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Confirmed: Your iPod Shuffle Earbuds Need Proprietary Chip to Function [IPod Shuffle]
Gizmodo —
... Update 2: Joel @ BBG says he spoke to Apple, and they denied the fact that there's any encryption or authentication in the chip. What's also interesting is that another tipster says the chip is relatively easy to clone (a fact Apple strangely corroborates), meaning the reason why the manufacturers are licensing and using Apple's version is most likely to get to market as fast as possible to beat their competitors. And, because they like the fact that they have a made for iPod certification. ...
Apple confirms presence of proprietary chip in shuffle headphones, licensing fee
Engadget —
... isn't encrypted or otherwise locked down in any way, so it's easily cloned by companies who'd rather not pay. Still, eschewing Made for iPod certification pretty much dooms a product to niche status in the Apple universe, so it's a pretty weak consolation -- when this all shakes out, we're guessing only Apple-taxed headphones will be widely available for the shuffle, and that makes the value proposition somewhat hard to see. Just say no, people. Read - Macworld Read - BBG Filed under: Portable Audio Apple confirms presence of proprietary ...
Apple: No 'DRM Chip' In iPod Shuffle Headphones
Silicon Alley Insider —
... Either way, it's not true. Apple tells BoingBoing that there's no encryption or authentication features on the chip. Instead, it's just part of the standard "made for iPod" licensing system, whereby companies pay Apple for the right to advertise that their wares work with iPods. ...
iPod Shuffle Earbuds Contain Special Chip; It's Not a Big Deal
Wired: Gadget Lab —
... pay a licensing fee to state on their packaging that their gadgets work with iPods. Some chose not to pay that fee, causing confusion in the market, so Apple started "Made for iPod" and "Made for iPhone" programs to label which products were Apple-certified.
In theory, manufacturers will likely be able to reverse-engineer the Shuffle's controller chip, opt
not to pay a licensing fee and cross their fingers that Apple won't
take legal action.
Apple told BoingBoing Gadgets that the chip does not contain encryption or authentication ...
Apple: There is no authentication or DRM in iPod shuffle headphone interface
MacDailyNews —
... iPod equipment." MacDailyNews Take: Again, Apple simply wants to insure that third-party products designed to be used with their products actually work. Johnson continues, "For the record, we do not believe that the new iPod headphones with in-line remote use DRM that affects audio playback in any way." "There is no encryption or authentication on the chip, so clones could conceivably be made, just not with 'Made for iPod' official certification," Johnson reports. Full article here . MacDailyNews Take: We contend that the chip, like the "Made for iPod" program itself, is ...
Apple Grows “Made for iPod” Licensing with New Headsets
Cult of Mac —
... Apple has confirmed the existence of a proprietary chip in the on-cord controller of the company’s headsets that began shipping with the new iPod Shuffle announced last week, but the chip itself serves no “authentication” function and will not prevent third party headset manufacturers from producing headsets that work with Apple’s music player, according to company spokespersons. ...
Shuffle’s Hardware DRM Not DRM at All…Or is It?
TheAppleBlog —
... That unique control scheme recently raised even more eyebrows when it appeared as though Apple had not only forced customers to seek out specially designed headphones for use with the new device, but had also actually built-in a chip that would force third-party accessory manufacturers to pay them a licensing fee in order to be able to make headphones that would work with the new shuffle. When BoingBoing Gadgets took apart a brand new Shuffle, they found a unique chip soldered to the remote, from which a third wire was connected to the same ring on the mini-jack ...
