What would the end of DRM do for Zune?
  One of the biggest issues regarding digital music right now is DRM. Recently, we have seen that the industry is strongly reacting to Steve Jobs open letter concerning DRM. EMI Group is thinking about making all their digital tracks DRM-free. But what would the loss of DRM mean for Zune. We will discuss the pros and cons of DRM on Zune.
 The biggest hassles of DRM on Zune is caused due to Zune’s unique sharing feature. Currently the sharing feature is a pain for users because of the 3play/3day rule that has been implemented. We also have seen some other issues with the sharing feature, such as not being able to share certain songs. If DRM were to be removed, then we would no longer see restrictions on the music we share. But, the record industry (RIAA) may feel that this is similar to practices like P2P services and get Microsoft to block the sharing feature all together. So the end of DRM could either be positive or negative for the sharing feature depending on how RIAA feels about it. But looking at the past, chances are high that RIAA will ask Microsoft to lock up the sharing feature.
 Another issue is in regards to the Zune Marketplace. We may have to say goodbye to Zune Pass because unlimited downloads is strictly available due to DRM restrictions. If DRM is eliminated chances are that ZunePass will be a thing of the past along with other music subscription services from other providers. Ultimately this will be a loss of a great feature of the Zune Marketplace and make it exactly like the iTunes Store. However, it is expected that songs will be slightly cheaper if the DRM was removed. So this can either be good or bad for user depending on what they use it for.
 The only real positive result is that you will be able to buy your music from any provider and play it on the Zune. But from a general standing point, it appears that DRM may actually be a good thing for the Zune.
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[…] Original post by Saran […]
Well i think DRM is cool!
Come on who else agrees with me?
I am a bit fan of DRM, I don’t reallly care if I actually own music or movies for that matter. I just want to be able to use it wherever I want for one low monthly fee.
People who collect things a re generally pack rats. Set yourself free with DRM!
I think that DRM is a nice feature, but for musicians like myself, it’s hard to share your music with your friends to promote your music. Everyone has to come back to me to get our tracks on their Zune. It’s kinda frustrating but I understand the importance of DRM for the Zune marketplace.
wow, it sounds like microsoft paid you some good money to make this website to get whoever owns a zune to think having your rights when it comes ot music taken away is cool. how can i get a job like that? did you really put this website together because you have that much compassion for the zune? you make fun of people for being pack rate, how big of a loser are you to put together such a nice site unless you were getting paid some good money.
That would be sooo awesome. Imagine being able to send full Songs to people with none of the stupid 3 plays in 3 days stuff.
You just got my hopes up :(
the zune is the best. Now as a pirate drm is bad, but when i think about the market place, i love it. hope ms keeps it on.
drm is one of the stupidest things ever invented. i dont know about you, but I want to be able to download it from other sources than the marketplace. i have found many cheaper sources that would save me a lot of time and money when it comes to downloading.
I don’t mind DRM. I just wish everyone would agree on one universal DRM so that we can have a choice of who to download from and also enable more competition in the market and thus hopefully cheaper prices.
I am sure companies can figure a way to keep media sharing/ pirating under control.