DRM Thread

[Deadly_Nightshade]

Mass Effect for PC + Spore + Dead Space is out on Steam now.

 

Looks like they still have the SecuROM virus.

[Deraldin]

Mass Effect for PC + Spore + Dead Space is out on Steam now.

 

Looks like they still have the SecuROM virus.

 

Any confirmation? Everything I've heard has said that they won't have SecuROM.

[Deadly_Nightshade]

Mass Effect for PC + Spore + Dead Space is out on Steam now.

 

Looks like they still have the SecuROM virus.

 

Any confirmation? Everything I've heard has said that they won't have SecuROM.

 

Nothing from EA or Steam, but some of the forum users have noticed that the EULA agreements have not been altered from the orriginals - and those included something about the games having to be activated via an on-line connection and that they had a limited number of instalations (just like Crysis Warhead, it also had SecuROM). Still, other places have been saying Spore, and maybe more of the titles, does not have it...

[Mamoulian War]

Prince of Persia PC DRM Free apparently.

 

Thought some people here might be interested in this news.

 

I found it quite interesting that they did this. Looking at it from one perspective, Ubisoft basically called the bluff of many pirates ("We only pirate because of the eeeeevil DRM")... and judging from a few torrent tracker sites I looked at, the pirates were basically proven to be full of sh*t.

 

The torrents says only about people who do not buy games, lot of people who refuse to buy securomed games have purchased this game only because it's DRM free, same with Sins of a Solar Empire and lot of games from gog.com... every single software ever released got pirated... be it PC, console or mobile application... and no DRM ever will change that...

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

Kotaku tells me the games EA put on Steam are SecuROM-free.

[SteveThaiBinh]

The Prince of Persia experiment is interesting. Having announced it as such, I suppose the publisher has an obligation to reveal its sales figures, and we'll get estimates of torrent downloads as well. We'll also need a control DRM-loaded game for comparisons.

[Deadly_Nightshade]

Kotaku tells me the games EA put on Steam are SecuROM-free.

 

All of them or only Spore? I cannot find the article at the moment.

[Hurlshort]

Once you download a game from Steam, do you ever have to authorize it again?

 

Can you download it on as many PC's as you want?

[Deadly_Nightshade]

Once you download a game from Steam, do you ever have to authorize it again?

 

No, but you do have to open it via Steam (although there is a way around this that only require you to find the .exe and launch from that instead).

 

Can you download it on as many PC's as you want?

 

Yes.

[neckthrough]

Announcement at Macworld today: starting today, 8 million songs will be on iTunes Plus (i.e., DRM-free, high-quality 256K). By the end of this quarter, ALL 10 MILLION SONGS ON ITUNES WILL BE DRM FREE!!!

[wesley2]

Announcement at Macworld today: starting today, 8 million songs will be on iTunes Plus (i.e., DRM-free, high-quality 256K). By the end of this quarter, ALL 10 MILLION SONGS ON ITUNES WILL BE DRM FREE!!!

I was coming in here to post the same thing! I think this is great news, I'm so happy about this.

[aries101]

Announcement at Macworld today: starting today, 8 million songs will be on iTunes Plus (i.e., DRM-free, high-quality 256K). By the end of this quarter, ALL 10 MILLION SONGS ON ITUNES WILL BE DRM FREE!!!

 

Thank you for this. This is indeed great news, I find

 

The music industry has apparently finally gotten around and come to their senses - after more than years. Let's hope, the game industry doesn't need 10 years to do the same as Apple, Mac, and Itunes just have done.

[Deadly_Nightshade]

I was also going to post that bit of good news, although I am slightly skeptical that they will offer a free up-grade for music you have already bought via iTunes.

[neckthrough]

I'm 99% sure they will. Over the past few years they've been slowly migrating songs over from iTunes to iTunes Plus, and they've always had an option somewhere to update your library to Plus whenever and wherever possible. It used to cost money because iTunes Plus tracks used to be $1.29 before, but all tracks are $0.99 now.

