As many of you are aware, I despise Digital Rights Management (DRM), I think it is wrong and believe that we should be able to do with as we please with what we purchase. I was reading an article on Ars Technica today about the NBC-Apple breakup that occurred last August. Apparently NBC wants to be able to put its content back on the iTunes store but wants full control on pricing as well as full control on its shows DRM.

Currently, it seems Apple takes a somewhat lax DRM scheme. I was just made aware of this today, and despite my distaste for DRM, I actually don't hate Apple's policy so much anymore. For those of you that aren't aware, Apple allows you to authorize up to 5 computers to play your DRMed music, movies, and TV shows. This means that anything you download can be played on those 5 machines, which is probably perfect for families and even roommates. To add to this, unlimited iPods and iPhones synched to those 5 machines. I was unaware of this and thought that you can only play the DRMed content on one machine and one iPod. As much as I hate saying it, I actually do approve of this scheme.

What NBC wants however I believe is unacceptable, and beyond reasonable. NBC wants any and all of their shows to not be allowed to be transferred to any mobile device like the iPod, and it looks like NBC doesn't even want you to be able to watch it offline. This is where my hatred to DRM comes from. If i were to buy an NBC show off iTunes, I would expect to be able to transfer it to my iPod. I paid for the show, I should be fully able to transfer it to my iPod to take with me on the road. To me, it's this mindset that hurts the consumers. I can understand companies wanting to make sure that people don't pay for a TV show or song and then give it away to all their friends, but to balk at people transferring the TV show to their iPod is complete and utter crap.

With the way NBC is trying to push Apple, I can now understand more why the writers strike occurred. Companies like NBC are trying to make an extra buck at the expense of the customers, and probably the writers as well, and without writers, the TV shows we have come to love are worthless.

I'm really hoping that Apple does not acquiesce to NBC's stipulations. Apple in my opinion has a better DRM system than most and the pricing of $1.99 for TV episodes is a pretty good deal without ripping off what makes the company their money, the consumers like you and me.

Tags: nbc, apple, itunes, drm