Lawmakers in France are considering a law that would, among other things, force Apple to open its FairPlay DRM, making the iPod and iTunes interoperable with other music players and online music outfits.
The Associated Press outlines Apple’s options if the law passes:
1. Apple could look for technical solutions to comply with the new law in France while maintaining its format exclusivity elsewhere. Sales from iTunes sites are already restricted to local markets using credit card details. But preventing newly interoperable iPods from being used outside the ‘walled garden’ would be much harder — although shipping them with French-only software could help.
2. Apple could simply drag its feet over compliance and wait to be sued. Court proceedings are long, damages relatively light, and class action lawsuits are impossible in France. Apple might figure that iPod + iTunes profits would dwarf the penalties it could face.
3. Apple could withdraw from France, Europe’s third-largest music download market, or threaten to withdraw while seeking a change in the law.
Full article here.
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Related articles:
French law that would force Apple to open iTunes Music Store to non-iPod devices far from settled – March 17, 2006
If passed, French law would force Apple to open iTunes Music Store to non-iPod devices – March 15, 2006
Law that could have forced Apple to open iTunes Music Store to non-iPod devices blocked in France – March 14, 2006
French law would force Apple to open iTunes Music Store to non-iPod devices – March 13, 2006
Forget the French! Just withdraw.
We should just oui oui on on them.
Great business advice Greg. NOT!
Withdrawing from the market should be the last resort. There’s a lot of money at stake.
Well, couldn’t Apple also meet any legal obligation arising from the proposed law by just licensing the use of FairPlay DRM software or iTunes to other select companies selling mp3 players in France? Or license the use of other DRM software for use on French-sold iPods only?
for ‘open minded’ computer users the posters on here can be pretty small minded on this matter.
Let them buy Zens. Block all French telco IPs. If they want to live in a bubble let them. Boycott France. It’s all about the bottom line. If USA boycotts their products in the USA, then they take their law and rip it up.
Just leave? Quit when the going gets hard… yup, that sounds just like what the FRENCH would do!
It is my understanding that the DRM is there due to the music industry and the deal to license music to Apple’s iTunes??
Right or wrong?
Does not anyone get this right?
From what I have read (through several sources, though I must admit my French is quite rusty) of the details of the law, it (the proposed law) in absolutely no way forces Apple (or anyone else for that matter) to supply competing formats or media without DRM attached. Neither Apple nor anyone else will be forced to provide media for other systems. (Where would you draw the line? If a small French company were to start building, shipping and selling some device that only played some obscure format with an even more obscure DRM attached would every media provider have to make all their available media [every song, every video, etc.] in that format too?)
As I understand the proposed law (which looks like it won’t pass anyway as opposition appears to be mounting against it), it merely makes it legal to strip DRM off the media without penalty if the stripping is only for personal use so you can play the content on your player which does not support the original DRM. (There are also provisions in the law for specific penalties if you do this for some other reason than for purely personal use.)
This in no way will force Apple to change the way it does business in France.
What **MIGHT** happen is the music and movie industries *may* go to Apple and all the other major content distributors and pressure them to stop selling in France. The only people that **MIGHT** be hurt are the law, if it is enacted, are the music and movie industries and other content generation groups. If they continue to provide content to Apple, Napster, Real, etc. then Apple and the others won’t have an issue with this law if it is enacted. I doubt these groups will stop providing content to Apple, etc., but in theory they could could.
I predict Apple would withdraw or threaten too if the law is passed. Therefore leaving the french with no music download choices for those who own an iPod. It may cause another french revolution who knows. I seriously doubt Apple would even consider the first two choices at all. There within there rights to use the technology they developed since the record companies said they would not let them sell the music without DRM. So the French should go after the record companies since there the ones inforcing the DRM for there music.
Don’t you see what is happening? This is just the beginning, first france makes these demands, then once they win, eventually Microsoft will start dumping money into trials all over the world to force Apple to lose grip over the music industry. This can’t be a good thing. Apple may have no choice but to withdraw. Whatever they do, opening the DRM or Licensing it will only concede defeat to Microsoft and it will be yet another closed and crappy Microsoft victory.
Withdrawing is childish. They should drag their feet, and wait for a lawsuit – that’s the mature thing to do (seriously, it is).
=]
Wrong!! let the French iPod users get off their asses and show their support. If not, they can go across the border and use internet cafes to get their music.
Are members of the French govt being paid by Apple competitors?
Just don’t do a French version. Doesn’t prevent French people from buying over the internet. Easy, just don’t restrict by country. Allow iTunes users to access ANY countrys store, not just their regional one (which is the way it should be anyway).
F the French.
Embargo the French.
Ah…just ignore em, they’ll go away. Always do.
Oh holy mother of ggggg
ThankYouSteve.com
Now you can buy the T-Shirts, like I really want too.
