Anti-DRM people makes me sick

People like Cory Doctorow who makes his living by lambasting Apple's iPod, iTunes and iTunes Music Store (iTMS) system makes me ill. It his latest anti-Apple tirade Apple's Copy Protection Isn't Just Bad For Consumers, It's Bad For Business he once more complains about DRM in songs bought from the iTMS. This prompted a response like OMG DRM is r33ly bad from the blog PlaybackTime.

I'd also like to nitpick.

In the first place, nobody's holding a knife to Doctorow and his followers' throats and forcing them to buy an iPod. They can buy other digital music player devices from SanDisk or iRiver or Samsung. It's as if they didn't have a choice in which brand or company to throw their money.

Secondly, if they do own an iPod (the horrors!), again, nobody's forcing them to buy from the iTunes Music Store. They can buy CDs and rip them and upload them to the iPod or buy DRM-free songs from eMusic.

Lastly, Jobs did not force the record labels to put DRM in the songs in the iTMS; it's the other way around. I can't believe that Doctorow is not even aware of this simple fact. Does he honestly think Jobs came up to the record labels and told them, "There's no way that you're going to sell your music on my store without DRM." Most probably Jobs went to the record labels and was told to put DRM in the songs or else THEY won't sell their music in the iTMS. I mean, isn't it plain and common sense that record labels would prefer to have DRM in their songs sold online because they are concern with what is called as "piracy."

Piracy. I wonder if Doctorow and his minions know what that word means in the present context or if they even know if the word even exists. Piracy occurs, Mr. Doctorow, when people trade copyrighted materials illegally not the one that happens in the seas. Piracy is what the record labels is so concerned about when it comes to selling music online. Digital music bought online removes the step of ripping the songs from the CDs thereby making thing much easier to distribute music illegally.

In the Utopian world Doctorow has built for himself, DRM does not exist. Of course, in this world, online consumers do not engage in piracy. Maybe that's what Doctorow should concentrate on first rather than jumping on the Apple bandwagon like Enderle, Thurrott, and Ahonen who lambasts Apple in order to get his online and sell books and get invited to conferences.

Grow up, Doctorow. Unless you can eliminate piracy, DRM is here to stay.