Richard Stallman Exposes the Truth About DRM: Digital Restrictions Management
Please view the excellent transcript of the Robin Good interview with Richard Stallman. The above clip is a short extract published on Youtube.
One of the most powerful voices in digital freedom, Richard Stallman, has long been warning the world about a silent war being waged behind our screens. It’s not fought with guns, but with code—locked down by corporations. Stallman doesn’t call it Digital Rights Management as the tech industry misleadingly frames it. He calls it what it truly is: Digital Restrictions Management.
“DRM is designed to control users, not protect them,” says Stallman, founder of the Free Software Foundation and the GNU Project.
In a world increasingly dominated by Big Tech monopolies, Stallman’s critique reminds me of the importance of understanding who really owns your devices—and your data. When you buy an eBook, a song, or a movie online, you might think you own it. But with DRM, you’re merely renting access under strict surveillance.
DRM strips away your digital sovereignty. You can’t copy, share, or even back up your own content without permission from the gatekeepers. Stallman compares it to handcuffing users for the sake of profit. And he’s right.
This system has been normalized under the guise of “anti-piracy.” But in truth, it’s anti-user. It’s anti-freedom. Stallman believes DRM violates fundamental freedoms: the freedom to learn, to share, and to innovate. It’s digital colonization.
So what do we do?
Like Stallman, I believe in educating people about alternatives. Use free and open-source software. Reject platforms that enforce DRM. Support creators who respect your rights.
The digital revolution was supposed to empower us—not turn us into passive consumers shackled by algorithms. As Stallman reminds us, “If you can’t open it, you don’t own it.”
The fight against DRM is not just technical—it’s ethical. And it starts with awareness.
Let’s reclaim our digital freedom. Let’s stop calling it “rights management” and start calling it what it is: restrictions. Because words matter—and so does freedom.
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I thought the transcript was thorough enough in its admonishing the Effect DRM has on consumers’ rights, except for perhaps a little more detail, But then again I might just be acting a little anal.