[advocacy] DRM for Vorbis

[Daniel James]

> I am considering starting a project that would design and implement an
> open-source DRM solution for Ogg Vorbis media.

> To avoid duplicating someone else's efforts, does anyone know of any
> current DRM projects for Ogg Vorbis?

On the page:

http://www.xiph.org/ogg/vorbis/doc/v-comment.html

there is a reference to ISRC numbers. These are the basis of a music industry
approved non-encrypted and non-watermarked DRM system. As I understand it,
the Vorbis file will always play whether you have paid the artist or not. But
if you do want to pay the artist, if (for example) you are using the track in
a commercial context and need to clear the usage of copyrighted material, the
ISRC allows you to identify the artist and the specific recording.

That seems like a sane alternative to the encrypted and watermarked (ie
degraded) systems aimed at consumers. I suggest if you want to start a Vorbis
DRM system you base it on a payment gateway for ISRC numbers. So in your
Vorbis player you would have a button which would interface with a web-based
ISRC database to give you the artist, track and contact information needed.

You could also include agreed royalty rates for commercial uses, and collect
money on behalf of the artists - at the moment I don't think an international
body exists to do this, only national organisations such as the MCPS in the
UK.  They currently have limited ability to collect artist royalties across
borders, as far as I can make out.

It would be easy to spoof an ISRC, but to divert money to the wrong person
would probably result in the fraudsters losing their right to use the ISRC
system. The unique ISRC prefix has to be applied for by each
studio/label/producer, so it would be pretty easy to find out who was getting
any missing money.

Cheers

Daniel

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