The writing’s on the wall: DRM for music downloads is deader than the eight track. Okay, actually, that’s not fair: the eight track was relatively good technology.

Just two weeks after Amazon launched their own DRM-free music store, Microsoft is jumping on the bandwagon. DRM won’t be gone completely from the Zune store, but there will be hundreds of thousands of DRM-free tracks going live, apparently in November with the release of a new store and new players. That’s a major departure, given that Microsoft built its Zune and PlaysForSure platforms around DRM, and introduced significant new DRM features in Vista. Normally, I don’t like to quote press releases, but I’ll give my friends at the Digital Freedom Campaign a chance for some deserved gloating:

“The industry standard has shifted in the past six months and the tide has turned in favor of consumers,” Maura Corbett, a spokesperson for the Digital Freedom Campaign said. “The number of digital music retailers offering DRM-free music will soon out number those that do not, and consumers will soon live in a world where they can listen to legally purchased music when, how, and where they want. We congratulate Microsoft for joining the growing number of retailers and labels that have realized the best way to increase the sales of digital music, is to listen to their customers.”

Actually, I’ll argue one point. The number of digital music retailers offering DRM-free music already outnumbers those that don’t.

CDM got some early exclusives on the future of Microsoft’s media plan and PlaysForSure, including an explanation of why Zune isn’t part of the PlaysForSure program, thanks to Dave McLauchlan of the Windows Media Group:

Microsoft Not Turning Back on PlaysForSure with Zune Player
MTP, Portable Player Standard? Microsoft’s McLauchlan Sets Us Straight

At the time, Microsoft wouldn’t say anything publicly about its upcoming player. Now, it has made its Zune announcement official. Translating the marketing-speak is too painful for me today, so you can read the press release after the jump, but here are the interesting points:

1. Wireless sharing: As widely predicted, the Zune will feature wi-fi music sharing, via Zune-to-Zune connections. Microsoft also promises a “platform” for sharing music and video. Sounds interesting; as long as this eventually involves the ability to freely stream VJ sets and sound files in any format I want anywhere I want, I’ll be really happy. (Okay, that could be wishful thinking …)
2. Share recordings: The portable music consumer product makers generally don’t seem to understand that lots of people make their own recordings. So it’s comforting to see among the sharing features that you’ll be able to share “homemade recordings.” (Homemade, I think, is in contrast to the DRMed music purchased for the Zune, which will have plenty of sharing restrictions — but all the more reason to stock up on your own stuff and non-DRMed music and share that instead.)
3. Surprise! Hip music! Microsoft apparently wants to build its street cred by pre-loading indie music on the device. The device will feature music from “DTS, EMI Music’s Astralwerks Records and Virgin Records, Ninja Tune, Playlouderecordings, Quango Music Group, Sub Pop Records, and V2/Artemis Records.” Sup Pop? Ninja Tune? Quango? Wow, we might actually get some music we like. And meanwhile Apple is shilling with John Legend. Am I in bizarro world?

Zune’s focus seems to be music discovery and sharing. Whether Microsoft actually pulls that off or it’s just marketing hype, it’s nice to see them trying, at least — even if they aren’t giving Last.fm a run for its money any time soon.

As musicians, it matters to us, I think, how music is consumed and distributed. Dave McLauchlan of the Windows Media Devices Group at Microsoft had plenty to say about the technologies that drive their devices. As a member of the team behind PlaysForSure, though, he also had some mythbusting to do on the Zune front. While Microsoft currently declines to comment on their upcoming media device, unfortunately many outlets have gotten some information blatantly wrong, including the widely-publicized story that Microsoft was turning its back on its existing Windows DRM and subscription services. Dave says it ain’t so:

There has been absolutely no official correspondence from Microsoft regarding any plan to *not* support Windows Media DRM nor subscription services. The Zune team has specifically not answered any questions related to technologies like subscription and the DRM mechanism behind it.

I think where people are getting confused is that we have confirmed that Zune will not be a member of the PlaysForSure program. PFS is about much more than subscription or DRM although those are two important components. However, a device can meet (or not meet) PlaysForSure certification on the basis of something as simple as the implementation of MSC.

So, not to make ANY claims or “hints” about what features Zune will ship with (the device will ship this year, so more news will be forthcoming) - but it is not necessarily a correct assumption to believe that because the device will not be part of the PlaysForSure program that it won’t use Windows Media DRM nor support subscription. I should also be clear that PlaysForSure isn’t going away. Microsoft remains committed to an ecosystem using Windows Media technology that a large number of partners have committed to. However, there are really two strategies in the market right now - cross-brand ecosystems (PFS) and singular brand ecosystems (Apple). The former is gaining in share and units sold, but the latter has enormous share and won’t give that up easily.

Just as Samsung sells RAM to Apple, but makes PlaysForSure devices too - Microsoft is electing to build an ecosystem around the Zune concept, but remains committed to the PlaysForSure ecosystem which many partners have joined us with.

That should be good news for Windows Media loyalists. If you look long enough at Microsoft’s bizarre Flash teaser for Zune, pictured below, I’m sure you can find many more details, in allegorical form.

Coming Zune: Zune Teaser Site [Official]
Music Site, Regina Spektor, the NYC pianist/singer whose quirky music is featured in the otherwise slightly disturbing Flash trailer

Public relations representatives from Microsoft declined comment on this story, though they did provide the standard line: