Swedish publishers ditch DRM

sadowski · 01-30-2010, 04:36 AM

The Swedish newspaper Göteborgs-Posten reports that Swedish publishers are close to a deal to sell e-books DRM-free:

http://blogg.gp.se/teknik/

The main message is: "... Now they [the publishers] are close to the goal to replace copy protection by watermarks. ... Bonniers, Piratförlaget, Natur och Kultur, and others have agreed now."

That means that a majority new Swedish books will come out DRM-free in the near future.

CTH · 01-30-2010, 05:55 AM

Great news for us swedes

And to everyone else I just want to add that these are among the largest publishers in sweden, not just some indie publisher or something.
(and Piratförlaget which translate to Piratepublisher has nothing to do with the Pirateparty or Piratebay or any other illigal filesharing

HarryT · 01-30-2010, 06:03 AM

It would be more accurate to say that they are switching to a "social DRM" mechanism, rather than that they are "dropping" DRM.

Jonas777 · 01-30-2010, 02:41 PM

True, about "social DRM". But at least by dropping encrypting DRM will allow us users to buy a book anywhere and read on any device. Any fileformat problems will be easy to solve.

DawnFalcon · 01-30-2010, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

It would be more accurate to say that they are switching to a "social DRM" mechanism, rather than that they are "dropping" DRM.

It's not DRM. DRM is pretty specific. It's a form of copy protection.

moonlit · 02-01-2010, 08:29 AM

This is also the case here in Norway, by the way. No copy protection, only watermarking.

There is only a very small amount of Norwegian books for sale right now, but there is a new portal (Bokbasen) opening in late March that will act as a distributor, which will accelerate things.

Watermarking is a perfect compromise between user friendliness and DRM, if you ask me.

zelda_pinwheel · 02-02-2010, 04:49 PM

that is excellent news. hopefully more countries will follow the example of our northern neighbors.

ficbot · 02-02-2010, 06:30 PM

I would be okay with watermarking as a form of copy protection, as long as it did not affect converting the book and using it on any device I wanted. If that is truly what you guys have, that's great and I hope publishers here in North America do it too!

guyanonymous · 02-02-2010, 07:26 PM

Can someone help me understand what "watermarking" is exactly in this context? Is it simply embedding a code linked to a buyer's identity within the file itself (ala exif data in image files?)...

Scott Nielsen · 02-16-2010, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by guyanonymous

Can someone help me understand what "watermarking" is exactly in this context? Is it simply embedding a code linked to a buyer's identity within the file itself (ala exif data in image files?)...

I bought a book (from a Swedish store) for my wife the other day and the watermark shows up between each chapter of the book. It has the order number and date and then states that all copying - unless for personal use - and unauthorized distribution is prohibited.

I was very pleased I could simply dump the book into Calibre, convert it to mobi and load it onto my better half's Kindle. Less hassle than having to deDRM it, certainly. The book I purchased was ePUB but it seems a significant portion of old books is currently in watermarked PDF.

I'd still prefer a clean file without a watermark but must say it's at least a step in the right direction.

Jonas777 · 02-17-2010, 03:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott Nielsen

I bought a book (from a Swedish store) for my wife the other day and the watermark shows up between each chapter of the book. It has the order number and date and then states that all copying - unless for personal use - and unauthorized distribution is prohibited.

I also bought an watermarked epub the other day. Apart from the visible marking you saw, a quick peek inside also revealed a download id in the html headers. Possibly there are also other more or less visible markings.

01-30-2010, 04:36 AM	#1
sadowski Connoisseur Posts: 84 Karma: 1142796 Join Date: Jul 2009 Device: Sony PRS 350, Kobo mini, PB mini	Swedish publishers ditch DRM The Swedish newspaper Göteborgs-Posten reports that Swedish publishers are close to a deal to sell e-books DRM-free: http://blogg.gp.se/teknik/ The main message is: "... Now they [the publishers] are close to the goal to replace copy protection by watermarks. ... Bonniers, Piratförlaget, Natur och Kultur, and others have agreed now." That means that a majority new Swedish books will come out DRM-free in the near future.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Best way to keep one book format and ditch the others	PCreighton	Calibre	2	09-11-2010 05:31 PM
Amazon allows DTP publishers to opt out of DRM	anurag	News	19	01-21-2010 07:51 PM
About to ditch my Kindle as I can't get the books that I want.	Aloreth	Amazon Kindle	50	01-08-2010 08:05 PM
27 Swedish classics	owly	Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links)	3	10-09-2009 04:48 PM
Is DRM necessary? Should publishers be concerned about piracy?	Bob Russell	News	40	10-11-2006 01:01 PM

01-30-2010, 05:55 AM	#2
CTH Zealot Posts: 129 Karma: 1000153 Join Date: Jan 2007	Great news for us swedes And to everyone else I just want to add that these are among the largest publishers in sweden, not just some indie publisher or something. (and Piratförlaget which translate to Piratepublisher has nothing to do with the Pirateparty or Piratebay or any other illigal filesharing

01-30-2010, 06:03 AM	#3
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	It would be more accurate to say that they are switching to a "social DRM" mechanism, rather than that they are "dropping" DRM.

01-30-2010, 02:41 PM	#4
Jonas777 Groupie Posts: 153 Karma: 364 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Sweden Device: Amazon Kindle 2 Intl	True, about "social DRM". But at least by dropping encrypting DRM will allow us users to buy a book anywhere and read on any device. Any fileformat problems will be easy to solve.

02-01-2010, 08:29 AM	#6
moonlit Junior Member Posts: 8 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Oslo, Norway Device: Sony PRS-505	This is also the case here in Norway, by the way. No copy protection, only watermarking. There is only a very small amount of Norwegian books for sale right now, but there is a new portal (Bokbasen) opening in late March that will act as a distributor, which will accelerate things. Watermarking is a perfect compromise between user friendliness and DRM, if you ask me.

02-02-2010, 04:49 PM	#7
zelda_pinwheel zeldinha zippy zeldissima Posts: 27,827 Karma: 921169 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Paris, France Device: eb1150 & is that a nook in her pocket, or she just happy to see you?	that is excellent news. hopefully more countries will follow the example of our northern neighbors.

02-02-2010, 06:30 PM	#8
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	I would be okay with watermarking as a form of copy protection, as long as it did not affect converting the book and using it on any device I wanted. If that is truly what you guys have, that's great and I hope publishers here in North America do it too!

02-02-2010, 07:26 PM	#9
guyanonymous Guru Posts: 692 Karma: 27532 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: Ebookwise 1150 / 1200	Can someone help me understand what "watermarking" is exactly in this context? Is it simply embedding a code linked to a buyer's identity within the file itself (ala exif data in image files?)...

Advert

Advert