I want my DRM from Microsoft, Toshiba or Apple.

I would not touch that sony shit!

You can paint a turd gold, but its still a turd.

Also I’m kinda confused here, this is the first I’ve seen of the $20 covering all 37 albums. According to the infoworld article at http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/01/07/Sony-BMG-to-sell-DRM-free-music-downloads-through-stores_1.html we’re talking $12.99 for just one, yes count em one, of the 37 albums. Nope, can’t have the songs you want, gotta take the whole crap preprocessed package.

To quote the infoworld article:
“In contrast, online retailer Amazon.com offers 2.9 million DRM-free tracks in MP3 format from the catalogs of EMI Group, Warner Music Group, Universal Music and a host of independent record labels. Apple’s iTunes Store has around 2 million DRM-free tracks in the AAC format supported by its iPod and many mobile phones. No store visit is necessary to download those tracks, and an album typically sells for $9.99 or less.”

Also:
“Sony-BMG said it hopes its combined model, selling a download pass through a physical store, will lead to greater sales of physical and digital music.

Albums need a boost, as the number sold in the U.S. dropped again last year, even as the number of music purchases rose, market watcher Nielsen SoundScan reported last week. ”

So ummmm yeah guess what? They’re just trying to lure us back into the music stores with another steaming pile of prepackaged crap so we buy the good albums that aren’t on their crappy list. I for one, am not going to bite.

but for the moment i’ll be the devil’s advocate.

it seems pretty good to pay $20 for 37 full albums without DRM or rootkits. if a physical cd costs $20 (low average), multiply that by 37 - that’s $740.

and being able to get the covers or inserts included also seems to be a plus.

but i said it “seems” to be a good deal.

as the second poster above wonders, so do i:

“What sort of id is needed to purchase this so called online key to entry? Prehaps they are seeking info from those paying by credit card or debit card into areas that you would not get by payment in hard cash. Or is it you have to supply and email address to access on line?”

i don’t use credit cards and only use my bank card to withdraw cash. much of my shopping is done securely online directly through my bank account.

if i have to give an email address to download the 37 albums, i can use an anonymous online email account.

but i won’t give my name or address. if they “require” it, they’ll get a false name and location.

yes, there are many unanswered questions. on the surface, 37 albums including booklets for $20 is something i can afford. but i can’t afford giving up my privacy.

i’ve been known - on a few occasions - to change my mind publicly on p2pnet. if anyone has any new (positive or negative) information about the cards and the requirements of buying and using them, please let us know. i just might change my mind.

Jon: yes, it’s not as outlandish as it sounds. The bit you forgot to mention was that Thomas Hesse wants to “monetize” every action of copying, format shifting, viewing, whatever, that the compliant consumer of corporate product wants to do. Monetize: that greedy little word, that wants to take your rights and sell them back to you, enforced with DRM. Yes, I bet he meant that phrase quite fervently.

Thankfully, the DRM walls are crumbling…

So one has to ask, why are they requiring you go to a physical store to gain access to an on-line one? What benefit is in this for them? It has to be something, otherwise it is obvious this step is designed to failure in a digital world of now. What sort of id is needed to purchase this so called online key to entry? Prehaps they are seeking info from those paying by credit card or debit card into areas that you would not get by payment in hard cash. Or is it you have to supply and email address to access on line? I have lots of questions after the previous shady deals they have shown themselves to be capable of. I can guarentee you I won’t be a purchaser nor user of such. It stinks and smells to high heaven of ulterior motives that they require you to go to a physical store for a digital access.

Given Sony’s past history, I don’t trust them as they have already demonstrated their mindset.