Keurig’s next generation of coffee machines will have DRM lockdown

Keurig is setting itself up to attempt a type of coffee "DRM" on the pods used in its coffee-making machines, according to a report from Techdirt. Keurig's next-gen machines would be unable to interact with third-party coffee pods, thus locking customers into buying only the Keurig-branded K-cups or those of approved partners.

The single-cup coffee brewers made by Keurig (owned by Green Mountain Coffee) spurred a rush by coffee brands into the single-cup-pod trade. The K-Cup patent expired in 2012, and prior to that, Green Mountain bought up many of its competitors, including Tully's Coffee Corporation and Timothy's Coffees. Competitors continue to sell K-Cups, often at a 15- to 25 percent markdown from Green Mountain's own pods, according to a lawsuit filed against Green Mountain by TreeHouse Foods.

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I suppose it is to be expected in today's world. If their machines aren't somehow better at brewing coffee then the competition then this might be a good way to lose in the market. Sounds a lot like the ink jet printer racket where the money is made in the refills.

It is convenient but for the cost, I'll just brew it in bulk, a few cups at a time. It doesn't take that much time.

I know a friend of mine bought a kurig, but she drinks three or four cups of fresh ground and brewed coffee when I make it.
Its a couple seconds more work..but its sure worth the trouble for the taste

the trendiness of the kurigs will pass i think
greed will speed that along

For one or two cups I'll stick with a nice french press all day...and they make much much better coffee too. I'll never understand some of the trendy gadgets people buy up.

reply to post by RickyD


I completely agree. There's nothing like fresh ground coffee tossed in a French press. Absolute deliciousness. Much better than anything a Keurig spits out. I had one of those contraptions, my French press has never failed or givens anywhere near the trouble.

reply to post by roadgravel


Sometimes I feel old even though I'm not that old.. But...

Why would I make coffee cost more? I mean is it hard to make coffee?

They are shooting themselves in the foot here though. It reminds me of HP. Nintendo always did the same using in house designed parts(rather than say USB) so that you had to only buy Nintendo stuff. The difference is you Nintendo is/was unique, but coffee is coffee. Maybe they have enough installed units that they can live off the same customers they have now?

Some of my friends have those, but they seem so expensive to me.

Can't wait for the google searches. "how to hack my coffee."

No worries, stove top espresso, aeropress, percolator, and old fashioned drip all live with me. Electricity doesn't touch my brew.

Have a nice touch screen Keurig sitting here as I type this. Know what we went back to using daily? The trusty old Bunn. Those coffee pods are mad expensive and the wash out filters are just as expensive and time consuming every time you want a cup. My Bunn makes a pot in about 2 min, and it's perfect every time, also no timer needed just fill and close the lid. I will hang onto the keurig for the new house when we move (this one has like 2 plugs in the whole kitchen lol) then we can use it for the kids hot chocolate and teas and noodle hot water..... Also the water in my style keurig cannot be fully drained, a problem I intend to contact them on, so when storing it there is always a cup or so of old water sitting in there till next startup talk about mold city.

I am surprised they aren't putting in some kind of "smart chip" that will allow it to hook up to the internet so users can track their coffee intake and the folks running Obamacare can figure out how to adjust your premiums accordingly.

Just saying...

The price of a cup of coffee with that machine is more than what it costs to make a pot of coffee in a regular drip coffee maker. It is too strong too.

reply to post by Danbones


Yeah , isn't that the truth.
Those k rigs don't quite get hot h2o enough
after awhile. So you taste more plastic and
A-foil than Top Notch Bean.

Danbones
I know a friend of mine bought a kurig, but she drinks three or four cups of fresh ground and brewed coffee when I make it.
Its a couple seconds more work..but its sure worth the trouble for the taste

the trendiness of the kurigs will pass i think
greed will speed that along

WHen you want a rich, full, bold flavored coffee, there are only 2 ways to do it:

French Press
Keurig

I have both at the home and at the office. The Keurig uses much less coffee overall, and since I buy the HEB store brand of Sumatra (it is really, really good) it is only about 50 cents a pod.

If i have to have only Green Mountain coffee pods, id rather drink septic runoff. That is seriously the absolute worst coffee ever. I drank a cup of it once, then had to lick the dogs butt to get the taste out of my mouth.

(ok...but you know what i mean...its horrible)

rickymouse
The price of a cup of coffee with that machine is more than what it costs to make a pot of coffee in a regular drip coffee maker. It is too strong too.

LOL....thats what the wife says. She actually prefers a brand called 9 oclock (whole bean, columbian). not so bueno.

The benefit of a dark roast coffee is that the additional roast denatures the caffeine, rendering it "less powerful" than a lighter roasted coffee. Breakfast blend, or a medium roasted arabica (like your standard variety, ground coffee) will tend to have more caffeine than a cup of a darker roast like the starbucks french, sumatra, or verona.

I dunno..i drink a LOT of coffee from my keurig.

Just me and my Mr. Coffee here. Plain paper filters, few scoops of Folgers, 6 cups of water in the pot, and I have my Bubba insulated cup that is my coffee cup! I can't do 4-5 oz. cups of coffee. No, no. My cup is 35 oz.'s, and has a lid!

Now, THAT'S a cup of coffee!

DRM on a coffee maker?

Next they will be installing meters on bathroom stalls. Finish in 2 minutes or the door pops open if you don't drop another 50 cents.

We got a Vue as a gift and didn't think we would use it..... It's makes awesome coffee. We use the store bought cups but much the more cost effective and better tasting way is go buy great beans, grind them and brew in a reusable filter. It makes a consistently great cup of coffee with minimal effort. You can even make capuchin with a Vue.
Cant blame them for wanting to profit from the consumables, that's where all the money is.

I used to have a pod machine but took the plunge a few months ago and bought this little fella for a good price (www.breville.com.au...).

It took a bit of trial and error to work out how to make a good cup, but the machine itself is no-where near as messy or high maintenance as people make them out to be. As an added bonus after doing the maths, even taking into account the cost of milk, water and electricity the machine will have paid itself off within 12months (money saved not buying cafe coffee or coffee pods). Can't really say I've experienced any downsides so far... I don't need sugar in my coffee anymore so it's healthier, I control the beans, the strength and flavour, I'm not tied down to a particular brand with ridiculous markups, 1kg of fresh whole beans works out to be massively cheaper than the equivalent in coffee pods, I'm generating almost zero rubbish because there's just a paper bag to throw away when I buy the beans (as opposed to a plastic capsule everytime I make a cup) and the spent grinds make great fertilizer for my chillis

I have a nespresso..what else..

Forgive my ignorance, but what the hell is DRM

reply to post by bigfatfurrytexan


I like the french press too, but every time "fresh ground as you use it" seems to win out, even with a kurig on the counter, and even in the drip maker
so far no one has rated the kurig higher or even mentions them...
they do note that i ground the beans as i go...after they taste the coffee

the other thing is a ceramic water filter i put all the drinking and cooking water through


nothing kills a coffee like cold crappy water

and my machine has an on off switch ...no drm



yeah a whole bean colombian seems to be the preference around here too..
side note arabian beans raise cholestrol apparantly, not that i buy the c-myth

Wow ATS is really tackling some cutting edge conspiracy theories these day.

PhoenixOD
Wow ATS is really tackling some cutting edge conspiracy theories theses day.

dang tea grannies
lol
just sayin

arstechnica.com...
loved the comments