eReader.com vice president and general manager Mike Violano shares his (perhaps slightly biased) views on digital rights management DRM
in an article published at LocalTechWire.com.
First he explains how DRM works at eReader.com:
Every ebook is encrypted and the unlock key is the credit card number the customer uses to purchase the title. This has proven to be a simple, elegent approach to the protection of content—and it is mighty effective since customers are not prone to post their credit card numbers on the message boards.
Compared to competing formats such as encrypted PDF or .LIT, one advantage of eReader DRM, he goes on, is that it does not prevent the customer from moving his e-book from one device to another. Plus, eReader books stay available for download in an online bookshelf for an unlimited time (unless eReader.com goes bancrupt or is sold to another company, I'd say).
What is most interesting about this article is its last part, on the future of DRM. Mr. Violano agrees that DRM is still a troublesome obstacle for customers, at least the way DRM is currently implemented:
The technology must be friendlier at every step along the way. We are constantly innovating to improve the customer experience and simplify the process while respecting the copyright owners.
Even the best designed DRM technology, rights expression language, or the most finely crafted standards will fail if the customer experience of the content is disregarded. Technology must be the enabler, guiding all the explorers—publisher, etailer and customer in the journey—the quest for content and enjoyment of that content in all digital forms.
Nicely put!