Universal Now Working Both Sides Of The Aisle

Two stories concerning Universal Music emerged recently. One, an ongoing tale concerning the continuous threats of lawsuits level at Veoh by the media giant, which has in turn led a very peeved and exasperated Veoh to throw back a counter suit in which the video startup is seeking “a declaratory injunction to bar Universal from taking legal action” against the site. Another, making the rounds in the media just this morning, about the music group’s intention to “test the digital sale of songs…without…copy protection.” When placed side by side, they manage to leave conflicting tastes in one’s mouth.

So what’s to be made of this contrast?

The bout between Veoh-Universal clearly puts the first party in the right. The latter has made repeated attempts to control what it ultimately cannot control, and so it is no doubt wrong to continue to antagonize this particular website born of the New Media wave. While Universal may not like the way things are going in the era of greatly increased consumer empowerment and control, it will nonetheless be required to eventually make adjustments to suit the changes forced by sound reason and popular opinion.

Which, strangely enough, has been an influential factor in Universal’s decision to experiment with the sale of DRM-free tracks. Yes, while Universal is calling its move to a DRM-free existence online a temporary one – it will begin sometime this month and run to January ’08 – the music group will likely gain many a good word for it, regardless.

Which I myself echo, as long as the trial period has its end date removed and becomes a permanent transformation.

So what’s to be made of this seemingly two-faced behemoth? Does it remain in the realm of bad, or is it getting better, despite its irresolute behavior?

What it comes down to, really, is that Universal is showing that it doesn’t know what to do at the moment. On the one hand, it has almost instinctively crouched down to defend its catalogue from being pillaged by new media establishments like Veoh and so forth. On the other, it begrudgingly recognizes its need to shape up and change with the times. It knows it is necessary to pick a path to take, but it seems so far undecided. The move to experiment with DRM-free offerings is a good sign that its moving in a direction suitable to its customers, but it has more to do before it earns itself permanent good marks with its current collection of critics. Which is massive, by the way. In short, things are still very much up in the air.

If Universal doesn’t revert to reflexive measures to stamp out illicit activity on the Web in its cautious removal of DRM from its catalogue during the next few months, and if it allows its session with Veoh to fade and fall to nothing in time, I see better days ahead for the media giant. If not, well, it’ll be harder days ahead.