Why DRM is working - But not for long

Anyone who has ever discussed intellectual property with me on IRC or elsewhere knows that I am 100% against DRM. That's the disclaimer to the title of this post. This is not a "Case for DRM" or anything like that, this post is meant to further expose how bad DRM is and why it should be dumped ASAP.

One of my biggest arguments against DRM is that it doesn't do what it claims to - protect nice old grandpa hollywood from the evil movie pirate conspiracy. And it doesn't (source).

What it does do is protect Hollywood from the plague of the music industry: Friend-to-friend sharing. Who hasn't cut a CD or to for friends, or even grabbed a USB drive and gave someone your entire collection? I get an album from my favorite band (or whatever my aunt knows I liked last time she saw me) twice a year, my birthday and Christmas, cut onto one of those colourful Memorex CDs, with "To Sam: Coldplay - Parachutes" written in sharpie.

Despite being just as illegal as uploading it to the internet, it's normal, undetectable, unstoppable, and most importantly, uncountable. The music industry can peg $9.99 on every Bittorrent tracker download stat, but how can they say that giving your friend a mixtape is costing billions a year?

So, in case you didn't follow, the real point of movie DRM is to keep my aunt from giving me Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince on a pretty red DVD this June. And to keep you from USBing every movie you own to your best friend.

It's not just unethical, it's insulting our consumerism! Seriously, they think I'll never buy another movie just because my friend buys every one that comes out?

There's actually a second reason, and it also involves money: Special devices. Just think how much better it is for various Hollywood folks to make us buy a DIVX certified set-top box instead of letting me use my modded Wii. Or how much it helps Apple when a movie buyer realizes too late that they need an Apple TV to watch the movie they spent $14.99 on on their TV (excuse the awkward grammar).

So, why can't the movie industry get away with keeping is from enjoying movies with our friends and lock us to certain devices forever? Because times change, and filesharing will engulf the internet, and Hollywood, if DRM isn't dumped soon.

Since people are reluctant to admit it, gauging filesharing is difficult, but in this survey by the British RIAA, 61% of respondents, aged 14 to 24, said they use p2p to get music. No equivelant for movies is out there, but this shows how many 14-24 year olds use filesharing.

As p2p becomes more mainstream, friends might start sharing illegally obtained movies, which could spell doom for the movie industry's profits. Removing DRM from movie downloads is the only way for the movie industry to continue making the kind of money they do now.

Thoughts, anyone?