Unsurprisingly, content producers and the consumer-electronics industry did not repeat this mistake with Digital Video Discs ( DVDs). That is why it is so easy to copy tracks from a CD, convert them into MP3 format and make them available via Napster. In the early 1980s, the record industry decided not to encrypt CDs. It is easy to see why content owners want to limit digital copying. The trend towards restricting access could ultimately curtail some important existing rights, such as making copies for personal use. After all, owners of intellectual property should be able to protect their wares and charge for them. Online music, which has hitherto symbolised the end of copyright in the online world, could come to embody the opposite.Īt first sight, this may seem to be a good thing. Tracks shared on the new Napster service, for example, will play only on the PC of the user who has downloaded them. All these offerings will include a “copy protection” scheme that limits what consumers can do with the files they download. The fate of these services will determine not just the future of the music industry, but also that of the underlying technology.
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