Ringle?

Oh, someone please stop these people. Even my Sony Ericsson (yes, half owned by a notoriously evil record label) ships with software to rip CDs into non-DRM’d MP3s that function just fine as ringtones. What startling level of idiocy causes someone to think that bundling more software on CDs is a remotely good idea I cannot fathom, but clearly one of the brains in a record company came up with this gem. It doesn’t really affect me on account of pretty much never buying CD singles, but even so… yuck.

If this ever finds its way onto real CDs (i.e. albums), I may just cry. I probably spend in the vicinity of AU$60-75 a month on new albums, which is likely more revenue than you’d get if I bought things online… and I reckon a good half the reason I do that (aside from knowing what DRM is and why I don’t want it on my music) is for the packaging and associated retail experience. Most recent purchases include Gotye’s Mixed Blood, MoS Australia’s Electro House Sessions (it’s completely different from the global MoS release of the same name), Bob Sinclar’s Soundz of Freedom, and the super duper excellent soundtrack to Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.

I have ripped each and every track from them all as WMA Lossless. I wouldn’t have bought… about three of the four… if it wasn’t for retail CD stores.