“The French National Assembly approved a digital copyright bill on Tuesday that will require DRM (digital rights management) developers to reveal details of their technology to rivals that wish to build interoperable systems. The bill could affect the FairPlay DRM used by Apple Computer Inc. in its iTunes Music Store and iPod music players, and Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Media DRM, used by rival French music stores Fnac.com and Virginmega.fr to lock downloaded tracks to particular music players,” Peter Sayer reports for IDG News Service. “Deputies voted to approve the bill, ‘Authors’ rights and related rights in an information society,’ by 286 votes to 193. The bill now goes to the Senate for a second reading [expected to begin in early May], and a vote, before it becomes law.”
Full article here.
“Apple has so far refused to comment on the bill or on analysts’ suggestions that the Cupertino, Calif.-based company might choose to withdraw from the French online music market rather than share the proprietary technology at the heart of its business model. Representatives for Apple France did not return calls Tuesday,” Laurence Frost reports for The Associated Press. “Under the bill, companies would be required to reveal the secrets of hitherto-exclusive copy-protection technologies such as Apple’s FairPlay format and the ATRAC3 code used by Sony’s Connect store and Walkman players. That could permit consumers for the first time to download music directly to their iPods from stores other than iTunes, or to rival music players from iTunes France.”
Full article here.
Earlier this morning, MacDailyNews reader “john” wrote us with an interesting idea. “The French can’t specifically force Apple to give up selling AAC files specifically, but it can force it to find a way to make its iPod [and iTunes Store] somehow interoperable with other [services and devices] in France. Apple could provide its French customers exclusively with a collection of its iTunes catalog in the MP3 format in addition to providing the same catalog in the AAC format (MP3’s with whatever DRM that may or may not be required as per the music labels desire, since the music labels seem to be ok with this new idea). And in the iTune’s download interface for French users only, allow they to choose whichever format they wanted- be it AAC or MP3. If Apple’s competitors wanted to sell files that worked seamlessly with the iPod, all they’d have to do is to provide those files in the MP3 format. Beyond that, everything else would remain exactly the same. In all the ways that matters, Apple would be in full compliance with the new French law, Apple’s competitors would still not have direct access to either FairPlay or the iPod, and there’d be nothing the French could do about it.
Advertisements:
• Apple’s brand new iPod Hi-Fi speaker system. Home stereo. Reinvented. Available now for $349 with free shipping.
• Apple’s new Mac mini. Intel Core, up to 4 times faster. Starting at just $599. Free shipping.
• MacBook Pro. The first Mac notebook built upon Intel Core Duo with iLife ’06, Front Row and built-in iSight. Starting at $1999. Free shipping.
• iMac. Twice as amazing — Intel Core Duo, iLife ’06, Front Row media experience, Apple Remote, built-in iSight. Starting at $1299. Free shipping.
• iPod Radio Remote. Listen to FM radio on your iPod and control everything with a convenient wired remote. Just $49.
• iPod. 15,000 songs. 25,000 photos. 150 hours of video. The new iPod. 30GB and 60GB models start at just $299. Free shipping.
• Connect iPod to your television set with the iPod AV Cable. Just $19.
No need to convert to WMA, ATRAC, etc. since these are proprietary formats.
All Apple needs to do is tweak their burn-to-CD utility in iTunes. Instead of actually burning to a CD, it would save it to hard disk as a standard non-proprietary CD audio file. Apple has done their part and complied with the law. If a non-iPod user wishes to convert the standard non-proprietary CD audio file to a lossy WMA, ATRAC, MP3, OGG, etc. file then that is their perogative. This may not be in the spirit of the law, but this would be within the letter of the law.
WITHDRAW. Simple as that.
Wait for French consumers to let the government know if they appreciate their stand.
70% of every other market is worth more than the Fr market in total. There is no law that directs Apple to sell into the French market.
I don’t recall the French directing Sony to make their VHS tapes play in a Betamax player. They are also not the only reseller of music so the monopoly is not there.
That law simply needs to be reworded to circumvent the MDN take/
“France Still Sucks”
Its not about paying back debt. My point is that the US and France hav ev been natural allies on several occasions. They’re often reviled in parts of the world for the same reason.
In short, they don’t like each other because they’re so alike.
Is this why Apple´s stock is dropping so much????
The other indirect effect of this law would be that would give French-based music portals more of an advantage against foreign based companies like Apple, Microsoft and Sony. The French government has a well documented history in passing laws that help national artists and media companies; for example, the French law that requires that a minimum of 50% of ALL music played on French radio stations be in French, as a means to “preserve French identity”. Such a law does not exist anywhere else in the Western world.
This isn’t French-bashing, this is a fact.
The socialist French are closet commies – they do not believe in the rights of creators.
Hank,
I’m sure it is the reason.
For example, this new French law is the main story in the BBC business news, and they talk about nothing but the problems this could cause Apple, and the fact that it could ‘spread’ to other countries.
