Consumer Benefits of Today's Digital

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Original publisher: Washington: U.S. G.P.O.: For sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O. [Congressional Sales Office], 2002. LC Number: KF27 .J857 2002c OCLC Number: (OCoLC)50447480 Subject: Intellectual property -- United States. Excerpt: ...11 be reluctant to distribute sensitive information digitally, and the creation of new business models based on digital distribution will falter. The ultimate victims of lim-ited DRM options will be consumers, who will enjoy fewer opportunities to enjoy the many benefits of digitally distributed commercial content, or manage their own dig-ital information securely, easily and inexpensively. In recent years, the private sector has devoted substantial resources to - and has made tremendous progress in - improving the quality and breadth of DRM tech-nologies. Industry has strong incentives to develop innovative and flexible DRM technologies that can respond quickly to changing circumstances, and that can sup-port diverse business models to satisfy varying consumer scenarios. Contrary to some claims, our industry has already been remarkably successful - through the ac-tions of both individual firms and multi-industry initiatives - in developing effective, user-friendly DRM technologies, many of which have already garnered broad con-sumer acceptance. As these technologies mature, more and more businesses are dis-covering new applications for - and taking advantage of new business opportunities enabled with - DRM systems. The title of today's hearing recognizes that DRM technologies can benefit con-sumers. Microsoft acknowledges, however, that industry needs to do a better job of educating the public about their benefits. The problems that arise from unprotected digital content extend well beyond pirated movies and music and negatively affect the entire digital economy. As more people become creators of digital goods and in-formation for both personal and commercial purposes, the need for securing this IP becomes increasingl...