LONDON (Reuters) - EMI Group Plc said on Monday it was reviewing its use of the controversial content protection technology used on CDs, known as digital rights management (DRM), but has not scrapped it altogether.
Music companies launched DRM in a bid to curb piracy but the software means that the discs are incompatible with the iPod, the market-leading digital music player made by Apple Computer Inc.
Critics also argue that the system has not worked as consumers could be driven to illegal sites to download music to the popular iPod instead.
A spokeswoman for EMI said it had not manufactured any new disks with DRM, which restricts consumers from making copies of songs and films they have purchased legally, for the last few months.
"We haven't manufactured any new disks with content protection on them for the last few months," she said. "It doesn't mean we've scrapped content protection but we're evaluating it."
The DRM mechanism was launched as part of the fight against piracy but it angered consumer groups for imposing restrictions. Sony BMG caused a controversy recently when its invasive anti-copying software harmed consumers' computers.
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Arstechnica produced a pretty good article about Hacking DRM back in July of 2006.
DefectiveByDesign.org noted back in Dec of 2006 that many of the big record labels are beginning to drop DRM.
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