[governance] Why HTML5 #DRM is dangerous for Free Software (was Draft Statement...)

[Chaitanya Dhareshwar]

On Sat, Jun 15, 2013 at 7:23 AM, Norbert Bollow <nb at bollow.ch> wrote:

In the absence of DRM, it is at least possible for say me to buy it
> on behalf of someone who lives in a country where it is dangerous
> to be known to possess the (electronic or physical) asset.
>

Agreed, this is possible - however unlikely - but possible. It's equally
possible to purchase offline and hand it to the person, and as with any
online utility there are 'brokers' who will download it for you - they
exist everywhere, and the risk is theirs to bear. However yes with DRM it
may or may not be possible to use the product by the intended device - so
OK, that's there. How many people would want to do this with today's
electronic surveillance is a different matter, but yes it's possible to
make a purchase and then 'share' it (which would be so wrong even
under current "*not for broadcast or distribution*" copyright thingies,
again that's a different argument I don't want to get into here).


>
> That is not the point that I was trying to make. I was talking about
> the usefulness of Free Software operating system platforms
> deteriorating when content (that is typically accessed by means of
> general purpose PCs) can be accessed on all general purpose PCs except
> for those where a Free Software operating system platform is used.
>

This looks like a 1% probability case. It's very unlikely or even
impossible that something so vital to the movie-watching (say) of the
general populous would not be developed or at least 'ripped' and applied
to a linux system...  It's far more likely that this will be out on a linux
box even before DRM's fate is decided. But yes in surety terms this does
pose a risk, you're right.


> Now some people would think that when the choice is between the profits
> of the “copyright industry” (Hollywood and others with similar business
> models) being diminished and the viability of Free Software operating
> systems for general purpose PCs being destroyed, the “copyright
> industry” profits are more important. I disagree with them.


Ok now this I totally don't get - it makes FSO users look like software
pirates. I would tend to disagree with *both* sides in this argument :)

-C
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