Jeff,
I think a voluntary payment system is a fine idea, but I am not sure
that your proposal address the right issues. If I understand what you
are proposing correctly, your scheme allows a CD buyer to verify that
a particular payment server is authorized by the recording artist to
collect payments in their behalf. It does this by attaching server an
artist URLs and sigs to the downloadable content.
First, why bother attaching all that info to the content? One can
simply set up the servers and let them present signed credentials
from the artists. Content is certainly one way to publicize the
servers, but their are many other ways. Why depend on the content
uploaders to do this?
Second, it would seem you require the artist's cooperation. Some may
not want to cooperate. Maybe that's OK: they don't get paid. But
others --perhaps most-- could be barred from cooperating by their
record companies. Their contracts may allow the record companies to
control all uses of their name and may even give them access to the
voluntary payments (if the contracts don't, they soon will.). The
record companies may even sue the servers claiming they are
interfering with the record companies contractual agreement with the
artists.
A better approach might be to set up one or more servers that
collects money as a way of voting for people's favorite artist. The
funds collected would be placed in one of several audited escrow
accounts: in the artist's name, if they give permission, in an
account dedicated to a charity that the artist designates, or, if
neither is available, one of several music-related charities (pension
funds, libraries, museums, etc.) that the donor can select. A small
portion, say 5-10%, would go to pay for the server expenses.
A user could prepay money -- say $10 at a time, into an account to be
disbursed in smaller increments to artists. Individual payments
would be charged a higher rate to cover expenses. Each donor would
get a statement at the end of the year showing what portion of their
donations went to IRS approved charities for tax purposes.
The recording industry can be expected to try to shut down any
voluntary payment system, so careful legal design is more of an issue
IMHO than cryptographic protocols. A reputable bank as escrow holder
and CPA firm should provide enough trust.
If a system like this takes off and a lot of money is collected in
the artists' names, then future artists might bypass the recording
companies altogether or refuse to sign contracts that bar them from
accessing the voluntary system.
Arnold Reinhold
At 8:33 AM -0400 8/17/2000, Jeff Kandt wrote:
>"Tipster" is the name I'm using for the voluntary payment scheme I
>posted to the coderpunks and cypherpunks lists (among others) a few
>weeks ago under the title "Kill the RIAA: a protocol."
>
>http://www.inet-one.com/cypherpunks/dir.2000.07.24-2000.07.30/msg00387.html
>
>Since that post, I've set up a weblog to track the development of
>the protocol and related voluntary payment issues, and just tonight
>I finished the first draft of the cryptographic protocol which
>enables Tipster's authenticated connection mechanism.
>
>I would appreciate feedback.
>
>http://tipster.weblogs.com
>
>Thanks in advance.
>
>-Jeff
>--
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>|Jeff Kandt | "When cryptography is outlawed, bayl bhgynjf |
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