Playlist: Users able to circumvent Windows Media DRM:

"Microsoft is aware that a tool recently surfaced that circumvents Windows Media Digital Rights Management technology -- breaking the content protection that our content partners apply to their intellectual property such as music or video content," the company said in a statement provided to Macworld.
However, Microsoft is currently working on an update that will stop the application.

"Fortunately, the Windows Media DRM system has built-in renewability, we have an update and are working with our partners to deploy this solution," the statement read.

I feel like Loke Groundrunner. "WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN??!!?!?!" At least I do about the "renewable" part. Wth?

For me, most notable is that it's really not about subscription versus owning just yet. It would appear that de-DRMing on Microsoft boxen does the same thing, namely let you have the digital content freely available forever, except now you can deDRM "as much music as you want," since that's what the article says the MS solutions allow you to download. Pay a single monthly fee, download like mad, deDRM, instant Napster once again, but this time MS is the one putting out the piratable content.

All I can figure is that the "renewable" means that the apps will, once the new DRM format comes out, try to find the old stuff and reDRM it. Good luck with that. They only people dumb enough to think that'll work must think that the users bright enough to find and download the deDRMer can't figure out how to move the files. In fact, the only people dumb enough to think renewable will performing swimmingly are those who have no clue about how DRM works in the first place. Luckily that apparently means music execs.

In some sense, Apple's "buy it, keep it" might be a safer move, because no matter what the DRM format, it's going to be broken. The less content wrapped up and delivered into the pirate's hands, the better.

It's all zeroes and ones, folk. It's all going over the binary medium, and, well, if "you want to get on the back of us and ride, baby, ride; you want on? OK, here's the terms!" (thanks, Ballmer)

The terms are binary means easy to subvert. Everyone knows how to crack binary if they can read binary. Unless you want to invent a new, closed medium, it's going to happen. MS admits it, Apple admits it, only the content providers don't.