Microsoft Awarded Patent For Peer-To-Peer DRM 151
An anonymous reader writes "Music DRM might not be as dead as previously thought. InformationWeek reports that Microsoft has been awarded a digital-rights management patent for a distributed DRM system that works over peer-to-peer networks and uses encrypted public and private keys as the licensing mechanism. The author claims that patent number 7,594,275, entitled simply 'Digital rights management system,' is significant because, while centralized music stores like iTunes don't use DRM anymore, the Microsoft patent makes it possible that peer-to-peer networks could reemerge in the future as a viable, albeit protected, source of content."
DRM Keys (Score:4, Insightful)
Perhaps I missed this in the TFA, but how exactly do they plan on actually releasing the keys? The whole point of DRM is to keep the keys out of your reach. I cannot think of a single, viable way to hide the key exchange without some black-box single point of distribution. Sure you can distribute the encrypted content via P2P... but unless the keys are decentralized as well... calling it a P2P system is just a touch disingenuous.
The key-servers still will represent a single point of failure, and a single point of ownership. Now we'll just pay for most of the bandwidth instead of them.
So let me get this straight... (Score:5, Insightful)
Up until this point I have two ways of downloading content: Quick and easy from a dedicated server, but DRMed, or slowly and unreliably from peer-to-peer networks, but DRM-free.
So now Microsoft kindly offers me a service that has all the slowness and unreliability that peer-to-peer networks, while keeping all the restrictions of DRM? Brilliant!
Re:idiots (Score:3, Insightful)
Heck, I've downloaded cracks for games that I bought and I'm sure if I were to ask for a show of hands, it would be huge.
*Raises hand*
Needs slashdot poll. And a citation too, but a scientific poll would be nice too.
Re:Question (Score:4, Insightful)
Because so far, they've been very successul in forcing expensive shit down people's throats while free alternatives were available.
Except that they still haven't adopted for a world with Internet. :-)
Simple question (Score:5, Insightful)
Do you want me to have the content or not?
If you want me to have the content, you can't make me unhave the content.
If you don't want me to have the content, *just sod off already*.
There's no place for DRM in the world. It's fundamentally flawed at its principles.
I thought the customers had spoken already? (Score:4, Insightful)
I believed the customers had spoken out clearly enough about DRM. All sites i have seen lately that sells music are totally into mp3.
I dont think people will take it up the shute any more willingly just because its movies thats DRM tainted. Especially not now when movies is getting into all sorts of gadgets like mobile phones, media players, netbooks and game devices etc.
DRM only do one thing from the paying customer perspective, severely limits the portability of paid content. It does not bring any benefits whatsoever. It also makes pirated/cracked content better than bought content and thats really not a good selling point. My kid really hates Microsoft because of how bad the DRM in GTA4 was and how many hoops he had to jump through to get it installed and working. He actually d/l a pirated version even if he has a legit copy, just to avoid the DRM stuff. I have a really hard time explaining to him why he should pay for his games after stuff like this.
The reason Microsoft is so into this is pretty obvious. They want to be the gatekeeper between people and their content so that any content will demand Microsoft licenses to be usable.
Re:DRM Keys (Score:3, Insightful)
And, of course, that kind of key system isn't going to suffer from the "insufficient seeders" problem at all :D
Re:So let me get this straight... (Score:2, Insightful)
I find that downloading Ubuntu releases via BitTorrent to be about 5X faster than FTP or HTTP downloads!
Much slower for something rare like the 1964 Dr. Who TV series, but hey ...
Re:Question (Score:5, Insightful)
I never heard of anyone ending a friendship over an operating system. I'm glad I don't have you as a friend.
They can have it (Score:3, Insightful)
Look on the bright side of it... (Score:5, Insightful)
Let me be the first to say:
This sucks donkey balls!
On a more optimistic note, if this patent is enforced, nobody (except Microsoft) can make DRM'ed peer-to-peer networks---that is, you'll get less DRM.
Right? ;-)
Re:Look on the bright side of it... (Score:2, Insightful)
i'll tell you what people told me the last time i made this mistake: microsoft will just license it to everyone who wants it. for a hefty sum, of course. money for microsoft and new drm stuff for others.
nothing good about this, sorry man.
Re:idiots (Score:3, Insightful)
People usually do things for reasons, you know? :-)
We all have our reasons, and if anywhere then you'll find the "because I can" quite an ok reason among IT people. Who here has not spent several hours writing a script to automate a process that takes a few seconds each time, and thus will not recoup the invested effort in your lifetime? :-)
Supplying Bandwidth (Score:1, Insightful)
I buy my music legally. I don't p2p, but that's my thing - people can do what they want. That being said - If I'm going to pay for my music, I'll be damned if I'm going to be a host so other people can download their music from me unless they lower the cost of music from $1.29/$0.99 to $0.64/$0.49.
Re:idiots (Score:3, Insightful)
If you talk pure implementation time, that's one thing. But having scipts that do things consistantly - hopefully consistantly RIGHT - can be a huge timesaver for everyone. Just today I had another case of those merry-go-round emails come to me because someone didn't fill out one value, and so nobody could do what they were supposed to do and kept going in circles until it ended up escalated to me. I'd say in 90%+ of the cases, 90%+ of the time is connecting the problem with the right person who knows the solution. The support system isn't exactly helping, but without it noone would get anything but support done.