The DMCA is an extension to copyright law, and it allows the copyright holder to determine how people can use copyrighted products. Before the DMCA, a consumer had unlimited use rights, but had strict limitations on the right to copy. Specifically, it removes any concept of warranty, truly enforces the license agreement, and even allows the vendor to shut down one's software without due process of law. This reduces the act of buying software to a contract where the customer gives up some money, plus some rights versus the vendor, and receives a limited ability to use software that may or may not work. This is a bad deal.
Government intervention is more along the lines of a bull in a china shop.
Private industry is creating some interesting new developments in the realm of software quality. Open source software is copyrighted, but license is granted to give copies to others under certain conditions. This has already improved the quality of open source software, and is expected to do so in the future. The improvement comes from the fact that anyone can improve it, rather than the priveleged few hired by the vendor company. Since every user of Linux is allowed to debug it, Linux has a realistic pool of defect-removing developers that dwarfs that of the largest software firms.