Doesn't say anything about the numbers in which it distributes illegaly when it would or wouldn't have copyright protection. It only says something about the number of illegal copies of Spore vs illegal copies of other games.
True, but it also tells you the copy protection isn't working very well.
Only if other games that don't have copyright protection still get pirated less, it would say something about the effect of securom (or about the popularity of the game). But it still could very well be that, would Spore not have SecuROM, there would be even more pirated copies (and less legitimate sells).
Always hard to compare games, but
Sins Of A Solar Empire sold very well and famously has no copy protection at all. I'm not sure that's entirely sensible, mind, but I do think it shows that the vast majority of gamers who intend to buy something are going to buy it, regardless of how easy it is to pirate.
There is always a fraction of people who would buy the game (when it has protection) instead of get it illegaly.
No offence, but I honestly doubt that is true. Why would anyone buy something they intended to pirate because it is MORE annoying to use rather than less?
When the revenue out that fraction is bigger then the costs of the protection, the protection is a good idea. Loss of revenue due to people not buying the game because of the protection (at least some people here) should also be factored in. You'd probably get quite a complex formula, all things included. I don't have it ;), but I believe that Lynn has better access to that kind of research then I do, so when she says 'tremendously', I do believe the protection would help (though I am surprised myself by 'tremendously'. Thats alot).
Well, there's an awful lot of people out there who are in the industry who do NOT believe excessive DRM is at all helpful - including the heads of Stardock and Gas Powered Games - so I think it's safe to say opinion is divided on the issue. Ubisoft have been testing the waters, too, with their latest
Prince Of Persia game being DRM free.
Since the whole Mess Effect (Not a typo, more an observation...) thing started, I've read a lot of articles on this issue by a great number of people and I honestly think Larian have been doing the right things to minimise piracy anyway - which is to say they talk with their fans, listen to us and generally build up a sense of community.
Knowing that they're depriving Lar or Lynn or Macbeth or other people they know and talk to of their livelihood will, I'm sure, be a far greater incentive (At least within the community) not to pirate from Larian than any amount of copy protection.
Point is that as long as anyone out there feels somehow entitled to gain the benefits of others' hard work without paying for it, there will be piracy. What is needed is to change attitudes and you don't do that by treating your actual customers like dirt. Well, not in ways you'd WANT to, at least