Steve Jobs has been out of Apple for most of it’s existance, but I guess it’s worth crediting him for 30 years of computing experience.
see here and don’t take this act of normalcy lightly
http://www.thankyousteve.com/index.html
Class action lawsuits are possible in France. A law allowing them has been voted in 2005.
“…it merely makes it legal to strip DRM off the media without penalty if the stripping is only for personal use so you can play the content on your player which does not support the original DRM.”
– Hmmm, if what you say is true, then I think it would be a very good thing if this law were passed.
“What **MIGHT** happen is the music and movie industries *may* go to Apple and all the other major content distributors and pressure them to stop selling in France.”
– Now if this law were to be adopted in other major countries as well, would the music and movie industries have much of a choice in the matter? Would they stop providing content completely and lose out on potentially billions of dollars just because they can’t enforce DRM? They may be stupid, but I don’t think they would go that far. In the end, this may be a very good thing for the consumer.
What Geo said is the best idea. Apple must license Fairplay. It is a good idea for users because then consumers have a wider choice of where to buy. It is a good idea for Apple because each licensee has to pay Apple a fee based on sales so Apple makes money on all sales even if the other services eventually eclipse iTMS. It is good for Microsoft because it would make WMA obsolete (that’s a good thing). It is good for Real because it would make Real Audio obsolete (same again). It is good for the French because they can claim they were the ones who caused it to happen. It is good for the Labels because now every download service would be using the same compatible service but the Labels didn’t get to choose which (this is good because it steals power away from the Labels). It is good because it would reduce global warming (not completely sure about this one). This is a win, win, win, win, win, win, win all around.
That being said, if I don’t like IE on my version of Windows I should be able to fully uninstall it and only use Firefox because IE is not part of Windows.
The difference between Apple’s monopoly of iPod/iTunes is that theirs is one derived from customer choice on which product they purchase based on friends recommendations and advertising and marketing influences. Apple also develops both the hardware and software. Microsoft OTOH only develops Windows to run on any manufactures hardware so they should legaly allow anyother software maker to also run their apps next to Windows such as web browsers (yes I know it is an old argument). Not allowing this to happen is what creates an illegay monopolistic advantage.
If you don’t want to play your music on an iPod then don’t buy one. Or better still go and support the RIAA and buy a CD for every device that you want to play your music on.
you seems to know a lot about the french Of course you have never been insulting france when you have nothing else to say …
this forum is about Apple product not politics
F*imax
Screw the French.
Stay in France and get a law suit.
Then when suit is filed, don’t cut off the music store and iPod sales, limit them.
100 iPods a day will be sold in France.
100 songs will be sold in France.
You will only be able to buy on someones birthday.
Your second aunts birthday.
Steve Jobs will sing all songs sold in France.
He will sing off key.
He will sing in a foriegn dialect of an isolated tribe in Sout America.
The French are going to back down.
Espeacially when everyone learns that Steve Jobs hacked into every nuclear facility in America.
They will beg for mercy.
Steve will consider it.
@Shadowself
Thank you for at least looking at the law and reading beyond these jingoistic morons’ comments.
For all you fsckwits out there, shadowself is correct. There doesn’t seem to be anything in the law that would force Apple (or the other suppliers) to produce the files in other formats.
NEITHER would it for Apple to supply the software to do the “stripping” of Fairplay.
I’m English living in the French Caribbean and can tell you that your analysis so far is just plain wrong!
MDN Magic Word: Attack, as in “Attack anything that moves.”, like your fsckbrained president.
I’ll take car of those lily-livered, limp-wristed cheese-eating surrender monkies.
Looky here . . .
[cocks, loads]
Where are they? Where the fu- [Noise]
BLAM! . . . BLAM! BLAM!!
HAH! Bastards.
I believe this is another attempt by the French to preserve their culture. Roughly 10 years ago this same group of “leaders” mandated that ALL radio stations in France play a MINIUMUM of 8 hours of French language music/programming EVERY day. This completely pissed off all the progressive stations in France.
Here we go again. iTunes allows the French consumer to purchase a wide range of music of which a small percentage (representive of the infuence, or lack thereof, of the French language in the world today) is in the native French language.
How do the French deal with this “threat?” By trying to push it out of their country. Apple will surely leave the French market if this bill as interpreted above passes. No way they make an exception. Not worth it…in an age when technology is changing so fast…
I agree it is a pitty that the French language is threatened. But there is a better way to insure it’s longevity. Create! Lead! Grow! in the arts, music, literature, entertainment. Make people want to learn French. Forcing your current French speakers to listen to French when there are far more interesting things going on in the non-French speaking parts of the world is just sad. I remember 20 years ago when most people chose to learn French as a second language. Now, I’d guess French is a distant 6 or seventh place…