“Nokia Corp. has agreed to license Microsoft Corp.’s new PlayReady DRM (digital rights management) technology,” John Blau reports for IDG News Service.
“The deal extends Nokia’s existing copy protection offerings, which include Windows Media DRM 10 and OMA DRM (Open Alliance Mobile DRM), Steven Knuff, a spokesman at Nokia’s multimedia division, said Monday,” Blau reports.
“Nokia plans to support PlayReady across a range of devices using the S60 and S40 user interface platforms beginning in 2008,” Blau reports.
“Knuff declined to comment on whether the most recent DRM agreement with Microsoft would have an impact on Nokia’s rumored plans to launch an online music and mobile content store, following the company’s acquisition of U.S. digital music distributor Loudeye Corp.,” Blau reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Note: Nokia employs the Symbian OS.
Research from Canalys (Feb. 07) states that total smart phone shipments for 2006 totaled 64.1 million.
Canalys estimated 2006 smart phone operating system market share as follows:
• Symbian: 67% share (42.947 million units)
• Microsoft: 14% share (8.974 million units)
• RIM: 7% (4.487 million units)
• Linux: 6% (3.846 million units)
• ACCESS/PalmSource with the Garnet OS: 5% (3.205 million units)
Apple’s publicly-stated goals: 1 million iPhones by the end of this quarter, 10 million iPhones in 2008.
All of Microsoft’s protocols involving the word “Play” remind me of the scene from “The Simpsons” where Roger Meyers, the president of Itchy & Scratchy Inc., appears on a home shopping network.
Meyers: Troy, I’m proud to offer your viewers these hand-drawn Itchy and Scratchy animation cels. Each one is absolutely, positively, 100% guaranteed to increase in value.
Voiceover: Not a guarantee.
“PlayReady”? Who comes up with these names?
Is there even anything playable on mobile technology (or any technology for that matter) that is even worth the effort of developing DRM for it.
Methinks all these people scrambling for a Holy Grail” of DRM value their product far, far more than it is actually worth.
Talk about DRM reminds me of every discussion I’ve heard about sex.
They usually devolve into two screeching camps. The anal retentive, typically politically conservative, religion-dominated, “unmarried sex is a sin” lemmings (often joined in political lockstep with their anal retentive, typically politically liberal, sociatal dominated, “sex is the same as rape” hare-brained cousins) vs. the equally hare-brained, advocates of the “lifestyle” and hedonists of every other stripe.
I have come to the conclusion that what they are…is two sides of the same coin. Both parties are neurotically, pathelogically obsessed with sex.
Like DRM, both sides are obsessed with something that just isn’t that important…in the long run and the grand scheme of things.
The log run could be 5 years, 10 years, 50, a hundred, or more, but eventually it (be it sex or DRM) will not matter.
And as for the grand scheme of things?
The Universe doesn’t care.
IMHO.
Nokia actually announced this as marketing move to attract customers? Are they stupid?
>”It’s all about choice,” Knuff said. “If customers want a particular DRM technology, then we’ll provide it.”
There goes the “choice” angle again. Choice in DRM is like choice in which pair of handcuffs to wear. And to think, Nokia’s customers actually asked for a “particular CRM technology.”
@nobodi
That was a lot of noise for “doesn’t care.” Do you think the Universe cared about your comment? Just comments dude! Everyone is entitled!!
“Ready to Play” is an obvious attempt to re-brand “Plays for Sure”. Microsoft has a long history of re-branding the same product over and over and over again, in an attempt to make it look like something new.
A good example of re-re-re-branding…
Microsoft on your telly: a history of the company’s Internet TV strategy
http://www.last100.com/2007/07/11/microsoft-on-your-telly-a-history-of-the-companys-internet-tv-strategy/
No, no one is asking for a particular DRM technology. Nokia just sees the danger in Apple taking the cell phone market like they did the music player market and bet on the most likely player to trump them, Microsoft. The only problem with this plan is that Microsoft hasn’t been able to trump Apple yet, and it is looking increasingly bad for them (despite what they pay journalist to say.)
Nokia would better be suited for playing DRM free m4p’s that can be purchased from the iTunes store and making sure their phones sink with iTunes flawlessly.
(Many music players sink with iTunes. iTunes was around long before the iPod.)
Idiot, without sex you would not be here.
Are you irrevalent?
Lousy anology, wasn’t it?
Okay, folks, what comes after Play Ready?
Plays Fer Sherrr
Plays Fer Sherrr – Totally Awesome Edition
Plays If You Feed Quarters Through a Slot and Watch Through a Peephole
Plays With You – Latex Edition
Plays When It Bloody Well Feels Like It
Plays if you’re a good boy – spiked leather edition
Or, will they go for… Pay Per Squirt?
Nokia and the Dark Side…heheh. Bad move. Eventual death knell for the [MDN-MW] company.
Squirts for Sure.
Pay to Squirt.
Play for Squirts.
Sure It Plays.
I reckon they should just call the new DRM tech “Fer Shur!”
Microsoft Fer Shur!
Windows Fer Shur Edition.
Windows Sucks Fer Shur!!!
Nokia…Microsoft…. This is a Mac news site?