DRM-free Ebooks

There are plenty of places to get your literature fix without the shackles of Digital Restrictions Management (DRM). We're highlighting some publishers and shops you should patronize below!

• Leanpub is an author-driven ebook Web site encouraging people to "publish early, publish often."
• Libreture provides a catalog of DRM-free ebook publishers, and a storage solution for all of your digital books and comics.
• Lektu provides you with an array of DRM-free media in Spanish.
• Nantucket E-Books is a DRM-free publisher and writing platform that also makes a strong commitment to software freedom. They were profiled in this season's Free Software Bulletin.
• No Starch Press offers "the finest in geek entertainment," with educational books on a variety of programming topics.
• Smashwords is the world's largest distributor of indie ebooks.
• Many free (as in freedom) educational books are available through sites like FLOSS Manuals, a supporter of the International Day Against DRM.
• Looking to buy paper books? Check out the GNU Press Shop for your technical manuals and documentation needs.

Stay away from: Amazon

• Amazon is one of the most notorious DRM offenders. They use this Orwellian control over their devices and services to spy on users and keep them trapped in their walled garden.
• Read more about the dangers of DRM through our Defective by Design campaign.

DRM-free Music

Despite the efforts of companies like Spotify, we can still dance to music in the free world. Thanks to the artists, producers, record labels, and shops highlighted on on our Guide to DRM-free Living, the rights-respecting options are nearly endless. Check out music from great labels and artists, including:

• All of the music on Bandcamp is DRM-free and comes in a variety of formats, including patent-free ones like FLAC and Ogg Vorbis.
• Dischord Records, a classic punk label providing music since 1980.
• Emusic offers DRM-free MP3 downloads, providing a local alternative to streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music.
• Folkways, providing digital downloads of the world's best folk and children's music, courtesy of the Smithsonian Institute.
• HDTracks is an online music shop offering thousands of DRM-free downloads for you to play at home.

Stay away from: Spotify, Apple Music, and all other major streaming services

• Spotify is only one of many offenders when it comes to putting DRM in music: all major streaming services do this, with the support of big record labels.
• In addition to streaming music encumbered by DRM, people who want to use Spotify are required to install additional proprietary software. Even Spotify's client for GNU/Linux relies on proprietary software.

• Apple Music is no better, and places heavy restrictions on the music streamed through the platform.

DRM-free video

In the last year, many people have unfortunately become more dependent on streaming media. But it's important to remember how streaming services can deprive you of important rights. "Dis-services" like Disney+ and Netflix mandate the use of a hardware-level backdoor called Widevine, giving them permanent access into deep components of your machine.

Widevine prohibits these services from running on many older devices, leaving families who can't afford a new computer or a new television out in the cold.

Try these video services and sites instead:

• Visit the Moving Internet Archive for free (as in freedom) classic films and art projects.
• The Blender Open Movies project has a collection of computer-animated films that were made entirely with Blender, an enormously popular free software tool.

• Visit the Guide to DRM-free Living for more suggestions on how to stay a film lover and keep your freedom at the same time.

Stay away from: Netflix

• Netflix is continuing its disturbing trend of making onerous DRM the norm for streaming media. That's why they were a target for last year's International Day Against DRM (IDAD).

• They're also leveraging their place in the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) to advocate for tighter restrictions on users, and drove the effort to embed DRM into the fabric of the Web.