Quote:
Originally Posted by gmw
I was not speaking about the law, I was speaking about an agreement. Most sites selling DRM ebooks have terms-of-use agreement that you are asked to read and accept - and at least some of of those agreements are explicit about the removal of DRM. Okay so I have not signed the agreement, does that make breaking it any better on my reputation? Am I not as good as my word? I like to think so, but apparently not everyone holds to the same standard.
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I think you are making a category error.
You want to talk about this outside the context of the law, as if your "agreement" is with another person. But your agreement is NOT with another person - it's with a "seller" and you are a "buyer." When you shift the matter to the personal context, YOU are the only participant playing by the "personal" rules. The business is not. You are confusing the category of "personal relationships" with that of "business relationships."
Further, your copyright/drm relationship with the business entity exists ONLY as a function of the law. There's an agreement underlying copyright law which large business entities are trying hard to eliminate. That agreement concerns the rights of the customer, and these so-called "agreements" you want to honor are in fact a cynical and deliberate attempt to narrow the rights you have under the copyright agreement.
This is not to say that your concern for your reputation is not important. And certainly there are times when the business sphere overlaps the personal sphere, as when you are dealing with a "mom & pop" business - with whom you can negotiate in the business context, incidentally.
When it comes to corporate entities, I do not regard myself as bound by any rules other than the law. And there's a lot that these corporations want you to think is the law, when it ain't.