Problems with digital 'ownership'
Introduction.
What I mean by ‘digital ownership’ is the online purchasing of media or subscriptions through platforms like
- Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Hulu.
- Spotify, SoundCloud, and Apple Music.
- Steam, Epic Games Store, and EA.
The Problem.
You do not own what you purchase.
When purchased digitally the consumer is paying to lease media which expires whenever the company you purchased it through feels like it.
It’s a serious issue when media purchased is out of the control of the user and is unable to be used offline without the need to sign into any account. It shouldn’t have to matter to the consumer after purchase if the company that produced what you bought is going to take it away.
What little rights to the things we purchase has been given up for the sake of slight convenience and people have tricked themselves into thinking that it was a good deal.
The only option left for media no longer available without physical releases being illegally pirating.
This Isn’t a Hypothetical.
Media is actually being taken away. “Final Space” for example was pulled from accounts after purchase with no physical copies of the third season even being made.
A lot of companies are even selling local media copies anymore, they just sell a redeemable code for a online account.
Games suffer from this especially being frequently delisted, removed, and lost. The website “delistedgames.com” has archived information regarding nearly 2,000 examples as of writing.
The Solution.
Physically owning media, purchasing and making a backup from a DRM-free platform, or illegally pirating.
Piracy is less about price and more about getting a better experience, preservation, and taking back control.
Neat Alternatives.
A little help leaving tech ecosystems.
For a more complete list check out Awesome-Selfhosted
(Itch.io can also offer Steam or GOG keys while giving the developer a better profit split.)