DRM Is Evil
Apr. 23rd, 2008 07:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
owsf2000I think I've ranted about DRM before. If not on here, I've definitely ranted about it on IRC, to friends, to family, on the mud, ... pretty much anywhere there's an opportunity. ^_^
One of the big arguments against DRM is that if the place you're purchasing it from ever goes under, then there will no longer be a way to re-authorize what you've legally purchased.
Hard drives crash all the time.
Microsoft is proving that the store doesn't even need to go under. As per the article on slashdot: MSN Music DRM Servers Going Dark In September
Hopefully you've never purchased music from them. What this means, as it stands, is that if your files need reauthorization after September - be it a harddrive failure or simply changing your operating system (going from XP->Vista or vice versa counts as changing OSes) then all the music you've purchased will be rendered unplayable.
As one person put it in the comments "DRM isn't a problem if your a pirate. It is only a problem if you are customer."
Another commented "I have a bunch of CD's that I bought from a record store that went belly up. They still work. Maybe this DRM world ain't all its cracked up to be after all."
I'm predicting antitrust lawsuits to be thrown at Microsoft again later this year by the EU (Since they're the only government of such that's got the balls to do it.) over this. Could be considered quite anti-competitive to hold your customer's legally purchased music hostage to prevent people from considering a switch to Linux. :)
In other news: I'm staying up this morning after work and plan to go to the gym when it opens. I'd wait until my sister goes 3-4 hours later but then I'll be sleeping a few hours, waking up going to the gym going home, then sleeping another 2-3 before going to work. I can do that some days but I'm going to have to try to avoid it if I actually want... sleep.
One of the big arguments against DRM is that if the place you're purchasing it from ever goes under, then there will no longer be a way to re-authorize what you've legally purchased.
Hard drives crash all the time.
Microsoft is proving that the store doesn't even need to go under. As per the article on slashdot: MSN Music DRM Servers Going Dark In September
Hopefully you've never purchased music from them. What this means, as it stands, is that if your files need reauthorization after September - be it a harddrive failure or simply changing your operating system (going from XP->Vista or vice versa counts as changing OSes) then all the music you've purchased will be rendered unplayable.
As one person put it in the comments "DRM isn't a problem if your a pirate. It is only a problem if you are customer."
Another commented "I have a bunch of CD's that I bought from a record store that went belly up. They still work. Maybe this DRM world ain't all its cracked up to be after all."
I'm predicting antitrust lawsuits to be thrown at Microsoft again later this year by the EU (Since they're the only government of such that's got the balls to do it.) over this. Could be considered quite anti-competitive to hold your customer's legally purchased music hostage to prevent people from considering a switch to Linux. :)
In other news: I'm staying up this morning after work and plan to go to the gym when it opens. I'd wait until my sister goes 3-4 hours later but then I'll be sleeping a few hours, waking up going to the gym going home, then sleeping another 2-3 before going to work. I can do that some days but I'm going to have to try to avoid it if I actually want... sleep.
