Re: Oppose DRM ! Re: CfC: to publish Encrypted Media Extensions specification as a First Public Working Draft (FPWD)

On Fri, Jan 25, 2013 at 2:02 PM, David Singer <singer@apple.com> wrote:
> On Jan 25, 2013, at 22:27 , "Tab Atkins Jr." <jackalmage@gmail.com> wrote:
>> It is illegal to circumvent DRM in the US and many other countries.
>
> So you're saying that you should be able to break a license agreement with impunity, and do what you like with material that is not yours?

I believe it is fundamentally and unarguably bad to enshrine into the
web a form of strong vendor-specificity, particularly when the vendors
in question have no stake in the health of the open web, and in fact
gain short-term benefit from the web moving to a less free model.  It
has been *explicitly admitted* that this specification will prevent
certain common combinations of browser and OS to play videos using
this technology.  It is very likely, given the explicitly admitted low
chance of interoperable DRM standards, that there will be extended
incompatibilities between browsers on non-free OSes as well for a long
time.


> It's not even as if the latest recording of your favorite musician is a necessity of life, either.  If *you* don't like the terms they set on your ability to listen to their music, don't buy it.  Telling others that they cannot, and they cannot use your favorite medium, is ...

Please stop trying to impugn my motives, or imply that I am arguing
from a shallow position of personal desire.  It is beneath you.  I am
trying to keep the web platform as free and open as possible.  This is
supposed to be the goal of this organization.

If it wasn't for my long experience watching and participating in
discussions about DRM and related technologies, I'd find this entire
discussion, and the fact that smart people are actually defending the
idea of DRM, absolutely baffling.  I'm not sure if it's an improvement
that I now find it merely disappointing.

~TJ

Received on Friday, 25 January 2013 22:17:44 UTC