Digital Home Thoughts: The Latest Music CD DRM

"The record industry has been targeting online music sharing for years, but now it has undertaken a new war--against "casual piracy." Sony BMG and EMI have begun shipping compact discs using technology that limits the number of copies you can make of any disc to three. And you can't port songs from affected CDs to Apple IPod players unless you request a workaround from Sony. The move, along with other recent developments in copyright protection such as the Supreme Court's ruling this summer in MGM v. Grokster, a copyright infringement case pitting Hollywood against the Grokster peer-to-peer network, could have a lasting impact on your entertainment choices. And you may not like the remix."

A very interesting article - the overall idea of three rips of a CD seems reasonable (I only need one), but DRM-protected WMA files? No thanks - nothing but hassle for someone who lives in a multi-device world (four desktops, two laptops, Pocket PC and a Smartphone). The first thing I do when I get a DRM'd WMA file? Burn it to CD and re-rip to get the track I want the way I want it.