Next Restricted CD Coming Soon

jroysdon writes: "Music industry quietly unveiling copy-proof CDs - 'Gariano said the CD case would carry a copy protection sticker and an insert explaining the technology. Record stores will accept returns, even if the CD case is opened, if buyers are unhappy with it.' I say we specifically look for titles with this sticker, purchase them, give them a whirl in our PCs and see them not play, and return them. Vote with not just our money, but their overhead costs to handle all the returned merchandise and bad publicity when stores don't want CDs with those stickers." Read the article - there are some great quotes there.

Blame me

[JMZero]

I'd just like everyone here to know that I'm to blame for all this.

I copy files like crazy on Kazaa. I burn them on CD's. I seldom buy music anymore, because I can get it free.

A big sorry to all those of you who will be able to listen to less and less music on your computers/in your car. A big sorry to all those who use Kazaa for only legitimate purposes (hi Dan!)

good point

[poemofatic]

and when you do, be sure to share the mp3 on gnutella, for those who don't have such a good deck.

Re:Not another one...

[Hieronymus Howard]

Be nice if they implemented a similar system on PC games. Renting computer games for $0.00 would be way better than free music.

I'm going to invent this and patent it. I'll make a fortune from cd-roms that can't be played in computers. That'll stop people from warezing them :-)

HH

RIAA, DMCA lease retro IBM mainframes

[sabinm]

In a related article, a new copyright protection form is in place. The Music industry is now distributing music in an old IBM mainframe. In order to listen to music, a certified IBM mechanic will come and set up one sound file in machine code to play on your personal mainframe.

"We need to do this in order to change the way people listen to music. Their behaviors." Mr Noam complained. "Those who can't fit a IBM in their boxes will have to come up to corporate headcquarters to listen to music in our RIAA muzak devices, or rent space at a cafe and listen to the Jukebox"
When asked if people would take to the idea of a IBM technician with a plummer's crack coming into their homes to play only one song, Mr. Noam stated, " We have a picture of a guy who looks pretty happy with his IBM MonoSound system. He's happy! Doesn't he look happy to you?"

http://www.columbia.edu/acis/history/collage.htm l

RIAA Claims un-crackable protection system:

[t_allardyce]

The RIAA has said that it is planning to roll-out a new copy-protection system for CDs. The system should be introduced within a few months, but, unlike previous attempts, the association has claimed that this system will remain uncrack-able. The new system will involve new technology pioneered by Microsoft called "CD-Blank". At the pressing plant, the CD master images are put through a process known as "Blanking" where all the digital sample values are set to '0'. This results in a disk containing data as such:

'000000000000000000000000000000000000' etc.

The process ensures that the disks will remain _completely_ unreadable by PC-CDROM drives. inserting a "CD-Blank" disk in Microsoft Windows for example will cause the message "The disk is not formatted" to appear. However some independent testers have claimed that inserting it into some Windows machines will crash them. At a press conference, a spokesman for the RIAA was asked by a journalist why the CDs would not play on normal CD players. The journalist then went on to claim that the CDs were in fact _blank_ and filled entirely with 0's. When presented with this information, the spokesman went on to explain how this technology could also be used in DVDs, CD-ROMS, and other digital media. meanwhile, the journalist was escorted out of the conference by security

Several crack-taking recording industry figures are said to be interested in the technology

Re:Just use a CD player with optical out

[Anonymous Coward]

"The one I'm writing myself puts the FreeDB/CDDB info into a local database along with track times from the CD and other metacrap that I deem important."

Gee, because there aren't at least 250,000 of those on freshmeat already, in every language imaginable...

possible future "The Onion" story

[Dr. Awktagon]

Piracy Ruins Vanilla Ice's Career

Artist blames MP3 sharing services for slow sales

Popular recording artist Vanilla Ice released a statement today blaming MP3 piracy for slow sales on his latest rap album, Ize Back in Da Hood. The new album has only sold 57 copies since being released in July, and despite a $40million advertising campaign.

"I can't understand it," says Ice. "Other artists like Britney Spears and N'Sync are selling millions of records, and living in the lap of luxury. But nobody wants to buy my record. I know it's a good record, so it must be the MP3 pirates."

Ice, whose latest album includes the hit single "White People Smell Funny", is planning a lawsuit against anyone with a computer science degree. "What a bunch of losers. Everybody knows people who program computers are just sitting around planning what to steal or hack into next. I have to send a message to those guys, buy my new album or else!"

It's my fault.

[Anonymous Coward]

Shitty, irrelevant music (like mine) is the reason CD sales are down.

Oh, and I have a very, very tiny penis.

Sincerely,
Fred Durst

No dude, it's MY fault.

[Anonymous Coward]

Really. I could wipe my ass on a blank CD and it would sound better than any of my albums.

Regards,

Sean "Puff Diddly Ding-Dong Doofus" Combs

Don't be so hard on yourself, Fred.

[Anonymous Coward]

If the music industry supported and rewarded quality music instead of bland, uninspiring, whiny emo-tripe (like mine), perhaps sales would increase.

And also, I might not be dangerously addicted to prescription stool-softeners.

Later,

Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20

Re:It's my fault.

[Anonymous Coward]

Fred, don't blame yourself. The greasy turds (you call them "songs") that your band shits out are not nearly as pungent as the computer generated, gene-spliced jack-assery that me and my "band" lip sync to.

Oh, and thanks for the slippery buttlove. Even though your penis is tiny, you touch me like no other man can.

Love,

Justin "N-Sync" Timberlake

Slashdot claims un-foolable moderators.

[glrotate]

The Slashdot staff has said that it is planning to roll-out a new moderation system for /. The system should be introduced within a few months, but, unlike previous attempts, the staff has claimed that this system will remain idiotproof.

The new system will involve new technology pioneered by VA Linux called "Cluestick". At the comment page, the moderator is beaten severely for modding up comments such as the parent of this one as "Insightful"

Re:possible future "The Onion" story

[easyfrag]

They already did it here [theonion.com]

Half the industry understands...

[JPelzer]

I'm not a musician, but currently CD sales pay my salary. I work for a large music company, one with many subsidiary record labels and a huge catalog, and I'm right in the middle of the copy-protection war... But it's going on inside the company.

There are some in my company that would agree with those idiotic quotes, about all people being pirates, MP3's are stealing, etc. But most people understand that the old enforced-scarcity model is no longer sustainable, and that a new model must be sought. While I think the investment in anti-rip CD's is a waste, it is essentially the left hand of the industry... The right hand is doing something completely different, and it's cooking up something good.

For instance, my personal mp3 collection is about 300 albums. Great. But in the very near future, I'll have streaming access to tens of thousands of albums... For a monthly fee. But I think I can deal with that. I pay $9.95 a month for my Tivo, $40 for cable... It's a cost I can bear, especially if I don't need to shell out for physical CD's anymore. I don't really need the CD's, as once they're ripped, they go into storage anyway. (And if it bothers you that you wouldn't have offline access, you'll be able to download files to wherever, and burn CD's)

I'm thinking this post is getting a bit off-topic, so I'll come back. The point I'm trying to make is that these anti-rip CD's are not the direction the labels really want to go. It's admittedly a sidetrack. Better things are coming, and there are people on the inside that have some idea of what the heck fair-use is, and whose checkbook pays their salaries. And we're listening.