DVD Jon hacks iTunes, creates program that allows you to buy...

[dragonsbane]

I am legit

the scale of piracy has made it so that legitimate users have to put up with increasingly burdensome measures to use...

This makes no sense (but then again, neither does DRM). If people can pirate an app (and get a stolen serial) then the logical outcome is for application developers to stop requiring serial numbers. Instead, most non-open-source companies put more restrictions rather than less. What is this point? If people want to use your app without paying you, they will. Full stop.

Just look at the most popular collection of apps (Windows OS) and see what all their restrictions have produced. Placing restrictions simply hurts legitimate customers. If companies were responsive, they would put fewer restrictions rather than more.

"I have legally acquired this application"

Require people to type that before you app installs. Your legit folks will be happy and those that got it illegally will use it anyway.

More so with music. I mean, come on. If someone wanted to send out the best quality files to the internet they simply purchase a single CD and convert it. The online versions are of inferior quality to begin with.

 

[matticus008]

This makes no sense (but then again, neither does DRM). If people can pirate an app (and get a stolen serial) then the logical outcome is for application developers to stop requiring serial numbers. Instead, most non-open-source companies put more restrictions rather than less. What is this point? If people want to use your app without paying you, they will. Full stop.

So in your world, there are no ink-blot tags on clothes, the bank never asks you for photo ID, and there are no passwords on anything. I mean, obviously people will try to steal things or pretend to be other people or attempt to access the data of others, so then why bother protecting it at all? The pirates will always win, so give up and go home? No. Measures that help keep costs low by limiting theft are a reasonable inconvenience. It would be a lot faster if I didn't need to find my passport when I travel to other countries (like I am now) or if I didn't have to remember any passwords for anything, but the cost of doing that would be the complete destruction of all of my personal assets and the exploitation of my identity.

The logical outcome is not to stop the restrictions when they aren't successful enough, but to add more restrictions. Maybe an introductory logic class would be of some assistance in illustrating this.

"I have legally acquired this application"

Require people to type that before you app installs. Your legit folks will be happy and those that got it illegally will use it anyway.

How is this different from a CD key or requiring a user ID and password to authorize your music library? You are asking users to type something in prior to using an application they've bought. It's a more direct statement than agreeing on the EULA (which almost always says that you are affirming your legitimate ownership of the software) and then entering the CD key, yes, and maybe it should be added to existing measures like reg codes and CD keys. Obviously it won't replace them, because it provides absolutely no security. Clearly, people are not to be trusted at their own word. It would only make it easier for pirates, who already have it too easy.

 

[Doctor Q]

This makes no sense (but then again, neither does DRM). If people can pirate an app (and get a stolen serial) then the logical outcome is for application developers to stop requiring serial numbers.

If it was logical for application developers to stop requiring serial numbers, they would. Where they have not, it shows that they don't think it makes sense for them to do so.

Serial numbers are inconvenient to developers too. They must key each copy uniquely, track all the numbers, handle customer service for problems that show up, and lose customers that don't want to play along. They wouldn't do this if they thought they had a better choice.