NBC has launched something they call NBC Direct. It allows viewers to watch complete episodes of most NBC shows. I guess NBC chose to do this as a result of their recent blow up with Apple iTunes. NBC chose not to sell their programing through iTunes, or iTunes chose not to sell NBC programing. I honestly lost track of which came first.

I’m watching the newest episode of The Office. Though it’s just as funny as the first time I watched it, it’s a real pain in the ass to view. The episodes have enough DRM to choke a goat. You have to use Internet Explorer 6 or 7 to launch the player. NBC Direct does not support Firefox. You also have to be a Windows XP or Vista user. If you are an Apple user or a fake UNIX (Linux) user, you are out of luck.

It also features paid advertising. Annoying paid advertising. Every commercial break shows the very same stupid commercials. The good people from Lipton evidently want me to know that the way I look at tea will forever change. That’s good because the way I currently look at tea is that it sucks. My view on tea can only get better. With that said, Lipton seems to think that I will now like tea because they have placed their tea in tea bags shaped like pyramids. That’s not the way to make me change my opinion on tea.

If they want me to like tea, they need to figure out a way to make it taste just like coffee.

Other then showing why the WGA writers are on strike, I don’t see why NBC decided to launch this crappy service. It’s clear NBC plans on making money by featuring content on the web. It’s also clear that they need to realize they will need to actually pay the very people that create this content. Also, putting cumbersome restrictions on customers forcing them to watch content a certain way will only turn away customers. I should be able to put content on my iPod and watch it where and how I want. Because of NBC’s restrictive DRM, I cannot do that.