Okay, now this is getting interesting: The Wall Street Journal is reporting that tomorrow's EMI event in London, with Steve Jobs and an unspecified musical guest, does indeed involve an announcement that the company will be dropping DRM on much of its music.
The Journal is as close to an unimpeachable source as there is, but its story is behind a subscription wall--so here's Engadget's report on its report.
If this is legit, tomorrow will be the first day of the rest of the history of digital entertainment--a moment as significant as the arrival of the original Napster or the launch of the iPod.
A few of the (many) questions that spring to mind....
Which music is this? Most of EMI's stuff? Popular stuff? Obscure tracks nobody cares about? Presumably, it will involve changes to the iTunes Music Store so we can tell protected music from unprotected music.
Is it just Apple? The Journal says other music stores may be involved, too. If iTunes has DRM-free music that's still shackled elsewhere, it would be a huge advantage for Apple...and could be the kiss of death for services like Napster, whose health hasn't been exactly robust anyhow.
Will it work? If you're a music company, this plan only makes sense if you sell enough extra music to make up for any piracy (and there will be some) that results from the lack of copy protection.
Will it last? There aren't many examples of technology revolutions happening, then being rolled back. But there's no guarantee that DRM would be gone for good.
Will this have an impact on pricing? In other words, will Apple maintain its 99-cents-a-track policy, or will you be able to opt to pay more for DRM-free downloads?
Will everyone else follow suit? It's hard to imagine a scenario in which EMI drops DRM and the rest of the industry is steadfastly copy-protected. Again, thinking about history, there aren't many examples of one big company taking a great leap forward and everyone else ignoring it.
More news and thoughts tomorrow, assuming the news is what the Journal's reporting it is....
