"With DRM, You Never Truly Own the Media You Thought You Bought"

Megalith

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This is not exactly a novel sentiment, but the idea has been revitalized by a recent story alleging Apple deleted multiple, legally purchased movies from an iTunes user’s library and offered nothing in return aside from an apology and two rental movie credits valued up to $5.99. While it was later deemed a miscommunication (the problem lied with licensing restrictions, as the user had moved to a completely different region), some insist that DRM is still at fault and should never be trusted.

My takeaway is that, if a seller of DRM'd digital media uses words like "purchase" and "buy," they have at a minimum an obligation to continue to provide additional downloads of that media, in perpetuity. Fine print aside, without that, people simply aren't getting what they think they're getting for their money, and words like "rent" and "borrow" are more appropriate. Of course, a company might not want to take on that burden. Or its contracts with content companies may not allow it to. There's a simple solution: Don't sell movies with DRM.
 
Ya the older I get the more I miss hard copies... outside of things like netflix... I no longer purchase digital copies service outage...service vanishes..,,they decide no more....ect... nope.
 
When it comes to streaming / digital sales the pr0n / fetis industry is a decade ahead of hollywoo. They had their DRM period as well, it come and gone. THat makes me hopeful that DRM is a passing fad for the mainstream as well.
 
If you don't have a physical copy on your computer, then its not yours even if they say it is. And you can lose it at any time. If people stop using these services, they'll stop offering them.
Physical doesn't mean anything anymore. There are plenty of games sold in stores that are an installer and a code, and require Steam, Origin etc. to run. They're coasters. Meanwhile, a game bought from GOG is digital and you can own for life.

And people won't stop using this. The disconnect from when they buy to when they realized they've been fucked takes years. The average consumer doesn't think that far ahead. That's why this problem has gotten worse and worse.
 
Physical doesn't mean anything anymore. There are plenty of games sold in stores that are an installer and a code, and require Steam, Origin etc. to run. They're coasters. Meanwhile, a game bought from GOG is digital and you can own for life.

And people won't stop using this. The disconnect from when they buy to when they realized they've been fucked takes years. The average consumer doesn't think that far ahead. That's why this problem has gotten worse and worse.
As of now it does with console. You don't need internet or any downloads for their games. Well the switch is iffy cause developers are cheap on buying bigger carts for the bigger games and force downloads.
 
Dunno the fuss now. Not enough people complained when rockstar stripped down the gta san andreas and vice city soundtrack and just patched of your computer if it was installed.

What should happen is if they choose to stop supporting the item they sell they should send you a hard copy of said item.
 
This is not exactly a novel sentiment, but the idea has been revitalized by a recent story alleging Apple deleted multiple, legally purchased movies from an iTunes user’s library and offered nothing in return aside from an apology and two rental movie credits valued up to $5.99. While it was later deemed a miscommunication (the problem lied with licensing restrictions, as the user had moved to a completely different region), some insist that sane people all realize that DRM is still at fault and should never be trusted.

My takeaway is that, if a seller of DRM'd digital media uses words like "purchase" and "buy," they have at a minimum an obligation to continue to provide additional downloads of that media, in perpetuity. Fine print aside, without that, people simply aren't getting what they think they're getting for their money, and words like "rent" and "borrow" are more appropriate. Of course, a company might not want to take on that burden. Or its contracts with content companies may not allow it to. There's a simple solution: Don't sell movies with DRM.


fixed that for you
 
If it is only stored on someone else's servers, it isn't yours.
If something has to phone home for you to use it, it isn't yours.
If you move somewhere different and it quits working solely because of your new location, it isn't yours.
If it requires dealer authorization to allow the software to accept your repair, it isn't yours.
If you can't turn off spying and control updates, it isn't yours.
If fixing any of the above problems creates the possibility of criminal and/or civil legal action, it wasn't yours.
 
Hang on guys let me check something....

*Goes off to check NAS*

Yeap, all my flat files related to movies, music, roms, and of course - Linux distros are all still there. No iTunes boogyman came and took them.
 
Yeah, meanwhile AAA companies won't shut up how they're mobilizing for a streaming future. Have fun pirating that.

I pirate all the original Netflix content I want to watch... So yes we have lots of fun and quite easily too.

Definitely need some consumer protection regulations on digital content sales. I agree with a previous poster if they are use the word purchase/buy there are expectations inherently assumed by the customer. I don't care if you go to a different region, what ever you should have access. If a service is going out of business access needs to be shifted and/or download provided. While currently it appears most streaming companies will stay in business, one will close eventually.

Or they can just "rent" for less.
 
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And this is why I don't buy digital movies/shows.

I did, a little, but once Disney pulled that BS with Amazon pulling Disney Christmas movies, I jumped from that burning plane! Lucky for me, I had 400 DVD collection parachute along witha Prime subscription to get free 2nd day on all future BD/DVD purchases :)
 
I pirate all the original Netflix content I want to watch... So yes we have lots of fun and quite easily too.

Definitely need some consumer protection regulations on digital content sales. I agree with a previous poster if they are use the word purchase/buy there are expectations inherently assumed by the customer. I don't care if you go to a different region, what ever you should have access. If a service is going out of business access needs to be shifted and/or download provided. While currently it appears most streaming companies will stay in business, one will close eventually.

