HDCP, HDMI, or FUBAR?

We've heard it all before: DRM doesn't stop hackers from piracy, and only really affects those honest, average consumers by limiting their rights and applying huge inconveniences. But what happens when inconveniences escalate into products that do not work? From the arstechnica article:

On occasion we hear reports of HDCP snafus, primarily from readers who are upset with HDCP/HDMI implementation on their cable boxes. As it turns out, this stuff doesn't work reliably for even the basic stuff like showing video flawlessly, let alone securing outputs. I even have a HDCP/HDMI issue with my TiVo, which decides that my TV is no longer secure about once a month, requiring a reboot.

HDCP (link to Wikipedia), or Hi Def Content Protection, already imposes ridiculous limitations by requiring the content, the content device, and the display device to all be licensed to play content; any missing link means no video. The fact that the companies (Sony is not a big surprise) are making its consumers through hoops, let alone faulty, overpriced, and prohibitive hoops is a shame.