I just want to buy a couple of things from iTunes, like Monday’s Daily Show. But I don’t want their damn organizer/downloader crap. I just want a simple, plain, ordinary multimedia file that I can play any damn way I want.
Can I do that? How?
No*. The iTunes Store uses DRM (digital rights management) encryption to restrict their files to play only on their software or their iPods.
- At least not without using (possibly) illegal decryption software.
Not quite true. I don’t know of a way to download the video file without using iTunes, but you can play it in Quicktime. It won’t recognize the file extension (.m4p - I think), but if you open it by going to all files and displaying it, it will play. I had to do this because playing The Office through iTunes made it play too slow. If you want to play it on Windows Media Player or VLC or something, you can convert it. I don’t know of any reason it’d be illegal, but it does take some time.
You can play iTMS files in Quicktime because Quicktime is also their (i.e., Apple’s) software. However, you cannot convert iTMS files to other formats or play them in Windows Media Player or VLC without decrypting the DRM.
As far as the music files are concerned, you can always burn them to a CD and then re-rip them. However, this is not strictly speaking decryption. You lose some quality going through this cycle.
I don’t think that there currently is a legal way to get any of those TV shows without the DRM in the file, other than shows that the networks are distributing for free.
Thank you, all, for your answers. I was afraid of that. To hell with iTunes!
[QUOTE=Tyrrell McAllister]
The iTunes Store uses DRM (digital rights management) encryption to restrict their files to play only on their software or their iPods.
Does this mean that if I set up an iTunes account to buy music, I can’t get an mp3 file that I can store on my computer or move to a non-iPod mp3 player?
I’m looking to buy single songs in mp3 format that I can play on the computer or my cheap mp3 player. Which is so tiny, I can’t find the damn thing at the moment.
Not directly. But I believe you can use iTunes to burn the music onto an audio CD, which can then be converted into a standard MP3 file.
Thanks for the info. Hm. That sounds like a lot of work just to get to hear the Shangri-La’s sing “I’m Blue”. When I downloaded iTunes and browsed the store, it wasn’t very obvious to me that the music is in mp4 format.
I gather iTunes is more than just a media player/organiser, then? Is it worth getting an iPod?
And Microsoft’s “Play4Sure” DRM is better somehow?
I’ve not messed with video files from ITMS, but Apple’s being more than generous with the current implementation of DRM and a simple way to “get around” it on their music files. Apple even tells you how to do it! Burn your ITMS purchases to a CD, then rip the CD in as MP3.
Microsoft DRM is not better. But that does not make Apple’s DRM acceptable. Apple is not being remotely generous. If they were generous you could use the files with whaterever palyer you chose.