 Security StrategiesThis newsletter is sponsored by SSH Communications SecurityNetwork World's Security Strategies Newsletter, 09/13/07DRM for online versions of magazinesBy M. E. KabayI recently had occasion to compare three approaches to digital rights management (DRM) for publications that are offering their magazines online to subscribers. I have been reading the _Guardian Weekly_ since 1963, when I became interested in international affairs and found the breadth of coverage in what was then the _Manchester Guardian Weekly_ refreshing and stimulating. The _Guardian_ became a principal source of information about the battle against South African apartheid, a fight which I supported for many years as an active contributor to the International Defense and Aid Fund. Recently, the paper (now based in London) announced that subscribers would be able to read the magazine online. I was delighted because I enjoy reading magazines on my big 19-inch-high and 22-inch-wide screens, because I value storing the publications in my archives directory, and because I like saving trees. The stored documents are a convenient place for reference material because they are easy to index and can be accessed even when I have no connection to the Internet.
The documents are available without having to download a special reader. The material is crystal clear on the screen and it’s easy to flip from one page (or pair of pages) to another with a single click. There’s also a search field. However, the document is not available as a download at all and is thus readable only with a live connection to the Internet. The _Guardian_ is using PageSuite, “an online, interactive page turning software application created in the U.K., which allows all manner of reading material to be presented in a professional, user-friendly digital edition for all internet users to browse.” Yes, and very nice indeed, except that using my StarBand satellite downlink, turning to the next two pages takes six to seven seconds ( I checked 10 transitions). As far as I can see, there is no way to store the pages other than printing each screen to, say, a PDF file and then combining all the separate files (yecchh). I guess that the _Guardian_ publishers may have chosen the non-downloadable form of electronic publishing to preserve their intellectual property rights. There is, however, a better way to publish electronic versions of magazines while protecting digital rights. My _Science_ magazine subscription from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is available electronically using software available from Zinio. Subscribers have to download and register the Zinio reader; it seems to be a tightly controlled process to gain access to the publication. However, once we’ve registered, a terminate-stay-resident program (TSR) called the Zinio Delivery Manager automatically downloads the current edition of the magazine in the background and pops an announcement up on screen. At that point, one can read the saved magazine file using the Zinio reader at any time. A page flip is so fast I could not measure the speed accurately; the best I could do was to flip 23 pages in 10 seconds by clicking madly while watching my stopwatch. In addition, all the saved copies of the magazine are available at any time in a folder for indexing and for consultation. I do not know if the individual files can be read by anyone else because installing the software my spare computer would have required a separate license. Finally, _Network World_ itself provides a new content-delivery platform called iDemand. The home page provides a 1.25 minute narrated presentation about the product. Subscribers install a program that automatically retrieves the current issue and pops up an alert when it arrives in the Library folder maintained by the program. The PDF file is formatted in very large print that doesn’t look at all like the paper edition but on the other hand, it is easy to navigate and has a complete set of bookmarks. Because the file resides on the client-side disk, flipping pages is as fast as your I/O bus. In addition, the monitoring software provides options for alerting readers to selected preferences such as favorite columns from the magazine. I like it! However, there are no DRM provisions on the PDF files except restrictions on modifying the content, so anyone could forward the files to anyone else if they were so minded. Organizations with a desire for strict DRM might find this laxity unacceptable, whereas others with an interest in viral marketing might find it a benefit. The program was developed by Network World in partnership with One to One Interactive. Readers whose organizations are contemplating electronic subscriptions might want to examine such products and see which ones fit a particular set of needs for the competing demands of control and availability of intellectual property.
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| Contact the author: M. E. Kabay, Ph.D., CISSP-ISSMP, is Associate Professor of Information Assurance and CTO of the School of Graduate Studies at Norwich University in Northfield, Vt. Mich can be reached by e-mail and his Web site. This newsletter is sponsored by SSH Communications SecurityARCHIVEArchive of the Security Strategies Newsletter. BONUS FEATUREIT PRODUCT RESEARCH AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Get detailed information on thousands of products, conduct side-by-side comparisons and read product test and review results with Network World’s IT Buyer’s Guides. Find the best solution faster than ever with over 100 distinct categories across the security, storage, management, wireless, infrastructure and convergence markets. Click here for details. PRINT SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE International subscribers, click here. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICESTo subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World newsletter, change your e-mail address or contact us, click here. This message was sent to: security.world@gmail.com. Please use this address when modifying your subscription. Advertising information: Write to Associate Publisher Online Susan Cardoza Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772 Copyright Network World, Inc., 2007 |
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