FSF Outs the World Wide Web Consortium over DRM Proposal
Richard Stallman calls for the W3C to remain independent of vendor interests.
Free Software Foundation founder Richard Stallman continued his crusade against Digital Rights Management (DRM) with a recent post at the FSF website, calling for the World Wide Web consortium to reject a proposal to add specifications for DRM. The post includes a link to a petition for online readers to register their concerns about the W3C proposal.
Stallman has labored for years to raise awareness about the dangers of DRM, a collection of encryption technologies used by hardware vendors, software vendors, and media companies to limit access to digital information after the sale. The FOSS community remains divided on the issue. Linus Torvalds and others have been critical of Stallman's anti-DRM focus, and the strong prohibition of DRM (which Stallman calls "Digital Restrictions Management") is one of the reasons why the Linux kernel is still licensed under Version 2 of the GPL rather than the DRM-unfriendly Version 3.
The GPL debates, however, were based on differing interpretations on the role of a software license, not necessarily on merits of DRM itself. Over the last few years, the use of encryption has expanded exponentially with higher bandwidth, faster processors, and the growth of the Internet as a content distribution medium. Stallman argues that no one can prevent vendors from adding DRM restrictions to HTML content through proprietary plugins and other non-free code, but a world-wide standards body such as the W3C should not be lending its support to DRM through official standards.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
System76 Releases COSMIC Alpha 7
With scores of bug fixes and a really cool workspaces feature, COSMIC is looking to soon migrate from alpha to beta.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 6.0 Available for Installation
The latest release of OpenMandriva has arrived with a new kernel, an updated Plasma desktop, and a server edition.
-
TrueNAS 25.04 Arrives with Thousands of Changes
One of the most popular Linux-based NAS solutions has rolled out the latest edition, based on Ubuntu 25.04.
-
Fedora 42 Available with Two New Spins
The latest release from the Fedora Project includes the usual updates, a new kernel, an official KDE Plasma spin, and a new System76 spin.
-
So Long, ArcoLinux
The ArcoLinux distribution is the latest Linux distribution to shut down.
-
What Open Source Pros Look for in a Job Role
Learn what professionals in technical and non-technical roles say is most important when seeking a new position.
-
Asahi Linux Runs into Issues with M4 Support
Due to Apple Silicon changes, the Asahi Linux project is at odds with adding support for the M4 chips.
-
Plasma 6.3.4 Now Available
Although not a major release, Plasma 6.3.4 does fix some bugs and offer a subtle change for the Plasma sidebar.
-
Linux Kernel 6.15 First Release Candidate Now Available
Linux Torvalds has announced that the release candidate for the final release of the Linux 6.15 series is now available.
-
Akamai Will Host kernel.org
The organization dedicated to cloud-based solutions has agreed to host kernel.org to deliver long-term stability for the development team.