After years, it looks like Microsoft is finally ready to pull the plug on legacy DRM (Digital Rights Management) services once and for all. This decision will affect the legacy Windows Media Player, Silverlight client, Windows 7, and Windows 8. The Redmond company doesn’t specifically mention Windows 8.1 in this list, so users still running that operating system will be able to enjoy the related features for a while longer.
As for Windows Media Player, the old version has been replaced by the new Media Player application on newer generations of Windows.
Regarding the decision to discontinue support for legacy DRM on Windows Media Player, Windows 7/8, Silverlight, Microsoft said:
Legacy DRM services used by Windows Media Player, the Silverlight client, Windows 7 or Windows 8 clients are obsolete. The following functionality will no longer be available when these services are completely retired:
Play protected content in the legacy Windows Media Player application on Windows 7
Play protected content in Silverlight client and Windows 8 client
Stream from Silverlight client or Windows 8 client to Xbox 360
Play protected content ripped from personal CDs on Windows 7 clients using Windows Media Player
Microsoft introduced Windows Media DRM (WMDRM) version 1 in 1999 with Windows 98, which the company called its own DRM solution. Since then, Microsoft has regularly updated WMDRM, and the technology has been around until Windows 7/8. WMDRM was finally replaced by a successor in 2007, when PlayReady was released.
Microsoft itself defines DRM simply as “any technology used to protect the rights of users to content and services.” The concept is easy to understand, but in reality modern DRM technology includes a myriad of content protection programs based on media, hardware, software. Many of them are less common or even not at all popular.
In general, digital rights management is a broad term that encompasses all programs designed to control access to copyrighted materials by technological means.
Also in its latest announcement about DRM support, Microsoft added that Silverlight clients will no longer be supported. In fact, the company has already announced that Silverlight 5 will be discontinued in 2021.
If you don't know, Silverlight is a web application framework that helps develop Rich Internet Applications (RIAs) for websites. It was introduced in 2007 and works similarly to Adobe's Flash. Since its launch, Silverlight has used PlayReady as its native DRM system.
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