AfterDawn: News

Apple may lose foothold in Sweden

The company with probably the largest market share in portable mp3 players, Apple has come under fire from Swedish lawmakers for their stand on DRM. Apple has been well documented to place DRM restrictions on music downloaded via iTunes into the much loved iPod, thereby cancelling any hopes by consumers for listening to their legally purchased music on any other device.

Scandanavian laws conflict with the Apple terms of service contracts, iTMS, in which Apple is clearly committing illegal activity in the countries of Denmark, Norway and Sweden by forcing it's users to abide by it's DRM standards.



Swedish Consumer Agency spokeswoman Marianne Aabyhammar said "iTunes' terms and conditions are illegal in all three countries. If iTunes fails to improve its terms and conditions in Sweden, we may take the case to Sweden's market court."

Apple still refuses to allow users to convert their music files into any other format, thus enabling the music to be played on anything other than Apple products. Currently, Scandanavian law dictates that a user can lawfully break this DRM encryption for fair use purposes.

Source:
Yahoo News

Written by: Dave Horvath @ 12 Jun 2006 6:14

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• 18 comments

• gogochar

  Just wish the laws were like that here in America!

  12.6.2006 06:58 #1

• flyingv

  Unfortunately that would be in the consumers best interest!!! Since when did the large corporations, set example, give a crap what we want. Once a person "Pays" for the right to listen to what they have legally purchaced they should be able to play it on whatever they want. DRM is a crock and just causes more problems than it's worth.

  12.6.2006 07:05 #2

• MrToast

  Guys, why is this a big thing? Just use tunebite and BOOM no more DRM!

  12.6.2006 07:42 #3

• Davedough

  Quote: Guys, why is this a big thing? Just use tunebite and BOOM no more DRM!I think the point of the matter is, we shouldn't HAVE to do something like use tunebite. We paid for it, we should be able to use it any way we choose.
  
  Primitive example. You go to the grocery and buy a steak. You tell the butcher that you intend to put said steak in your freezer. He prepares the meat for you and you put it in your freezer, only to find out that this butcher put a device inside your steak that wont let you move it out back to the grill to cook in unless you use some third-party tool to remove the device. So now all you can do is look at your steak in the original container even though you paid money for it and by all intents and purposes, it is YOUR steak.

  12.6.2006 07:51 #4

• Cinnjerm

  That's why i don't own an ipod. That and the fact that there are cheaper mp3 players that happen to be nicer too.

  12.6.2006 11:31 #5

• plutonash

  "Guys, why is this a big thing? Just use tunebite and BOOM no more DRM!"
  Are you serious DRM shouldnt be on the material in the first place it only stops fair use nothing else. Anyone that buys music for itunes should be ashamed of himself/herself. Not only the quality sucks but you giving the ok that these people can control what you do.

  12.6.2006 12:31 #6

• mrbungle8

  yah man who cares... FUCK I TUNES... i just buy used cd's , or borrow cd's, or check out library cds and burn them on my ipod.
  
  im happy with that... i still hate apple though.. but i got mine for cheap.. and it saves me alot of money. i hardly buy cd's anymore. i just borrow them, and store em.. and wallah... everyone is happy.

  12.6.2006 13:54 #7

• PirateDan

  That is why I speak with my wallet and bought a Creative Zen Vision M.
  And I have told everyone I know that is thinking about a MP3 player to do just that.

  12.6.2006 15:00 #8

• MrToast

  I do agree guys, that DRM should not be there in the first place. Im selling my Ipod anyway. It was cool for about a year then I just stopped using it. I have a 1GB cell phone now that works great! I even have extra microSD cards with more music to use and it was a whole hell of a lot cheaper than the 60GB Pod.
  
  I just meant that if you have an Ipod you can just use tunebite to change the music over. I use Rukus through my school and download like crazy then use tunebite. I dont buy from Itunes anyway

  12.6.2006 17:32 #9

• ZippyDSM

  *sigh*
  lets try this again
  
  I wouldnt mind useing Itunes to find songs I cant normaly but 2 reasons keep me from uueing it
  
  1 overpriceing.
  2 DRM.

  12.6.2006 18:36 #10

• AIM2Shame

  Got rid of my ipod and just use my nokia now with a card. $70AU 2Gigs, plenty.
  
  Thank god for australia and fair use aswell.
  
  
  

  13.6.2006 05:38 #11

• ofolion

  Yeah i agree you shouldn't have to have stupid protection like this just so they can hold the market at ransom...
  
  There is many easy ways to get around it but still Apple will probably be forced to remove it as they are just doing it to force more and more people to get a iPod and hold the market at ransom.

  13.6.2006 07:00 #12

• halfhere

  everyone needs to just boycott ipod all together. There are better things out there, than ipod. Everyone just wants an ipod because it is the most widely used name.

  13.6.2006 09:44 #13

• ZippyDSM

  halfhere
  pretty much unless Ipod and Itunes reenevent themself quick they'll be replaced in acoupel more years.

  13.6.2006 12:33 #14

• jziman

  ThankGod somone is trying to do something about this DRM mess. Well if this is what it takes ill be happy. I should look into moving to one of these countries!! At least they standup for the end user!!!

  14.6.2006 13:11 #15

• flyingv

  Ah, but the price you pay for freedom...

  14.6.2006 14:13 #16

• MacDude

  I'm a HUGE Apple fan but I hate conformity, and I don't own an iPod. For the anti iPodders out there see www.iDont.com
  
  Geez I hate sheep (the human variety, not the woolly ones.)

  19.6.2006 01:48 #17

• xangoball

  I agree with both PirateDan and MacDude. Buy something Creative (Zen Vision, Micro, Neeon, etc.). Their players kick ass! I own a Micro 6GB and most of my friends who don't own an iPod (those who do are sheep) own Creative, are happy with them, and they all reccomend them. MacDude, I also hate human sheep. The woolly ones are a-ok but kinda scary when they try to bite :)

  21.6.2006 12:44 #18