by Matt Remley

Created on: November 04, 2010

One of the Internet's newest controversies is Digital Rights Management, or DRM, which is a way for companies to control the access of a digital property. To put it simple, companies can have different control depending on the type of media but in the computer gaming world is probably most effected by this new trend.

In gaming, Digital Rights Management refers to companies controlling the amount of computers a game can be installed on. Does a practice like this promote or prevent piracy? While most people tend to believe it prevents piracy there are others who are starting to lean towards the promotion side of the argument.

♦Promotion♦

More often than not, when a company promotes a product they tend to announce it through the press. While stretching the argument a bit, each company that uses Digital Rights Management announced that they were using it within products through the press. Some would venture to say that this in turn promoted piracy, as it proved to the clueless that it was possible.

With the Internet rapidly becoming popular in places most people would never imagine, more people have now discovered that piracy is actually possible. As this trend continues, DRM and other tactics may be rendered useless. Aside from that, more hackers and crackers online are putting their sites on getting around these DRM programs.

♦Consumers♦

From the view of consumers the use of DRM in media formats such as films, music, and even e-books may be considered greedy or a move in the wrong direction. Consumers want more of the features they love, and want to be able to control the items they purchase freely without having to worry about limits to installations and so on.

Most of the time they companies using DRM are the ones making the most money. That being said, no-one has ever heard of a independent film on DVD using DRM, or a low budget game using DRM. Smaller companies tend not to worry about piracy as often and still make the money they need.

♦Conclusion♦

It seems fairly obvious that companies aren't doing the right thing in trying to control their supposed digital properties. People should be able to do whatever they want with the properties they purchase, and companies need to find a new form of digital rights management that will be fair and not continue to promote piracy in all forms.

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