Dogstar Tweet Stream

I'm a strong supporter of an artist's right to control how his or her work is used within reason. However, the recording and film industry are successfully pushing individuals who have decided that they would rather pay for content and use it legally to moving underground to the torrents and illegal download sites. I personally have stopped purchasing music from iTunes in favour of purchasing CDs so I can rip them myself. When I purchase music, I am buying a license to use that media in pretty much any way I want as long as I'm not distributing or selling that work. I should be able to listen to it in my DVD player, CD player, in my car. No other industry comes close to the kinds of binding and repressive techniques in preventing use of its product. Imagine if the "comb" industry dictated that I couldn't make a comb kazoo because combs are just for hair. Or if they dictated I could use the comb in my bathroom but not in my bedroom. How about I purchase a print and the artist dictates that I can only hang that work in my living room, not in my family room?

In the Netherlands an astonishing event has occured where people have legally purchased music over the Internet only to find that their use of it will be halted in the near future. DRM allows content providers to "turn off" use of media AT WILL even when that media was purchased fair and square.

DRM Insanity

I don't support illegal dowloads of music. I don't support theft of artists' materials. But I can't support the stifling inane policies that are allowing the recording industry to flat out abuse consumers who try and play by the rules.

I guess I'll be buying CDs for the forseeable future.