FC: Nathan Cochrane on BMG and crippled music CDs

From: Declan McCullagh (declanat_private)
Date: Wed Nov 06 2002 - 22:35:49 PST

  • Next message: Declan McCullagh: "FC: Consumer Alert on digital technology, consumers, copyright"

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    Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2002 11:41:40 +1100
    From: Nathan Cochrane <ncochraneat_private>
    Reply-To: ncochraneat_private
    Organization: The Age newspaper
    
    Hi Declan
    
    According to the Reg, BMG says it will make only crippled music CDs from 
    now on. These CDs don't work in many home stereos and car CD players, and 
    even Philips has expressed its anger. BMG is unrepetent and claims its CDs 
    are fully Redbook (audio CD standard) compliant and will continue to use 
    the CD-logo, a trademark owned by Philips and used under license.
    
    It may be possible under consumer laws in many countries for disgruntled 
    consumers to return these discs as if they were faulty, especially if the 
    CDs are not clearly labelled as not being classic music CDs.
    
    This is something Australian consumer watchdogs have tracked and doubtless 
    standards groups, such as Standards Australia and equivalent bodies 
    elsewhere in the world, would have opinions.
    
    More:
    
    'No more music CDs without copy protection,' claims BMG unit
    By John Lettice
    Posted: 06/11/2002 at 11:28 GMT
    Faced with adverse publicity to copy protection on CDs, a year ago 
    Bertelsmann Music Group bravely gave in and promised to replace a clutch of 
    Natalie Imbruglia CDs which were protected by Midbar's Cactus Data Shield. 
    But a year is a long time, BMG is at it again, this time apparently set on 
    applying copy protection to all its music products.
    http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/54/27960.html
    
    ---
    Copy protection on CDs is 'worthless'
    19:00 06 November 02
    The technology built into some CDs to stop people copying them is futile, 
    according to a computer scientist who has put today's antipiracy systems 
    under the microscope. He believes the continual software and hardware 
    upgrades issued by the makers of computer CD drives and audio CD players 
    render copy protection systems pointless in the long run.
    http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993020
    
    ---
    Battle lines over protection
    By NATHAN COCHRANE
    Tuesday 15 January 2002
    Recently, millions of music CDs have been offered for sale in the US and 
    Europe that will not play properly on personal computers, the source of 
    music file sharing over the Internet.
    Klaus Petri, a spokesman for Philips, which, with Sony jointly holds most 
    of the patents on the CD audio format, told Financial Times Deutschland 
    that the Dutch pioneer is unhappy at the trend but will leave it to 
    consumers to launch legal actions against the recording industry.
    The patents granted in the 1980s expire in the next two years.
    http://www.theage.com.au/business/2002/01/15/FFXR74U4FWC.html
    
    ---
    We should return all the "damaged CDs to the dealers for refund . If they 
    have the Philips seal they are clearly defective and if they do not then 
    they were falsely advertised
    Dave (Farber)
    From: Monty Solomon <montyat_private>
    The Big Rip-Off
    Labels move to block CD audio ripping
    Neil McAllister, Special to SF Gate
    Thursday, January 31, 2002
    Judging by the way the major record labels have been acting lately,
    you'd think the compact disc was the biggest mistake they ever made.
    Never mind that the CD format has been outselling audiocassettes
    since 1991 -- the recording industry seems like it wants those silver
    discs off the shelves, and it's been working hard to do something
    about it.
    https://mail.lab.net/lists/archive/ip-exploder/2002-February.txt
    -- 
    
    -- 
    
    Nathan Cochrane
    Deputy IT Editor
    :Next:
    The Age and Sydney Morning Herald
    http://www.next.theage.com.au
    
    
    
    
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