To date, the Library of Congress has granted exceptions to the anti-circumvention clause of the DMCA in instances where DRM has rendered something completely unusable, such as eBook DRM which can render eBooks useless for handicapped people. The right to bypass DRM on products that no longer work properly was considered but rejected last time around.
Now, thanks to Google, we have a case study, a real-world example we can point to and say: "Hey, this isn't right." It features one of the world's most innovative and financially powerful technology companies bagging out on users. It features thousands of consumers buying DRMed goods in earnest, and it ends with a bang; Google decides to exit the market, leaving consumers with a load of useless goods.
Needless to say, this could happen with any player. Google could float its store if it wanted to, but it is exiting the business. What happens when Amazon does the same? Or Apple, or the next guy?
If this isn't further proof that parts of the DMCA should be gutted, at the very least it is a strong sign that the Library of Congress needs to address this issue. Congress should be thinking about this brave new world of "unproperty" where you're charged good money to "buy" products that, in reality, you're only renting until AverageCorp gets bored of the business.
Given the Library of Congress' history of ignoring pleas for exceptions to the DMCA, most notably for bypassing the CSS copy protection on DVDs, it seems unlikely that they'll change their stance now. But as cases pile up, it's only a matter of time before politicians are forced to reckon with unhappy constituents over DRM issues.
Source: Ars Technica
Written by: Rich Fiscus @ 13 Aug 2007 10:09
