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Originally Posted by Sonist
Technology advancements kill some industries and create new ones. Get used to it.
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I'm mostly used to it. But "technology advancements" doesn't mean that something which is problematic is, well, not problematic.
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Originally Posted by Sonist
The software industry faced the problem of piracy way before the music and publishing industry. At first they tried going draconian, some even using hardware dongles. Now that the dust has settled, they have all moved away from draconian DRM methods and are still doing robust business.
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You're kidding, right?
Tons of apps still use DRM, including Adobe, Microsoft, Autodesk, Valve (Steam) lots of games. Microsoft will kick you off of Xbox Live for tampering with the hardware, will kick you off Windows if it isn't activated, and will refuse to give you OS updates if they can't verify that your copy is "verified." Apple's brand spanking new App Store uses DRM.
Who is this "all" that has ditched DRM?
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Originally Posted by Sonist
But they (and the author of this pointless article) forget that the ease of downloading also encourage spontaneous purchases.
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I don't think that's the case at all.
Amazon figured out immediately the importance of ease of use and purchase; Apple also "gets it" as demonstrated by iTunes and App Store for OS X; others are following suit.
Removing roadblocks doesn't seem to have helped much though. Again: The music industry now offers digital downloads, without DRM, in a clean and organized content, that's easy to search and a snap to purchase. Yet piracy hasn't slowed down at all, and global music sales are still falling.
Plus, digital sales stayed on an upwards trajectory for many years whilst using DRM. There's no indication so far that DRM has driven music listeners off.
This is not to say that DRM is "good" or "ideal" or "preferable." Rather, there's simply no indication at this time that DRM stunts sales, that eschewing DRM sends sales through the roof, or that offering dramatic improvements in the customer experience reduces piracy rates.