PlayFair: DRM removal for iTMS songs

Over the past few months, I’ve been buying all of my music from the iTunes Music Service. The reason I finally gave in and started buying digital tracks is that Apple was offering a convenient, “real download” (as opposed to subscription) service that would let me keep my tracks forever. The DRM used by iTMS also wasn’t overly heinous. Despite that, I’m not comfortable with having my songs tied to specific machines and software packages. In fact, just recently I read about someone who, due to repairs and machine replacements and such, was having trouble listening to his iTunes songs.

Despite that, I went ahead and started buying, knowing that something like playfair was right around the corner. It was only a matter of time. Steve Jobs even told the music execs that very thing. People in favor of DRM say it keeps the honest people honest. BS. I’m an honest person, and I want to get rid of the DRM to ensure the longevity of my purchase. I have no intention of sharing my tunes. My reason for wanting to get rid of the DRM is exactly why the Audio Home Recording Act was enacted.

From what I’ve read, it looks like PlayFair is not completely convenient to use (I haven’t tried it yet). Now that the tool exists, though, it’s just a matter of time before someone provides a script integrated right within iTunes that says “Remove DRM”.