Or they can just "rent" for less.
Well for music and video sure. I was referring to games. You can't pirate those if they're streaming. Even now, games that have a central server frequently never get pirated.
 
I'm sure it's considered illegal, but I buy CD's, rip them to the theater pc, and store them raid-5 as FLAC files.

Crackheads used to sell stolen cd's everywhere, and most can be had for $3 or less.

Hell, ask your friends; I've had more than one tell me they got rid of cd's for itunes, lol.
 
Hey, you get what you pay for.

No. You get temporal assigned rights for what you pay for.
 
Physical doesn't mean anything anymore. There are plenty of games sold in stores that are an installer and a code, and require Steam, Origin etc. to run. They're coasters. Meanwhile, a game bought from GOG is digital and you can own for life.

And people won't stop using this. The disconnect from when they buy to when they realized they've been fucked takes years. The average consumer doesn't think that far ahead. That's why this problem has gotten worse and worse.

some don't even have a disc in the box.
IMG_0710.JPG


And then you get the Collectors Edition that doesn't even come with a copy of the game, lol
IMG_1008.JPG
 
While it was later deemed a miscommunication (the problem lied with licensing restrictions, as the user had moved to a completely different region)


thats still a pretty lame excuse for deleting paid for content.
 
I cut the cord circa 2005. Staying in a hotel I couldn't get over how awful TV has become. Flipping channels looked like this:

Family guy rerun
Air fryer infomercial
Crime show
Simpsons rerun
Airfryer
Cable news sewers
Glamourized Thugs
Crime show
90s movie
Weight loss pills
00 movie
Degeneracy
Game show
Cartoon kids shouting
Home shopping
Informercial
Hyper-sexualized children shouting and dancing.
Informercial
Scifi - no science or fiction
Informercial
Commercial network
Cartoon kids shouting
Old black and white movie
Sharks

It was like a zombie version of the its former self. I felt embarrassed for everyone involved.

I can count on one hand the amount of new TV, movie, and games being released I am at all interested in. Every day I understand better why my parents were always watching old movies.

So Hollywood feel free to lock it down hard, like a coffin. Don't worry your core audiences are too wide to escape their front door so you literally have a captive audience.

Nothing new, nothing original, nothing fresh
No wonder people went crazy for the meh game of thrones. Let me BLOW all your minds. Babylon 5, Mitchell and Webb, QI, Avatar, Steins Gate, lazy town, new voltron.
 
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Hang on guys let me check something....

*Goes off to check NAS*

Yeap, all my flat files related to movies, music, roms, and of course - Linux distros are all still there. No iTunes boogyman came and took them.
Oshi!!!

...
..
.
Checked my NAS. All is still good here as well.
 
I cut the cord circa 2005. Staying in a hotel I couldn't get over how awful TV has become. Flipping channels looked like this:

Family guy rerun
Air fryer infomercial
Crime show
Simpsons rerun
Airfryer
Cable news sewers
Glamourized Thugs
Crime show
90s movie
Weight loss pills
00 movie
Degeneracy
Game show
Cartoon kids shouting
Home shopping
Informercial
Hyper-sexualized children shouting and dancing.
Informercial
Scifi - no science or fiction
Informercial
Commercial network
Cartoon kids shouting
Old black and white movie
Sharks

I can count on one hand the amount of new TV, movie, and games being released I am at all interested in. Every day I understand better why my parents were always watching old movies.

There are currently only five things worth watching on TV:

PBS
Discovery
TCM
Jeopardy!
Sports

And I only watch 1 or 2 new movies a year. The rest is mostly 1940's to 1970's. But, especially in Canada, good old/foreign movies are quite limited on online services. Oh, to live in Seattle...
 
Ya the older I get the more I miss hard copies...
Hard copies do work for movies, and I still buy DVDs when I want a movie.
For games it's a different issue. I have plenty of older games on hard copy that worked well with Win 98 or Win XP, but they won't install or run with Win 10...
 
Hard copies do work for movies, and I still buy DVDs when I want a movie.
For games it's a different issue. I have plenty of older games on hard copy that worked well with Win 98 or Win XP, but they won't install or run with Win 10...
That just takes more work using a virtual machine. The real problem is all the games they're making connect online to run that are bricked as soon as they shut down.
 
Of course you don't own shit.. its right in the name: Digital Rights MANAGEMENT. If it was DRO, well..
 
Yeah, meanwhile AAA companies won't shut up how they're mobilizing for a streaming future. Have fun pirating that.
The 1080p Netflix rips that appear online about an hour after any new season of anything goes up tell me plenty of people are in fact having fun pirating that.
 
Totally not surprised. If any of you think you own shit you buy off line ( digital copes ) forget about it. However, I do feel pretty safe with my Steam library but prepared for that to go away too at any time.
 
Well for music and video sure. I was referring to games. You can't pirate those if they're streaming. Even now, games that have a central server frequently never get pirated.

I bought a few games via the NvidiaNow streaming service... They provided Steam keys in addition, while sort of the same issue, the idea is there and gave me the confidence to buy.

Streaming of games will catch on just like all other media... As a subscription service. Sure it could go to purchase model but I don't think that will get as much traction, would be curious to see how many people actually buy movies from amazon streaming...
 
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