<rant>
Winds me up when big companies do that. Microsoft, Apple, record labels (copy protected audio CDs), Hollywood studios etc (region coding, CSS).
And now car mfrs.
In a relatively short space of time it is always defeated by some bright spark but not before it has peed off the consumer in the street.
As a software developer myself I'm all for giving the copyright holder their dues, but when big companies abuse their position by using IP laws as a stick to beat the competition or the customer it helps nobody in the long run.
If you want to scare yourself silly do some reading about TCI (Trusted Computing Initiative). 1984 is nearly here. It's about time we in the EU had some decent fair use clauses enshrined in IP laws. Although with the DMCA I think the battle is already lost for our chums over the pond.
</rant>