This will not help CD sales.  Who wants to deal with copy block mechanisms that won't let you take the music with you?

Labels to dampen CD burning? [CNET News.com]

Honest officer, I was reading

AT&T beefs up cybersecurity tools [CNET News.com]

which mentioned a study by the Computer Security Institute.  Seeing the blue font I clicked on the link to find the study mentioned.  But, lo, I was shanghaid to a CMP  page which states:

Welcome to CMP Media and our unparalleled collection of techhnology news and information sites. Our primary business objective is to supply the news and information you need to make informed technology and business decisions.

Unfortunately, we cannot satisfy the request to link to our content from the site that referred you to us. That site has chosen to reproduce a significant amount of our content in a manner that we deem to be outside the bounds of fair use on the World Wide Web. We have a major, ongoing investment in producing high-quality, authoritative content and we intend to protect that content vigorously. We have explained our decision to the site in question and asked that they cease the practice of lifting significant portions of our content. We have also advised them of other, acceptable means of linking to our content. We will revisit this decision if and when that site complies with our policies, which are the very same policies we follow when linking to content created by other companies.

[I omitted the icons for CNET pubs]

Thank you for helping us protect our intellectual property.

Best, CMP Media, LLC

So, I suppose we can't begrudge this benign action by CMP to protect its property.  But, am I not someone CMP wants to make a customer?  Why frustrate my efforts to see their property on their site?   

But, you ask, doesn't the CNET respect copyright?  Is there no honor among publishers?

So, we go to the source, yes, we explore the Computer Security Institute.  Well, I see the study referenced in the CNET article.  When I click for the free copy, CMP wishes to identify me and where I work.  I comply and am then shown a page where I may download a report, done in partnership with the FBI for free, with the following stipulation:

The information in this survey may not be reproduced without written permission from CSI

Ah, but if our tax dollars supported the FBI's partnership, does this information not belong in the public domain?

The permission form seems benign, does not talk about payment, just asks the purposes for reproduction, the scheme for distribution, etc.  The form concludes with a place to deny or grant the permission requested.  Hmm...

But, back to the main question -- what's going on with the CNET dispute?  Stay tuned...