I mentioned the fact that MS was hosing their partners and customers down the other day with the release of the Zune player - "plays for sure" simply doesn't. From the EFF:

This is a stark example of DRM under the DMCA giving customers a raw deal. Buying DRMed media means you're locked into the limited array of devices that vendors say you can use. You have to rebuy your preexisting DRMed media collection if you want to use it on the Zune. And you'll have to do that over and over again whenever a new, incompatible device with innovative features blows existing players out of the water. Access to MP3s and non-DRMed formats creates the only bridge between these isolated islands of limited devices.

So this is a twofer: if you have been buying music from an MS partner, Microsoft just screwed you over. Likewise, if you made the mistake of being an MS partner, you now wonder what that splitting pain your backside is.

This has got to be one of the most bone-headed PR mis-moves I recall a company making purposely. It's one thing to be accidentally stupid - this is willful stupidity.

Not just stupidity, either - people who have "plays for sure" music are sitting in a legally suspect situation. If you use software to bypass the old DRM, you're going to run afoul of the DMCA. Will you be prosecuted or sued? I'm not sure I'd want to take the no side of that bet, given the way the RIAA has been operating over the last few years.

Technorati Tags: music, DRM, PR