This is why we need geofencing. People can talk about liberty and freedom to do what they want with the drone they own. But the fact is most people are dumb and they will do dumb things if you give them the opportunity to do so.
And although most people are dumb, no one thinks of themselves as the dumb one. Not even this guy who flew his drone so dangerously and posting it online would think of himself as a dumb person (he most likely is). Kind of like the study where students were asked whether they think they are above average, average or below average in their grade. You guessed it, more than 90% said they felt they were above average.
This is why there has to be regulation and control. You may think you are very knowledgeable and responsible and that these regulations should not apply to you, and while that may be true, there are many people out there who have little knowledge and even less responsibility.
DJI is trying to take charge in implementing controls and limitations such as geofencing to push the case of effective "self-regulation", which is in the best interest of drone pilots. If DJI did not implement these controls, politicians will, and they will make laws and regulations that serve their constituents best (most citizens don't care about drones), and they will do so without having a full understanding of the drone market and the issues at hand. You end up with laws such as those in Canada. You think it's annoying to get authorization from DJI to fly in an area through an app with a few clicks? Try having to take exams in person and get approved before being able to fly a drone anywhere. Not only is this outcome devastating to drone pilots, but also for DJI and all consumer drone manufacturers. These laws basically killed the consumer drone market in Canada.
There are many that say DJI, a private company, shouldn't tell them where and when they can fly. DJI doesn't want to do this if they don't have to but DJI has done this precisely to preserve as much freedom as possible for its customers. A geofencing system like this costs a lot of money and resources (likely tens if not hundreds of millions), something small drone companies would never be able to do without charging exorbitant prices for their drones. DJI has done this as a service on behalf of the consumer drone industry and have become the one taking criticisms from its customers.
Geofencing is the way DJI has chosen to show it and the industry are able to self-regulate and be effective in ensuring the safety of the public. There have been many industries in the past that have failed to self-regulate which caused the government to step in and put in rules that changed the industries forever (i.e. motor, banking, airlines, firearms, etc.).
So next time you get annoyed for having to gain access to fly your drone over your property or anywhere else, know that this minor inconvenience is what will (hopefully) allow us to continue to freely fly our drones in the future.
