Just buy the books physically from your local hobby shop. Problem solved.
Subject to the large number of ways physical books can get lost or destroyed, of course.
That's fair, though if you're concerned about damaging or losing books, you'd be careful about it anyway, right?
"Just buy physical books” is hardly a helpful comment on a thread asking about what should happen to already purchased digital content. Not only is it the functional equivalent of saying “get a time machine and solve your problem by having made a different purchase choice” it ignores the pretty obvious reasons folks purchase digital content.
Speaking for myself—and I expect many others—ownership rights over content are far, far less important to me than (a) the ability to share my content with my players who live hundreds or thousands of miles away, (b) the ability to look up that content on my phone wherever I happen to be, and (c) the digital toolsets that streamline character creation (particularly helpful since I often DM for new players; though, even for myself, I feel I’ve done my time playing book, pen, and paper and don’t need to go back to that).
It is pretty easy to declare “problem solved” if you discount the fact your “solution” is going to create a whole bunch of obvious other—arguably worse—problems you choose not to address.
Well I mean, the simple fact is that any means of purchasing access to a corporation's content is going to have its own upsides and downsides. We as consumers have the personal responsibility of knowing/choosing which method fits our individual situations best.
"If your primary concern is wanting absolute assurance that the company who owns a piece of content cannot under any circumstances revoke your access to said content in the future, then purchasing a physical offline medium of that content rather than access via a digital service you don't control may fit your situation better" can indeed be the best answer for some. And doing so doesn't require a "time machine" either, the secondary market exists. If that person prefers to support local FLGS businesses, some of those may even have stock of the desired book(s) remaining.
DND beyond has gone so far down hill. I can’t believe they have restricted access for all the stuff myself and other users purchased access to. It clearly shows they have no interest in having individuals play this game if they can’t constantly be making money from it. ******* shame!
Genuine question, what did you lose access to? I have purchased a great deal over the years and haven't noticed anything missing.
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Much that once was is lost. Objects in Mirror Image are closer than they appear. All the world's indeed a stage, and we are merely players, performers and portrayers...
Hopefully consumers will be more widely informed with California having passed AB2426 recently. The law will require online storefronts selling digital goods to inform customers that they're only paying for licenses that can be revoked. It's genuinely unfortunate when it happens, but it will be good to have all digital storefronts held to the same standard of making sure customers know they're buying licensed access, not a permanent product. It's important that people's expectations are managed appropriately. And thankfully WotC hasn't done the thing some folks are afraid of: No books have gone missing from anyone's libraries.
Somehow I doubt that's gonna seriously alter the dynamics; they already have to say it in the terms and conditions on the site, it's just that everyone simply checks the "I agree to the terms" box without reading them. This isn't some shocking and underhanded business practice, it's people assuming that what they want from a purchase is what they'll get and not bothering to check.
Hopefully consumers will be more widely informed with California having passed AB2426 recently. The law will require online storefronts selling digital goods to inform customers that they're only paying for licenses that can be revoked.
At most it will change the placement, that's already in the ToS.
Somehow I doubt that's gonna seriously alter the dynamics; they already have to say it in the terms and conditions on the site, it's just that everyone simply checks the "I agree to the terms" box without reading them. This isn't some shocking and underhanded business practice, it's people assuming that what they want from a purchase is what they'll get and not bothering to check.
As we see a lot on these forums even after that section of the T&Cs is pointed out people still refuse to believe it because it doesn’t mesh with what they think. I don’t see a new law in California changing much at all
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Well I mean, the simple fact is that any means of purchasing access to a corporation's content is going to have its own upsides and downsides. We as consumers have the personal responsibility of knowing/choosing which method fits our individual situations best.
"If your primary concern is wanting absolute assurance that the company who owns a piece of content cannot under any circumstances revoke your access to said content in the future, then purchasing a physical offline medium of that content rather than access via a digital service you don't control may fit your situation better" can indeed be the best answer for some. And doing so doesn't require a "time machine" either, the secondary market exists. If that person prefers to support local FLGS businesses, some of those may even have stock of the desired book(s) remaining.
Genuine question, what did you lose access to? I have purchased a great deal over the years and haven't noticed anything missing.
Much that once was is lost.
Objects in Mirror Image are closer than they appear.
All the world's indeed a stage, and we are merely players, performers and portrayers...
Hopefully consumers will be more widely informed with California having passed AB2426 recently. The law will require online storefronts selling digital goods to inform customers that they're only paying for licenses that can be revoked. It's genuinely unfortunate when it happens, but it will be good to have all digital storefronts held to the same standard of making sure customers know they're buying licensed access, not a permanent product. It's important that people's expectations are managed appropriately. And thankfully WotC hasn't done the thing some folks are afraid of: No books have gone missing from anyone's libraries.
Somehow I doubt that's gonna seriously alter the dynamics; they already have to say it in the terms and conditions on the site, it's just that everyone simply checks the "I agree to the terms" box without reading them. This isn't some shocking and underhanded business practice, it's people assuming that what they want from a purchase is what they'll get and not bothering to check.
At most it will change the placement, that's already in the ToS.
As we see a lot on these forums even after that section of the T&Cs is pointed out people still refuse to believe it because it doesn’t mesh with what they think. I don’t see a new law in California changing much at all