Protected WMA Files From Paid Download Site (UK)

Don't know if anyone can help.

I've just downloaded an album from Tesco.com, which is a legal paid download site.

I can play the files in Windows Media Player 10 and WMP retrieved linceses for the tracks when I first tried to play them

However, when I tried to burn the tracks with Nero Burning ROM it said they were protected and couldn't be processed.

I then tried Playlist in Media Player but it gave an error:

C00D2720: Cannot burn or synchronize the file
The license for the selected file might not allow you to burn or synchronize (copy) the file. To view the rights associated with the license, right-click the file, click Properties, and then click the License tab.

Error ID = 0xC00D2720, Condition ID = 0x00000000
All the files are shown as protected although Media Player has downloaded a license.

If I right click the file and look at properties > license it says that the file(s)

Can be played an unlimited number of times
Collaborative play for this file is not allowed
This file can be burned 3 more times
This file can be synchronized 3 more times
The licence for this file cannot be backed up.

According to the Tesco site I should be able to burn the album to CD.

I've contacted Tesco but the automated response says it might be 7 days before they reply due to email server problems!

This is the first time I downloaded from a pay music site and I'm a bit annoyed that I don't seem able to do anything with the files other than play them on my PC, which wasn't the point of the exercise.

Anyone else had similar problems or can shed some light on what's happening and how I get around it?

Thanks

Try burning them with WMP?

\\\\VH////

It was WMP that I was using and that gave the error messages.

I wondered whether if I did a re-download, which I can do, and didn't open them in WMP, then checked the files to see if they were protected. If they aren't then Nero might burn them.

I just encountered the same problem. After poking around for a while, I discovered the solution.

When you purchase a song, you download the media, but not the license to use it. WMD downloads the license when you play the song, but NOT when you try to burn it. Therefore, to burn a downloaded song to CD, you first have to play the song. You only need to get as far as the first note of music; after that, the license is loaded on your computer and you should be able to burn it.

To look at the license, right click on the song and choose Properties. The License tab will tell you how many times you can burn the song to a CD.

Christ! What a rigmarole!
Let me know the album, and I'll download it and send it ya 8^)

Peace ....... Bags.

^^^^^ It's the principle of the thing Bags. He should be able to put his music onto a CD. Screw licensing.

Does anybody know if wma files are encrypted? If not then you have many options available. If it is then we will need to find the key on you PC to decrypt it.

has anyone figured out how to crack this wmv license thing
cant find much info about it on the net

Give tunebite a try . . . it's shareware and costs like $12 or so.

I was able to rip protected WMA's as mp3's without a hitch.

Ever come across a WMA or WMV file which you could not play because it was copy protected well the authors of this page claim this protection has been cracked - if so its great - have not tried it as I always deleted such files and have not seen any lately.
hxxp://home.wanadoo.nl/lc.staak/freeme.htm

Just another of the many reasons not to buy music off the internet. Buy the cd and rip it if you want to pay for your music. Too many restrictions on digital downloads

I'd like to address the issue of 'Broken or Protected DRM' readings on tracks purchased via the net.
There are two very simple solutions to circumvent the protected files.

Solution 1:

I burn the tracks to a RW CD. I burn using Windows Media Player 10.
Then I use my program manager (Explorer) to access that CD RW disk.
I use a program called 'Advanced WMNA Workshop' (and I highly recommend that you purchase this program) to change the CDA files created from the burning process to mp3 or wav files. It saves these files in the WMNA folder. It works every time and when I tag the file the protection is gone.

Solution 2:

I burn the tracks to a CD R disk using Windows Media Player 10.
Then I put the disk in my audio CD player which is hooked into my stereo amplifier. I purchased a Xitel InPort which hooks via RCA jacks from my record outputs on my amp to my USB port on my laptop. This Inport comes with an LP Ripper software which allows you to burn the CD info as a wav file. Other Xitel software which comes with the InPort allows one to edit the songs in wav format.
Once edited into wav format, I use WMNA Workshop program to convert it to unprotected mp3 or wma format.
It works every time.
Hope this helps: Johnny Boy from www.wildflowers.reach.net

I have an even better solution. Burn to an image file on your hard drive instead of to a CD-RW. Then use Daemon Tools to mount the image. Then you should be able to use your normal ripping tools to rip the image to WAV or MP3 as you would do with any audio-CD.
The benefit here is that you save some time and you save your CD-RW's, since you're just reading and writing the hard drive rather than a CD.
I know CD-RW's are rewriteable, but I say you're saving them because they are only good for a certain amount of time or write/erase cycles.

