SonyBMG Blows

[ada8356]

I popped the newer David Gray CD in my computer and a dialog box popped with loads of reading including the following gems:

"Before you can play the audio files on YOUR COMPUTER or create and/or transfer the DIGITAL CONTENT to YOUR COMPUTER, you will need to review and agree to be bound by an end user license agreement or "EULA", the terms and conditions of which are set forth below. Once you have read these terms and conditions, you will be asked whether or not you agree to be bound by them. Click "AGREE" if you agree to be bound. Click "DISAGREE" if you do not agree to be bound. Please keep in mind, however, that if you do not agree to be bound by these terms and conditions, you will not be able to utilize the audio files or the DIGITAL CONTENT on YOUR COMPUTER."

"this CD will automatically install a small proprietary software program (the "SOFTWARE") onto YOUR COMPUTER. The SOFTWARE is intended to protect the audio files embodied on the CD, "

"This End-User License Agreement ("EULA") is a legal agreement between you and SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT ("SONY BMG"), a general partnership established under Delaware law. By clicking on the "AGREE" button below, you will indicate your acceptance of these terms and conditions, at which point this EULA will become a legally binding agreement between you and SONY BMG. "

"YOU EXPRESSLY ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT YOU ARE INSTALLING AND USING THE LICENSED MATERIALS AT YOUR OWN SOLE RISK. THE LICENSED MATERIALS ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTY, TERM OR CONDITION OF ANY KIND, AND SONY BMG, ITS LICENSORS AND EACH OF THEIR LICENSEES, AFFILIATES AND AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVES (EACH, A "SONY BMG PARTY") EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, TERMS OR CONDITIONS. EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SATISFACTORY QUALITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT AND FITNESS FOR A GENERAL OR PARTICULAR PURPOSE. "

And the best one:

"YOU HEREBY WAIVE ALL RIGHTS AND/OR ENTITLEMENT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN CONNECTION WITH ANY DISPUTE THAT ARISES OUT OF OR RELATES IN ANY WAY TO THIS EULA OR THE SOFTWARE."

I can post the whole thing if anyone cares to read it all, but I think you get the idea.

If you don't agree to this, you can not play the CD on your computer!

 

[Dennis]

Umm, you might want to do a google on "sony rootkit" but you might not want to read what it says... -- Dennis

 

[JMT]

How new is the CD? I thought I heard sometime last fall about Sony losing a lawsuit based on this exact complaint. I am probably mistaken, they may have simply been reporting on the case.

 

[jduffy]

Big Brother is watching you.

 

[ada8356]

How new is the CD? I thought I heard sometime last fall about Sony losing a lawsuit based on this exact complaint. I am probably mistaken, they may have simply been reporting on the case.

I'm not sure of all the details, but you are correct that they lost the lawsuit and I don't think this is put on the CDs anymore.

It's actually not my CD, I love David Gray and had borrowed a friend's CD to check it out... I still haven't got to listen to it cuz I really don't want to install some snooper program onto my computer.

 

[Dennis]

Depending on how old the CD is, you might have one of the rootkit CDs. They were all supposed to be "recalled" but they were not. At the very least, download and run a rootkit check (look through the boingboing.net summary). Just inserting a bad disc in your tray automatically installed the rootkit whether or not you agreed to the terms or not. It is a scary situation.

Dennis

 

[rustyblade]

I think it is too late once you pop the CD in. Whether you say yes or no, you got the rootkit. That was once the the most insidious things about it.

 

[ada8356]

It is a scary situation.

That was once the the most insidious things about it.

Yes that is super suck.

It makes me lose respect for any artist who would agree with this. Do you think the aritsts even knew that SonyBMG was doing this?

 

[fuerein]

I know several were opposed to having the DRM on their discs but technically Sony controls the discs not the artists (how sucky is that state of affairs?). Even the ones that had no problem with DRM had issues with Sony's crap, since it did auto-install even when you said no to the EULA. I avoid anything Sony anymore... even though this was the result of SonyBMG. Sony has just become a huge pain lately.

 

[Dennis]

Yes that is super suck.

It makes me lose respect for any artist who would agree with this. Do you think the aritsts even knew that SonyBMG was doing this?

http://www.boingboing.net/2005/11/14/sony_anticustomer_te.html

There is a 5 part update to this story including responses from artists affected by this. -- Dennis

 

[geoff]

If you hold down the shift key while the CD is being inserted the 'autorun' feature that causes the applciation to launch is disabled and you can use it like any other CD.

Not a hack or anything; just a standard feature in windows.

If, as noted above, the rootkit is already installed this won't help much but you can keep it in mind for future.

-Geoff

 

[ada8356]

http://www.boingboing.net/2005/11/14/sony_anticustomer_te.html

There is a 5 part update to this story including responses from artists affected by this. -- Dennis

Wow. Just wow. That really makes me angry.

 

[Creslin]

Didn't someone very quickly figure out how to exploit that rootkit and use it to gain access to computers? If I remember correctly this was the reason for the recall.

 

[highre]

Didn't someone very quickly figure out how to exploit that rootkit and use it to gain access to computers? If I remember correctly this was the reason for the recall.

They did indeed. People did use it for less than nefarious purposes though. I remember hearing about people using it to hack online games like World of Warcraft. Btw, you may be able to claim a settlement from the class action lawsuit Sony lost over this debacle. I'm not sure if the claim period is over yet. This link http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/RootkitRevealer.html can tell you if you have the rootkit installed. However, it can be a little hard to interpret what's legit and what isn't.

 

[catatonic]

Yep, you probably already have the sony rootkit in your system sadly.

Get it checked out, and if you have it, get it removed, and go get a new non-infected CD (if yours is on the list...there are more that have it which are NOT on that list)

My answer was painful, but simple: full boycott of Sony. I don't allow Sony in my home anymore, at all. As far as I'm concerned, they have lost my business permanently for the gross display of disrespect thye have shown.

Now, if I like a Sony represented band...I might go to their concert...but I won't buy any of their CDs until they move to a new label. I also write the band to let them know that, not to be a jerk, but so they know they are losing sales thanks to their label, in hopes they might go elsewhere once their contract is up.

 

[Xert]

Preventative solution: Turn off autoplay altogether.

 

[catatonic]

Preventative solution: Turn off autoplay altogether.

True, or just run a portable CD player into your sound card's AUX input....bypasses the computer aspect of it entirely.