Doom9 in BBC News Article.

[feedback]

"Microsoft technology that protects digital files from copyright infringement has been breached, according to reports.

A program called Fairuse4wm has been posted on the net and is apparently capable of breaching Microsoft's Digital Rights Management (DRM) system.

It could spell problems for internet music shops, potentially enabling users to download unlimited files.

However, an analyst said Microsoft was probably working to "close the hole".

DRM is used to control people's access to digital data.

It is commonly employed on music downloading sites to restrict the use of music purchased and downloaded online to ensure copyright is not infringed.

Monthly subscriptions

Many internet stores offer files for use on a Windows Media platform wrapped in Microsoft's DRM technology.

But a message on the doom9.org internet forum posted links to an application called Fair Use for Windows Media, now mirrored on other sites, which appears to circumvent this system.

The program apparently strips Windows Media audio (wma) files of Microsoft's DRM 10 or 11 protection, removing any usage restrictions.

A post on the forum said: "This program is only designed and intended to enable fair-use rights to purchased media."

The breach could create problems for file download sites.

Some internet music sites, including Napster, offer monthly subscription services where users can download an unlimited amount of music. This is controlled by DRM technology, so if a payment is missed, the user can no longer listen to any of their songs.

But by removing DRM protection from the files, users could potentially download and keep many files.

Microsoft was not available for immediate comment".

Link to Full Article HERE. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5294750.stm)

[CWR03]

It could spell problems for internet music shops, potentially enabling users to download unlimited files.
Am I completely mistaken about the meaning of "Digital Rights Management" and the use of FairUse4wm, or is the author of this article an idiot? (Hopefully he isn't a member here so I won't get a rule 4 strike.)

[junglemike]

Some internet music sites, including Napster, offer monthly subscription services where users can download an unlimited amount of music. This is controlled by DRM technology, so if a payment is missed, the user can no longer listen to any of their songs.

How is that possible?? Suppose you have your songs on ipod or another mp3 player that you purchased online. How will they stop playing if you forgot to pay a monthly payment?

[foxyshadis]

WM DRM doesn't work on ipods, but let's take the iriver as an example. If you have songs with a subscription, their decryption license will be set to expire monthly, and the portable player will respect that and refuse to play them after that. Thus you have to plug the player in monthly, quarterly, or whatever to get the licenses updated. No player that ignores it would ever be allowed to play DRM'd wma files.

[junglemike]

Thanks Foxy for explanation.
This is insane!
[By the way I also have Iriver, and I respect them for supporting ogg. Didn't even know it can play those drm you're talking about. I only rip cd's into ogg]
I can't imagine anyone who would agree to give control over what you're doing to music companies in such a complete way.
play music in pre-defined format (by them)?
play what _they_ want and when _they_ want?
What if i format my computer, or use linux for example?
I'd rather pay more for regular cd's than let them control my life.

[mod]

Oh my god.. and he/she was paid to write that..

[feedback]

WM DRM doesn't work on ipods, but let's take the iriver as an example. If you have songs with a subscription, their decryption license will be set to expire monthly, and the portable player will respect that and refuse to play them after that. Thus you have to plug the player in monthly, quarterly, or whatever to get the licenses updated. No player that ignores it would ever be allowed to play DRM'd wma files.
With foxy's revealing answer it should be obvious the songs are merely Rented for a short period of time, not purchased outright like a CD.

Regards,

[feedback]

"Just yesterday, Ars reported that Windows Media's Digital Rights Management (DRM) could be stripped from Windows Media 10 and 11 files using a piece of software known as FairUse4WM. Until today, Microsoft had failed to release any comment about the situation. Now, the company is saying that the problem will be fixed shortly with an update to the Windows Media DRM.

While many have said that cracking Windows Media's DRM could have some very serious consequences for Microsoft, a company statement did not seem to display a sense of urgency. Rather, it hinted at the fact that Microsoft may have been waiting for this to happen. According to the press release from one of the company's PR representatives, Microsoft now just needs to "refresh" its DRM system and everything will be fixed.

"Microsoft has long stated that no DRM system is impervious to circumvention—a position our content partners are aware of as well. That is why we designed the Windows Media DRM system to be renewable, so that if such events occur the system can be refreshed to address them."

Microsoft has not said when it will be releasing this patch, nor has the company said whether it will take action against FairUse4WM".

"take action against FairUse4WM" hmmm! I wonder what they have in mind as I am pretty sure the developers are not located in the lawsuit happy USA.

Link to Article located HERE.
(http://arstechnica.com/journals/microsoft.ars/2006/8/29/5149)
Regards,