Community is the focus of 2015's International Day Against DRM

Read this press release online at
<https://www.fsf.org/news/community-is-the-focus-of-2015s-...>.

BOSTON, Massachusetts, USA -- Wednesday, May 6th, 2015 -- Today,
a wide variety of community groups, activist organizations, and
businesses are taking part in the ninth [International Day
Against DRM][1]. The groups are united in envisioning a world
without [Digital Restrictions Management (DRM)][2], technology
that places arbitrary restrictions on what people can do with
digital media, often by spying on them. As the largest anti-DRM
event in the world, the International Day Against DRM is an
important counterpoint to the pro-DRM message broadcast by
powerful media and software companies. The Day is coordinated by
[Defective by Design][3], the anti-DRM campaign of the [Free
Software Foundation][4].

This year, community members are the highlight of the
Day. Activists have organized [twelve
events](https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:Defective_by_Design/Da...)
in Bangladesh, Canada, England, Guatemala, Italy, the
Netherlands, Portugal, the US, and Greece (as of May 5th).

Four individuals with unique perspectives also worked with
Defective by Design to write [community
posts](https://www.defectivebydesign.org/dayagainstdrm#readings):
two blind anti-DRM activists, an anti-DRM tech librarian and a
social scientist/activist analyzing the rise of DRM in streaming
media services.

[Bookstores and
publishers](https://www.defectivebydesign.org/dayagainstdrm#stores),
including O'Reilly Media, are offering sales on DRM-free media
and advocacy organizations allied with Defective by Design will
also be making official statements. Activists in Russia, Romania,
and France have already translated the [anti-DRM
flyer](https://www.defectivebydesign.org/dayagainstdrm#printable)
into their native languages, and more translations are in
progress. More groups are expected to join on the day itself.

Zak Rogoff, campaigns manager for the Free Software Foundation,
said "Powerful entertainment and technology companies use DRM to
restrict our use of digital media, demanding control over our
computers and network connections in the process. Our community
is doing everything we can to organize and build tools to protect
our freedom. Our opponents are strong enough to have the
government on their side in most countries, but when we come
together, we are strong too."

Individuals can participate with a variety of online and
in-person actions on [dayagainstdrm.org][1], from media downloads
to gatherings. To be part of Defective by Design's year-round
anti-DRM campaigns, supporters can [join the low-volume Action
Alerts email list][6] or join the discussion on the <a
href="https://lists.defectivebydesign.org/mailman/listinfo/drm-...">email
discussion list</a> or <a href="irc://irc.gnu.org/dbd">#dbd IRC
channel</a>. Media stores, activist organizations and other
groups interested in participating in the International Day
Against DRM today or in 2016 should contact
<info@defectivebydesign.org>.

### About Defective By Design

Defective by Design is the Free Software Foundation's campaign
against Digital Restrictions Management (DRM). DRM is the
practice of imposing technological restrictions that control what
users can do with digital media, creating a good that is
defective by design. DRM requires the use of proprietary software
and is a major threat to computer user freedom. It often spies on
users as well. The campaign, based at defectivebydesign.org,
organizes anti-DRM activists for in-person and online actions,
and challenges powerful media and technology interests promoting
DRM. Supporters can donate to the campaign at
<https://crm.fsf.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&...>.

### About the Free Software Foundation

The Free Software Foundation, founded in 1985, is dedicated to
promoting computer users' right to use, study, copy, modify, and
redistribute computer programs. The FSF promotes the development
and use of free (as in freedom) software -- particularly the GNU
operating system and its GNU/Linux variants -- and free
documentation for free software. The FSF also helps to spread
awareness of the ethical and political issues of freedom in the
use of software, and its Web sites, located at fsf.org and
gnu.org, are an important source of information about
GNU/Linux. Donations to support the FSF's work can be made at
<https://donate.fsf.org>. Its headquarters are in Boston, MA,
USA.

### Media Contact

Zak Rogoff  
Campaigns Manager  
Free Software Foundation  
(202) 489-6887  
<campaigns@fsf.org>  

 ###

[1]: http://dayagainstdrm.org
[2]: http://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm_digital_rest...
[3]: http://defectivebydesign.org
[4]: http://fsf.org
[6]: http://www.defectivebydesign.org/join
[7]: https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:Defective_by_Design/Da...
[8]: https://www.eff.org/event/international-day-against-drm
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Sent from the Free Software Foundation,

51 Franklin St, Fifth Floor
Boston, Massachusetts 02110-1335
United States

From:		"Free Software Foundation" <info-AT-fsf.org>
To:		LWN <lwn-AT-lwn.net>
Subject:		Community is the focus of 2015's International Day Against DRM
Date:		Tue, 05 May 2015 17:57:52 -0400
Message-ID:		<E1Ypkqe-0006tL-18@eggs.gnu.org>
Archive-link:		Article