[Meshugger]

Announcement at Macworld today: starting today, 8 million songs will be on iTunes Plus (i.e., DRM-free, high-quality 256K). By the end of this quarter, ALL 10 MILLION SONGS ON ITUNES WILL BE DRM FREE!!!

 

Finally some sense from one company at least.

[Deraldin]

I'm 99% sure they will. Over the past few years they've been slowly migrating songs over from iTunes to iTunes Plus, and they've always had an option somewhere to update your library to Plus whenever and wherever possible. It used to cost money because iTunes Plus tracks used to be $1.29 before, but all tracks are $0.99 now.

 

10:26AM "Over the last six years songs have been $0.99 -- music companies want more flexibility. New pricing, $0.69, and another tier at $1.29."

[neckthrough]

That's unfortunate (note to self: read complete article before posting link )... but not a deal breaker for me.

 

In other news,

 

Ars Technica reports that the FTC is getting ready to take a hard look at gaming DRM, setting up a town hall meeting to be held on March 25th. They're currently recruiting panelists, and they say the meeting will, in part, "address the need to improve disclosures to consumers about DRM limitations." The controversy over DRM came to a head in 2008 with the release of Spore and the multiple subsequent class-action lawsuits focusing on the SecuROM software that came with the game. Ars Technica says the town hall meeting will also look at "legal issues surrounding DRM" and "the potential need for government involvement to protect consumers."

[sanil]

thanks for the information.

[Mamoulian War]

I just wish there would be people like him in the gaming industry

 

http://www.dailytech.com/UMG+Executive+Say...rticle13919.htm

 

the most interesting quote from article...

 

Caraeff told CNET News that he doesn

[Magister Lajciak]

Prince of Persia PC DRM Free apparently.

 

Thought some people here might be interested in this news.

 

I found it quite interesting that they did this. Looking at it from one perspective, Ubisoft basically called the bluff of many pirates ("We only pirate because of the eeeeevil DRM")... and judging from a few torrent tracker sites I looked at, the pirates were basically proven to be full of sh*t.

 

Actually, according to a number of posts/indications on the Ubisoft website, the piracy rate for the Prince of Persia has been unusually low.

[Magister Lajciak]

In other news,

 

Ars Technica reports that the FTC is getting ready to take a hard look at gaming DRM, setting up a town hall meeting to be held on March 25th. They're currently recruiting panelists, and they say the meeting will, in part, "address the need to improve disclosures to consumers about DRM limitations." The controversy over DRM came to a head in 2008 with the release of Spore and the multiple subsequent class-action lawsuits focusing on the SecuROM software that came with the game. Ars Technica says the town hall meeting will also look at "legal issues surrounding DRM" and "the potential need for government involvement to protect consumers."

 

Yes, this is siomething I have been following. It is possible to submit suggestions and comments by e-mail to the FTC on this matter and I have done so, arguing why online activation is a particularly bad idea.

[Dark_Raven]

Nice.

[Maria Caliban]

I just wish there would be people like him in the gaming industry

 

There are. Stardock, for instence, has been opposed to DRM in the past.

[Mamoulian War]

I just wish there would be people like him in the gaming industry

 

There are. Stardock, for instence, has been opposed to DRM in the past.

 

yes i know about stardock and CD Project Red and their www.gog.com aswell, I apparently missed "more" in the post above

[Magister Lajciak]

If anybody else wants to present some rational reasons why certain aspects of DRM, such as online activation affecting game longevity, or something else is problematic for software users and gamers, you can pass on your ideas through the form at the bottom of this page directly to the Federal Trade Commission: https://secure.commentworks.com/ftc-DRMtechnologies/

 

I encourage you to do so, since this really is a great opportunity for our concerns to be heard and possibly addressed.

 

On this note I would like to give kudos to those companies, such as Obsidian/Atari and most recently also Ubisoft (Prince of Persia, Tribes of the East - both DRM free), for not resorting to online activation and limited installs.