[opendtv] French Senate to debate future of online music services
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 1 May 2006 17:28:14 -0400
Interesting case of unintended consequences.
I guess French lawmakers view on-line music as being a public service,
much like radio and TV, where you don't expect to have content that is
exclusively for use by owners of one brand of playback device.
In some ways, this is not so different from the FCC's requirement that
cable system boxes be made available directly to consumers from local
retailers.
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Kennard/Statements/stwek845.html
A previously closed system being forced to be less closed, while still a
walled garden.
Bert
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French Senate to debate future of online music services
Junko Yoshida
(05/01/2006 1:08 PM EDT)
URL: http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=3D187002204
PARIS - The French Senate this week will conclude debate on a law that
could effectively shut down online music and video services in France
using digital rights management (DRM) systems exclusive to one company's
device-a category that includes Apple's iTune online music store and
Sony Connect.
The proposed revision to the copyright law, passed by the National
Assembly in March and to be debated Thursday (May 4) in the Senate,
would strike an egalitarian blow for the principle of interoperability.
It would require that any digital music or video purchased online be
playable in any existing device, regardless of brand.
France's attempt to update its copyright laws, in order to meet
standards established by the European Union, has suffered numerous
twists and turns. The proposed interoperability law, which goes beyond
any existing regulation, has fueled the software industry's ire and has
prompted Apple to accuse France of "state-sponsored piracy."
The French law offers leniency to users who download music and other
files illegally, while cracking down on software developers who write
and distribute programs to crack DRM protection. Included in the
proposed legislation is the demand that online music and video services
such as iTunes open up proprietary DRM systems. This would allow
customers to download songs onto devices other than iPods.
In an interview last week with the International Herald Tribune, Renaud
Donnedieu de Vabres, the French minister of culture, said: "I have
absolutely nothing against iTunes, and this is not some payback or
protectionism against a foreign company."
He continued, "We are simply defining a fundamental value and principle
that I believe will be demanded by Internet users and consumers."
With no single DRM industry standard, it remains unclear how France can
enforce a law that demands interoperability. Industry sources speculated
that the proposed regulation, if enacted, might force Apple to cease
digital music sales in France.
Any changes approved by the French Senate would have to be incorporated
into a compromise bill negotiated between the two houses of the French
Parliament.
The U.S. Commerce Department is backing Apple in the dispute.
All material on this site Copyright 2006 CMP Media LLC. All rights
reserved.
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