DRM (Digital Rights Management) is a protection method developed to protect materials by license laws and to prevent unauthorized copying. It has been developed to protect all kinds of digital material for computers and other technological devices, including music, movies, and software.
This protection option is also used in all types of online games including desktop and mobile platform games.
The protection system has two methods:
1. The first option is to encrypt content on the CD and to allow only players with a decryption mechanism to access the content. Therefore, the players who don't have a decoder can not read the content.
2. The second option is "the property verification" mechanism that exists between the customer and the decoder. In this case, only customers who purchased content can decrypt the material.
Files with DRM (Digital Rights Management) restrictions are generally obtained from Subscription Services. Therefore, they must be periodically updated to have the license re-validated.
Some popular services known for offering DRM Licensed items include Amazon PDF and LIT ebooks, Microsoft Zune, Yahoo! Music Store, Walmart, Netflix, CyberRead ebook Store, Msn Music, BBC iPlayer, Amazon Video, CinemaNow and Blockbuster.
It lets an operator provide the entitlement to view content and restrain what devices it can be played on. Therefore, this protection method can even be used to limit the times when contents are available.
Some of the consumer associations and internet gurus strongly protest this security method. One of the main arguments they advocate is that these systems do not have a standard, and CDs operating on certain channels do not work on others.
Another problem with DRM is that it has not achieved its goal, namely the prevention of piracy. Therefore, no matter how protected it is, even sometimes a newly released album can be downloaded free of charge from the internet almost the same day.