SanDisk TrustedFlash rolls out with built-in copy protection
Oh goodie — how we rejoice when companies deliver what consumers really want, which is devices with less functionality that manufacture an artificial scarcity to make up for the benefits we all might otherwise receive from digital technologies. SanDisk's TrustedFlash details roll out — this is the platform that allows moving content to various digital devices, but can only be copied five times, and that limit is enforced by a policy on the memory card itself. The goal, of course, is to please the entertainment industry who we're quite sure won't be truly happy until each one of us has to fill out a form in triplicate before we can even consider moving a single byte of intellectual property from one device to another (oops, sorry, we shouldn't be giving them ideas). The idea is that studios can release albums on memory cards, and consumers can use the cards in their phones, MP3 players, laptops, etc. — up to five devices. And, they can pay to "unlock" extra songs that may be included on the chip but locked until you shell out even more cold cash. Wow, what a smorgasboard of delights — getting to keep a pile of tiny memory cards organized, the joys of being held over a barrel when the song you bought the album for turns out to be locked, the unparalleled delight of having to pay for an album twice after you've used all your copies and your laptop dies, you lose your cellphone, etc. In true 1984 doublespeak, all of this is being billed as "liberating" you from the "confines" of your PC or iPod, and creates "more options for both entertainment companies and consumers alike." Sounds like it will more likely create more options for headaches and frustration, and loads more options for hating on the entertainment industry.
[Via Slashdot]
