RIAA: We Didn't Say 'DRM is Dead'

[Marcus Yam]

RIAA was misquoted on 'DRM is dead'.

RIAA: We Didn't Say 'DRM is Dead' : Read more

 

[Parrdacc]

Either way the RIAA is still out there and gunning for you.

 

[neon neophyte]

I specifically avoid games and content that involves DRM. Quite a few games in this last year, unfortunately. It leaves me little to no recourse, I either dont play the game, or I pirate it. Which, is a shame, as I spend a kings ransom on games every year.

I like steam. (yes, its DRM.) But its DRM done right. Its even, a convenience. I particularly appreciate that steam informs you if there is any additional DRM in a game, before you buy it.

 

[doc70]

I can hardly think of anything that has done more damage to music and PC gaming than DRM; and before everybody starts with "DRm protects the producer" let me say no, it just pays the middleman; also hurts the honest buyer and ENCOURAGES piracy by forcing honest would-be consumers to get DRM-free (i.e. pirated) software in order to protect their hardware.
I guess the issue has already been hammered to the bone....
RIAA is a damaging useless institution, kinda like a cancer...scalpel, anyone?...

 

[AdamB5000]

I'd live with DRM if the RIAA would die.

 

[sstym]

Wake me up when there is an article with the title "RIAA is dead".
I am keeping a bottle of champagne for the occasion.

 

[brendano257]

Rich Industrial Assholes of America. ^_^ They are simply rich with too much power, they need to be controlled/taken care of...permanently.

I agree about Steam, although it's sometimes invasive and or crashy, it's useful for game downloads and there isn't a REAL way to get past it in terms of hacking it, except for making it non-steam and such.

 

[megamanx00]

The RIAA is a vampire, making money off it's artists by maintaining a system where the artists have to go through them while the artists themselves only receive a small portion of the money. You don't go through them, your song doesn't get played on the air, and you don't sell. Online distribution models have the ability to shift the power back to the artists, and that is what the RIAA really wants to fight.

 

[lifelesspoet]

So the internet was right, it was a trap.

 

[TheZander]

Well, Steam needs to make some more of the older titles work with Windows 7 or at least not let you buy them.

Agreed, though. The best DRM is to make a product so good that people can't wait to buy it. The more you sell, the more money you make. How are is that?

 

[TheZander]

Sorry for double post. Meant to also add, that DRM is NEVER going to magically make dishonest people honest. It doesn't even make the RIAA hones....

 

[neon neophyte]

zander, i havent had a problem with old games not working.

even dos games are working for me with windows 7 x64.

 

[Sicundercover]

DRM is so easy to subvert in many ways. The ONLY people it annoys are those who actually bought the product. The pirates get a kick out of breaking the DRM.

In fact almost every single major release in the past 2 years had a DRM crack a week before the game was released.

So how does DRM prevent pirating again?

 

[antilycus]

and these baffoons at the RIAA wonder why they cant make their moneylike they did in the 80s. My army of ants in my backyard is smarter then these decision makers. Go cry in your golden toilets.

 

[MAC_HATER]

its actually rather funny how the pirated version of games are MUCH easier to install and play - take GTA IV PC for instance - i bought it and spent 2 days trying to get it running - updating the updater so it could update itself - setting up 2 mandatory accounts for 2 services i dont want or need (live and Rockstar social club) - and 2 weeks later i see someone gloating that the pirated version strips all of this out and runs much more reliably because of it

so if the pirated copy is so much better than then genuine article - why did i fork out $100 for something thats crap comapred to the pirated version?

 

[Guest]

I wouldn't mind having my personal information encrypted and encoded in every piece of digital media I own as long as it's free of DRM or spyware. If I pay for something I expect to be able to use it hassle-free and without performance penalties, I'd be quite alright with me being tracked down as the source should I choose to violate copyright by spreading copies of that media though.

All in all I think mandatory branding of all digital media that details what DRM, if any, it uses and what the drawbacks of that is would be a good idea. Would help me to vote with my wallet and avoid purchasing software or media that I'd later regret.

Heck, if it's mandatory to plaster every pack of cigarettes with "SMOKING KILLS" over a third of the surface I'd say a label with "WILL NOT PLAY IN 90% OF COMMON ENVIRONMENTS" or "CAUSES INSTABILITY AND SOFTWARE FAILURES" for digital media would be more than fair.

 

[eklipz330]

[citation][nom]MAC_HATER[/nom]why did i fork out $100 for something thats crap comapred to the pirated version?[/citation]

you paid $100 for gta iv on pc? SMH

anywho, VIVA LA STEAM! when steam first came out, it was bashed. valve improved it so much, now its a service like no other.

hell i'd think id pay $50 a year to use it. but don't tell them that

 

[MAC_HATER]

yeah - $100 i could have spent on other things much better than getting to spend a few days hurling abuse at "FATAL ERROR" messages

the experience has most certainly put me off buying games - if rockstar pull that crap again they arent getting my cash - spending those extra 6 months to fill a game with DRM and red tape does NOT make it worth the price

 

[azxcvbnm321]

Like I said on another tread, GTA4 for PC was an afterthought thanks to piracy. Why put resources into making a decent product if a good portion of your sales are going to disappear thanks to piracy? Put out the bare minimum, save your efforts for console or a platform where people actually pay for what they get.

Make a good game? That's just an excuse, pirates will always find something wrong, even with a legendary game like Civilizations. Hey, militas can beat battleships, that's unrealistic so the game is broken and that justifies me stealing the game. Cool, now I can spend hundreds of hours playing the game for free, and then diss it in public as broken so I don't have to pay. If only they'd make a good game then I'd buy it, too bad I've never seen a good game yet so I guess I never have to buy anything.

It's hard to make a great game, but if a game is playable and you spend tens of hours playing it, then the developer/publisher deserves the money. Going to a movie costs 410+ for 2 hours if that. How much does it cost for 8 hours at a theme park? How about the cover charge for a club or concert. You're telling me it's unfair that you're asked to pay $40 for more enjoyment time than those other activities? Time for a reality check.

We should be blaming pirates, not developers who just want to protect their property. No pirates = no DRM. That's the key. The gaming community needs to come together and figure out a way to attack these pirates. Perhaps by coordinating fake trojan programs that will wipe out a pirate's computer. Make Windows unstable, delete permanently all the files in MyDocs and other important .doc,.jpg,.pdf, etc. files by overwriting that sector. Start uploading these trojans on P2P and put fear into every pirate. Is this legit or a trojan? Looks like the real thing and commenters say it's real. Hhhahaa. That what the community needs to do, unite and get rid of the problem. We should discuss what the best way to hide trojans is. Good thing there already are malicious viruses out there that are hard or nearly impossible to get rid of. Rename those files, upload as Sims 3 with install.exe or such as the virus. Time for an offensive folks.

 

[jalek]

Piracy's just the excuse. Limited installs is the golden goose. It stops the second-hand trade like there is for console games.

They've been trying copy protection schemes since the C=64 days when there were software "rental" shops in every strip mall, with the obligatory sign saying that copying disks is illegal hanging just over the box of copy protection utilities that you couldn't rent, you could only purchase.

Their systems are about as effective now as then, with the exception of the limited installs. That was tried with several very expensive commercial programs, things like a "key" floppy disk that tracked installs and uninstalls.

Torrents and P2P have made the learning curve to obtain and install pirated games extremely short, so there is some logic to their argument that it's more common at least in numbers. Back in the day though, a much higher percentage of their market were the types that would bypass such things even if it took time and effort. Now even trying to do that with a legal copy is illegal.