Because it includes Draconian DRM program SecuROM, Spore's taking a bit of a pounding at the moment. Same thing happened to Mass Effect, same thing happened to BioShock. The message is fairly clear: people know what SecuROM does, and they do not want. EA's response to this? To let you eat cake. They're sticking with the software, whether you like it or not, and upcoming RTS title Red Alert 3 will be coming bundled with it. This time, though, they're going a little easier on you, allowing you five installs (and a few other minor tweaks). Like the other games, though, spare a thought for the dev team. It's not their decision to implement SecuROM, it's EAs, and the following plea from the team makes clear just how polarising a topic this has become:
Red Alert 3 is shaping up to be a world-class RTS game that will give you many hours of enjoyment. I think it would be a shame if people decided to not play a great game simply because it came with DRM, but I understand that this is a very personal decision for many of you and I respect that. As you might imagine, I'm a lot less respectful of those people who take the position that they will illegally download a game simply because it has DRM.
For a full run-down of Red Alert 3's specific blend of SecuROM, hit the link below. So what's the deal with copy protection in Red Alert 3? [EA]