[ed. note: this posting is very old, circa 2003 and in desperate need of revision, its out of date on a number of fronts, but the spirit is still valid]

The following is Digital Innovations statement on DRM and embracing Open Source, Free Software and other associated technologies. This is recommended reading for any member of the Open Source or Free Software community that is interested in writing software for the Neuros Digital Audio Computer.Digital Rights Management

We believe that there is nothing to gain by attempting to control the way people use our devices, and we will act accordingly. We will strive to ensure that the Neuros will play as many different audio formats as possible, whether they are encoded with a free and open format, or a closed format that requires DRM. The choice to adopt (or not to adopt, as the case may be) these formats should be made by the consumer, not by the people that manufacture audio hardware.

We feel that it is important to take an active role in fostering communication between the recording industry and consumers world-wide. After all, we wouldnt be working here if we werent interested in digital audio. We understand why the recording industry is interested in the protection that DRM claims to offer, and we also understand why consumers are disinterested in any technology that limits their ability to use technology to its fullest. We look forward to taking part in any communication that may serve to bridge the gap.

Software

We believe that the software we provide with the Neuros should be open, free, and amenable to any changes that any user would like to make. We also believe that users and developers of our software should be free to distribute any changes they make, as well. We will not freely distribute our software and source code because we feel it is of no value, but because we feel that it will become better software through the peer-review process that only Open Source can provide. We believe in giving our customers the best product possible at all times, and we do not feel that keeping our software a secret is an acceptable means to that end.

We license the software surrounding the Neuros with a BSD license that in no way restricts it to use with our device (or any other, for that matter). However, our business model subsidizes certain free services using revenues from the sales of the device. In some cases, we will use licensing and technology to limit access to those services to purchasers of our device.

[ed. note we currently use GPL2 for virtually all our software, but we have licensed proprietary software from 3rd parties that make up some of the code that powers our devices and services]

Communication

While our research and development team is highly qualified to anticipate the needs of our customers, there is no way we can anticipate the needs of every current or prospective user of the Neuros. We will make every effort to listen carefully to our current and prospective users, and make changes when necessary to help them use the device to its full potential.

For those interested in modifying the Neuros at the hardware level, we will do our best to release any and all relevant documentation regarding the technical specifications of the device as soon as we can. While market pressures may inhibit the amount of information we can share, we will share everything we can at the earliest possible time.

Availability

We will strive to ensure that the Neuros device can be purchased worldwide, not just in North America. We look forward to expanding our shipping options to include as many countries as possible. While there are certain features of the Neuros that may cause a delay in making the device available in certain countries, we will make every effort to make our device available wherever we can. We are aware that some companies producing audio hardware charge extremely high prices to those overseas, and we will make every effort to keep the price of our devices within an acceptable range. Where this may not be possible in some countries due to import and export levies, we will still endeavor to make our products available.

Community Responsibility

We understand that we are looking to the Open Source community for help and support, and we also understand that it is important to be a responsible member of that community. While we certainly intend to do our part by making our software available to the world, we would like to do more to support our community, From time to time as our budget allows, we will be donating money and resources to Open Source projects in order to help our community flourish. It is important to note that not every donation we make will be to audio-related projects, but to projects within the community that we find interesting and/or useful to the world at large.

To many people in the technology industry, Open Source remains a fairly new concept. We will do our best to educate and inform members of industry about the Free Software and Open Source movements as part of our ongoing community service as a company.

Patents

DI maintains a portfolio of patents on its devices. These patents are an important defense against larger well-funded competitors in the consumer electronics space, but they will never be enforced against the Open Source community or other independent software developers. We hope to show the technology community at large that there is a difference between legitimate use of a patent on a hardware device, and patent abuse. We hope the Open Source community will understand our position, and continue to work with us to bring Open Source and Free Software to the technology industry.