It's official, the French have lost their marbles...

[Wingtips1]

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.asp?feed=OBR&Date=20060321&ID=5587517

PARIS (Reuters) - France's lower house of parliament passed a law on Tuesday that could challenge Apple Computer Inc.'s dominance of the online digital music market by making it open its iTunes store to portable music players other than Apple iPods.

French officials said the law is aimed at preventing any single media-playing operating system, such as Apple's iTunes or Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Media Player, from building a grip on the digital online music retail market.



What part of intellectual property laws do they not understand? By forcing people to give away their competitive advantages gives them no incentive to create and grow our global economy.

[Chicago1871]

What part of intellectual property laws do they not understand? By forcing people to give away their competitive advantages gives them no incentive to create and grow our global economy.
Um...how to break this to you? The songs that iTunes sells are not their intellectual property. They've simply added their own digital rights management coding on them so only their player can play the files. iTunes and Apple would be giving away no advantage if they were to drop the DRM. In fact, they'd be making 10x more money if they did, because people who don't own iPods, like myself, would make use of iTunes. I'm siding with the French on this one.*

* Meaning I'm against DRM. Forcing the company to drop it is another matter altogether as the bill itself is the wrong way to reach the goal they're striving for.

[Mel Brennan]

He just hates the French, and, deep down, struggles to understand how they have the WHO-rated #1 health care system in the world, a 35-hour workweek, a culture that emphasizes art and literature (while the tour buses take tourists in NYC and London to visit...the financial district, ones in Paris take you to art, through history and hand out books), while stil lremaining comprehensively competitive in the world. He has status to lose and self-conception to reconsider by acknowledging (or, God forbid, seeing the USA acknowledge and shift accordingly) that there's an entirely different way of being in the world...hell, it might open up consideration that moves us beyond any of these "isms," let alone the one Wingtips makes his bones - and defines himself - on...

[GringoTex]

He just hates the French, and, deep down, struggles to understand how they have the WHO-rated #1 health care system in the world, a 35-hour workweek, a culture that emphasizes art and literature (while the tour buses take tourists in NYC and London to visit...the financial district, ones in Paris take you to art, through history and hand out books), while stil lremaining comprehensively competitive in the world. He has status to lose and self-conception to reconsider by acknowledging (or, God forbid, seeing the USA acknowledge and shift accordingly) that there's an entirely different way of being in the world...hell, it might open up consideration that moves us beyond any of these "isms," let alone the one Wingtips makes his bones - and defines himself - on...

You forgot the cleanest air and whores of any industrialized nation in the world.

[Chicago1871]

iTunes and Apple would be giving away no advantage if they were to drop the DRM. In fact, they'd be making 10x more money if they did, because people who don't own iPods, like myself, would make use of iTunes.
I take that back. Their approach to both music and MP3 players would have to change for there to by no loss of advantage, but if executed well, it would easily prove profitable.

[DJPoopypants]

You forgot the cleanest air and whores of any industrialized nation in the world.

I thought frenchies showered less and perfumed more?

[GringoTex]

I thought frenchies showered less and perfumed more?

We're talking about whores. They're well-regulated.

[Blackmail]

the WHO-rated #1 health care system in the world


This was a controversial rating though, one which several medical officials disagreed with. The WHO also said the U.S. has the top rated individual hospitals but that it was weak and caring for the poor, which dropped it all the way to number 37.

Here are some quotes from a CNN article:

''Any set of rankings that puts Finland at 31 and Italy at 2, or even France at No. 1, raises questions,'' said Nick Bosanquet, health policy professor at London University's Imperial College, noting that previous studies have been highly critical of Italy.

''They are obviously getting an olive oil effect,'' he added, referring to the famed Mediterranean diet.

Italians themselves have expressed dissatisfaction with health care, said a surprised E. Richard Brown, director of the University of California, Los Angeles, Center for Health Policy Research.

[Nanbawan]

We're talking about whores. They're well-regulated.

Either dirty or prostitute...Sounds accurate...

[DoyleG]

This was a controversial rating though, one which several medical officials disagreed with. The WHO also said the U.S. has the top rated individual hospitals but that it was weak and caring for the poor, which dropped it all the way to number 37.

Here are some quotes from a CNN article:

''Any set of rankings that puts Finland at 31 and Italy at 2, or even France at No. 1, raises questions,'' said Nick Bosanquet, health policy professor at London University's Imperial College, noting that previous studies have been highly critical of Italy.

''They are obviously getting an olive oil effect,'' he added, referring to the famed Mediterranean diet.

Italians themselves have expressed dissatisfaction with health care, said a surprised E. Richard Brown, director of the University of California, Los Angeles, Center for Health Policy Research.

The OECD survey is a far better ranking.

[sardus_pater]

This was a controversial rating though, one which several medical officials disagreed with. The WHO also said the U.S. has the top rated individual hospitals but that it was weak and caring for the poor, which dropped it all the way to number 37.

Here are some quotes from a CNN article:

''Any set of rankings that puts Finland at 31 and Italy at 2, or even France at No. 1, raises questions,'' said Nick Bosanquet, health policy professor at London University's Imperial College, noting that previous studies have been highly critical of Italy.

''They are obviously getting an olive oil effect,'' he added, referring to the famed Mediterranean diet.

Italians themselves have expressed dissatisfaction with health care, said a surprised E. Richard Brown, director of the University of California, Los Angeles, Center for Health Policy Research.

