Quote:
Originally Posted by drjenkins
When has the government done anything concerning DRM they weren't directed to do by private industry?
E-book DRM unification will likely come about the same way that VHS beat Beta. The marketplace will decide the preeminent format and other formats will fade away.
Unfortunately, if Amazon continues to dominate we may eventually be stuck with a proprietary format.
The best we can hope for is that ebook DRM is resolved the way MP3 DRM was resolved. Music is available in multiple formats from multiple vendors without DRM. Several e-book vendors, like O'reilly, have already taken this route.
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Depends on which branch of which government you're talking about. In the US it sounds like you're thinking of Congress-but the courts are also a branch of government & they've struck down several DRM provisions pushed by industry. It's possible that they'd later require sellers to enable transferability. It might not be likely (I'd need to study the contracts you agree to when you buy a book, plus case law history regarding contract clauses in restraint of trade) but it's possible.
As for the best we can hope for, all I can say is that you're wrong. It might be the best we can expect but we can certainly hope for something better.