Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
1–10 of 25 posts
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#2There's no doubt about it. Wish they had stuck to their decision.
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#3> The online and DRM policies were designed to drive the industry forward toward a digital future.
If the article attempted to justify this statement, and then attempted to demonstrate that those policies would have the effects they were designed to have, and then finally shown how these effects would benefit the games industry, it would have fulfilled the promise of its title.
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#4There is nothing in this article to convince me of Microsoft's DRM model as leading us into any sort of growth in the games industry.
If anything, it was entirely a step in the opposite direction. We would have had to relinquish control of our physical purchases to Microsoft's 24-hour scrutiny. They would have unfairly taken a cut of used game sales, in direct violation of First Sale Doctrine.
They would like to try to convince you that all of the great features related to their DRM were completely dependent upon the DRM scheme, but there are still alternatives. Games sharing can still work, if they concede that a small amount of so-called abuse is acceptable.
I've also seen absolutely nothing from Microsoft that would lead me to believe that any of their plans would reduce the costs of games. Every time they mention DRM it's in the context of preventing piracy, which they say drives game prices up. If they had unleashed a DRM scheme and had enough confidence in its efficacy, they could also have announced new pricing schemes as a result, which would have placated the majority of gamers.
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#5What I can't understand is why publishers didn't speak up before the reversal, if this is so import to them and such as good deal to customers (lower initial purchase cost.)
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#6There is nothing in this article to convince me of Microsoft's DRM model as leading us into any sort of growth in the games industry. If anything, it was entirely a step in the opposite direction. We would have had to relinquish control of our physical purchases to Microsoft's 24-hour scrutiny. They would have unfairly taken a cut of used game sales, in direct violation of First Sale Doctrine. They would like to try…
> Games sharing can still work, if they concede that a small amount of so-called abuse is acceptable.
Publishers would never allow this.
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#7you dont need 24 hour drm to go all digital, steam does it without that, why cant microsoft?
Also I dont think that "the future of video games" is a future anyone would want where consumers have to ask Microsoft's permission to play our games, or where developers must go by Microsofts rules (such as indies can't self publish, or microsoft taking a cut of used game sales).
Giving Microsoft that much power and control over peoples digital libraries is foolish, and I dont see in any way possible that the game sharing feature (which is the only standout one) would be allowed at all by publishers, or that it would work as they led people to believe. Do you really think publishers or microsoft themselves would allow friend networks to share games with everyone? That would harm profits for them and publishers much more than piracy ever would.
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#8I call bullshit. DRM has never been good.
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#9There is nothing in this article to convince me of Microsoft's DRM model as leading us into any sort of growth in the games industry. If anything, it was entirely a step in the opposite direction. We would have had to relinquish control of our physical purchases to Microsoft's 24-hour scrutiny. They would have unfairly taken a cut of used game sales, in direct violation of First Sale Doctrine. They would like to try…
> Games sharing can still work, if they concede that a small amount of so-called abuse is acceptable. Publishers would never allow this.
That's where the real change in gaming needs to take place, with the publishers.
It's been well-proven by Steam et al. that if you price correctly and use an unobtrusive (or even nonexistent in the case of GOG) DRM scheme, people would much rather buy and support their favorite games developers (and publishers) than go through the effort of pirating a title.
That's why games sharing would work with only minimal abuse. Not because it wouldn't be technically feasible for the consumer to abuse the system, but because the barrier to actually owning the games they want to play would be so low that it would become the new path of least resistance.
The sky's the limit if the industry can learn to treat their customers with respect.
Edit: By the way, a version of games sharing already exists on the PS3. If you purchase a game digitally on PSN you can install and play it simultaneously on multiple PS3s as long as your account is on each of them, I believe up to a limit of 5 PS3s.
Re: Forcing Microsoft to reverse DRM will harm the games industry
#10I call bullshit. DRM has never been good.
Which is why Steam has been such a fail...oh wait, no it hasn't. Maybe, perhaps, DRM can be done in a way that satisfies all stakeholders.