Copy Protecting an Export
 

Hi. I use PPro 1.5. Is it possible to add DRM or other type of copy protection to a windows media video file which I want to display on the web?

Something that if it is downloaded it expires after watching it?

All my videos are in wmv format but this one particular music video I want to showcase but don't want to have it saved on other pc's.

How does this work?

Thanks,
Russ

From Wikipedia: While none of the WMV codecs themselves contain any digital rights management facilities, the ASF container format, in which a WMV stream may be encapsulated in, can. Windows Media DRM, which can be used in conjunction with WMV, supports time-limited subscription video services.

More info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Media_DRM

So, probably do-able but maybe not affordable: you would need to pay a company who provides this service.

Thanks.

Maybe I'll revert to re-encoding everything as Flash videos instead so they play and streaming and not downloadable.

Russ

It's an interesting question - I was hoping that someone who actually knew something about this topic might post. I was amazed at how hard it was to find any info online (not helped by the fact that every google search of course gets swamped with stuff about circumventing video drm).

By the way, the type of streaming flash available at, for example, Youtube is relatively easy to capture and convert to other video formats. Some sites do seem to have their clips better-protected however.

You can still download flash videos while streaming if thats what your thinking. Firefox has plugins that let you download any flash video that are loaded on the page, such as youtube videos.

One trick is to disable the "right-click" feature in a streamed quicktime video to disable the "save" feature.

Here is my opinion. If you want to keep people from copying/saving your work, don't publish it. There is no 100% effective method of copy protecting your work (especially with drm).

If it's not published it can't be seen, then what would the point be of even doing it?

If someone wanted to download it I wouldn't be too bothered, I'd just have liked to control it - then again if someone is so determined to copy something then they will find a way.

Thanks,