Apple versus France (DRM issue)

The Herald Tribune has published a good article about the bill that is going to pass in the French senate this summer [link tot the article].

As you might have read somewhere, there is somewhat of a dispute going on between Apple and the French government. The latest are proposing a bill which will force companies like Apple to open up their DRM system. This would allow the enduser to buy music, video’s and digital media in general and play it on any equipment.
It is very funny to see how Apple is trying to protect the lock-in they have at the moment. Funny to see a company who is considered to be cool and innovative using old-school tactics of the 19th hundreds.

It is most likely that if this bill is passed in France, other countries in Europe will make a simmular bill. The first signs in that direction can be seen in Denmark, Sweden and Norway.

In most cases Government interference is bad. It stops innovation and is most of the times to restrictive. In this case I question the attitude of Apple. Forcing Apple to open their DRM model is good for the customer but at the same time gives Apple the opportunity to license their DRM model and receive income from that. Of course it mean that their model has to be superior to other DRM models, but that is a good business challenge.

Yahoo is selling it’s first DRM free music.

This could be significant [read the article].