Parting is such sweet sorrow

I have been using Intel products for pretty much my entire adult life, from my first Intel Pentium 75Mhz (circa 1995) all the way up to Xenon Harpertown server processors. I am typically pretty loyal to brands that demonstrate quality products, however in the interest of experimentation my last desktop was built with an AMD processor. An experiment that has gone tremendously well (as I type this blog post on the that exact machine - blue LED fan lights and all).

Yesterday, Intel announced that their new chipset, code-named Sandy Bridge, would include provisions that ultimately equate to digital rights management (DRM). In my opinion, this is a step in the wrong direction. Intel has entered the realm of telling me how to use my equipment and that is crossing the line. Intel should focus on producing quality products and not succumb to the pressures of the music and motion picture industries that refuse to innovate new methods of making money outside of protecting content using technologies that usually only slow down the "criminals".

Intel has fired a shot over the bow of the world of DRM-free software, music, and video. I will fire back by purchasing products utilizing AMD chips. Good night, good night, parting is such sweet sorrow (source).

Other articles discussing Intel’s DRM chip:
ComputerWorld
The Inquirer

Edit: I'm glad I forgot to publish this post because Intel published a response. In the post, Intel states that 1080p streaming video is not currently available because "movie studios are concerned about protecting their content". I guess Intel didn't see this article...or this one. They also describe the DRM Intel Insider as "an extra layer of content protection". That sounds like DRM to me.