DRM Does Not Work, Says CD Projekt Chief Executive

(Note: Originally posted May 12, 2012 for Press2Reset)

In an interview with Forbes CD Projekt chief executive Marcin Iwinski stated that “[DRM] does not work” and that hackers do it for “the glory.”

CD Projekt is known for their unique efforts against piracy and their stance on it. Their last title, The Witcher 2, was downloaded 4.5 million times but they insisted they wouldn’t implement any form of DRM. However, the publisher started to mail out legal letters to suspected pirates only to apologize for their actions.

Interestingly enough the version downloaded so many times was the retail version which featured SecuROM DRM while the DRM-free version of The Witcher 2 was left alone. When asked to explain this peculiar phenomenon Iwinski answered, “My guess is, that releasing an unprotected game is not the real deal, you have to crack it to gain respect and be able to write, ‘cracked by XYZ.’… The illegal scene is pretty much about the game and the glory: who will be the first to deliver the game, who is the best and smartest cracker.”

When asked about the future of DRM in games Iwinski responded, “First of all let me dispel the myth about DRM protecting anything. The truth is it does not work. It’s as simple as that. The technology which is supposed to protect games against illegal copying is cracked within hours of the release of every singly game. So that’s wasted money and development just to implement it… I do not see any future for DRM at all.”

Iwinski then talked about The Witcher 2 and whether or not the amount of piracy equaled lost sales adding, “we have indeed estimated the number of pirated copies at 4.5m units, although it’s just an estimate… However this number doesn’t represent lost sales… All in all, our job is to make each of our games a must-have… Whether they buy it in full price, mid-price or maybe even budget is less important. We want them to have the legal version and became fans of the Witcher franchise, as when the next game comes they will be hooked and they will go and buy it on day one.”

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