1 00:00:00,474 --> 00:00:01,474 This is a bookseller... 2 00:00:01,573 --> 00:00:02,838 And this is a book. 3 00:00:02,937 --> 00:00:06,382 When the bookseller sells a book to a customer, 4 00:00:06,482 --> 00:00:08,761 he leaves the book shop with it 5 00:00:09,246 --> 00:00:11,174 and does what he wants with it. 6 00:00:11,525 --> 00:00:13,987 Normally, it looks something like this... 7 00:00:14,087 --> 00:00:16,775 When he is done reading it, he usually does this. 8 00:00:16,875 --> 00:00:19,316 But he could also do that. 9 00:00:19,416 --> 00:00:22,589 He can either lend it, give it, 10 00:00:22,747 --> 00:00:25,110 or sell it. 11 00:00:26,534 --> 00:00:29,718 And he has the right to do whatever he wants with it. 12 00:00:29,818 --> 00:00:31,440 It's his book. 13 00:00:31,633 --> 00:00:33,588 More precisely, it is his own copy of the text, 14 00:00:34,882 --> 00:00:36,865 the paper is his. He owns it. 15 00:00:36,965 --> 00:00:38,965 This is an e-reader. 16 00:00:39,065 --> 00:00:41,017 It is a device that makes it possible to read e-books. 17 00:00:41,214 --> 00:00:43,471 Properly speaking, we should say, electonic books. 18 00:00:43,844 --> 00:00:44,817 It isn't really possible 19 00:00:44,917 --> 00:00:46,165 to show an electronic book to you 20 00:00:46,276 --> 00:00:47,276 It neither has shape. 21 00:00:47,486 --> 00:00:49,453 It is a digital file, 22 00:00:49,584 --> 00:00:51,666 data that can travel on many different storage devices. 23 00:00:51,973 --> 00:00:55,150 That's why we talk of intangibles 24 00:00:55,413 --> 00:00:57,363 when it comes to the digital world. 25 00:00:57,604 --> 00:01:01,844 Contrary to a book, a digital file can easily be duplicated, 26 00:01:01,944 --> 00:01:05,755 without any loss of quality and at insignificant cost. 27 00:01:06,376 --> 00:01:09,370 This means sharing it is really easy 28 00:01:09,611 --> 00:01:12,416 When one is used to selling books, 29 00:01:12,555 --> 00:01:16,141 this ease with which e-books can be shared raises a ton of questions. 30 00:01:16,294 --> 00:01:18,582 A wrong answer was given to these questions. 31 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:21,684 It is called DRM, for Digital Rights Management 32 00:01:22,161 --> 00:01:25,628 supposedly methods to protection. 33 00:01:26,009 --> 00:01:30,208 What is protected from what or from whom is open to question. 34 00:01:30,471 --> 00:01:34,108 DRM is also intangible. 35 00:01:34,654 --> 00:01:36,160 If one wanted to represent it anyway, 36 00:01:36,260 --> 00:01:37,516 it would look something like that. 37 00:01:37,616 --> 00:01:38,673 The justification for DRM is 38 00:01:38,773 --> 00:01:40,069 to make e-books behave like books. 39 00:01:40,169 --> 00:01:41,345 DRM is supposed to prevent them 40 00:01:41,445 --> 00:01:42,941 from being massively copied and shared, 41 00:01:43,041 --> 00:01:44,537 without every single copy being bought. 42 00:01:44,637 --> 00:01:46,023 That could seem right, but it isn't. 43 00:01:46,123 --> 00:01:48,619 The first reason is that it simply goes against 44 00:01:48,719 --> 00:01:51,593 how things work the natural order of things. 45 00:01:51,746 --> 00:01:55,625 So it's complicated. And when things are complicated, they don't work well. 46 00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:57,847 So you have to buy a certain kind of e-reader, 47 00:01:57,947 --> 00:01:58,715 and not others, 48 00:01:58,815 --> 00:02:00,352 and you need to have the right software 49 00:02:00,452 --> 00:02:02,109 and the right computer to make it all work. 50 00:02:02,395 --> 00:02:03,841 Compatibility is not DRM's strong suit. 51 00:02:04,170 --> 00:02:05,806 And once you have an e-reader, 52 00:02:05,906 --> 00:02:07,324 for the hardware you bought 53 00:02:07,457 --> 00:02:09,276 you still need the e-book you want to read 54 00:02:09,377 --> 00:02:10,544 to be published specifically 55 00:02:11,083 --> 00:02:13,906 And the day you want to change your e-reader or publisher, 56 00:02:14,006 --> 00:02:15,124 your e-books won't work. 57 00:02:15,323 --> 00:02:18,478 The second reason why DRM is a bad solution 58 00:02:18,785 --> 00:02:20,428 is that it does more than prevent users from copying. 59 00:02:20,691 --> 00:02:23,123 When you purchase an e-book with DRM, you do not own the file. 60 00:02:23,525 --> 00:02:28,404 Therefore, you can neither give it, nor lend it, nor resell it. 61 00:02:28,579 --> 00:02:31,479 And there are tons of other terms of use 62 00:02:31,579 --> 00:02:33,380 that do not exist for a real book. 63 00:02:33,480 --> 00:02:37,190 You don't actually buy an e-book; at most you only rent a reading service. 64 00:02:37,475 --> 00:02:39,640 The third reason is that DRM tracks you. 65 00:02:39,740 --> 00:02:41,284 To know what you read, when, 66 00:02:41,384 --> 00:02:42,988 at what speed, how many times, 67 00:02:43,088 --> 00:02:45,571 what passages in particular and in what order. 68 00:02:45,671 --> 00:02:46,945 When you read an e-book, 69 00:02:47,045 --> 00:02:50,073 there is you, the text, and DRM monitoring your actions. 70 00:02:50,173 --> 00:02:51,761 The fourth and last reason is probably the best. 71 00:02:52,111 --> 00:02:54,587 DRM can remotely erase your e-books. 72 00:02:54,687 --> 00:02:57,063 Yes, erase them. This isn't just theory. 73 00:02:57,163 --> 00:02:59,561 Amazon has already done this several times with its Kindle. 74 00:02:59,934 --> 00:03:01,862 E-books with DRM are not books. 75 00:03:01,962 --> 00:03:03,922 The goal of DRM isn't to reestablish a balance 76 00:03:04,022 --> 00:03:06,013 lost with the advent of the digital age 77 00:03:06,113 --> 00:03:08,260 but to hoard all of its benefits 78 00:03:08,360 --> 00:03:10,583 DRM purports to be a protection measure, 79 00:03:10,683 --> 00:03:12,072 but it's actually digital handcuffs. 80 00:03:12,172 --> 00:03:15,951 It takes from you, exploits you, and treats you with contempt. 81 00:03:16,051 --> 00:03:20,355 What is happening today with e-books can also be seen elsewhere, 82 00:03:20,455 --> 00:03:23,839 in particular with video on demand or video games. 83 00:03:24,102 --> 00:03:25,285 The law states that the consumers 84 00:03:25,385 --> 00:03:26,880 states that the consumers must be informed 85 00:03:26,980 --> 00:03:28,548 of the compatibility of what they are buying, 86 00:03:28,648 --> 00:03:30,520 and this includes technological measures such as DRM. 87 00:03:30,622 --> 00:03:32,472 Demand this information when you shop. 88 00:03:32,572 --> 00:03:34,071 Learn to make the right choice. 89 00:03:34,531 --> 00:03:35,802 Ban DRM from your life.