[MPlayer-users] license acquisition (hockey)

[Rich Felker]

On Mon, May 02, 2005 at 08:43:19PM -0500, Reshat Sabiq wrote:
> RC wrote:
> 
> >On Mon, 2 May 2005 20:45:34 +1000
> >Adam Nielsen <a.nielsen at shikadi.net> wrote:
> >
> > 
> >
> >>I was looking into this some time back, and there was a (probably
> >>illegal) program floating around that could remove the DRM protection
> >>provided you had a valid license. 
> >>   
> >>
> >
> >Microsoft's second version of their WMV DRM was cracked before it was
> >even released, IIRC.  Their version-1 DRM has never been cracked AFAIK,
> >and is the only DRM you ever see in-use on WMV files.
> >
> >_______________________________________________
> >MPlayer-users mailing list
> >MPlayer-users at mplayerhq.hu
> >http://mplayerhq.hu/mailman/listinfo/mplayer-users
> >
> > 
> >
> In an ideal world, DRM would be implemented based on public key 
> encryption, so that the same content can be played anywhere as long as 
> you have the private key.

You're talking nonsense and don't even understand the point of DRM.
It's not to keep third parties from using the content, it's to keep
the intended recipient from using the content. Crypto INHERENTLY
CANNOT do this because it's logically nonsense. The only way it can be
done at all is by changing the intended recipient to some "trusted"
(aka malware) program on the real recipient's machine, and having that
program obfuscate things to keep the recipient from getting the
content in a usable form.

> MS DRM appears to be another implementation 
> that locks one into MS software. I wonder if there could be some 
> legislation attempt to perhaps require any such standard to not force a 
> lock-in? Perhaps this could stem from EU...

The law you're calling for simply outlaws DRM. There's no way to have
DRM without proprietary lock-in.

Rich