[SGVLUG] No Netflix for Linux

[Michael Proctor-Smith]

On Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 1:20 PM, John Kreznar <jek at ininx.com> wrote:
> In a posting purporting to be from Christopher Smith <cbsmith at gmail.com>
> but lacking a digital signature, it is written:
>
>> The bigger problem is that DRM is just hard to make work with a
>> hackable system, so even if you *could* implement something, you'd
>> undoubtedly have to put restrictions in place that would essentially
>> rob the platform of its open source nature.
>
> Fascinating.  I'd like to know more about this, but probably neither of
> us has the time right now for more detail, unless you have a URL handy.

As Chris alluded to and I knew but did not state DRM schemes tend to
certify the entire display stack. Chrome OS for example runs a
cryptographically signed distribution if you put it in developer mode
Netflix will not run. I think most other DRM schemes use signed
binaries and display drivers to ensure that you have not replaced them
with ones that would allow you to bypass the DRM functions. The Linux
distributions could provide signed binaries but then you would no
longer have the freedom to build your own or use code from a different
provider.

> --
> OpenPGP key: http://ininx.com
>  John E. Kreznar jek at ininx.com 9F1148454619A5F08550 705961A47CC541AFEF13
>  "[What open source is actually achieving is to reduce] the ability of
>   proprietary companies to collect secrecy rent."  -- Eric S. Raymond
>