Journal Community


Explore Group

DRM Schemes in Video Games

More and more games are using online DRM schemes, from Always Online and Online Activation to Online Passes. There was a poll taken last year of over 100,000 people and it found that 40% do not have High Speed/Broadband internet, 30% have no internet at all. As most of these respondents tend to live in rural areas can online requirements, for single player only games, be considered discriminatory akin to redlining?

Many console games have content cut out unless you activate the online pass. If you trade in or sell the title then the new owner would have to purchase a new online pass from the developer or publisher. It was announced that the recently released Rage by ID software (the makers of Doom) would not be selling the online passes separately, the only way to get one is to buy a new, unused copy of the game. Is this a technical violation of the the First Sale Doctrine (17 U.S.C. § 109) or did game companies just discover a loop hole that doesn't pertain to movies, music or books?

Many PC games require an online activation at installation. Many gamers a leery about needing to activate with a specific publisher as they, and their activation servers, may not be around in a year or two, so most activation goes through a 3rd party. The largest such company is Steam, but Steam is also a digital retailer. This means that whenever a store sells a copy of a game that requires Steam activation they are sending their customers to a competitor to complete the transaction. Would this be considered an anti-competitive practice such as Collusion or a Barrier to Entry?

I don't think any of these practices would be tolerated by any other branch of the entertainment industry. I believe they only exist in video games due to a negative stereotype of gamers as young and lazy. What are your thoughts on the subject?

Recommend a comment by clicking the recommendation icon
  • Not to mention that a lot of games are released with the full intent of distributing additional content -- launch content, some would say -- via patches and costly digital downloads at a later date. I'm looking at you, Civilization V. I have a problem with using online activity for digital-rights management, though I have a hunch that the number of people who buy PC games but don't have broadband is slim. Either way, I'd like to learn about how successful it ultimately is in combating piracy.



    The effects of DRM on Piracy is a murky subject to study at best. On the one side you have Spore, which had a finite number of install activations and then you would either call EA and ask for more or buy a new copy. One of the strictest DRMs ever as well as one of the most pirated games ever. There is also Ubisoft who implemented an Always Online DRM scheme for all their games and has seen a significant reduction in Piracy, but also significant reduction in sales, as much as 90% in one article I read. On the otherside Steam has made quite the profit by entering into the Russian market. Being that the Russian game market is notorious for Piracy this has surprised many. However this has also kept publishers/developers out of the Russian market, making it a underserved market. It's possible the Russian market was just acting favorably to the first major publisher that reached out to it.



    I just read an article about the new Microsoft XBOX, tentatively called the XBOX 720. It will feature a Blu-Ray drive and have a built in way to prevent the device to play used games. No details were given but I would assume that it would be some form of activation scheme (ala Steam) through XBOX Live. If this actually happens there will be no buying used games, no renting games, no borrowing a friends copy over the weekend. Would you still buy a new XBOX if this were implemented? Would you buy any entertainment device, DVD/Blu-Ray for example, that followed this path?


To add a comment please
Create an Account

Your real name is required
for commenting.

  • Clear
  • Post
Your Profile Here…

Set up your profile to connect with members of Journal Community.


Your Groups Here…

