Digital Rights Management
Glarity decided early on, after much research and deliberation, not to implement Digital Rights Management technologies on the media files sold and downloaded through the Glarity Media Store. And though we didn’t expect it, this has proven to be one of most popular “features“ of the media store.
However, for the sake of those who would like a little more explanation about how and why we arrived at this decision, we offer these thoughts.
DRM is the pesky thing that doesn’t let you do everything you want with the song you just bought online from your favorite download store. It generally limits the devices you can put the song on (iPod, Zune, etc.), the number of computers it can be played on, and/or the number of CDs onto which that song can be burned.
Does that mean the files artists entrust to us on our servers will be unsecure? Absolutely not! We are still using the latest and best security measures on our systems to prevent any unauthorized downloads from our servers. The biggest difference is in what happens AFTER you buy and download a file (song, video, etc.) to your computer. In this case, you will not be forcefully restricted by some technology if you want to do something with this file.
We didn’t land at this decision because we didn’t know how to attach DRM protection to files, or because we wanted to cut corners. We decided on this course of action because…
- Every DRM scheme developed thus far has been broken, and there are readily-available software applications you can download to strip a file of its protection
- MOST CDs you buy at the store do not come with DRM protection, which means you can copy the CD and/or “rip“ the files to your computer and then do anything you like
- Therefore most past attempts at rights-management have failed to prevent the illegal activities of some, while creating tremendous frustration among consumers by making it excessively difficult even to access their content legitimately (this is acknowledged by other industry leaders, most noteworthy being Steve Jobs’ Thoughts on Music)
- The attempts by the RIAA (music industry) to prevent anti-piracy through threats, legal action, and technology has proven to be one of the most expensive and ineffective campaigns in the history of business, while the much kinder “moral“ campaign by the movie industry to prevent piracy “because it’s wrong“ has been one of the cheapest and most effective
- Each person, especially our Christian target audience, is engrained with an understanding of what is right and wrong. By appealing to a higher moral authority (namely, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) to hold users accountable, we “practice what we preach“ by promoting spiritual obedience and growth
While we have chosen not to use a DRM technology, we will still be utilizing one means to proactively prevent piracy: moral imperative. Each time a file is downloaded, as part of the confirmation process users will be reminded that illegal copying is wrong and why, and will confirm their agreement not to do so.
This reminder will give users unhindered access to do with their files as they please, within the bounds of legal use.
Digital Watermarking
While we don’t use technology to restrict media use, Glarity does have the ability to embed a unique watermark in every file downloaded from the store. This way, if piracy and file-sharing ever do become an issue, the source of the problem can be pinpointed and appropriate action can be pursued as laid out in the Glarity Terms of Service.
It should be noted that this technology does not affect the quality of media whatsoever, and is not a contradiction to the high value we place on your complete privacy. It cannot be used by anyone — including Glarity — to track you or your media use, unless that media has been shared or posted online illegally. This fingerprint does not reveal any personally identifiable information about you to any other person or organization.
Glarity decided early on, after much research and deliberation, not to implement Digital Rights Management technologies on the media files sold and downloaded through the Glarity Media Store. And though we didn’t expect it, this has proven to be one of most popular “features“ of the media store.
However, for the sake of those who would like a little more explanation about how and why we arrived at this decision, we offer these thoughts.
DRM is the pesky thing that doesn’t let you do everything you want with the song you just bought online from your favorite download store. It generally limits the devices you can put the song on (iPod, Zune, etc.), the number of computers it can be played on, and/or the number of CDs onto which that song can be burned.
Does that mean the files artists entrust to us on our servers will be unsecure? Absolutely not! We are still using the latest and best security measures on our systems to prevent any unauthorized downloads from our servers. The biggest difference is in what happens AFTER you buy and download a file (song, video, etc.) to your computer. In this case, you will not be forcefully restricted by some technology if you want to do something with this file.
We didn’t land at this decision because we didn’t know how to attach DRM protection to files, or because we wanted to cut corners. We decided on this course of action because…
- Every DRM scheme developed thus far has been broken, and there are readily-available software applications you can download to strip a file of its protection
- MOST CDs you buy at the store do not come with DRM protection, which means you can copy the CD and/or “rip“ the files to your computer and then do anything you like
- Therefore most past attempts at rights-management have failed to prevent the illegal activities of some, while creating tremendous frustration among consumers by making it excessively difficult even to access their content legitimately (this is acknowledged by other industry leaders, most noteworthy being Steve Jobs’ Thoughts on Music)
- The attempts by the RIAA (music industry) to prevent anti-piracy through threats, legal action, and technology has proven to be one of the most expensive and ineffective campaigns in the history of business, while the much kinder “moral“ campaign by the movie industry to prevent piracy “because it’s wrong“ has been one of the cheapest and most effective
- Each person, especially our Christian target audience, is engrained with an understanding of what is right and wrong. By appealing to a higher moral authority (namely, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) to hold users accountable, we “practice what we preach“ by promoting spiritual obedience and growth
While we have chosen not to use a DRM technology, we will still be utilizing one means to proactively prevent piracy: moral imperative. Each time a file is downloaded, as part of the confirmation process users will be reminded that illegal copying is wrong and why, and will confirm their agreement not to do so.
This reminder will give users unhindered access to do with their files as they please, within the bounds of legal use.
Digital Watermarking
While we don’t use technology to restrict media use, Glarity does have the ability to embed a unique watermark in every file downloaded from the store. This way, if piracy and file-sharing ever do become an issue, the source of the problem can be pinpointed and appropriate action can be pursued as laid out in the Glarity Terms of Service.
It should be noted that this technology does not affect the quality of media whatsoever, and is not a contradiction to the high value we place on your complete privacy. It cannot be used by anyone — including Glarity — to track you or your media use, unless that media has been shared or posted online illegally. This fingerprint does not reveal any personally identifiable information about you to any other person or organization.