LOL checked up on the largest bittorrent tracker ever... a torrent for PoP is currently the second most downloaded. I guess its still better than Spore, which is still pretty far up there due to backlash.
I guess, nothing will stop the pirates. There are just people out there that don't care. They're going to pirate and pirate because they're too lazy to get a job and they're going to ruin it for the rest of us who actually buy the games. Those greedy people are going to switch over to consoles after PC gaming is dead and they are going to leave the rest of us in the dust. Sad.

Pirates are going to pirate a game regardless of DRM or lack of it...it doesn't matter. What will be interesting to see is what the sales numbers are for PoP...there are a number of people who refuse to buy anything laden with SecuROM and other DRM forms.

You know what? I think you just gave me the solution to piracy! Make every game connect to the internet somehow and run through secure servers, be it single or multiplayer.
Now all we have to do is blanket the entire world with free internet, and we'll be golden! Maybe Google will do it, since they seem to be so keen on providing free services...

Except those services will be in perpetual beta and offer a 1998 level of internet service. :)

So, why should the industry be built around people who don't care?
I mean, I seriously don't think it'd significantly boost sales if pirated games were unavailable. It's a pretty big jump from a price of 0$ to 50$, after all.
Just use Brad Wardell's line of thinking - make the games for the people who do buy it, the pirates are not your target audience. They want to have a vote on what gets made? They'll have to buy the game, then.
And anyway, GOG is a also good as an experiment to see how much money you can make off games that have been available for free illegally for not just a couple of days but years.

I would support ubisoft for it's effort of realeasing a DRM free game, unfortunately i'm not interested in the game and don't plan to buy it, unless i find it some day in some bargain bin somewhere.

You are all pissing in the wind all this talk about who pirates what and how much means nothing, the only smart guy out there is the stardock president who said he doesn't put the pirates into his equation when shipping a game out, costumers don't want DRM so we don't put it in PERIOD, pirates who are they did they buy the game, no they didn't, so the product is not and shouldn't be based around them. The customer is always right I won't buy a car that I can't get into after 3 tire changes I'll go to another dealer instead, how much a DRM free game is pirated is meaningless to discuss the numbers will be the same as a DRM game if one could find any even remotely decent numbers about piracy out there, some people buy the game but still torrent it for the crack or they torrent it before to try it out.

but this little guy is a costumed pirate.. please, help me understand!!

lol that's no pirate mine is better

Optimistic Viewpoint:
Market test for the effect of DRM on rate of piracy. Unless the rate of piracy is exceedingly higher compared to other "A" games released this year, it would mean that DRM has no effect on piracy and thus redundant.
Pessimistic Viewpoint:
Used as "evidence" that games without DRM are pirated anyway (which is definitely true by the way), and thus all arguments against DRM made by gamers can be ignored. All Ubisoft releases after this will enforce draconian DRM to "fight piracy".
Personally, I doubt it will be the first.
Well, DRM comments aside, I think this game is one of the most "magical" games this year. Sure its easy as hell to complete, but I think the game is pretty solid overall and the story is really good (read "magical"!). So DRM or not, I feel its a good game to get.

I bought this game yesterday. I installed it, did not have to punch in any key or anything, the EULA did not mention any DRM of any kind, and when I removed the disc after install I was still able to play it. So, there is no apparent DRM at least.
As for the game it self?
It's actually awesome. A great action-platformer, with stylish, cellshaded (cartoon-like) graphics. The controls are tight, and the general gameplay is cool. It's a lot easier than the other 3D POP games, since you can't die (don't know about battles yet). When you fall down somewhere, you get pulled up by a magic wielding girl, but not to the place where you are headed, but the last safe spot before you jumped. I find that this method is a lot less frustrating than a prince with bad memory.