Day Against DRM (IDAD), sometimes called anti-DRM day, is a grassroots international observance of protests against digital rights management (DRM) technology.

The event is intended as “a counterpoint to the pro-DRM message broadcast by powerful media and software companies” and aims to draw attention to DRM’s anti-consumer aspects. The Defective by Design site started a tagging campaign against Netflix, an online commercial stream service that developed new implementations of DRM for web, to challenge W3C‘s decision of introducing DRM to web technologies. Despite the popularity of the campaign, W3C didn’t step back and showed greenlight for DRM.

This 2023 campaign draws attention to the ways libraries, and by extension, their patrons, are mistreated by corporations like OverDrive, makers of the “Libby” app that have a near monopolistic control over digital lending in the United States. Services like OverDrive and Follet Destiny mandate “controlled digital lending” schemes, imposing artificial scarcity on a digital good. They also require monthly or annual fees in order to have the privilege of having a book or piece of media in circulation. Should the library struggle with paying its licensing fees, like the New York Public Library, their “access” is “rescinded.”

There once was a time when you could donate a book to the library to give others in your community access to it. There once was a time when libraries owned the works that they provide to the public, rather than finding themselves trapped by unethical technology and predatory licensing fees. If we want to ensure that our cultural legacy lasts, we need to focus our attention on corporations like OverDrive, who make a living out of leeching on libraries, which are already underfunded. In this year’s IDAD, we’ll do our best to remedy this. How to participate:

• Pledge not to use Libby, Follett Destiny, or similar apps, and let your local library know that you support them, not corporations.
• Let us and the world know why libraries are important to you in a short video posted to social media. You can use the hashtag #DayAgainstDRM.
• Challenge yourself to go a “Day without DRM,” and refuse to engage with media peddled by Disney+, Amazon, Peacock, and others that don’t respect your digital autonomy.

Links:
Day Against DRM