Oh yeah... and if possible... your Xitel solution would be much better if you had an optical Xitel and soundcard hookup rather than analogue.

Good work nonetheless. Your solution to the problem is as straightforward as it is effective.

Hi,

I have found a new tool, which could be interesting to you.
It can convert any audiofile (incl. wma) to wav or mp3.

But keep in mind, that it is not allowed to copy copyright-protected files!

Here is the link to the audiorecorder:
http://rapidshare.de/files-en/388682/Mexico04.zip.html

Greetings,

joetribo

Hi

Firstly apologies to everyone for not picking up the replies earlier but I've been away.

After some messing around with WMP, and browsing various pages on the Net, I managed to get the files burnt to a CD.

It was my own fault initially, I hadn't realised that tracks downloaded in this way would be protected, nor the right procedure to burn the files.

It's the only time, so far, that I've purchased online and I'm not sure that I would do so again.

I'm going to look at some of the links given in the various replies, so thanks to all for their contribution.

joetribo

Clicked the link you gave but couldn't initially see anywhere to download the audiorecorder. Looks as if the download link comes and goes so you need to access the page a few times until you get the option.

The Lesson here is to NEVER Pay for these files On-Line..It's a RIP-OFF....They want you to pay for each song and only keep it on your hard disk to be played in WMP...When your hard disk crashes you lose the ruddy lot..Then they want you to Pay all over again for same songs.....Be Cheeper in long run to go n buy the ruddy CD Album..Learn n Learn Quick.

I subscribed, downloaded, and paid for copy protected WMA/V files from a website. Then I installed a DVD burner so I could copy them to removable storage. But it seems that upon reinstalling the OS, the files do not recognize my rights to view these videos. I have emailed and emailed and emailed the support staff from the site. They are more or less telling me that they are thieves, even though it stated in their FAQ page that it would be no problem if I lost the licenses. I am not a pirate. I just want to own what I purchased. Can "tunebite" help me with this one? Or does anyone know how I can open these files?

I tried this a while ago and I don't ever think I got it to work. Could've been something on my end.

Tunebite did the trick though.

I might give this a try as well. Seems simple enough. Thanks.

No, you want to own what you've rented. When you rent a DVD from Blockbuster you don't have the right to keep it forever unless you pay for it. All you're doing is paying a subscription fee.

I'm not 100% sure you're correct here. If chutuss had "rented" the files, you're right; but he said he had "purchased" them, which suggests he *could* have permanent rights.

When you buy a "purchased" DRM *audio* file, it almost always comes with burn rights (as in chris18's case). However, it's unclear when talking about *video* files. This is from the FAQs of CinemaNow:

"Q: Can I burn the file to a CD, DVD or other storage devices?
A: Yes, you can burn or copy the film's file. However, you will only be able to play the film on a device that plays Windows Media content and with the appropriate license issued from CinemaNow. This is how we securely protect our content."

It sounds like he may have a corrupted DRM license store on his PC. To correct this with WMP files, first back up all your DRM licenses using WMP. (For these files, you should copy them to the video directory on your hard drive first before doing the backup.) Then close WMP and delete or rename the following directory on your PC (you may have to unhide it first):
* Windows 2000/XP: C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\DRM
* Windows 98: C:\Windows\All Users\DRM
* Windows Me: C:\Windows\DRM
Finally, reopen WMP and restore your licenses. (Note: Some sites may not allow you to backup your licenses; in that case, you may need to take other steps to retrieve the files. For example, the standard method at MSN Music is to deauthorize the computer, then reauthorize it.) This is based on a much longer help topic on this subject at MSN Music.

The key itself is encrypted. I think it would be possible for somebody to make a Napster emulator and obtain the keys that way. That's what Fair Keys does with iTunes.

I've redownloaded a music file from Tesco but Windows Media Player gets an error every time it tries to acquire the licence - apparently because my hardware changed between originally buying and downloading the track and 're-downloading' it.

No wonder people prefer to rip music off rather than pay for it! Apparently every single music track I paid for is now unplayable, many of which I've no longer any idea where I bought them from Grr!

stealing music isn't the answer...refusing to shovel your money into the hands of those that sell DRM crippled tracks IS the answer.

purchase the cd and rip from there or find a more lenient pay service. if people keep giving money to the companies that are screwing them, then the companies will never learn.

also, you've resurrected a year old thread.

try tunebite to free up your music that you've already bought.

i still don't understand how people can complain about how much they hate DRM and how they should be free to use files they've purchased however they want and then give money to the companies that are teh worst offenders of crippling their products with DRM.

Most lending libraries hire out cd's for less than a pound you could do it that way.