My new column for openDemocracy comes ahead of international Day Against DRM (next Tuesday), and starts a thread of thought I want to pursue further - should we fight for our digital rights as “consumers” or “citizens”? I had an interesting conversation over coffee with someone who could be described as a veteran political insider yesterday. We talked about how language inside UK government has completely transformed over the years, such that the NHS, education and the welfare states are now all “services” accessed by “customers”. Apparently, the problem is that many people who access these “services” are not (yet) UK citizens, making the term problematic.
Urban inhabitants of the western world might be surprised to see handfuls of protestors outside their local Apple store next Tuesday. But rather than protesting about working conditions in Chinese factories producing hardware for the iPod, these freedom fighters will be damning practices that prevent them from playing digital music they’ve bought from the iTunes online music shop in their car. That’s right, this Tuesday 3 October is international “day against DRM”.
Read the rest here.
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