Comments on: Random House DRM-free a hoax?

By: Random House DRM free a hoax | Hammock Stand

Random House DRM free a hoax | Hammock Stand — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 05:41:21 +0000

[...] Random House DRM free a hoax Posted by root 23 minutes ago (http://solyoung.com) Feb 22 2008 i 39 ve written to random house for comment but have not yet rex hammock what about this sounds like a hoax blog comments powered by disqus huts along path a couple wordpress blogs over the weekend5 18 Discuss | Bury | News | Random House DRM free a hoax [...]

By: Random House really going DRM-free

Random House really going DRM-free — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 21:06:00 +0000

[...] I asked the question, “Random House DRM-free a hoax?“ The question was based on Cory Doctorow’s post announcing a big move by Random [...]

By: Sol Young

Sol Young — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 18:43:31 +0000

Thanks Madeline – looking forward to it and congratulations.

By: Madeline McIntosh

Madeline McIntosh — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 18:08:34 +0000

Hi, I’m actually the publisher of Random House Audio, and I’m happy to verify this is not a hoax. Sorry I wasn’t able to email you back yesterday, Sol (my inbox got a little overloaded once this news was released). The document Cory links to is legitimate. We didn’t send this out as a press release, but rather as a letter to the agents we work with. That’s why it’s not available elsewhere on the web. Given the level of interest, we’ll post it on our site next week.

By: Sol Young

Sol Young — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 07:10:43 +0000

Thanks Cory for added details. I emailed Madeline at Random House for confirmation (it’s a snowy Friday in NYC so it’s not surprising I haven’t gotten anything back yet).

I don’t disagree that the move is taking place, but it’s important to bring to people’s attention the speed and level of adoption. The feeling of the read is edging on too-good-to-be-true… If real, barriers are being broken down faster than DRM-free proponents could have hoped.

By: Cory Doctorow

Cory Doctorow — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 05:43:12 +0000

My agent, Russell Galen (http://scglit.com/) emailed me that letter, which had been sent to him by the contracts person at RH with whom we had just done our deal. I emailed him back and asked if it was bloggable. He affirmed that it was, so I uploaded the PDF and linked to it.

If you want confirmation, you could email or call the person at RH whose name is at the bottom of the PDF.

By: Rex Hammock

Rex Hammock — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 04:04:09 +0000

re: Did Cory scoop this before that could happen?

My prediction: yes.

By: Sol Young

Sol Young — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 22:30:30 +0000

I don't certify it to be a hoax, but without further information it smells fishy. There aren't any details beyond Cory's PDF download on his own site. Here are my other responses:

Yes, Random House has a sampling of ~400 titles on eMusic. It has been a test run, not an all-out DRM-free release.

All CD audiobooks are DRM-free.

That Random House would make an announcement this big is also part of the reason it seems like a hoax. Shouldn't it come from eMusic or another outlet? Did Cory scoop this before that could happen?

By: Rex Hammock

Rex Hammock — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 22:13:18 +0000

What about this sounds like a hoax?

Random House Audio currently sells DRM-free audiobooks through emusic.com. (via: the Random House Audio website;
http://www.randomhouse.com/audio/about/audiobookdownloadfaq.html)

“Unlike Audible and iTunes, eMusic provides audio files which do not employ Digital Rights Management technology, or DRM. This means that there are no restrictions placed on the audio files you download. You can play them anywhere, create multiple CDs, and store them on multiple computers or listening devices.”

Also, the CD audiobooks Random House Audio sells are DRM-free. That’s not a hoax.

Lastly, I think it’s Apple and Amazon (after the Audible.com purchases closes) who will be making announcements — not Random House Audio.