http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060630/ap_on_hi_te/france_itunes_law_5


French lawmakers approve 'iTunes law'

By LAURENCE FROST and NATHALIE SCHUCK, Associated Press Writers Fri Jun 30, 9:29 AM ET

PARIS - French lawmakers gave final approval Friday to legislation that could force Apple Computer Inc. to make its iPod and iTunes Music Store compatible with rivals' music players and online services.
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Both the Senate and the National Assembly, France's lower house, voted in favor of the copyright bill, which some analysts said could cause Apple Computer Inc. and others to pull their music players and online download stores from France.

The vote was the final legislative step before the bill becomes law — barring the success of a last-ditch constitutional challenge filed last week by the opposition Socialists.

Currently, songs bought on iTunes can be played only on iPods, and an iPod can't play downloads from other stores that rival the extensive iTunes music catalog from major artists and labels — like Sony's Connect and
Napster.

Apple described the original version of the copyright bill as "state-sponsored piracy" earlier this year, but a company spokesman was not immediately available to comment on Friday's vote.

In a statement issued after lawmakers hashed out the final compromise text last week, Apple said it hoped the market would be left to decide "which music players and online music stores are offered to consumers."

The final compromise asserts that companies should share the required technical data with any rival that wants to offer compatible music players and online stores, but it toned down many of the tougher measures backed by lower-house lawmakers early on.

It also maintained a loophole introduced by senators, which could allow Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple and others to dodge the data-sharing demands by striking new deals with record labels and artists.

Man, France continues to baffle me with their economic laws....

I see laws like this and it reminds again why France hasn't created anything of use in the last 100 years or so. Unless you count the rolling on the ground like they've been shot soccer player.

France has been a little more useful than that.

There is no reason for Apple to force their program to be compatible with competing formats. Itunes is already compatible with MP3's, but companies like Sony, (I believe) use their own formats which because of piracy purposes are not compatible with many other players. It shoudl be up to those companies to release their music in a format that is compatible with other companies, and it should not be Apples responsibility to make sure their software supports other formats, especially when the support of those formats often requires a licensing fee.

I have 9000 mp3s and every one of them plays on my iPod. And when I had my Creative Zen, I didn't fucking need iTunes. What a waste of the legislative process.

"When are we going to put and end to economic injustice and special privileges? Why should Rearden be the only one permitted to manufacture Rearden Metal?" -Ayn Rand Atlas Shrugged



This is an obsurd law, that shows the theiving nature of their government. BUT, I wonder if everyone here feels as strongly about protecting patents when it comes to life-saving medicine. It's really simple. Either you feel patent/property rights are valid or you don't.