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To tackle plastic waste, tackle DRM
Quoting: To tackle plastic waste, tackle DRM —
Digital Restrictions Management (DRM), the "handcuffs" restricting how you can use most digital media, isn't just an issue that affects files, formats, websites, and streaming (dis)services. It has consequences in the physical world, too. Perhaps none of them are more notorious than DRM-locked printer ink cartridges. You buy them, but arbitrary restrictions set by the manufacturer like specific page counts force you to toss them out prematurely, even if they can continue to work well for months or years more. Landfills needlessly grow, increasing the spread of microplastics and other harmful chemicals as these cartridges disintegrate, potentially even ending up in our food chain. All this simply because of software that restricts our freedom.
It's been encouraging to see forward-thinking city councils like that of Los Angeles do the right thing and ban a kind of Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) so ubiquitous that we often forget it is DRM. Whether physical or not, the worst part about DRM isn't the daily inconveniences it gives us. It's how we collectively forget that things could be a different way.