Windows 8 dropping the ability to play DVDs

By Scorbing
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Grand Master

Scorbing

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/technology-blog/windows-8-dropping-ability-play-dvds-171546904.html

Okay, we get it ? DVD is starting to go the way of the VHS tape and film reel. But we've still got hundreds of DVDs in our house, and always pack a few in our laptop case for viewing on those long flights. That's why this news is so frustrating: The upcomingWindows 8 operating system (which you can download and preview now) is dropping the ability to play DVD content.

According to Windows engineering team member Steven Sinofsky (emphasis his), "Windows Media Player will continue to be available in all editions, but without DVD playback support. For optical discs playback on new Windows 8 devices, we are going to rely on the many quality solutions on the market, which provide great experiences for both DVD and Blu-ray." In other words: If you want to watch that Bridesmaids DVD on your next plane trip, you're going to have to pay extra for software that will let you play it, even if your laptop already has a DVD drive. And don't think getting Blu-ray is an option ? you can't play that straight from the box, either.

If you're left scratching your heads, the rationale behind dropping DVD support is simple: It's about the bottom line. Says Sinofsky, "traditional media playback scenarios, optical media, and broadcast TV, require a specialized set of decoders (and hardware) that cost a significant amount in royalties." Windows 8 will allow customers the option to install a Windows Media Center upgrade to allow DVD playback at extra cost, though Microsoft is not saying exactly how high that cost will be.

Will the move confuse customers when Windows 8 hits stores this October? Almost certainly. Will not including DVD playback hurt sales of Windows 8? Probably not at first, but we're willing to bet the change adds to the level of frustration people sometimes have with a new operating system. And when combined with some of the other frustrations of Windows 8, such as a tablet experience being shoehorned into a PC format, Microsoft may very well be playing with fire. There's a reason why so many people are still running Windows XP on their computer, after all.

Another stupid move by Microsoft. Way to go Steve Ballmer.

Grand Master

Brandon H Supervisor

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they only dropped support for playing DVD's in WMP. but lets be honest, who really ever used wmp for playing dvd's? I always found it limited compared to the other 3rd party options out there such as PowerDVD which is one of the few thing (shock) I'm glad was pre-installed on my computer

Veteran

Wakers

Posted
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Good move by MS - it allows them to sell Win 8 for cheaper because they don't have to account for royalties, and it removes a feature that hardly anyone used in the first place - who actually uses WMP to playback movies?

And "there's a reason why many people are still using XP" - yes, they either don't know any better, are stubborn or don't want to spend money on a new OS.

Grand Master

Argi

Posted
Posted
maybe they would offer free codec in app store when you try to play unsupported format in win8?

DVD licensing isn't free. Part of the cost of Windows includes this price.

The surprising thing is Windows Media Center won't be free now.

As above, presumably part of the cost of WMC will include that licensing fee so that if you do decide you want it, you can pay for it. If you play all your DVDs on a home threatre setup, you won't be paying for what you won't use.

Everyone's just getting worked up because currently it's cool to hate. The number of people actually impacted by this I'd be happy to bet is quite fewer (zero, when you include WMC addon).

Enthusiast

Josh the Nerd

Posted
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But does anyone HONESTLY think this will happen?

I don't.

An upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium, the descendant of Windows XP Media Center Edition, is $20 more expensive than the basic home edition upgrade has traditionally been. With Windows 8, they're going back to having one home edition, and I think there's a good chance it will be the traditional $100.

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