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Dear Free Software Supporter,

Each year we stage the [International Day Against DRM][1] (IDAD) to
help others learn about the dangers of [Digital Restrictions
Management][2] (DRM). For this year's IDAD on October 12th, we are
focusing in particular on the increasing and disturbing amount of DRM
present in ebooks and other online educational materials. Having so
thoroughly invaded our leisure time, the digital infection known as
DRM should not be allowed to spread into the classroom. Joining us in
the fight for IDAD 2019 are the [Electronic Frontier Foundation][3],
[Creative Commons][4], and [The Document Foundation][5], among ten
other [participating organizations][1] we are privileged to have
standing with us in the fight against DRM.

[1]:[link removed]
[2]:[link removed]
[3]:[link removed]
[4]:[link removed]
[5]:[link removed]

In a bid to become the "[Netflix of textbooks][6]," and like many
other publishers, Pearson is doing the opposite of what anyone
committed to education should do: severely restricting a student's
access to the materials they need for their courses through arbitrary
page limits, "rented" books that disappear, and many which require a
constant Internet connection.

[6]:[link removed]

Publishers like Pearson should not be allowed to decide the rigidly
specific conditions under which a student can learn. No book should
spy on your reading habits or simply "disappear" after you have had it
for too long. In the digital age, it is unacceptable for a publisher
to impose the same [principles of scarcity][7] that would apply to a
physical product to a digital file. The computing revolution was
caused by files being *shared*, not merely rented. Imposing these
limitations on digital media is an attack on user freedom, no matter
how much corporate PR may spin the story. It's our aim to let the
world know that we support the rights of readers. You could say that
for IDAD 2019, Defective by Design has you *covered.*

[7]:[link removed]

**We have developed a [dust jacket][8] you can slip over any "dead
tree" book that you are reading to warn others about the looming
threat of DRM. Whether in school, in a coffee shop, or on the subway,
it is an easy conversation starter about the insidious nature of
DRM. We encourage all readers to use them, whether on the latest
hardcover bestseller or the textbook you use in class (while you still
have one).**

[8]:[link removed]

**Defective by Design will be printing high quality versions of the
dust jacket for every book shipped from our friends at the [GNU
Press][9] while supplies permit. And true to our mission, we are also
releasing the [source files][10] to these designs so that others may
do the same. They are [fully editable and shareable][11] in Scribus
v1.5+, so feel free to print, share, translate, and give away your own
printed copies to readers and anti-DRM activists in your area.**

[9]:[link removed]
[10]:[link removed]
[11]:[link removed]

Using ebooks for educational purposes is far from a bad thing: in
fact, we will be bringing together the global Defective by Design
community to help improve the fully shareable and editable works like
those published by our friends at [FLOSS Manuals][12]. We're excited
to be promoting an opposition to "locked-down" learning by staging a
global hackathon on free culture works in the #dbd channel on
[Freenode][13], or our own in-person meeting to help edit these
ethical alternatives at our offices in Boston.

[12]:[link removed]
[13]:[link removed]

Activists all over the world come together on the International Day
Against DRM to resist Digital Restrictions Management's massive and
aggressive encroachment on our *real* digital rights.

This year, we're confident that we can show major book publishers like
Pearson that putting a lock on learning is unacceptable. Join us on
October 12th and beyond in our double-fronted attack to tell others
about the evils of DRM, and to eliminate unethical digital publishing
by contributing to free and ethical alternatives.

# Spread the message

* Print and share these covers as widely as you can, leaving them as
freebies in libraries, coffee shops, and wherever books are
appreciated. Snap a photo of your campaigning in action, and share
it to social media with the tags #idad, #dbd, or #DefectivebyDesign.

* To help us coordinate year-round actions against DRM, join the [DRM
Elimination Crew][14] mailing list.

* If you would like to translate the dust jacket into your language,
please email <[email protected]> and we will be happy to include it
on the official Defective by Design site. We're currently offering
them in English, Spanish, and German.

[14]:[link removed]

# IDAD actions

* [Protest with us on October 12th outside the Pearson Education
offices in Boston, MA at 12:00][15], or coordinate your own local
actions with us on the [LibrePlanet wiki][16].

* Join our remote collaboration session on free culture textbooks in
the #dbd channel of the [Freenode][13] network beginning on October
12th at 17:00 EDT (21:00 UTC). Or if you're in the Boston area, drop
by the FSF offices at the same time for a night of fun,
refreshments, and old-fashioned cooperation.

[15]:[link removed]
[16]:[link removed]

Happy hacking,

Greg Farough
Campaigns Manager
Free Software Foundation


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