Not the news I was expecting but hell, a sensible approach to DRM from a substantial company has got to be a good thing:
http://blogs.sega.com/usa/2010/05/01/alpha-protocol-pc-drm-details/

First, I am not really sure if I would call SEGA all that substantial these days. They are one of the bigger little guys. :p
Second, what is all that sensible about this? Or, at least, what makes this more sensible than the current activation models?
Activation model for a limited number of systems.
You still need to re-activate if you have hardware changes.
It is going to be yet another game that uses third-party DRM in addition to the digital distribution-provided DRMs.
The ONLY thing this has going over Securom is that they will provide a button to call tech support to get your number reset, and you can use a website to authenticate from the computer you have hooked up to the interweb so that the one you refuse to hook up to the interweb can authenticate.

is this the first publisher that has explicitly stated how they will phase out the DRM in their game after a certain amount of time?

Nah, I think Epic used to do it (back when they still made PC games :p). And a lot of the lesser dev teams and publishers have said it before.
Also, we just know it will be removed "In the future, SEGA will be releasing an unprotected patch of the game to alleviate any fears of not being able to play the game when the Uniloc servers won’t be around anymore." Take that with a grain of salt, because that is basically what Valve and Ubi already say about removing their DRM models.

Nah, SEGA explicitly stated the removal period:
Am I protected for the future if the Uniloc service is discontinued?
Yes, we take your rights as a consumer very seriously, so we will provide a version of the game without license management (available as a patch) in around 18-24 months after release. We can’t be specific about the exact date due to business factors, but rest assured that we will provide an unprotected patch, as we did for Football Manager 2009.

Nifty, didn't notice that part.
In that case, this very well might be the first time it was given an explicit timeframe, rather than just an implicit one based off of previous games.
Still doesn't make the DRM model any better or worse, but whatever :p

... hmm actually that seems like a sensible DRM scheme, okay it's limited activations with a removal tool wich isn't really too thrilling, but the fact that they explicitly stated that the DRM will be removed after a period of time is great imho.

This.
One major issue I have with DRM in general is the uncertainty that lingers due to a lack of assurance. At least people have a word to hold on to in this case.

I like the fact that they take the iTunes approach for deactivation -- namely, you don't have to deactivate from a particular PC in case of hardware failure. So where as people used to be up in arms over the possibility of permanently losing an activation due to such failures, that apparently won't ever be an issue here. Too bad about the regional restrictions though =/

Hm, this might not be too bad. I like the statement that the DRM will be patched out in two years at the most, and I also like that they give the customer unlimited lifetime activations, five at any one time. Deactivation online isn't ideal, but at least it protects against crashes and such.
I've been interested in this game, but worried about the DRM they might use. I think I'll give this one a chance. If I hate it, I don't have to buy any more games with it.

This doesn't look bad. I like that they have set a timeline for the release of a DRM-free patch.
I have a question about this though:
We also do not use Steamworks – the Steam released version will use Uniloc DRM.
Is that even possible? I thought all Steam games must use Steam's built-in DRM, no matter what.

You will get the double DRM package if you get it from STEAM. Look at Assassin's Creed 2 and Splinter Cell: Conviction on STEAM also have Ubi's very own DRM added to STEAM's.
It's from friggin Obsidian! I will most likely get it and the used system seems decent at least. They also patched out Securom+disc check from Neverwinter Nights 2 at some point, so I'm likely to trust them on that statement.
BTW does anyone know if the retail copy will include several languages? Any Special Editions?

I think they mean the retail versions won't require Steam, but the Steam version will still have the DRM attached.
A much more reasonable approach for this kind of protection, but personally, I find this DRM is still not to my liking, so I'll pass until that patch arrives. I don't like the on-line, limited activation, revoke activations model. Yeah, I'm one of those people. The promise of a patch to get rid of it makes it more palatable, and would be acceptable, IF it happens. And I'm skeptical about that. Atari promised to patch the DRM out of Chronicles of Riddick and it's still there. I won't be picking up this game until I see that patch. If it does appear, then I'll be inclined to buy future titles with this type of DRM at release.

Well I doubt anyone who's able to post in this forum will be able to voice an objection against that*. Especially with the DRM-free patch in future. The only potential problem I see is that this is a fairly unheard of DRM scheme and hasn't been through quite the same rigorous testing as some DRM has. It might still cause problems. We'll see.
*But there's always one, isn't there?

It's already being used in several SEGA games sold on Steam, so you could always check the relevant forums over there to see if there are any possible Uniloc related issues.