An Economist's Guide to Digital Music

In this guide, we discuss the impact of digitalization on the music industry. We rely on market and survey data at the international level as well as expert statements from the industry. The guide investigates recent developments in legal and technological protection of digital music and describes new business models as well as consumers' attitude towards music downloads. We conclude the guide by a discussion of the evolution of the music industry

Building communities for the exchange of learning objects: theoretical foundations and requirements

In order to reduce overall costs of developing high-quality digital courses (including both the content, and the learning and teaching activities), the exchange of learning objects has been recognized as a promising solution. This article makes an inventory of the issues involved in the exchange of learning objects within a community. It explores some basic theories, models and specifications and provides a theoretical framework containing the functional and non-functional requirements to establish an exchange system in the educational field. Three levels of requirements are discussed. First, the non-functional requirements that deal with the technical conditions to make learning objects interoperable. Second, some basic use cases (activities) are identified that must be facilitated to enable the technical exchange of learning objects, e.g. searching and adapting the objects. Third, some basic use cases are identified that are required to establish the exchange of learning objects in a community, e.g. policy management, information and training. The implications of this framework are then discussed, including recommendations concerning the identification of reward systems, role changes and evaluation instruments

An Economist’s Guide to Digital Music

In this guide, we discuss the impact of digitalization on the music industry. We rely on market and survey data at the international level as well as expert statements from the industry. The guide investigates recent developments in legal and technological protection of digital music and describes new business models as well as consumers' attitude towards music downloads and audio-streaming. We conclude the guide by a discussion of the evolution of the music industry.music, internet, file-sharing, peer-to-peer, piracy, digital rights management, copyright, e-commerce

An Economist's Guide to Digital Music

In this guide, we discuss the impact of digitalization on the music industry. We rely on market and survey data at the international level as well as expert statements from the industry. The guide investigates recent developments in legal and technological protection of digital music and describes new business models as well as consumers' attitude towards music downloads. We conclude the guide by a discussion of the evolution of the music industry.Music; Internet; File-sharing; Peer-to-peer; Piracy; Digital Rights Management; Copyright; E-commerce

Multimedia delivery in the future internet

The term “Networked Media” implies that all kinds of media including text, image, 3D graphics, audio and video are produced, distributed, shared, managed and consumed on-line through various networks, like the Internet, Fiber, WiFi, WiMAX, GPRS, 3G and so on, in a convergent manner [1]. This white paper is the contribution of the Media Delivery Platform (MDP) cluster and aims to cover the Networked challenges of the Networked Media in the transition to the Future of the Internet. Internet has evolved and changed the way we work and live. End users of the Internet have been confronted with a bewildering range of media, services and applications and of technological innovations concerning media formats, wireless networks, terminal types and capabilities. And there is little evidence that the pace of this innovation is slowing. Today, over one billion of users access the Internet on regular basis, more than 100 million users have downloaded at least one (multi)media file and over 47 millions of them do so regularly, searching in more than 160 Exabytes1 of content. In the near future these numbers are expected to exponentially rise. It is expected that the Internet content will be increased by at least a factor of 6, rising to more than 990 Exabytes before 2012, fuelled mainly by the users themselves. Moreover, it is envisaged that in a near- to mid-term future, the Internet will provide the means to share and distribute (new) multimedia content and services with superior quality and striking flexibility, in a trusted and personalized way, improving citizens’ quality of life, working conditions, edutainment and safety. In this evolving environment, new transport protocols, new multimedia encoding schemes, cross-layer inthe network adaptation, machine-to-machine communication (including RFIDs), rich 3D content as well as community networks and the use of peer-to-peer (P2P) overlays are expected to generate new models of interaction and cooperation, and be able to support enhanced perceived quality-of-experience (PQoE) and innovative applications “on the move”, like virtual collaboration environments, personalised services/ media, virtual sport groups, on-line gaming, edutainment. In this context, the interaction with content combined with interactive/multimedia search capabilities across distributed repositories, opportunistic P2P networks and the dynamic adaptation to the characteristics of diverse mobile terminals are expected to contribute towards such a vision. Based on work that has taken place in a number of EC co-funded projects, in Framework Program 6 (FP6) and Framework Program 7 (FP7), a group of experts and technology visionaries have voluntarily contributed in this white paper aiming to describe the status, the state-of-the art, the challenges and the way ahead in the area of Content Aware media delivery platforms

