iTunes DRM-Free Tracks Now With 50% More DRM

Fri Jun 1, 2007 1:12PM EDT

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The iTunes plot thickens.... I previously reported that iTunes Plus "DRM-Free" tracks came loaded with your email address and iTunes user ID. Additional information has arisen to clarify: The tracks don't include your email address but rather your billing name (though those are often the same). And according to at least one user, the tracks won't play at all if you strip the user information out of the file or insert a phony name into the tracks, as iTunes verifies ownership when the file is played.

Is it just me, or does that sound a whole lot like DRM? As independent researcher Joe Touch (who sent his findings via a popular email newsletter) puts it, "They're managing digital rights if they force the tag to remain in the song."

But wait, there's more! When the EFF compared two iTunes Plus copies of a Daft Punk song, it oddly found them to be of substantially different sizes: Specifically, one file was a full 360KB larger than the other. What's in that 360KB? The EFF hasn't been able to figure that out yet, but it speculates there's a large amount of user data (possibly regarding your music library) held in an encrypted format. Whatever it is, it ain't music.

And then there's this news: In the latest version of iTunes (7.2), Apple has made it far more difficult to do what's long been the tried and true method for stripping DRM from tracks: Namely, burning the music to a CD, then re-ripping it back into iTunes. Rather, if you do, you can no longer copy those tracks to an iPod, getting a message that they are "incompatible." It's unclear whether this is a bug or an intended "feature" of Apple's new direction. I'm hoping for a bug and that it'll be fixed soon. Read the link for full details and updates as they happen.

Apple, let's get it together, OK? Remember that open letter, Steve? All this DRM nonsense is making it really hard to love your products. Remember, some of us just want to listen to our music without Big Brother listening in.

Comments on iTunes DRM-Free Tracks Now With 50% More DRM

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  • 2 Posted by yumtumtum on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:58PM EDT Report Abuse

    First of all, whose place is it to say that the 360KB difference in those two songs comes from additional tags of some unidentified personal information? They are clearly different formats, possibly sampled at different rates, and not necessarily even the exact same recording. Please don't make wild assumptions about something you clearly don't know anything about.

  • 3 Posted by yumtumtum on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:58PM EDT Report Abuse

    First of all, whose place is it to say that the 360KB difference in those two songs comes from additional tags of some unidentified personal information? They are clearly different formats, possibly sampled at different rates, and not necessarily even the exact same recording. Please don't make wild assumptions about something you clearly don't know anything about.

  • 4 Posted by parissquare on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:59PM EDT Report Abuse

    I was able to successfully change the purchase info using a hex editor. The song played fine. Try doing an in-place character replace. It does appear to be less a piracy issue and more of a "Doh!" issue. Purchaser info has always been part of m4p files. I supposew when they did the switch to m4a, they didnt realize that such a thing could happen.

  • 5 Posted by cnull on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:27PM EDT Report Abuse

    yumtumtum - No, they're identical tracks in the same format. Read the story.

  • 6 Posted by rkrieg@btinternet.com on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:43PM EDT Report Abuse

    This is such propaganda. At worst case, It's like having your name writen on your underwear. If you don't give it someone they wont know what color you like to wear. The iTS already had a record of your purchases. Nothing new here. So some one is going to remotely break into your computer and find your e-mail address in a file? Because that is obviously the only place it's written ;). We own many things that have records leading back to us. Say, the lisence plate on your car. If you use your car to commit a crime someone can use the license plate to find you. Did anyone scream big brother when license plates were introduced? Your credit card company also knows everything you ever bought. As for the tracks refusing to play, I think there must have been a bug becuase I had no trouble transfering tracks to my Walkman Phone. Then I found out my walkman phone was a cappy mp3 player. Oops! Why do poeple want to hate so much? It's just some music. Buy it however you want but don't spread lies just to be mean 'cause that is all this is.

  • 7 Posted by larry459714 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:56PM EDT Report Abuse

    Man! I was going to post a comment about the article but I'm affraid to after reading the comments left attacking others for what they thought. Some of you people are wound just a little to tight for my blood. I hope for the sake of your sanity that nothing really serious happens in your lives cause I dont think the ticker could handle it. Good luck to all and try to relax a little more. Its not that serious.

  • 8 Posted by mdevanz on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:14PM EDT Report Abuse

    I right-clicked on an itunes+ track and selected "convert to MP3". It converted with no problems, didn't include any user information (that I could see) and allowed me to move it to my ipod.

  • 9 Posted by catholicfrogymom on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:19PM EDT Report Abuse

    its good to know cause i own both a ipod and a few other mp3 players!!

  • 10 Posted by maastdog on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:01PM EDT Report Abuse

    Let's face it, Apple is probably the biggest developer of junk ever known to man. If it had not been for that over priced under featured bloated music player, the company would have gone away by now. It is CLEAR that there are some Mac Religion fans here, good for you. I purchased a better equipped player from Sandisk with more features and less crap and I can get my music from anywhere and transfer it on to this player...OH WAIT I am sorry, no I cannot purchase music from Itunes and easily transfer it over to my Sandisk, I have to go through hoops to do that, and now that the new "Feature" is included that does not allow me to burn it off and put it back into Itunes and then transfer, I am even more pleased. Everyone who reads this article should be smart and drop all Apple related products and let the company die, their products are not innovative, not exciting, and almost always 60% more than the nearest competition's products. Steve Jobs is not an innovator, he's a bloated corporate robber baron and no better than any other company CEO. The difference is the products he produces stink!!! Anyone who I see who owns an Ipod I just think to myself, oh look another lemming!

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