It’s a sunny summer day and you pull your CDs from your home stereo, toss them in your bag and head out. In the car, you listen to your music, and when you reach the beach, you slip a CD into a portable boom box.
Most people wouldn’t give any of that a second thought. But the simple transfer of music, from home to car to portable device, could soon be ending. Content companies and consumer advocates are waging a vicious battle in Washington, with the future of consumer rights — and what you can do with products you have purchased — at stake.
That’s the intro to the article, and it’s one of the most clear, concise and cogent explanations of the potential impact of copy protection I’ve ever read. Each week on my radio show I do 5 – 10 minutes of headline news, and the copy protection battle is often featured. Unlike the web, where I have more space to drone on and the ability to hyperlink to supporting texts, on the radio I only have minutes to try and explain the issue to people with all levels of familiarity. I can’t assume that a listener who tunes in one week had listened last week and so has context for understanding the issue. I also can’t take for granted people’s familiarity with notions like copyright, mp3s, file-sharing and the like. So, I have to balance giving reasonable context and explanation with not being overly simplistic. It’s not always easy, so that’s why I really appreciate such a plain but still accurate portrayal that’s understandable to just about anyone.
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