Presentation given at Federal Trade Commission Town Hall on Digital Rights Management, March 2009, Seattle, Washington

1. March 25, 2009

2. Objectives
• What do DRMs govern that users
might want to know about?
• What are the trends for each of
these?
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

3. What do DRMs Govern?
• Devices
• Identities & authentication
• Extents of usage
• Usage Information
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

4. Devices
• PCs, Macs
• Connected devices
– iPhones, DVB phones, Kindles, IPTVs
• Dependent devices
– iPods, Sansas, Sony Readers
• Physical media
– DVD, Blu-ray, USB storage
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

5. Device Trends
• More connected devices,
greater bandwidth
• User’s set of devices grows and
changes faster
• Physical media e.g. USB 3.0
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

6. Identities &
Authentication
• Users
• Devices
• Domains
– Groups of devices
– Defined by number or geography
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

7. Identity &
Authentication Trends
• Domains getting more popular
– CE “connected home”
• But rules can be complex
– Number/type of devices, proximity
• Rights lockers
– Register devices with service provider
• Local vs. server authentication
– Server must run indefinitely
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

8. Extents of Usage
• Durations
– Rentals, 24/30 rules, etc.
– library checkouts
– Subscriptions
• Number of copies or burns
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

9. Extent Trends
• Subscription services
• Library e-book lending
• “Managed copy” rights for physical
media – DVDs,Blu-ray
• Video rental terms
• Release window compression
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

10. Usage Information
• Collected on device
• Sent to service provider
• Required for royalty payments
• Used for marketing purposes
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

11. Usage Information
Trends
• Expected in subscription services
• Considered anathema in ownership
services
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

12. Unscientific Poll
• On copyrightandtechnology.com
• “How should the FTC regulate disclosure of
content services that use DRM?”
1. Mandatory disclosure in detail,
like food ingredient or nutrition lists
2. Mandatory disclosure at a high level,
like restaurant menu items
3. Mandatory simple rating or logo system,
like MPAA film ratings
4. Keep it voluntary
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

13. Poll Results
Mandatory in
15%
detail
39% Mandatory high
15% level
Mandatory logo /
rating
Voluntary
31%
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009

14. Thank You!
• Website:
www.giantstepsmts.com
• Blog:
www.copyrightandtechnology.com
Digital Rights Management
March 25, 2009