4 ms·
Yes indeed, the consumers got nothing in return for accepting DRM, for accepting the side-stepping the term "buy" - the ebooks are still way too expensive and i
by antocv 13y ago
Yes indeed, the consumers got nothing in return for accepting DRM, for accepting the side-stepping the term "buy" - the ebooks are still way too expensive and it can be argued the popularity of eReaders and eBook buying has come at a time after DRM became viable, unlike music piracy - which came before DRM and DMCA even existed. eBooks, readers and stores, all began with DRM, and the prices have only gone up - despite the consumers giving up their ownership.
It looks almost like DRM is designed to empower a few at the expense of the many.
- pyalot2 13y agoThe biggest proponent of EME/DRM is microsoft. And they are the first who have put it into their desktop browser (IE11). Microsoft was also the party most eager to stiffle dissent in the encrypted media working group by the likes of me, EFF, etc. and who aggressively boxed this "standard" trough with almost daily telephone conferences they held with apple, google, bbc, netflix etc. DRM is designed to put up barriers against competitors. It's designed to stiffle innovation and to vendor-lock in users and authors. Why do you think Microsoft is all over EME like flies over cowdung? Microsoft has lost tremendous amounts of browser market share, and here comes EME/DRM, and they finally see a credible chance to lock "the web" back into their platform.
- TylerE 13y agoI don't fundamentally understand why this rant is relevant towards a discussion of _standardized_ DRM. IMO the debate is not "standardized DRM vs no DRM" but "standardized DRM vs ad-hoc DRM".
- ZeroGravitas 13y agoWell, for starters, they're not standardizing the DRM. They're standardizing the way you talk to the DRM, but your fully compliant standard browser will not show you Netflix until Netflix has shipped their ad-hoc DRM solution on your platform.
- chc 13y agoThat doesn't really address the question Tyler was asking, though. The question is, how does standardizing the way you talk to the DRM make the situation worse than one where they didn't standardize the way you talk to the DRM?
- jlgreco 13y ago"So the argument "Oh Apple and Microsoft are just gonna profit off EME" is moot, they're gonna pull their vendor-lock in and non-standard web fraud anyway, but now they get to say "waaaat? we're not evil! see, it's a standard!!!""
- chc 13y agoSo they'll use one justification rather than another? That doesn't even seem worth noticing, much less protesting.
- throwaway2048 13y agoEME was proposed and designed by Google & netflix and implemented in chrome book long before ie had it. the biggest proponents by far are Google and Netflix. But hey you don't see anybody talking about how Google wants to kill the open web, its simply the big bad WC3.
- asadotzler 13y agoYou seem to have your facts regularly wrong. And your pronouncements of the future don't seem terribly informed. What qualifies you make these assertion? Given your love of incorrect facts, I wonder what are your credentials.
- jellicle 13y agoReally the simplest solution would be to ban the use of the word "buy" in commerce with regard to DRM entities. Rent. Lease. Those are the proper words. If customers are faced with the choice of buying content from one entity, and renting it from another, I think they'll vote with their wallets and most DRM will disappear. But as long as corporations are allowed to use the words "buy" and "sale" for transactions which are not purchases or sales, the deceit will continue.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- antocv 13y agoYes! However, as that does not seem to be the case, and law-enforcement is lax on what is a buy-sell transaction, lets make that kickstarter-alike project but instead of donating the users actually "BUY" ownership of a company or idea they want to support. Now the ownership can be restricted as much as a donation or an ebook "purchase" is, but it would still be a competitor to kickstarter and other projects who are not allowed to use the term Buy for their marketing purposes but are forced to accept donations only.
- consultant23522 13y agoMeh, in exchange for DRM I get Netflix and Hulu content streamed to my house for dirt cheap pricing. Now I might DISAGREE that DRM was necessary or even useful, but the content providers simply would not have made that content available without DRM. So that's what I got in exchange, content.