Steve Jobs - Thoughts on Music
Jobs goes on the offensive right on the apple website:Apple - Thoughts on Music. I haven’t been playing close attention, but a number of reports of the EU coming down heavy on Apple’s DRM (Digital Rights Management) restrictions have been popping up. Jobs response is clear…. it is not us, it is the record companies, and they’re largely European… so get off our backs and look in your own back yard… hee hee.
Much of the concern over DRM systems has arisen in European countries. Perhaps those unhappy with the current situation should redirect their energies towards persuading the music companies to sell their music DRM-free. For Europeans, two and a half of the big four music companies are located right in their backyard. The largest, Universal, is 100% owned by Vivendi, a French company. EMI is a British company, and Sony BMG is 50% owned by Bertelsmann, a German company. Convincing them to license their music to Apple and others DRM-free will create a truly interoperable music marketplace. Apple will embrace this wholeheartedly.