Yahoo exec says removing DRM from music boosts sales

Posted by Tom Foremski - February 11, 2007

Steve Jobs' recent call to take DRM off music allies him with Dave Goldberg, head of Yahoo Music, one of the top competitors to Apple's iTunes.

I met with Dave Goldberg recently, when he was in town along with other Yahoo media execs, and asked him about DRM.

"I've long advocated removing DRM on music because there is already a lot of music available without DRM, and it just makes things complicated for the user." He said that Yahoo Music has done experiments where it has offered music with or without DRM, and that removing DRM boosts music sales.

He said that the Microsoft DRM that Yahoo Music uses "doesn't work half the time."

Mr Goldberg said that Yahoo Music will explore ways it can get "off the PC." He said that there would be an announcement later this year with a large partner. Removing DRM would make it easier for music to be played on different systems.

"The car is the one thing that is keeping CD sales alive. Getting music into the car is a challenge, I don't know what the best solution is," Mr Goldberg said.

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