joegratz.net

In just a few exchanges, this debate at WSJ.com between Wendy Seltzer and Fritz Attaway gets deep into the differences driving attitudes toward DRM. Attaway, quite reasonably, wants copyright holders to be able to exercise perfect price discrimination, allowing the user to do only what he’s paid for the right to do — viewing once, viewing many times, copying, and so on. Seltzer believes the collateral damage to technological and cultural innovation caused by legally enforcing DRM restrictions is greater than the benefit to society bestowed by the marginal gain in copyrighted works created due to revenues gained because of those restrictions.

It’s quite refreshing to have the issues stated in relatively precise and empirical terms, rather than the too-common sessions of shouting “Thieves!” and “Greedy corporate pigs!” at each other.