Don't just blackmail the little guy, do it to the big guy too!

Universal is considering negotiating a deal with Apple to get a cut of the profits from each iPod sold. Sound improbable that Apple would just choose to hand out money? Think again... Microsoft already does this with the Zune, as the article points out. Another classic case of the big media companies' most famous extortion trick: "Nice product... you wouldn't want a lawsuit to go with it, would you?" Except an RIAA member isn't suing a dead person or grandmother or ten-year-old this time... it is extorting a major multinational corporation.

What reason would any judge rule in Universal's favor in a case like this (besides their proven track record of incompetence on intellectual property issues)? Because of all that illegal music on your ipod, you criminal! At least, that is what Universal would surely argue: since all of the music on iPods is illegally pirated (possible, but highly unlikely and certainly not provable, and what responsibility does Apple have for the actions of its cusomers, anyway?), Universal deserves a share of the profits from the iPod to feed the poor, starving artists it represents. Anyone that buys this argument is need of a reality check: not only are large record companies certainly not on the side of the artists, they are a purely profit-motivated organization that cares not at all for freedoms of fair use.

As much as I hope that Apple sides with all freedom-loving Americans and tells Universal to take their deal and shove it, Apple has a history of dabbling in compromises with the record labels (the result of which is annoying DRM on the iTunes store). Still, I'm rooting for the little guy... er, I mean the multinational corporation. The one that sells computers, that is.