The world of DRM-free online music sales has been heating up lately. AmazonMP3 was the first DRM-free store with music from the “big four” labels, and is my personal favorite (it is the only store I have made repeat purchases at actually), but if they really want to make a significant dent in iTunes’ market share they are going to need to do more. Here’s my $.02 on the matter. Read more

Ars is running a story on a new report by IDC (that was funded by Microsoft) that states/shows that $1 of piracy = $5.50 in “lost opportunities”. Cheng argues that just because “every single dollar that…has been ‘lost’ to copyright infringement [can’t] be turned around into a dollar worth of sales” that we should “take this report with about $5.50 of salt.” Should it really matter if each dollar of piracy would actually be a dollar of sales though?

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Paul’s Soapbox is a regular feature of TechConsumer where I sound off on various tech topics/products that I’m interested in (or hate). This is just my $.02, so consider yourself warned. This week’s subjects are all over the place: DRM, “3G” Wireless, and Playstation Home.

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Purdue University announced this morning that they received 47 new settlement letters from the Recording Industry Mafia Association of America.

Purdue spokesperson Jeanne Norberg said: “As an Internet service provider, Purdue will forward these letters when the user can be accurately identified.” “Purdue will not voluntarily provide names to the RIAA. However, should those notified choose not to pay the settlement, the RIAA may obtain court-ordered subpoenas to obtain the individuals’ names.”

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