Flash DRM could put Dramatic Prairie Dog on endangered list

[Jitway]

I was talking about this last weekend in the IRC channel about adobe pushing DRM into its flash streaming software. I for one think this is a bad idea and will cause yet more loss of freedom on the users end.

 

 

The primary function of DRM is, theoretically, to block copyright infringement. But DRM also restricts many noninfringing activities that have traditionally been protected under the banner of fair use.

 

The EFF notes that an increasing number of Internet users are downloading and modifying short video clips to create expressive "remixes" that have independent value. These remixes often fall well within the bounds of fair use, because they do not contain substantive portions or decrease the profitability of the original works from which they are derived.

 

Prairie dog says: "Don't tase me bro!"

 

Schoen cites the Dramatic Prairie Dog as an example of an instance in which the ability to freely manipulate video content led to the emergence of an influential Internet cultural meme that exploded into the mainstream. The EFF links to a number of Dramatic Prarie Dog video remixes posted on YouTube, one of which has been viewed literally millions of times. These remixes often parody other elements of popular culture by incorporating elements of movies. Creating these short remixes is fully permissible now, but might not be for very long if DRM continues to become more pervasive—a calamity that would certainly justify Dramatic Prairie Dog's poignant expression of existential horror.

 

 

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