The Future of the Internet III

Presents survey results on technology experts' predictions on the Internet's social, political, and economic impact as of 2020, including its effects on integrity and tolerance, intellectual property law, and the division between personal and work lives

Managing Digital Piracy: Pricing, Protection and Welfare

This paper analyzes the optimal choice of pricing schedules and technological deterrence levels in a market with digital piracy, when legal sellers can sometimes control the extent of piracy by implementing digital rights management (DRM) systems. It is shown that the seller's optimal pricing schedule can be characterized as a simple combination of the zero-piracy pricing schedule, and a piracy-indifferent pricing schedule which makes all customers indifferent between legal consumption and piracy. An increase in the level of piracy is shown to lower prices and profits, but may improve welfare by expanding the fraction of legal users and the volume of legal usage. In the absence of price- discrimination, the optimal level of technology-based protection against piracy is shown to be the technologically-maximal level, which maximizes the difference between the quality of the legal and pirated goods. However, when a seller can price-discriminate, it is always optimal for them to choose a strictly lower level of technology-based protection. Moreover, if a DRM system weakens over time, due to its technology being progressively hacked, the optimal strategic response may involve either increasing or decreasing the level of technology-based protection and the corresponding prices. This direction of change is related to whether the technology implementing each marginal reduction in piracy is increasingly less or more vulnerable to hacking. Pricing and technology choice guidelines based on these results are presented, some social welfare issues are discussed, and ongoing work on the role of usage externalities in pricing and protection is outlineddigital piracy, digital rights management, DRM, information goods, nonlinear pricing, screening, type-dependent participation constraints, copyright, IP, intellectual property

Is TPM a dirty word? Digital rights management-systems and video games within the EU

