RealNetworks, AAC and DRM

[synergy]

Maybe just maybe iPods will work with Real's DRM.
You heard it here first. (right or wrong )

Real and Apple have worked together in the past on a superficial level. This maybe a case of the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

New products to be announced today including possible new iPods that may work with Real's DRM.

 

[jholzner]

Well, as far as I'm concerned the file format is not important in any way since the DRM pretty much makes it a proprietary closed format. Even though Apple uses AAC it's no different the WMA since we can do nothing with it accept what Apple allows. All these different DRM schemes and incompatibilities are really starting to piss me off. It's like as if each company come out with it's own type of CD technology and none were compatible with each other...DRM NEEDS to be a standard as well!

 

[jholzner]

Originally posted by Waluigi
Why use an open standard AAC, and then propriety DRM? This is completely noncongruent? Am I missing something?

--Waluigi

Okay so I posted before I read all the posts. This is exaclty what I'm saying!!

 

[sinisterdesign]

Re: Re: CDs & DRM

Originally posted by wordmunger
Damn! I have that CD! Luckily I never put it into my computer. Anyone know where there's a list of DRMd CDs so we know what's safe to rip?

not that i've come across. everyone (including the Mac repair shop) thought i was crazy for thinking it was the CD that caused all the havoc. the repair guy swore it was a coincidence. !!?!?? 2 computers that are miles apart crashing w/ the same error w/in 24 hrs?? c'mon. i googled high & low trying to find info on it, but it wasn't until months later that i found an article on CNN.com saying that some of Universal's CD were "protected" and that it rendered them unplayable on a Mac. no, it rendered my Mac unUSABLE. the thing that REALLY chaffed my ass is that it was MY CD that i bought! i never HAVE gotten my $$$ worth of listening to that album b/c i listen to most of my music on my computer at home or my iPod at work & in the car.

here are a couple related articles:

http://news.com.com/2100-1023-277197.html

http://www.eff.org/cafe/drmgame/copy-protected.html

AHHHH, found something:
http://www.fatchucks.com/z3.cd.html

 

[jholzner]

Originally posted by wankle
Compared to windows media files, AAC is more open then Jenna Jameson's legs.

--Waluigi

Edit: Spelling

OK, I suppose it is, but the poster was talking about AAC, and was very misinformed. Apple uses a closed codec and closed DRM... just like Real.

And when it comes to the iPod, just wait and see, I would be willing to bet that users can transcode and play songs on the iPod. The article doesn't mention that, but just wait and see. [/B][/QUOTE]

Okay, the codec may be closed (no it's not open source) but Apple can't just go and change it whenever they want. It must be approved as a standard...WMA is not that way...microsoft can do whatever it wants with the codec.

 

[iggyb]

I'm not liking this at all. What good is AAC when each company can put proprietary DRM on it for themselves? I love my iPod, and I love iTMS, but this seems to be opening a pathway for each company to support only their players.

If this continues, and everyone has their own AAC with proprietary DRM....what better is that than WMA? If I can't buy songs on other sites to put on my iPod, then what's the diff?

 

[ITR 81]

I see this as a good thing. It does help promote AAC over WMA.

Real must really hate MS now.

They compete but protected WMA is not that same so why should protected AAC?

If Real fails watch as Real becomes intergrated with iTunes Music Store in the future or Apple just does a buyout of the whole company or parts of the company.

 

[stcanard]

Re: Re: Re: CDs & DRM

Originally posted by sinisterdesign
not that i've come across. everyone (including the Mac repair shop) thought i was crazy for thinking it was the CD that caused all the havoc. the repair guy swore it was a coincidence.

[Mildly OT]

If it is the CD, then only some of them are copy protected.

My O Brother where Art Thou imported without a hitch.

 

[sinisterdesign]

Re: Re: Re: Re: CDs & DRM

Originally posted by stcanard
[Mildly OT]

If it is the CD, then only some of them are copy protected.

My O Brother where Art Thou imported without a hitch.

good to know, b/c that was a royal pain in the arse to fix. i wouldn't wish it on anyone except the commie b****s at Universal that thought it was a good idea.

YUP, just found this article:
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-271121.html?legacy=cnet

sorry to get off on that tangent. as far as Real goes, i'm very nervous watching these big companies come into the online music service & set up their own little camps. i don't MIND buying CDs still, but as soon as i get them, i rip them to AAC and listen to them on my iPod (like right now). and i just bought 2 albums this morning before work n iTMS, but i'm not buying a THING online if it starts giving me crap about where & how i can play it.

1 1/2 to keynote!!!

sweet...watching an F-22 flanked by two F-18's out my window...

 

[jholzner]

Originally posted by ITR 81
I see this as a good thing. It does help promote AAC over WMA.

Real must really hate MS now.

They compete but protected WMA is not that same so why should protected AAC?

If Real fails watch as Real becomes intergrated with iTunes Music Store in the future or Apple just does a buyout of the whole company or parts of the company.

OMG...I would love to see Apple buy Real...that would propell them to #1 in internet media distrubution!

 

[edgar_is_good]

Originally posted by iggyb
I'm not liking this at all. What good is AAC when each company can put proprietary DRM on it for themselves? I love my iPod, and I love iTMS, but this seems to be opening a pathway for each company to support only their players.

If this continues, and everyone has their own AAC with proprietary DRM....what better is that than WMA? If I can't buy songs on other sites to put on my iPod, then what's the diff?

It is interesting, because if Apple continues market dominance with the ipod, then as steve jobs said, they're the microsoft of digital music. It would follow that they'd be subject to the same lawsuits forcing them to open the platform to alternative formats. Of course, I think this would require monopoly status, but maybe not...

 

[Swift]

O Brother? Encoded?

I have the 'O Brother, Where Art Thou?' CD ripped in iTunes now. I never had an instant's problem with it. Maybe there were two editions.

 

[elmimmo]

The first player that reads Real's DRM is out. It's made by Real of course.

Read more about it at mobilecomputing.com's article titled "RealPlayer 1.5 for Palm supports DRM-enabled AAC files".

No one commented anything yet on my doubt about Helix being open source, which is somewhat fuzzy in cnet's article from July "Real takes the open-source route" and how more open/free (as in speech/as in beer) is the license to implement it compared to Fairplay(if it is free in both meanings and open -which I do not know- why would Apple not implement it in the iPod? After all they say they do not make a penny with the iTMS).

Nobody mentioned either what are the limitations of Helix DRM.