For some reason, people were writing about SanDisk’s slotMusic — a plan to distribute record albums (remember them?) via DRM-free MP3s on microSD cards. (Aspiring pundits should probably avoid publicly reminding readers they’ve forgotten the past.)

Here’s what physical distribution of media was supposed to do in the 20th century:

– Enforce DRM & release windows
– Facilitate retail
– Force consumers to regularly upgrade
– Create a reasonably cost-effective value proposition for consumers with margins for retail and rights owners

DRM is dead. So here’s what physical distribution of media needs to do in the 21st:

– Save brick & mortar retail. Oops, too late
– Act as a back-up; slotMusic defeats the purpose if its pitch is a re-usable medium
– Create a reasonably cost-effective value proposition for consumers with margins for retail and rights owners. We haven’t seen pricing yet, so who knows?

SanDisk is fighting the good fight in devices, and they’re a real scrapper, but this dog don’t hunt.