Yes it will be pirated with and without DRM, but that will not prevent the Magazine for being successful.
That to me smells of speculation. If it were even remotely true, people would't be using DRM in the first place.
On the other hand if I have to license specific propriety software and / or hardware from Microsoft, Apple, Amazon etc in order to be able to read it for a limited time, [...] than I am not.
We won't have a time limit. You bought what you bought. It's yours. Time limits used to be used as a way to help differ hosting costs, but when the file is a download to your mobile phone for example, why would we care?
The whole plan is not crystal clear yet to me either as I am rather new to this. I will tell you that we are planning for:
- iTunes newsstand
- Android
- Kindle
- BitcoinMagazine.net direct view
I haven't checked yet, but I have reason to believe none of those purchasing mediums would give you a timeline, and even if they did (like what, a whole year?) we would just give it to you again for free on request.
If that's not good enough, then we're arguing about free vs paid and we go back to my original statement that we simply haven't figured it out yet. We need to gauge interest, pay for printing+shipping, then we can see about making things better for everyone involved.
I really appreciate your passion and if you have any suggestions, I am more than willing to play Devil's Advocate.
To understand why DRM does not work one simply needs to look at the myths regarding DRM.
Myth 1: DRM Prevents Copyright Infringement
To debunk this myth one simply needs to visit ThePirateBay.org and look at those torrents that point to infringing content. In almost all cases the original content was released with some form of DRM. The torrent comments with typically have the crack of the DRM unless the DRM has already being stripped from the content. It even gets more interesting if the DRM is particularly restrictive and vile your content may make the top 100 most downloaded torrents on ThePirateBay. I saw this phenomenon a few years back with a game that had a particularly nasty form of DRM. By the way getting your content on the top 100 most downloaded torrents on ThePirateBay gives the publisher very valuable free exposure. So if the objective is to get free exposure by deliberately inducing copyright infringement of your work, then this is the one and only scenario where DRM actually makes sense.
Myth 2: Selling propriety digital content without DRM is equivalent to giving it away for free.
This is a very common myth that is used to sell the DRM snake oil. The best example of why this is wrong is the history of Microsoft. Between 1985 and 2000 Microsoft sold is software without DRM, yet this is the period of time when the Microsoft millions and billions were made. So if Microsoft was giving their software for free where did the millions and billions come from. Since 2000 when Microsoft turned to the dark side and embraced DRM the stock has gone nowhere. The fortunes were made before the company embraced DRM no afterwards. In the 1980's and 1990's DRM consisted of among other things deliberately creating bad sectors on 5.25in floppy disks. It was called "copy protection" in those days and the term DRM was created for marketing reasons.
Myth 3: DRM content is permanent and not time limited.
This is a huge myth that actually leads to outright fraud. The trouble is that technological change makes the DRM content unreadable after only few years. I have digital files that are over 30 years old. They were originally created using IBM punch cards, yet are completely readable today on my brand new laptop. I also installed a 20 year old propriety Windows program on my brand new laptop from its original media, 5.25in floppies. It works fine only because the original media were not infected with DRM in the day by the publisher. I also have books that are over 300 years old. So please if you sell digital content with any form of DRM, and that includes Apple iTunes, Amazon Kindle etc., at least be honest with your customers and warn them it is not permanent.
Myth 4: DRM does not hurt legitimate paying customers.
The biggest harm to the customer comes down the road long after any potential harm to the publisher can occur. In many cases a customer will purchase a content license under the understanding it is permanent when in fact it is not for the reasons I stated above. In my opinion this is fraud pure and simple. Another harm to the customer is that in many cases DRM forces the customer use Windows over GNU / Linux. I do suspect that the proportion of GNU / Linux users among Bitcoin users is much higher than the general population.
Myth 5: DRM must work because companies use it
The reality is that the strongest proponents of DRM are those whose business models belong in the 19th Century, and not in the 20th or 21st Centuries. It was is nothing more to attempt to turn back the clock to the 1890's when content was placed on an Edison Cylinder or a Player Piano roll and distributed around the world by sailing ship. Lets us not forget that Universal Studios, a major proponent of DRM, went to court in an attempt to ban the VCR, and then Macrovision was developed as a way to infect VHS tapes with DRM. DRM is not new. It has been around, and failed for a long time.
Now for some suggestions:
1) Do not force your print subscribers to pay for a DRM infected digital copy by bundling both together. If you wish to provide them with with a digital copy then treat your customers with respect and provide them with a DRM free .pdf.
2) If you want to sell DRM encumbered content for example via Apple iTunes, then at least make sure that it is also available to GNU / Linux users who are using 100% Free Software at the same time and also make a DRM unencumbered copy of the content available to your paid subscribers at no additional cost within a reasonable period of time say one or two months.
