The problem with buying by the crappy DRM version is that it provides no incentive to the publisher to change. I have thought about this long and hard, but ultimately the only way Spotify came about was because nobody bought the terrible DRM’d music the labels wanted to foist on us. We need to inflict the same pain for books.
Personally, I think it would be preferable to donate the same amount to the Books Trust or your local library.
> The problem with buying by the crappy DRM version is that it provides no incentive to the publisher to change.
Then don't consume it and don't buy it. If you stop paying the abusive publisher, they'll be forced to change their policies.
The fact that you don't want to fund what is admittedly a rather abusive industry does not magically make it right to consume other peoples' work for free. That's theft-adjacent. You're not entitled to any piece of entertainment without paying for it.
