Why DRM sucks ? My thought on piracy

As you may know, there is a war against piracy on digital contents. Piracy is of course prohibited, but moreover softwares’ companies try to block this practical thanks to new technologies. DRM for Digital Rights Management is used to describe any technology that inhibits uses of digital content not desired or intended by the content provider. So in fact, companies just wish to protect more their works this is natural. However there is a real unease, what is wrong with DRM ?

To explain my point of view, I start with the new controversial Ubisoft’s DRM. Ubisoft is a great company which made marvellous games such as Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, Prince of Persia, ect… and of course as many others it uses DRM. Before using is own DRM, Ubisoft used SecuROM’s software. SecuROM aims to resist home media duplication devices, professional duplicators, and attempts at reverse engineering software. In fact SecuROM limits the number of activation on your product. For instance, if I just bought Far Cry 2, I must activate my game on the Internet through SecuROM to be able to play. But, there are 2 problems : the number of activations is controlled, no more than 5 in general and I should revoke SecuROM before uninstall my games for taking back my activation. This is a strong problem if your disk crash ! The second is if SecuROM’s server is down in a few years, I will not be able to play my game ! And this is completely unacceptable.

Now get back on the own Ubisoft’s DRM. Now, if I buy Assassin’s Creed 2, I download and install it, I will suffer if I am not connected on the Internet I can’t play, because the game requests a permanent connection. What the fuck guys ??? This is only a solo game !! This is preposterous… and of course the first weekend there were many connections’ problems with the server. People which just bought the game were not able to play. And nowadays there are always problems. Skid Row’s pirates have just complete their crack to revoke Ubisoft’s DRM, and tell in a letter that Ubisoft should improve quality of their games before thinking the DRM. And they add that they simplify life of honest customers ! Pirate 1 – Ubisoft 0.

I buy games, many games, I really enjoyed the first Assassin’s Creed but I hate DRM. I will buy the new Assassin’s Creed ? I don’t think so, because I don’t want to support this kind of practice. Oh for sure, I will buy it if they revoke their crap, or if it is really really cheap. And there is other problem with DVD, I just want to see my film and I can’t skip ads, piracy’s warning… I have bought it, what is the problem ?? So to conclude this first part on DRM, everything which compel the honest customer should be banned.

I have a dream, it is a world of freedom with a total access on Art for everyone, but it is impossible in our world ruled by money. I am the first to say that all work deserves payment furthermore if you earn money thanks to the work of someone else, but I can not abide that piracy is the first problem of the industry. The first problem of movies is the price of movie theater. In Belfort, for a student !, it is 7.10 €. This is really too expensive, for sure if it costs 3€ I go more often to the cinema and certainly I will consume food or drink. But no, actually I wait to buy the dvd, or rent it. And you know, if the movie is good people will see it. That’s a fact, for example the last Cameron’s movie : Avatar.

Piracy is also a means to judge quality before buy it. There are so many movies, so many bad movies… that you don’t want to pay 7.10 €. Our consumer society product always more and more, but quality is not here. It seems to be that artists are more attracted by money than their work. I am a metal music fan, and when you speak with some underground bands after concerts, you feel their passion. Of course they would like to live thanks to their music, but in fact this is not the most important. No, the most important for them is the audience, the people which waits since several years to see them in his town ! The man chich pay a beer to the band and like to share his passion. This is what a real artist should love !! Not the number of discs sold, and if he can earn more money if he puts a fucking DRM on them. You know when I buy a CD, I am proud to give money to the band, to contibute, to show that I like their work. And thanks to that they can organize concert and make an other good CD later.

To conclude, I would like to remember that pirates are people who consume the most. And there is one thing that I am sure : if they have all the money they want they will pay for all the entertainments they do.

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