Quote:
Originally Posted by TGS
A really interesting post, thanks for pointing it out. It allows one to consider the argument for DRM, which is sometimes rehearsed on this forum, in a different light.
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I think DRM in some form is necessary in the digital age. Companies just go about it the wrong way.
But they have to protect their property. If I buy a paper book, I can personally give it away to one person (who may then give it away etc.), but only one person has that copy at a time.
With an e-book, without DRM that person can keep their copy and give it to multiple people, put it on torrent sites where it gets to hundreds or thousands of people, some of home will put it on their own torrents and further distribute it. All without the effort of stripping DRM etc.
That said, current DRM is flawed as it has too many negative impacts for legitimate users, and doesn't do much of anything to thwart piracy since those losers putting stuff on torrents know how to strip DRM etc.
Thus publishers need to find better ways to protect their content while minimizing hassles for legitimate users. Have some form of DRM that works differently. Let people lend a book temporarily (like the Nook), or have a system in place that lets them transfer the book with DRM to another user--with the process automatically deleting that drm book from their machine and not allow it to be transferred back to that machine/account unless it's transferred back (and removed) from the other persons machine.
That type of stuff at least offers some protection of their property, while giving users some flexibility in how to use it with being able to lend it, sell it or give it to someone else permanently etc. Which are things people should be able to do with digital content they bought.
But of course the problem is any type of digital protection will always be broken by pirates. The only way to deal with that is for theft of digital content to be treated as a crime and not a civil matter.
Start locking up people putting books, mp3s etc. up to be illegally downloaded, vs. having absurdly huge lawsuit settlements that will never be collected on and maybe you'll make more people think twice before throwing the latest best seller up on a torrent. I really see it as no different than stealing a hundred copies of a physical book and selling them or giving them away. Either way you're taking sales away from the publisher and author.