Items tagged with DRM
When Microsoft announced that it was canceling the much-hated always-on Xbox One requirements, a collective cheer went up from the Internet -- and also, a collective grumble. A number of players were ready to get rid of physical discs altogether, looked forward to the Family Share features that Microsoft had promised...
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Ever since Microsoft unveiled the Xbox One in May, the user community has raised holy hell about the 24-hour mandatory online check in, the loss of used game sales, and the onerous online requirements that prohibited game or console imports into countries where the Xbox One service hasn't officially launched...
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A couple of months ago, while a lot of people were up in arms over the Xbox One's potential "always on" requirement, Gears of War creator and former Epic Games developer Cliff Bleszinski said, quite simply, "#dealwithit". Unlike so many others, he simply didn't see the reason why an "always on" console was a bad thing, insinuating that it's...
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While both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are a ways off from their release, I can already tell you one thing to expect: neither console is going to be fun as the previous-generation. Why? It's simple: consoles used to be about gaming, plain and simple. Today, consoles are becoming more like PCs; they're being infused...
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Years ago, DRM was finally kicked out of the digital music scene. And consumers rejoiced heartily. But DRM is still a major, major factor across the entire spectrum of digital content -- be it UltraViolet for movies, or DRM filters embedded onto Blu-ray Discs, and most things in between. Now, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), which is responsible...
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Whether it's software, games, movies or even books, piracy is rampant. There's no denying that, and there's no one that understands the harmful effects of it better than the content creators themselves. Over the years, we've seen some humorous attempts at trying to sway the pirate towards becoming a paying customer...
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For the past nine days, Maxis has been caught in a firestorm of epic proportions. Having failed to beta test the game appropriately or account for actual server loads, Maxis' SimCity servers disintegrated under the onslaught of people wanting to play a game they paid for. Since launch day, company executives and representatives have remained...
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The problem with DRM schemes is they tend to punish honest paying customers with a level of inconvenience that's annoying at best, and crippling at worst. Every once in awhile we're reminded of this, such as the current server SNAFU that's affecting SimCity, an otherwise well-received game with favorable reviews. Electronics Arts (EA) is a...
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Toshiba this week announced the launch of new microSDHC memory cards based on SeeQVault technology, a mobile DRM standard licensed by NSM Initiatives LLC and backed by Panasonic, Samsung, and Sony. The technology applies bidirectional authentication with a unique identifier and public key infrastructure, and can be...
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Sony's next-generation PS4 unveil is just two weeks away, which means leaks concerning both it and Microsoft's next-generation Xbox Durango (sometimes referred to as the Xbox 720), are at an all-time high as well. Unfortunately, not all the news is good. Rumors continue to swirl that the next iteration of Xbox will...
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It may have taken Ubisoft a hundred million years to figure out that honest-to-goodness consumers really, really despise always-on Digital Rights Management (DRM) schemes, but bless the publisher's heart for finally caving. Actually, Ubisoft did away with always-on DRM over a year ago, but is just now making it official. "We have listened...
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There's something funky going on in Apple's App Store that's corrupting several iOS apps, causing them to crash immediately on launch. The issue reportedly affects over 70 apps, including some high profile ones like Instapaper and Angry Birds Space (free edition). Instapaper creator Marco Arment first noted the issue...
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UltraViolet. Heard of it? Not surprising. It's the movie industry's big-money shot at curtailing piracy, and while loads of companies are onboard, few people have heard of it -- let alone understand it. One major factor is that Apple, a leader selling of media online, isn't onboard with the program, and these days...
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Strangely, it feels like DRM is getting a second wind. When Apple announced that the iTunes Music Store would go DRM-free, the world took notice. A few years later, DRM is creeping back, and we suspect this wave will be harder to stop. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group...
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DRM? Yeah, it's still a thing. Today at CES, Rovi announced Rovi Digital Copy Solution, a DRM solution that'll enable onsumers to access their physical DVD and Blu-ray Disc movie collections via the cloud. Rovi Digital Copy Solution integrates into consumer electronics devices and PC applications, allowing them to...
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Looking for a last minute gift idea? Time is running out, but if you have $5 to spare, a sense of humor, and want to flip the finger at big media companies who insist on shackling their content with sometimes draconian-level DRM schemes, you need to purchase Louis C.K.'s "Live at the Beacon Theater" comedy download...
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Game publishers are in love with DRM, even the Draconian kind that every once in awhile causes an uproar in the gaming community. Remember Spore? It initially shipped with a three-activation limit, and like baseball, three strikes and you're out. This limit was later relaxed by Electronic Arts, who upped it to five activations and made it...
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Avid Steam users and otherwise enthusiastic indie game players are well-acquainted with the Humble Indie Bundle, a semi-annual drive offering collections of independently released computer games for direct download, free of digital rights management (DRM). Two of these bundle drives have been completed thus far, raising over $1.25 million...
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Well, this is some news that is sure to frustrate gamers: Ubisoft has decided that it will continue implementing its special constant-connection anti-piracy measures because, to nobody's surprise, it works. The company's restrictive digital rights management (DRM) system, which was recently announced to be included in upcoming release Driver:...
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Contrary to what DRM-obsessed publishers would have everyone believe, gamers aren't a bunch of pilfering pirates looking for a free ride. Put out a solid software title and game players will happily reach into their pockets, even when they don't have to. That's the lesson game publishers should take from the Humble Indie Bundle project. The...
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Does the mobile realm really need another way to download music? Competition is almost always a good thing for consumers, but we're guessing that Sprint's new service will have a tough time rivaling the likes of iTunes. Sprint Music Plus is the new service, powered by RealNetworks and capable of delivering ringtones and songs. All of the content...
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Cloud-based services are definitely all the rage these days, but there's hardly a better name for a new cloud service than this: Unifi. A tasteful play on words, this new solution was announced this week at MWC by RealNetworks, who is revealed a new personal media cloud service for carriers to potentially offer...
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