What is DRM?

There are so many definitions concerning DRM (Digital Rights Management) that the common user finds it frustrating to find an easy answer to what DRM is and how it affects their lives. Face it, people do not care that their iTunes are wrapped in a DRM container because they only listen to their iTunes on their iPod and maybe on one computer. They don’t care, that is, until they actually try to do something else with the items they supposedly bought and feel that the fair use rule applies, but doesn’t.

In its simplest terms, DRM can be described in the following analogy. Imagine that you are taking a trip from New York to California and plan on driving I-80 across the country. However, all electronic devices, including those in your car have to purchase a special license to use them in each particular state you cross into, as well as having a license so that you may have your devices interoperate. So, you cross the border into Pennsylvania and your equipment is checked. You haven’t bought a license to use these in Pennsylvania so you must do one of two things. You can turn around and go home or purchase permission to use what you own to continue driving, listening to your music, watching a DVD in your car. Once permission has been obtained, you’re back to enjoying your trip until six hour later, when you reach the Ohio border where, once again, you must have your equipment checked again to see if you’re allowed to continue. This is DRM.

Why You Should Care?

Once people know what DRM is, many still don’t care because they rely on others to solve the problem for them. They believe that someone will “crack” the DRM, making their movies, music, videos, etc., useful to them once again. There are others that still believe companies would never do such a thing and are thus then shocked when companies install rootkits into their computers. Their disbelief allows companies to get away with this and, some, will go further still by saying, “If I still have a line out on my computer, I can still record and do what I want.”

What happens when they remove a line out from your computer? How will you record then? If you rely on the pirates to fix things for you, what happens when they all get arrested for breaking the law. Yes, it is currently illegal to circumvent the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) of which DRM is a part.

You should also care if you happen to purchase your items online. This includes iTunes, Napster, Amazon’s movie service, Microsoft, and Steam. In the example of Steam, you must validate that the game you are using was really purchased by you. This validation must take place for online and offline games. So, before you fire up Doom 3 (or other Steam games) validation must take place. This must be done at least once. Several games also won’t play unless you disconnect your internet connection. Another problem with Steam is that sometimes these services tell you that your game is illegal. It doesn’t want to hear you have the receipt in your hand. It’s been deemed illegal so no more game. Again, this brings the pirates in to solve the problem for you as countless gamers have been forced to download illegal, cracked versions just to play the game they legally paid for.

What happens when you want to play this game ten years from now and Steam doesn’t exist? Well, you are S.O.L. You have only paid for the right to play something for as long as they deemed necessary and, well, it’s not necessary any more. That’s right. The company has decided for you that you no longer need to play the game/movie/music.

The books, DVDs, and CDs that you own right now typically fall under fair use. You can take them anywhere (with the exception of region locked DVDs which is DRM) and do what you want with them. You can give your mom your DVD and she can go home and watch it. You can loan your friend a CD. You can make a mix tape/CD to listen to in your car. If your mix tape/CD is stolen, it’s okay. You have the originals safe at home. Once you tire of these items, you can give them away to friends and family or sell it on Amazon or at a yard sale.

You cannot backup your digital versions of the books, DVDs, and CDs that you “bought.” You don’t really own them. You can’t make a mix tape/CD. You have to think carefully before you make that firmware upgrade to your MP3 player because it will be now seen as a new device and the files you “bought” no longer work. If your player is stolen, you no longer have the files that you “bought” and must “buy” them again. If you get sick of these files, you cannot give them away or sell them because you never owned them to begin with.

DRM is about renting, not buying. DRM gives control over your computer and your devices to the content owners, not to you. They decide what you can and cannot do with your equipment. DRM stops you from sharing. DRM removes the possibility of you to do what you want with your own files, even ones that you created. Your home movie of Grandma’s 100^th birthday will be subject to this. The love letter you wanted to send to your girlfriend will be subject to this.

DRM is control. It is the Industry controlling you and your media. DRM is the loss of your choices and, in the end, is bad for everyone involved.