Microsoft didn't really get away from anything when trying to peddle their DRM crapped content.

Remeber their Plays For Sure initiative? Well, I'm sure their hardware partners remermber it well and wouldn't touch anything Microsoft related with a ten foot pole, content-wise.

Last I looked the Zune Marketplace also wasn't a roaring success.

One of the huge problems was, of course, that any Microsoft crippled format maybe played on your device, but quite likely it didn't.

Plays for Sure; Yeah, right!

What could actually go wrong with that?

Nosire! Of course not. It's probably due to evil software pirates.

In Switzerland, the country with super-seekrit-numbered accounts (at least according to some bad fiction writers) it is impossible to open an account (even a super-seekrit one) without personally identifying yourself to the bank with proper documents (i.e. passport).

While you may find a more shady financial institution that takes a more flexible approach on the "know your customer" rule, this will not happen with the more reputable banks.

This is the reverse proportion from just about any other print product and makes them fairly independent and fearless to piss off corporations (yes, they do that too) and even governments.

This is resolved here (Switzerland, and I think the EU too) for ages and very simply too.

You pay the recycling fee upfront on a device. Say a couple bucks on a mobile phone 10 bucks or such on a laptop.

This gives you the right to dump the device at any shop (selling such devices) at the end of it's lifecycle.

That's what actually bugs me most and it doesn't seem to be fanbois only. Apple iPhone owners seem to buy the newest phone whenever it comes out more often then not.

I'm probably extremely uncool, non-hip and anti-trendy owning a five year old Nokia 9300, which just works. While there are some features that would be nice I feel that reliability and quality of my phone (with emphasis on phone; this seems an afterthought for most iUsers) is much more important to me then a cool interface and the smug factor.

To each his own, I guess.

Not that this makes such practices in any way, shape or form acceptable.

Yes, but apple didn't honor the warranty, since the hunidity indicators on the outside of the phone went red.

The picture quality is awesome.

Example? Sit onto a bench in central park and drink a beer? Busted! This is perfectly legal in most of Europe. Another example? Drink a beer at the tender age of 17? In most of the US a crime in most of Europe wine and beer can be consumed from 16 up. In Switzerland a 17 year old boy can screw a 15 year old girl (or vice versa) without falling afoul against the law. Something, I would guess, gets you stamped as a felon and a sex offender agains kids for the rest of your life in most states

There's a whole damn library about privacy legislation throughout the EU.

Those binding directives must be implemented into law in all of the EU countries. You can add Iceland, Norway and Switzerland to the mix. This partially translates to criminal offenses if violated and yes - systematically storing and processing personally identifiable data without permission, reason and safeguards may be a crime depending on circumstances.

You may claim that this is stupid. I for one however rather sip a beer, sitting on a park bench on a sunny day then have my private data (including phone, financial and medical data) splattered around the world and sold to every sleazy marketoid that pays for it.

Your priorities may differ, of course.

Bub, you shouldn't spout bullshit on a public forum when it's you, who doesn't have a clue.

I suggest you push your fanboiism aside and actually look up what DRM is and how it's (usually) implemented.

Yes!

Was this televised? This sounds like a once in a lifetime chance to watch Fox News.