Dator- och TV-spel är relativt nyligen introducerade och komplext utformade verk, vilket innebär en utmaning avseende upphovsrättsligt skydd. I huvudsak består ett sådant spel av ett flertal olika upphovsrättsliga alster, inkluderande programvaran, som är oupplösligt sammansatta i en och samma produkt. Detta leder till att den upphovsrättsliga klassificeringen varierar beroende på aktuell jurisdiktion, då harmonisering ännu inte har uppnåtts inom EU avseende sådana verk. Den upphovsrättsliga klassificeringen av dator- och TV-spel påverkar tillämpligheten av EU:s upphovsrättsliga skyddsåtgärdslagstiftning och därmed även utvärderingen av de elektroniska system (DRM-system) som används för att förvalta digitala rättigheter. Då denna utvärdering utgör en signifikant del i detta arbete, var ett försök till klargörande påkallat. Det visades att det föreligger indikationer på att dator- och TV-spel inte bör betraktas som enbart programvara, utan snarare bedömas vara en komplex sammanslagning av olika intellektuella verk. Den snabba tekniska utvecklingen har gjort det jämförelsevis lätt att få obehörig tillgång till och nyttja upphovsrättsskyddat material, vilket resulterat i en växande illegal konsumtion av dator- och TV-spel. För att motverka detta och skydda sina ensamrätter nyttjar rättighetshavare vissa system för elektronisk förvaltning av digitala rättigheter, DRM-system, avsedda att begränsa eller helt förhindra obehörig åtkomst och användning. Av de rättsligt skyddade verktyg som används uppfattas särskilt de tekniska skyddsåtgärderna (TPMs) av legitima slutanvändare som alltför restriktiva då de både begränsar åtkomst till och komplicerar användningen av dator- och TV-spelet, inbegripet handlingar som inte kräver rättsinnehavarens tillstånd. Effekten av implementerade DRM-system, särskilt TPMs, på den illegala konsumtionen och på slutanvändarnas attityder illustreras som ett led i utvärderingen av de facto effektiviteten av TPMs. Det hävdas att TPMs inte tillräckligt effektivt förhindrar den illegala konsumtionen, och vissa forskare vill även mena att användandet av TPMs kan öka omfattningen av upphovsrättsintrång, sprunget ur ett växande missnöje med dessa inom dator- och TV-spelar forum. En annan aspekt av implementering av DRM-system, särskilt TPMs, är den potentiella konflikt som uppkommer genom att rättighetshavarens fundamentala rätt till egendom ställs mot slutanvändarens fundamentala rätt till yttrande- och informationsfrihet. Detta berättigade en utredning av huruvida TPMs gör intrång i slutanvändarens fundamentala rättigheter, och, om så är fallet, ifall detta kan anses utgöra en otillåten kränkning. Det framkommer att TPMs kan anses göra intrång i rätten till yttrande- och informationsfrihet, men rådande rättspraxis finner inte att sådana intrång innebär otillåten kränkning, men verkar däremot inte helt prekludera denna möjlighet.The video game poses a challenge in terms of copyright protection due to the complexity and novelty of its nature, in essence being comprised of multiple copyrightable elements, resulting in jurisdictionally diverse legal classification and harmonisation within the EU is not yet achieved. As the varying options of copyright classification of video game affects the applicability of EU anti-circumvention law, and thus, the evaluation of digital rights management-systems, which is an important part of this thesis, clarification was called for. It was found that there are indications that a video game should not be considered a mere computer program, but rather a complex amalgamation of intellectual works. The rapid technological development has made it comparably easy to gain unauthorised access to and use of copyrighted content, resulting in a growing illegal consumption of video games. To counter this, right holders implement digital rights management-systems (DRM-systems) to protect and manage their exclusive rights through restricting or preventing unauthorised access and use. Of tools used, technological protection measures (TPMs) in particular are from a lawful end-user perspective perceived as over-restrictive, complicating and limiting the access and the use of the video game, including acts that do not require right holder authorisation. In light of this, the impact of implemented DRM-systems, TPMs in particular, on illegal consumption and end-user’s attitudes is illustrated and the de facto effectiveness of TPMs evaluated. It is argued that TPMs are not truly effective in preventing illegal consumption – indeed some scholars suggest that TPMs might even increase the magnitude of copyright infringement following increasing levels of discontent within the video gaming community. Another aspect to the implementation of DRM-systems, specifically TPMs, is the potential conflict created as the right holder’s fundamental right of property is pitted against the end-user’s fundamental right of freedom of expression and information. This called for the application of a fundamental rights perspective, investigating whether TPMs may be interfering with end-users fundamental rights and, if so, whether it is considered a violation or not. It is shown that TPMs can interfere with the right of freedom of expression and information, but so far relevant case law implies that such interference is not considered a violation, in part due to the wide margin of appreciation awarded EU Member States. However, current case law does not seem entirely preclude that as a possible future outcome. In conclusion, TPMs does not only inconvenience lawful end-users whilst being de facto ineffective in preventing illegal consumption of video games, but TPMs also interferes with end-user fundamental rights, although violation has not been confirmed. It is thus proposed that TPMs in their current format may not be the preferred solution to counter video game piracy and ensure right holder exclusive rights

Open-TEE - An Open Virtual Trusted Execution Environment

Hardware-based Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs) are widely deployed in mobile devices. Yet their use has been limited primarily to applications developed by the device vendors. Recent standardization of TEE interfaces by GlobalPlatform (GP) promises to partially address this problem by enabling GP-compliant trusted applications to run on TEEs from different vendors. Nevertheless ordinary developers wishing to develop trusted applications face significant challenges. Access to hardware TEE interfaces are difficult to obtain without support from vendors. Tools and software needed to develop and debug trusted applications may be expensive or non-existent. In this paper, we describe Open-TEE, a virtual, hardware-independent TEE implemented in software. Open-TEE conforms to GP specifications. It allows developers to develop and debug trusted applications with the same tools they use for developing software in general. Once a trusted application is fully debugged, it can be compiled for any actual hardware TEE. Through performance measurements and a user study we demonstrate that Open-TEE is efficient and easy to use. We have made Open- TEE freely available as open source.Comment: Author's version of article to appear in 14th IEEE International Conference on Trust, Security and Privacy in Computing and Communications, TrustCom 2015, Helsinki, Finland, August 20-22, 201