Recently there’s been more chatter about DRM and the media content we all consume. First off though, what is DRM?
DRM stands for Digital Rights Management. DRM technologies are used to keep consumers from making many copies of their favorite CD, DVD, MP3, or MP4 and sharing them with friends. In other words, it’s copyright protection. Nothing wrong with protecting the rights of artists, I’m in total agreement with it.
The stick in the mud here though is that your rights as a consumer also get put aside often. If you want to make a copy of your favorite movie DVD as a backup, shouldn’t you be able to? How about backing up your ITunes library? How about restoring your ITunes library if your computer fails, but your IPod has everything on it? Well, you can’t easily do these things!
While the controversy around DRM continues, there’s one easy suggestion I have for getting DRM free music. Radio Shark & XM.
With my XM radio I have access to so many different types of music and talk radio. It’s great! XM’s “Fred Radio” is a favorite channel. They play “Classic Alternative.” Can’t believe they’re calling music I listen to Classic.
The XM I own has an FM transmitter built into it. So, while in the Airstream I can listen to the XM over my radio. I can also pick up the XM radio with my Radio Shark. What does the Radio Shark do exactly?
Radio Shark is a USB antenna that you can plug into your Windows or Mac system. It comes with a software package that allows you to listen to AM & FM radio through your computer. Pretty cool. It also allows you to pause, rewind, fast forward, and record whatever you’re listening to over the airwaves.
The key to this article is the word “record”. 
You can record whatever you’re listening to over the airwaves. In my case, I record what comes across my XM. Digital radio gets recorded to my laptop, and when I’m done recording I can export to my IPod.
What that means to me is I can add to my music library through my XM subscription.
Now, this type of recording is also a big issue. But it’s been a big issue for a long time. People can record shows to their Tivo and copy them to their laptop. During the 80’s we all ran around with cassette tapes, recording our favorite songs off the radio (what a pain that was). VHS recorders captured TV content we missed. The list goes on and on.
However things play out with DRM and copyright issues for today’s latest recordings, there’s one way you can record the music you want. The Griffin Radio Shark.
Just don’t record and redistribute what you’ve saved. That’s where the law is clear, and you’ll have trouble on your doorstep!
