ars technica: DRM advocates getting nervous about consumer backlash
by Volker Weber
The DRM backlash is indeed coming, and kudos to these industry players for realizing it. Heck, the backlash is already here and has been for years. Now that major players like Apple and even labels like EMI and Universal are starting to realize it, it's only a matter of time before it turns into a full-scale revolt. Whether or not there will be a revival of interoperable DRM cure-all theories remains to be seen, but backers have at least figured one thing out: when DRM does what it is designed to do—namely inconvenience and control end user behavior—users bite back.
Repeat after me: DRM is bad for the customer.
Comments
I do hope, he´s right.
From the article:
Then, of course, there's the hypocrisy. At a conference convened by the overlords of DRM, Sony vice president Scott Smyers admits that he circumvents the copy protection on DVDs (CSS) in order to make backups for personal use.
And here:
"I think there is a role for DVD burning," said Scott Smyers, VP of network and systems architecture for Sony Electronics. "My kids have a lot of DVDs that they play in the car, and after a few trips, they’re often unplayable. So I rip and burn them to protect the originals," an illegal act that the CSS copy-protection system on DVDs was designed to prevent. "You can’t deny that consumers want to protect their investment," Smyers said.
Sony? This Sony? The Sony that sells "copy-protected" DVDs that I am not allowed to copy for personal use?
An update to this:
The money quote:
You can debate all day long whether DRM is good or bad, but all the arguments are moot. The market has spoken. DRM hurts sales. And that's bad for business.
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