Microsoft Discontinues Support for Legacy DRM in Windows Media Player, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Silverlight

Microsoft has officially revealed its decision to discontinue support for legacy Windows Media DRM (WMDRM) within Windows Media Player, as well as on Windows 7, Windows 8, and Silverlight. WMDRM was first introduced in 1999 with Windows 98, and its discontinuation means these platforms will no longer be able to play back protected content.

This move is not unexpected, as Microsoft launched PlayReady DRM in 2007 as a successor to WMDRM. Today, PlayReady is widely utilized, and Microsoft has already started phasing out PlayReady versions 2.1 and below since last fall.

The legacy WMDRM services being discontinued by Microsoft include:

• Playback of protected content in the legacy Windows Media Player on Windows 7.
• Playback of protected content in a Silverlight client and Windows 8 clients.
• In-home streaming playback from a Silverlight client or Windows 8 client to an Xbox 360.
• Playback of protected content ripped from a personal CD on Windows 7 clients via Windows Media Player.
• Silverlight, which is a browser plug-in for multimedia content that Microsoft introduced in 2007, is also being phased out. The company announced in 2012 that it would end support for Silverlight, with updates ceasing in October 2021.

Microsoft has stated that it will retire the WMDRM services and Silverlight support “in the coming months.” Additionally, the company has no plans to release any more licenses for PlayReady 2.1 or older versions.

The tech giant from Redmond stirred some controversy by updating one of its support pages to suggest that the Control Panel may also be deprecated. However, Microsoft quickly revised this statement, leaving it more vague. In contrast, the future of Legacy DRM appears to be definitive.

What are your thoughts? Do you still utilize devices that depend on WMDRM or Silverlight? Share your opinions in the comments.

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