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A Working Economy Without DRM?
Tilted Equilibrium asks: "In a few weeks, our school will be hosting a panel on DRM with several respected individuals. In advance of the panel, I have been doing some research on the topic and thinking about it in my free time. In economics, we learn that the price of a product is determined essentially by supply and demand. Without a DRM in place, we are capable of making as many copies of a piece of content as we want and seeding it onto the net. How do you create a market for a product, and make money of a product that has a huge initial creative investment, but then no manufacturing cost, and is in infinite supply?"
Of course, nothing would ever get made this way, but the idea plays well to the Slashdot crowd who are more concerned with bluster than finding a real, practical solution.
Slashdot: providing anti-social weirdos a soapbox, since 1997.
Is she your ex because she liked the fag street boys?
How noble of you to want "archive it" for future generations. The truth is people are pissed about DRM because it makes it harder to pirate. DRM isn't evil it's a knee jerk reaction to being robbed blind. The poster child for legal downloading is iTunes but the ugly truth is 50X to 100X as much music is dowloaded illegally as has been sold on iTunes. Obviously it doesn't represent legitimate sales since people are downloading thousands of songs they'll never listen to. People steal music because they can and it doesn't always reflect want or need it's on some twisted principal. I had a portable cassete player in the back of my car. It was used in a shop and covered in paint. It was completely worthless but some one saw it wanted it and broke my window to get it. The box was worthless but the window cost me $150 to replace myself. I'd have happily given the radio to them to save my window. Another time some one broke another window in a car of mine because there was a blanket in the seat and they thought it was hiding something. I'm sure they were unhappy they went to all the trouble to break my window for nothing but I was out a window. Some people steal strictly because they can get away with it. What is wrong with the freemarket system? If this isn't about getting something for nothing then don't buy the music but also don't download it without paying for it. People sell music to make money. If they can't make money at it they won't do it, period. This isn't about the greedy music companies it's about cheap bastards refusing to pay for music and movies so they can aford to buy more toys. I didn't own a VCR until I was 26. These days people are spoiled and want everything without working for it. Earn money buy things then people can aford to make more stuff for you to buy. It's called capitalism. The other system is communism. Music downloading isn't even that it's more like dash and grab robbery. You aren't kids grabbing a pack of gum in a convenience store you're stealing thousands of dollars of some one else's hard work. They deserve to be paid so they can eat. If you want it stick a crowbar into your wallet and pay for it ya cheap bastard. DRM isn't evil but illegal downloading is.
Ah yes, the "they're locking up my culture" argument. Right up there with the "they're stealing my job", in the common sense department. Besides you all aren't purchasing* the content so you have no say so as far as what happens to "your culture".
*Some of you gave up that right in exchange for free content. The rest because they couldn't be bothered to carry the situation to its proper conclusion.