Apr 27, 2012

Publishing Executive Admits Breaking DRM On His Own E-Books

Laura Hazard Owen has an interesting blog post about how a publishing executive broke the DRM on the e-books he bought for himself, because they wouldn't work on all his devices. In the process, he realized how anti-consumer DRM is (not to mention easily circumvented). 

When you buy an e-book from Amazon, you are not buying the book. You are buying a license for that book, one that can be revoked at any time, without warning (such as the incident where Amazon deleted the copies of George Orwell's 1984 from customers' Kindle devices, read about that HERE). 

Amazon's move backfired spectacularly, making people aware of the downsides of DRM. Any e-book you buy can be removed from your device at any time, and you are prevented from "loaning" your book to anyone else. Imagine a publishing company walking into your house to confiscate books you've purchased because your rights to own it have changed.

This is an interesting interview with a publishing insider who has had a change of heart about DRM. 

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