[ Thanks to galileo for this link.
]
“Without much fanfare, Microsoft has captured a leading spot
in the content-protection business, a role that is fostering closer
relationships between the software giant and music labels and movie
studios.”
“The last several months have seen most of the major music
labels release songs in Microsoft’s Windows Media format, which has
built-in copy protection, or DRM (digital rights management)
technology. Most of the labels are quick to say they are technology
agnostics, but in a few cases their commercial download services
are using exclusively Microsoft technology.”
“What Microsoft has done is as close to my mission statement as
anything I’ve seen,” said Jay Samit, a senior vice president at EMI
Group. “They’re making it as easy to buy music as it is to steal
it.”
“The idea of protecting songs, movies or other content from
being copied and distributed has been a controversial one among
technologists and consumers. But it’s becoming clear that Microsoft
is betting on the technology to extend its reach deep into the
digital entertainment world, with hopes of becoming the standard
infrastructure for delivering music, video, games and other digital
files.”