Policy Committee Proposals on DRM

This page is for the Policy Committee to collate proposals for and discussions about the official policy on DRM. Please post your ideas in Board index > Party Policy Development > Policy Committee Activities > DRM .

Options (from least extensive to most)

 * [A] no policy on DRM
 * [B] allow circumvention of DRM
 * [C] allow circumvention of DRM, and require warnings where DRM is used
 * [D] disallow DRM on copyrighted works
 * [E] disallow DRM entirely (the original policy on the wiki page)

Ideas from discussions
Compatible with the international pirate movement: All the above options are within the scope of policies promoted by the international pirate movement.

Political expediency: disallowing DRM (even only on copyrighted works) may be unpopular with the public, as New Zealand alone may not have the leverage to discourage the use of DRM, so such a policy may only make it more difficult for people in New Zealand to obtain copies of such works.

Other Issues as they Relate to the Options

Allowing DRM circumvention: DRM anti-curcumvention law is intended to enforce copyright law, and copyright law is for advancing the public good. DRM anti-curcumvention law would therefore also have to be justified on the basis of advancing the public good. However DRM restricts even activities that are permissible under copyright law, and effective enforcement of DRM anti-curcumvention law, if it is even possible, would require heavy-handed punishment. Further, even if DRM anti-curcumvention law did serve the public good, there is no moral obligation to impose such a law, so it would not be immoral for PPNZ to campaign on repealing the law, and allow the voters to decide.

Prohibiting DRM on copyrighted works: Since copyright is granted in the first place for promoting the public good, it is justifiable to place conditions on how copyright is used, especially where it would not serve the public good. It is questionable whether obfuscating copyrighted works with DRM serves the public good. However restricting the use of DRM on copyrighted works would involve more law, and might not be necessary. Current implementations of DRM can largely be circumvented, the public might not buy into stronger DRM, and it is theoretically possible to circumvent any DRM implementation since decryption keys must be embedded in devices that read DRMed works. Further, New Zealand alone may not have enough leverage to discourage the use of DRM.

Prohibiting all DRM: Whereas restricting the use of DRM with copyrighted works can be justified as a condition placed on the grant of copyright, a blanked ban on DRM could not be justified on this basis.