Doctorow: HD DRM Bad for Consumers?

Cory Doctorow, one of the co-editors of the Internet’s most popular blog and currently less than five blocks from my apartment as the Canada-U.S. Fulbright Chair at USC’s Annenberg Center for Public Diplomacy, has written a thought-provoking piece about some of the potential dangers of hi-def content for Infoweek.

I don’t know enough about the high-def specifications to actually have an opinion of my own on the subject, but it looks like Cory’s main contention is restrictions on consumers are being subtly included with much of the high-def technology that’s currently being introduced to the market. I’m afraid I can’t do his argument justice, so I’ll just let the man speak for himself:

The New HD technologies include anti-user nasties like “renewability” – the ability to remotely disable some or all of the device’s features without your permission. If someone, somewhere, figures out how to use your DVD burner to make copies of Hollywood movies, they can switch off *everyone’s* burner, punishing a limitless number of innocents to get at a few guilty parties.