Latest Idea To Fix DRM: Give It A New Name

from the yeah,-that's-the-ticket dept

Since repeating the claim that DRM enables things for consumers isn't making it true, an HBO has a new idea: scrap the term DRM in favor of DCE. DCE, of course, standing for Digital Consumer Enablement. He says he doesn't want to use the term DRM any longer, not since consumers have come to understand that all it does it limit how they can playback and enjoy legally purchased media, but because it doesn't apparently express clearly just how wonderful the technology is. For instance, he says HBO is ready to roll out HD movies on demand, but "can't", because people might somehow copy them through the analog hole of component connections, which HBO or cable operators aren't allowed to disable. That's his example of DRM "enabling" a new service, and it's as weak as usual. A lack of suitable, wonderful, lovely DRM isn't holding up this service, but rather HBO's blind and dumb insistence on it, even though impracticality does a better job than technology of stopping HD movie piracy, and of, course, DRM doesn't stop piracy anyway.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  1. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 11 May 2007 @ 5:02am

    If I hadnt read the new link I'd think you made "Digital Consumer Enablement" as a joke.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    BePositive, 11 May 2007 @ 5:03am

    Call it "Windscale"

    nt

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 11 May 2007 @ 5:46am

    More like "Digital Consumer Entrapment".

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    ScaredOfTheMan, 11 May 2007 @ 5:51am

    War is Peace
    Freedom is Slavery
    Ignorance is Strength

    and Digital Consumer Enablement is good for the consumer

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    David Canton, 11 May 2007 @ 5:52am

    Note sure who DRM enables - its certainly not the consumer.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. identicon
    Lewis Salem, 11 May 2007 @ 5:55am

    Whoa!

    Oh no! Well I'm just going to stop downloading episodes of the Sopranos right now! Zitter you rascal you!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. identicon
    thecaptain, 11 May 2007 @ 6:08am

    Ah I see....

    Digital Consumer Enablement, would more accurately describe technology that allows consumers "to use content in ways they haven't before,"

    Well that's certainly true. DRM..uhh..DCE I mean would certainly allow me to watch content with a ton of annoying issues added in, whereas before, I really had no reason to be annoyed, no hassles at all and I could watch what I wanted, when and where I wanted if I paid for it.

    Thanks HBO!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    Overcast, 11 May 2007 @ 6:10am

    Doublespeak~

    link to this | view in thread ]

  9. identicon
    YouKnowNothing, 11 May 2007 @ 6:13am

    Re:

    Hear, hear.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  10. identicon
    Don Wood, 11 May 2007 @ 6:15am

    DRM

    Talk is cheap. Stop buying and see if they see the error of their ways. My God! You people cry all the way to the store to buy their crap. Shit or get off the pot!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  11. identicon
    Frank, 11 May 2007 @ 6:18am

    I snorted my soda when I first read what "DCE" stood for.

    Seriously, when can we start beating these morons with a sturdy tree branch?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  12. identicon
    Sanguine Dream, 11 May 2007 @ 6:41am

    LOL!!

    I know that LOL is borderline childish but come on. Digital Consumer Enablement? What marketing twerp came up with that nonsense?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  13. identicon
    Dosquatch, 11 May 2007 @ 6:53am

    Pushing back

    Some helpful soul over on /. suggested that the appropriate response is to give piracy the kinder, gentler name "Consumer Choice Enablement" - The content I choose, on the device I choose, for the price I choose.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  14. identicon
    Patryk J, 11 May 2007 @ 7:00am

    Re: Whoa!

    LMFAO! Hahaha!!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  15. identicon
    Patryk J, 11 May 2007 @ 7:02am

    Re:

    DCE double plus good!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  16. identicon
    AJ, 11 May 2007 @ 7:07am

    bah

    They sure know how to keep the hackers busy, hell, there creating an entire new market. Maybe we should thank them really, because if there stuff wasn't bogged down with DRM, I may actually pay for it instead of using a variety of methods to download it for free.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  17. identicon
    Shohat, 11 May 2007 @ 7:07am

    The amazing

    The amazing thing is that while everyone and their mother whines about "outdated models", the industry itself has never been more powerful, and never in the history of the world did artists made so much money.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  18. identicon
    JoRogan, 11 May 2007 @ 7:16am

    Re: DRM

    They "cry" as you call it because they are trying to spread the word. If that person did not buy HBO, HBO would still have its new DCE technology. Thats because the people that don't know anything about DRM like restrictions will still support HBO.

    So whats the problem with said person for trying to spread the word?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  19. identicon
    MikeVx, 11 May 2007 @ 7:33am

    DCE actually stands for...

    Disabling Consumer Experience.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  20. identicon
    Wyatt, 11 May 2007 @ 7:47am

    Humm..

    "The amazing thing is that while everyone and their mother whines about "outdated models", the industry itself has never been more powerful, and never in the history of the world did artists made so much money."

    Hummm, the artists are being ripped off man.. I've heard things saying that they actually receive somewhere in the range of 10% or less of what is made from their art. The artists are not outspoken about DRM, it’s the companies that rip of the artists that do. This seems a little odd to me.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  21. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 11 May 2007 @ 7:52am

    "Hummm, the artists are being ripped off man.. I've heard things saying that they actually receive somewhere in the range of 10% or less of what is made from their art."

