A handful of French senators and members of the National Assembly on Thursday agreed to tone down some of the provisions within a draft copyright law that left the future of Apple Computer’s iPod music player and iTunes Music Store uncertain in the country, the Associated Press reports via the HoustonChronicle.com.The modified law doesn’t include some of the non-iPod-friendly provisions included within an earlier version of the text that was passed by the country’s lower house, according to the AP.The French National Assembly expressed support for some of the controversial provisions in March that would have required Apple and other producers of digital music players to open up their copy-protection technologies to other companies looking to develop products or services that work in conjunction with iPods or iTunes, the AP reports.The new text still says that Apple, and companies like it, should share copy-protection technologies to foster “interoperability,” but it also contains a loophole that would enable companies to acquire permission from copyright holders—artists or record labels in Apple’s case—in order to set compatibility restrictions, according to the AP. The amended text is to be presented to both French houses for a vote before it can become law, the AP reports.Christian Vanneste, the governing party deputy who introduced the text to the Assembly, told the AP, “It’s perfectly legitimate that the artist should decide the potential limitations on the use of his work.” As part of the proposed law, a new government body would have the authority to resolve issues related to interoperability by ordering firms to allow rivals to employ their file formats, though their intervention must be “in addition to, or independent of, those [restrictions] explicitly decided by the copyright holders,” according to the AP.Related Links: EC Regulators Won’t Force Interoperable iTunes Apple’s iTunes to Offer Movies for Download?Check out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage. Related content brandpost Sponsored by Freshworks When your AI chatbots mess up AI ‘hallucinations’ present significant business risks, but new types of guardrails can keep them from doing serious damage By Paul Gillin Dec 08, 2023 4 mins Generative AI brandpost Sponsored by Dell New research: How IT leaders drive business benefits by accelerating device refresh strategies Security leaders have particular concerns that older devices are more vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks. By Laura McEwan Dec 08, 2023 3 mins Infrastructure Management case study Toyota transforms IT service desk with gen AI To help promote insourcing and quality control, Toyota Motor North America is leveraging generative AI for HR and IT service desk requests. By Thor Olavsrud Dec 08, 2023 7 mins Employee Experience Generative AI ICT Partners feature CSM certification: Costs, requirements, and all you need to know The Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) certification sets the standard for establishing Scrum theory, developing practical applications and rules, and leading teams and stakeholders through the development process. By Moira Alexander Dec 08, 2023 8 mins Certifications IT Skills Project Management Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe