Digital rights management techniques are used to control access to items of content based on motion or environmental traits. Data is collected that describes motion or environmental traits associated with a request to access content, the request received from a user. A determination is made from the data using a digital rights management module embedded as part of the content as to whether the motion or environmental traits meet specified traits of a motion or environmental behavior of a digital rights management policy enforced by the digital rights management module for at least one item of the content. Responsive to a determination that the specified traits are met, access to the at least one item of the content is permitted by the embedded digital rights management module.