Quote:
Originally Posted by haertig
This is of course what the vendors want. It becomes a continuing revenue stream for them.
But it also drives customer behavior. Example: How many here have any qualms about stripping DRM off of books they buy? I would put forth, "not very many". What the vendor wants is for you to "license" reading this content to only one device. But that concept drove customer behavior long ago. Behavior was driven to "Where to I find something to strip DRM off my books?" The idea of paying ownership level prices for something they tell you you don't own just doesn't pass the smell test for most people. And their behavior is driven as a result. I would venture to say that stripping DRM from your personally owned books is considered perfectly acceptable behavior to most everybody here. You have to take care posting about it, or you'll get slapped by the mods, who in all likelyhood are stripping the DRM off their own books too, just like everybody else. Kind of silly to have this rule when you think about the practicality of it, but it is to protect the forum from vendors and lawyers, so it is a necessary rule.
For the few that do have qualms about stripping DRM, what if in addition to (or as a replacement of) your purchase price, they soon decide that you need to pay a yearly maintenance or subscription fee? For a book that you read once, ten years ago, but hope to read again some time in the future? My guess is that there would be nobody left who would give a second thought to stripping the DRM that would enable this subscription model.
Behavior is driven. What is considered acceptable is driven by what you are told is not acceptable - taking into account how much you paid to "buy" whatever it is that they are trying to control. If traditionally you've been able to pay $X to own something, and now you're told that you still have to pay $X (or even more!) and NOT own it, well, as I said, the resulting behavior is driven.
|
Hello. Are you aware that one can buy or lease a car? Are you aware you can buy a dwelling or rent a dwelling?
There is no one behavior fits all.
As to books, there are many ways to acquire books so no it is not behavior driven.
Look I can pay X and buy a whatever. I could also pay X and rent the same whatever.
There are no whatever police telling me I must pay X to NOT own a whatever.
I choose whether I want to buy whatever or just pay to use whatever.
Last time I checked there was no law that says you have to go through Company to only use whatever on their terms. (Exception being ISBN and railroad tracks.)