The italian health care system is very good. I know that some other countries with their (sometimes unjustified) sense of superiority cannot conceive it and took offence being rated behind.

There are many other sectors in which the above mentioned countries are better than Italy.

Of course the ranking of countries' health systems cannot be based on the excellence but on the overall results. Accessibility and quality/cost being the most important aspects of a country health system. I have no doubt that the best (and generally all the) US hospitals are excellent if you can afford them (but the best italian hospitals are excellent too, it's 2006 not 1947 and Italy was a member of g6, g7 and is a member of g8, not Zaire).

http://pacs.unica.it/policlinico/foto/facciata.jpg
http://pacs.unica.it/policlinico/foto/ingresso3.jpg
Policlinico Universitario di Cagliari

[Wingtips1]

The French gov't has no right to tell Apple how it is to run their business. There are no monopoly issues in the use of DRM. If Apple wants to implement the practice, they should be allowed. If they don't think they'll sell as many iPods if they lose DRM priviledges, then it is their decision to simply leave the market. Nobody has a right to the iTunes/iPods combination, or single entity. You can either accept that in order to upload songs to an iPod you need iTunes, or you use the products of a competitor.

And Mel, this has nothing to do with my feelings for the French. If this were the Germans or Japanese or Americans, I'd be railing against this. It is very similar to the EU's war against Microsoft forcing them to 'unbundle'. The gov't simply should not be telling businesses a.) what services/products they can/cannot offer and b.) how they offer their services/products.

[Sine Pari]

He just hates the French, and, deep down, struggles to understand how they have the WHO-rated #1 health care system in the world, a 35-hour workweek, a culture that emphasizes art and literature (while the tour buses take tourists in NYC and London to visit...the financial district, ones in Paris take you to art, through history and hand out books), while stil lremaining comprehensively competitive in the world. He has status to lose and self-conception to reconsider by acknowledging (or, God forbid, seeing the USA acknowledge and shift accordingly) that there's an entirely different way of being in the world...hell, it might open up consideration that moves us beyond any of these "isms," let alone the one Wingtips makes his bones - and defines himself - on...


And don't forget racist soccer teams like PSG

[Chicago1871]

The French gov't has no right to tell Apple how it is to run their business. There are no monopoly issues in the use of DRM. If Apple wants to implement the practice, they should be allowed. If they don't think they'll sell as many iPods if they lose DRM priviledges, then it is their decision to simply leave the market. Nobody has a right to the iTunes/iPods combination, or single entity. You can either accept that in order to upload songs to an iPod you need iTunes, or you use the products of a competitor.
Actually, the French government can do what it wishes with regards to the content it allows to be distributed within its boarders. That said that doesn't mean it is a good or idea, and Apple can, and likely will, discontinue the operation of France's iTunes and has the right to not sell iPods within the country. The potential also exists for them to legally take on France if code is distributed to crack the DRM. However, since this code already exists on the internet and they haven't pursued it, I'm not sure they'll run with that ball.

Also, I like how you changed your argument from copyright infringement to monopoly, despite the fact that there is no monopoly issue here. "What is the issue then?" is what you're about to ask. It's part DRM (which Europe seems to be having issues with) and part interoperability. You really should take some time and read up on it. Fascinating stuff.

[Karl K]

This was a controversial rating though, one which several medical officials disagreed with. The WHO also said the U.S. has the top rated individual hospitals but that it was weak and caring for the poor, which dropped it all the way to number 37.

Here are some quotes from a CNN article:

''Any set of rankings that puts Finland at 31 and Italy at 2, or even France at No. 1, raises questions,'' said Nick Bosanquet, health policy professor at London University's Imperial College, noting that previous studies have been highly critical of Italy.

''They are obviously getting an olive oil effect,'' he added, referring to the famed Mediterranean diet.

Italians themselves have expressed dissatisfaction with health care, said a surprised E. Richard Brown, director of the University of California, Los Angeles, Center for Health Policy Research.

There are countries in which you don't want to get acutely sick in.

And I am not talking about third world mud holes.

Canada.

France.

Italy.

I know someone who got really sick in France. Not good.

For basic services, they are fine. But if you have a really serious problem, and need really fast services...well, good luck.

[YankHibee]

My 2nd cousin's stepsister's exboyfriend got sick in France and had no trouble.

[Claymore]

I had an emergency appendectomy in Paris when I was 14; no problem whatsoever.

[YankHibee]

I got violently ill outside a bar in St. John's, Newfoundland and had no trouble.

[vivzig]

I made love to a French nurse with no problems either.

[bojendyk]

There are countries in which you don't want to get acutely sick in.

And I am not talking about third world mud holes.

Canada.

France.

Italy.

I know someone who got really sick in France. Not good.

For basic services, they are fine. But if you have a really serious problem, and need really fast services...well, good luck.

Sorry, Karl, but this just isn't the case. The reported problems with health care in Canada and France (I don't know about Italy) are based wholly on anecdotal evidence. I can give you a counter example about getting acutely sick in the United States with an HMO--it happened to me, and it wasn't good at all. I developed acute gastroenteritis and begged my primary caregiver to approve an appointment with a specialist. It took four months, repeated visits to my primary care giver, and a weight loss of 20 pounds before I finally got my appointment.

I'm no socialist, but I believe firmly that socialized medicine works better than the American model. It's cheaper, more effeciently run, and more successful. Furthermore, contrary to popular belief, you can get additional private health insurance in France if you want it.