I’m actually jealous. You guys are bashing France, when in fact, their gov’t has done something designed to make things better for their citizens. Why can’t our gov’t stand up to the crap the RIAA and MPAA dish out. Why does our gov’t instead pass a law like the DMCA?
DRM is not about copy protection. Its about vendor lock-in. And if you think that Apple would give up their DRM if the RIAA didn’t require it, you’re stupider than I thought.
” and there’d be nothing the French could do about it.”
Except pass yet another law.
We in the USA are perfect-how can anyone question it? Why, with our policies on global warming, war in Iraq, and our incrediblely liberal social policies toward the poor and minorities, not to mention being the envy of the world in emergency responses to disasters, how dare anyone take exception to us!!
People seem to have missed something else, as well. Microsoft dropped WMPlayer for Macintosh recently – wouldn’t this law require them to provide a player for Macintosh computers to play their files?
Or would the flip4mac software qualify?
This proposed law is so confused that it’s hard to make sense of the actual implications. The proposals have changed radically in the last week or so and will probably change a lot more before a final law is passed. I’ve followed this story as it twists and tuns and I now don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing. Different reports contradict each other.
Apple might already be in compliance because it allows CDs to be burnt and re-ripped to remove DRM, so iTMS tracks can already be played on any player.
If the French insist that the DRM must be open to others, then I think the way forward for Apple would be to adopt a special standard in France and anywhere else that adopts similar laws. They should use AAC, which is an open standard which isn’t supported by many other players and they should adopt an open DRM system to add on to it. Then they can share the secrets of that DRM with anybody who they must, they will still keep AAC/FairPlay proprietary and the AAC/openDRM format won’t be able to be used on many other players, so they still lock in their customers, but into a standard that they can reveal to others without danger of losing their valuable secrets.
Somehow, the word French and the word lawmaker do not sound very well together in a sentence.
Eff France.
They have enough to worry about – militant Muslims, no work for the younger generation. Let them focus on the fact that they will most likely be completely overrun by unmwanted immigration.
Chris:
fsck off back to your racist world.
Bigot.
“Let them focus on the fact that they will most likely be completely overrun by unmwanted immigration.”
Uhhh, Chris — look around.
We’re being overrun, too.
Oh, and Charlie, I think I can speak for both Chris and myself when I say . . .
Ooooooooohhhh, we’re soooooooooo scared!
Abre los ojos, dipshit.
Zeke:
Ha, ha! WRONG WAY ROUND… dummy! The French are way more productive than we Americans. Despite your basic arithmetic being flat wrong, add to that the average working week in the US is over 40 hours and in France it’s 35.
They produce MORE in fewer working hours.
You people give American education a bad name. Do some research before posting inaccurate and factually untrue comments.
Just close the ITUNES store that services France, their politicians will cave when the public throws a fit. They always do. This isn’t racism, it’s just historical fact. Look at how many times the leaders of France have caved in to public demand in the past. It’s a given.
I think this is more likely to happen
That Sony, Microsoft, Apple and Real will all simutaneously pull out of the French market.
Why?
It’s not about interoperatability of the DRM, but the hardware requirements needed to do it.
Then of course all the licensing fee’s to use each others DRM’s will be passed on in higher songs costs.
Message to the French, AllofMP3.com.
Al Apple has to do is argue that when music is purchased legally from their store, that people have the option to burn a audio cd which can be imported into any other competitors music software and devices.
So Apple is not preventing interoperatability of their DRMed music with any other service because the lowest common non-DRMed method is still supported.
Except the files in MP3 format would have no DRM and the music labels will not let anyone sell music online without some sort of DRM. So I believe Apple will just pull it’s store from France and let France whine about there lack of music sales. Apple doesn’t have to do anything at all and they certainly won’t give the DRM key they developed fair and square to anyone, period. France can kiss online music sales goodbye as far as iPod compatible ones that is. So let the PtoP file sharing and piracy and black market begin in France. Viva la france! You’ve just started the biggest piracy party of music in your country. Congrats!
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”tongue wink” style=”border:0;” />
Why are people complaining about this law? I like the idea of being able to convert WMA DRM songs to AAC/Fairplay. Now few people who were misguided to purchase “play for sure” player and WMA DRM songs can switch to iPod without losing all their songs coded in WMA DRM.
Apple and Record Labels may not like this law, but seem to me it is good for consumers.
Or, Apple can just simply withdraw the iTMS from the French market. My money says that’s precisely what they’ll do.
Can someone explain to me why it’s ok for Micro$oft to sell Office with proprietary file formats that will not interoperate with other Office-like systems in France, but Apple can’t use their DRM for the music? Or MS servers that close out other OS’s? Or Internet Explorer, with its horribly buggy “extensions” of the web standards, to force out other browsers? Or …
This law is garbage. Either require everyone to publish the formats or shut up.