I’m divided on this. Having the W3C not come out in favour of DRM would sure be nice, but having ECE in Chrome and Firefox lets me watch Netflix and Amazon on my Linux PC without having to jump through all sorts of nasty burning hoops (like having to install Silverlight in some sort of emulation environment). In effect, the small annoyance that is ECE saves me from having to deal with the big annoyance that is Microsoft Windows. Cory – who purportedly runs Ubuntu – is probably not a Netflix user …
3 Likes
I’m saving Netfix to the tune of $7.99 a month, that’s all I got for them, because that’s all they’re worth.
1 Like
I prefer the extension that turns all comments into “Herp Derp”. Ha ha. But yes, same idea.
1 Like
I’m…fore…this?
Er, what now?
/Looks at pile of Netflix DVDs on desk
I know I need to get around to watching these and returning them, but I haven’t had them that long!
1 Like
If that’s true, then you’ll be pleased to learn that America has elected its first black president.
6 Likes
Netflix already looks like Blockbuster. The selection (at least for streaming) is abysmal.
4 Likes
Yeah every time I see a here is what you can watch I just go ummm nah maybe not.
Hulu if I get to a point where I want to pay for a movie streaming service has The Criterion Collection… I could be happy just watching those films.
A friend with really bad taste made me watch Robot Jocks (Jox?) on youtube. I’m withholding judgement on youtube as a movie source but my initial feelings are not great. 
Although I did watch that Joan Jett movie there …
That’s just like your opinion, man.
Yeaaah, it is kind of regrettable right now. Although I was able to watch about 30ish non-sequel horror movies on it last year for my halloween movie marathon.
I’m guessing EFF and other campaign groups consciously pick simplified narratives like this-- even to the exclusion of more nuanced discussion-- in order to reach a broad audience. But even if that can be good tactics, it certainly won’t work if it tips over into self-evident hyperbole.
I mean, “the W3C’s plan to make it illegal to innovate”? Seriously? That kind of discussion-forestalling language is typically the province of people who know their position won’t stand up to reasoned discussion.
And let’s not forget, the W3C isn’t the bad guy either way; they’re a respected body that could (and should) take a stronger stand, but ultimately has very little say in the behaviors vendors do or don’t cater to, let alone whether governments criminalize tinkering.
I honestly don’t think it’s so much that. The reason why they’re fighting this is because it could stifle innovation and also is contrary to the EFF’s goals, ideals, etc.
The reason why they’re using Netflix as an example is because the topic itself has to be condensed to fit a headline and be understandable and attention grabbing. It’s a pretty complex concept to convey meaningfully in a short space of text.
The analogy kind of works. But I agree the title is a bit overwrought. The headline of the previous analogy I saw was slightly more wordy but not as vague while still getting the point across.
The only way to be the post-Netflix Netflix would be to offer more titles for less. Since Netflix streaming is already essentially free (ok, $8/month, but c’mon) and is already offering everything they can offer legally, that means post-Netflix will have to be free and offer any imaginable title. In other words, it will be a criminal enterprise. Since it will be a criminal enterprise anyway, there’s no point in handwringing over how DRM is blocking development.
I suspect it will be some variant of anonymous torrent technology optimized for streaming as you download.
We did this already.
NO ISSUE CAN BE POSTED MORE THAN ONCE!
Especially if it impacts enormous markets.
3 Likes
Thanks for pointing this out. The whole scenario is contrived and ignores the fact that DRM in the web browser has no bearing on whether someone could start buying and lending DVDs for a fee. They need to come up with an actually relevant scary situation to get our attention.
I’ve been watching a lot of Youtube lately, and I’ve recently noticed that the accompanying ad stream is now heavily laced with “do you have a problem with cannabis?” public health messages.
They know their audience, gotta give 'em that…
1 Like
This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.
