DRM free media to pirate. If your thinking sure the CD is dead we can still get you with our online services, statistics show that most music is still bought hard copy, from Walmart no less. Even if that is still a CD, its inevitable, the CD is dead. The fastest growing online music retailer is Emusic, a DRM free service. Not after the success of Vinyl and CDs which were easy to share whenever we wanted however we wanted will we go to restricted media. We will leave you in the dust if we have to.

Update 2007-10-02: Added link to Slashdot story.

Tom Delay doesn't think the Judicial branch is a check and balance over the Legislative branch, George W. Bush thinks he is above congress and its laws. What's going on in this country? Are we slowly loosing the checks and balances that keep this country great and stable?

As always I rail against the notion of DRM and the media industries use of copyright to limit the rights of consumers. I thought this piece on the BBC had an interesting overview of how DRM won't work and the realities that the media industries need to wake up to unless they want to die.

Gaming is good for you! For every article out there about game violence and ADD there's an article about military applications for gaming and hand eye coordination.

The US space exploits continues to depress.

Round 5
everyone else 5, Microsoft 0
Microsoft delays Windows Vista again.

On another tech note you can read this interview of Tim Berners-Lee.

Notable: Chatology

MPAA gets ripped a new one during an sxsw session. Listen to the audio. Organ harvesting Chinese Concentration Camps. Did the Blackstar exist? Should we have open internet tests?

Notable: Chatology

Here's this weeks blogs I found interesting: That's right Christopher Walken seems to be running for president, Paul Montgomery complains about the Gillmor Gang podcast (my comments: 1), Human vs. Animal Charity (my comments: 1, 2), The Death of the Movie Blockbuster (my comments: 1), Wonkette: Chatology, Tech you didn't know you needed?, Daily Kos comments on FISA