"Consumers are the final arbiters because they can vote with their wallets," Usher added. "This is as it should be in any well-functioning market, and we believe the improvements in Windows Vista play to this strength."

Hollywood isn't the only group that benefits from Vista's assortment of content-protection technologies. While Microsoft can truthfully claim that it wanted no part of the DRM schemes added to Vista for Hollywood's benefit, the company clearly stands to benefit, both now and in the future, from its control over other pieces of the Vista DRM puzzle.

WGA: The next generation

One of these, dubbed the Software Protection Platform (SPP), deals mostly with the integrity of Windows itself. The next generation of Microsoft's Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) program, SPP requires that users validate their version of Vista with a software license key within 30 days of its activation. Users who don't validate the operating system will be prevented from using certain features, including the new Aero graphical user interface, the ReadyBoost system performance application and, most controversially, the Windows Defender antispyware program.

After 30 days, Vista goes into a reduced functionality mode, similar to Windows Safe Mode -- users have access to a Web browser (so they can validate or purchase a copy of Vista), but none of their computers' other functions. (For details, see "".)