Apple and Real, Round 2
In the wake of Real Media's release of its Harmony software (see http://dotnetjunkies.com/WebLog/richard.dudley/archive/2004/07/26/20374.aspx), Apple threw a little hissy fit:
Apple blasts RealNetworks' iPod 'hacker tactics'
source: http://www.vnunet.com/news/1156980
"We are stunned that RealNetworks has adopted the tactics and ethics of a hacker to break into the iPod," Apple said in a statement.
"We are investigating the implications of their actions under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and other laws.
"We strongly caution Real and their customers that, when we update our iPod software from time to time, it is highly likely that Real's Harmony technology will cease to work with current and future iPods."
Real Media denied the DMCA violations (making an argument similar to the one I posed the other day--see link above)
Real slams Apple's iPod 'hacker' attack
source: http://www.vnunet.com/news/1156985
Consumers, and not Apple, should be the ones choosing what music goes on their iPod.
...
In fact, the DMCA is not designed to prevent the creation of new methods of locking content, and explicitly allows the creation of interoperable software.
Not that I'm any fan of Real Media's software, but Apple has been far more interested in control rather than compatability, an idea that largely accounts for the nickel-sized market share Apple maintains in its PC markets. My little iPod will rock on regardless.