XrML - eXtensible rights Markup Language - should provide a universal method for specifying rights and issuing conditions (licenses) associated with the use and protection of content. ContentGuard (a joint venture between Xerox Parc and Microsoft) has developed and contributed XrML as an open specification licensed on a royalty-free basis to unify the Digital Rights Management industry and encourage inter-operability at an early stage. XrML facilitates the creation of an open architecture for rights management of digital content and can be easily integrated with both existing and new systems.
The initiative has received significant support from all walks of the industry including technology players, content owners, publishers, eTailers and clearinghouses, and is being rapidly integrated into various applications including e-books, music and video. XrML hopes to foster the rapid growth of the digital content economy.
XrML will enable eContent owners to:
- Describe rights, fees and conditions appropriate to commerce models they select.
- Provide standard terms for usage rights with useful, concise and easily understandable meanings.
- Offer vendors operational definitions of trusted systems for compliance testing and evaluation.
- Provide extensibility to new language features without compromising XrML's other goals.