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alecE · 08-07-2009, 10:03 AM

Seems to me there are several interlinked strands here, so IMHO:

1. Pricing - I object to the way ebooks seem generally to be priced the same as pbooks (or even more because of tax issues). There's still extra editorial work to do on the digital ebook, thereby costing some money, but the distribution and storage costs are eliminated. To my mind, that suggests that prices should be lower than pbooks.

2. DRM - Unpalatable though it is, publishers and authors do have a right to choose to protect their intellectual property. What I deeply object to is DRM that ties my purchase to a specific device, or that may compromise my ability to read what I have paid for at a future date in changed circumstances. There is an argument to be made that DRM is ineffective against the determined law-breaker. That is not an argument for becoming a law-breaker myself.

3. Downloading - If the owner said she/he wanted to control how often their product is downloaded, and an individual frustrates that control, then that individual has done wrong. Unequivocally.

4. Format conversion - I have a space problem and a lot of pbooks that are over 30 years old and deteriorating. Am I justified in scanning and converting them to digital? Yes, I think I am - I paid for them. Am I justified in distributing any such books? No I most certainly am not, unless copyright has expired etc.

5. DRM removal - if I do this to facilitate the management of my paid for property, and don't distribute the result to other people, am I breaking the law? I suspect (and hope) that I'm just inside the boundary, provided I don't distribute.

6. Civil disobedience falls into the category of "a good thing" for me, most of the time, provided it is aimed at a genuine injustice. So I was happily disobedient re. the poll tax in the UK, and a few other hot political potatoes. Illegal downloading disguised as civil disobedience to circumvent DRM - that doesn't feel right to me. (And yes, I recognise that what feels right to me, relatively comfortable in the UK, is not necessarrilly going to be applicable elsewhere/elsewhen).

08-07-2009, 10:03 AM	#43
alecE Evangelist Posts: 412 Karma: 546196 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: UK canal boat Device: sony prs505, prs650, kobo Glo HD liseuses	Seems to me there are several interlinked strands here, so IMHO: 1. Pricing - I object to the way ebooks seem generally to be priced the same as pbooks (or even more because of tax issues). There's still extra editorial work to do on the digital ebook, thereby costing some money, but the distribution and storage costs are eliminated. To my mind, that suggests that prices should be lower than pbooks. 2. DRM - Unpalatable though it is, publishers and authors do have a right to choose to protect their intellectual property. What I deeply object to is DRM that ties my purchase to a specific device, or that may compromise my ability to read what I have paid for at a future date in changed circumstances. There is an argument to be made that DRM is ineffective against the determined law-breaker. That is not an argument for becoming a law-breaker myself. 3. Downloading - If the owner said she/he wanted to control how often their product is downloaded, and an individual frustrates that control, then that individual has done wrong. Unequivocally. 4. Format conversion - I have a space problem and a lot of pbooks that are over 30 years old and deteriorating. Am I justified in scanning and converting them to digital? Yes, I think I am - I paid for them. Am I justified in distributing any such books? No I most certainly am not, unless copyright has expired etc. 5. DRM removal - if I do this to facilitate the management of my paid for property, and don't distribute the result to other people, am I breaking the law? I suspect (and hope) that I'm just inside the boundary, provided I don't distribute. 6. Civil disobedience falls into the category of "a good thing" for me, most of the time, provided it is aimed at a genuine injustice. So I was happily disobedient re. the poll tax in the UK, and a few other hot political potatoes. Illegal downloading disguised as civil disobedience to circumvent DRM - that doesn't feel right to me. (And yes, I recognise that what feels right to me, relatively comfortable in the UK, is not necessarrilly going to be applicable elsewhere/elsewhen).