Universal Music Group today released the first copy-protected
music CD in the US, according to a report by news site
SiliconValley.com. The move follows similar attempts by BMG and
Sony to do the same in Europe.18 Dec 2001
Universal is the biggest of the major record labels and its move is widely seen as a commercial risk. Its CD of “Fast & Furious – More Music” will not play on some CD players, Macintosh computers, DVD players or CD-enabled games consoles. The record company's aim is to stop the CD being “ripped” with a PC to convert tracks to MP3 format.
According to SiliconValley.com, all of Universal’s CDs will be copy protected by mid-2002. BMG’s attempt to release Natalie Imbruglia’s “White Lilies Island” in Europe with copy protection resulted in replacement CDs being offered following complaints from consumers that the discs would not play. Sony tried the same with some copies of Michael Jackson’s single “You Rock My World” but limited its release to a few experimental copies.