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An anonymous coward writes:
"In March, 2013 Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, proposed adopting DRM into the HTML standard, under the name Encrypted Media Extensions (EME). Writing in October 2013, he said that "none of us as users like certain forms of content protection such as DRM at all," but cites the argument that "if content protection of some kind has to be used for videos, it is better for it to be discussed in the open at W3C" as a reason for considering the inclusion of DRM in HTML.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has objected, saying in May of last year that the plan 'defines a new "black box" for the entertainment industry, fenced off from control by the browser and end-user'. Later, they pointed out that if DRM is OK for video content, that same principle would open the door to font, web applications, and other data being locked away from users.
public-restrictedmedia, the mailing list where the issue is being debated, has seen discussion about forking HTML and establishing a new standard outside of the W3C."
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Open4D on Tuesday February 18 2014, @09:42AM
I support content creators' right not to let me see their content, or to impose bizarre restrictions like ... I have to be riding naked on their pet giraffe, or have to hand over control of my computer to them, in order for them to let me see their content. But that doesn't mean their ideas should be accepted into the mainstream and supported in public interest technical standards.
I am not an expert, but the arguments against DRM in HTML have been made convincingly in other discussions. Today, however, is the first time I've heard the idea of forking HTML. This would obviously be unfortunate, but it wouldn't "disturb" me. Sometimes forking is the lesser of two evils, as - for example - certain parts of the News for Nerds community have concluded in recent weeks.