The Wall Street Journal's influential Walt Mossberg is starting to get a grip on the dangers of DRM technology. In a generally excellent editorial, Walt argues that DRM treats ordinary customers like criminals and takes away the freedoms that make digital media worth owning Unfortunately, he also gets suckered into believing that DRM can somehow be used to stop commercial piracy — ha! — and that some DRM can respect copyright instead of trumping it, but it's a start.
On the other hand, I believe that consumers should have broad leeway to use legally purchased music and video for personal, noncommercial purposes in any way they want — as long as they don't engage in mass distribution. They should be able to copy it to as many personal digital devices as they own, convert it to any format those devices require, and play it in whatever locations, at whatever times, they choose.
The beauty of digital media is the flexibility, and that flexibility shouldn't be destroyed for honest consumers just because the companies that sell them have a theft problem caused by a minority of people.
(Thanks, Glennf!)
