Digital Rights Management in the Publishing Industry

This report outlines the issues surrounding digital rights management (DRM) in the publishing industry. DRM in the recording industry is reviewed to provide a backdrop to the work currently undertaken by publishers and digital booksellers; this demonstrates the polarised viewpoints of consumers and content producers with regard to copyright law and the culture of file sharing on the Internet. The business models of companies which the author believes are the main competitors for ebook market share: Google, Amazon, Apple and Sony, are presented along with their approaches to digital rights management and content distribution. Some publishers and authors are presented who have experimented with releasing DRM-free content, and the resulting effects on their exposure and sales.