    Sadly, it's closer to 2-3%.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  22. identicon
    Amyloo, 11 May 2007 @ 8:02am

    I got it!

    Call it "The Patriot Act."

    link to this | view in thread ]

  23. identicon
    T.J., 11 May 2007 @ 8:12am

    What Happened to Consumer First?

    The more and more DRM (errrr....DCE) gets pushed into our lives, the more society will push back. I for one 100% stopped supporting the MPAA, RIAA, and any other company that wants to limits my rights to do whatever I want with the thigns I purchase. Its so easy just to avoid the hassle of DRM altogether when you can just get your media from other, DRM free sources (although "illegaly"). Even my own mom, who doesn't even know what DRM stands for, started getting her movies from Blockbuster and the library and just copying them. Its just a matter of how much crap consumers will put up with before they just say f*** it, its worth the risk to not put up with the hassle these companies give you.

    Why don't companies understand is that when people see HBO will be offering "free" HD movies on demand (providing you pay for HBO), more people will congregate towards its service and pay the associated fee. But when people see theres fine print and limits placed on the service, people will hesitate to pay for that.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  24. identicon
    GoblinJuice, 11 May 2007 @ 8:58am

    ROTFLMAO! Literally.

    I fell out of my chair, onto the floor, laughing when I read "Digital Consumer Enablement".

    Literally.

    It's sorta like calling a whore an "escort". ;-)

    Hm.

    So, every time a chic won't give me her number/addy/whatever... she's not RESTRICTING me, she's ENABLING... me to find another chic?

    I get it!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  25. identicon
    Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased), 11 May 2007 @ 9:38am

    Another possible acronism

    Decapitated Consumer Expectations

    link to this | view in thread ]

  26. identicon
    awm, 11 May 2007 @ 10:26am

    The real question....

    In my opinion, the real question is why does "the industry" think we are so stupid to believe this garbage they peddle?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  27. icon
    Anonymous Poster (profile), 11 May 2007 @ 10:30am

    I think ArsTechnica said it best: "A turd by any other name smells just as foul."

    link to this | view in thread ]

  28. identicon
    Beefcake, 11 May 2007 @ 12:04pm

    My Two Cents on the Acronym

    Digital Consumer Excrement

    link to this | view in thread ]

  29. identicon
    Obsidian, 11 May 2007 @ 12:20pm

    Re:

    "Sadly, it's closer to 2-3%."

    Actually, I don't think it's even that much. According to the research I've done, the average musician for a major record label makes on average of 10 cents off of a $20.00 album. An Album costs $0.25 to produce, and the retailers make 3 or 4 dollars off of it. The rest of the money goes to the record label and the RI(p-off)AA. Artists are getting screwed over in ways most people can't even imagine.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  30. identicon
    Hidden Force, 11 May 2007 @ 1:07pm

    1984+23

    George Orwell had nothing on this guy.

    How doubleplus unsmart.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  31. identicon
    Buzz, 11 May 2007 @ 2:03pm

    OMG

    DCE = Dumb, Crappy, and Evil

    Mike, where are you? I agree with another guy who commented on another Techdirt blog. I want to see you describe a society completely run by DRM and crappy copyright laws. You do an excellent job of describing a wonderful world free of silly restrictions; I'd like to hear about a dark world infested with dictators who feel they have the right to control how we receive our digital entertainment. Show us a world where the NFL actually CAN sue somebody for just talking about a football game's events.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  32. identicon
    Corporations of America, 11 May 2007 @ 2:26pm

    Don't worry! Re: OMG

    Just give us a few more years. We won't need Mike to show you our dark world.

    Regards,

    Corporations of America

    link to this | view in thread ]

  33. identicon
    Charles Griswold, 13 May 2007 @ 6:34pm

    Re: DRM

    Talk is cheap. Stop buying and see if they see the error of their ways.

    I did. They didn't.

    My God! You people cry all the way to the store to buy their crap.

    Not me. I don't buy crap. I find ways to entertain myself that don't involve giving money to the evil corporate conglomerates.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  34. identicon
    Charles Griswold, 13 May 2007 @ 6:39pm

    Re: ROTFLMAO! Literally.

    I fell out of my chair, onto the floor, laughing when I read "Digital Consumer Enablement".

    It's sorta like calling a whore an "escort". ;-)

    If I were a whore, I think I'd resent being compared to the DRM pushers.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  35. identicon
    Charles Griswold, 13 May 2007 @ 6:42pm

    Re: The real question....

    In my opinion, the real question is why does "the industry" think we are so stupid to believe this garbage they peddle?

    Because . . . most people are? Or, if not stupid, then ignorant.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  36. identicon
    thecaptain, 14 May 2007 @ 6:28am

    Perfect!

    http://ars.userfriendly.org/cartoons/?id=20070514

    Perfect!

    Yup, I'm all for "consumer choice enhancement"

    link to this | view in thread ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.