In the unlikely case the “individualization” process fails, you may need to reinstall Windows Media Player (WMP). Click here to download Windows Media Player (this link will open a new window).
DRM technical requirements and technical troubleshooting
What is Digital Rights Management (DRM)?
How do I get a Digital Rights Management (DRM) license?
How do I know if my system can handle your Digital Rights Management (DRM)-protected content?
Do I have to obtain a Digital Rights Management (DRM) license every time I want to watch a new video on the same computer?
Technical requirements
What are the system requirements?
Can I use other media players like QuickTime, RealPlayer, etc?
Can I use dial-up Internet access?
Can I view my video download from a Macintosh?
Can I transfer video clips to my iPod, Zune, or other portable hand devices?
What are the dimensions of the video window and the streaming bit rate?
Can I play downloaded videos on my TV?
Do I have to install any special software to view USPTA videos?
Can I save content on my computer?
Technical troubleshooting
Why am I being asked to log in over and over again?
Why am I hearing sound but my video is choppy, frozen or missing entirely?
Why does your Web page look odd or not work right with other Web browsers like AOL, Firefox, Netscape, Opera, etc?
What if I can see the video, but cannot hear anything?
I downloaded my video, but it will not play.
I saw the following error messages: “Error 500” or “DRM License Acquisition.”
I am getting this error message when I try to download videos: "Error: Unable to write to DRM license store."
Why isn’t the upgrade button available when I try to upgrade the security license?
Why isn’t the play button available after I enter my username and password?
How do I get a user name and password?
Why won’t my username and password work?
When I clicked the upgrade button, I got an error message that indicates Windows Media Player incurred an unknown error in the security upgrade.
You've encountered error message C00D11DC while using Windows Media Player.
What if I’ve tried everything you suggested but I still can’t get my download to play?
What is Digital Rights Management (DRM)?
Digital Rights Management is a technology that allows for the secure management of digital media. This security protects the content from unauthorized distribution and viewing by issuing licenses to your computer for each piece of protected content to which you are authorized.
An overview of DRM is available from Microsoft on their Windows Media DRM FAQ page (this link will open a new window). This link does not contain troubleshooting steps, please read below for more help in troubleshooting.
How do I get a Digital Rights Management (DRM) license?
Usually, a DRM license will be delivered to your computer automatically without any interruption to you.
If this is your first time viewing DRM-licensed content on your computer (or if you recently reinstalled or upgraded your Windows Media Player), you will be prompted for your permission to download security upgrades from Microsoft (sometimes referred to as “individualization”).
This “individualization” process should start automatically, but you will need to click “Yes” or “OK” when asked to permit the upgrade (see example image below for PC's with Windows XP and Service Pack 2). If you do not permit the upgrade, our video content will not be viewable.
In the unlikely case the “individualization” process fails, you may need to reinstall Windows Media Player (WMP). Click here to download Windows Media Player (this link will open a new window).
How do I know if my system can handle your Digital Rights Management (DRM)-protected content?
Below are two clips to test whether or not your system can handle our DRM-protected content. Clicking on either link should launch your Windows Media Player and play the test clip.
We suggest you try the DRM-protected test clip (A) first. If this does not work, then try the unprotected clip (B) to see if basic video files will play.
If the unprotected test clip works but the DRM-protected clip does not, then you are having a problem obtaining a DRM license. In this case, please read the Technical requirements and Technical troubleshooting sections below.
Do I have to obtain a Digital Rights Management (DRM) license every time I want to watch a new video on the same computer?
Generally, yes – but the process is seamless. When you first click on a media link, a DRM license for that piece of content will be distributed to your computer and stored by Windows Media Player. This license cannot be moved to another computer. As long as this license remains on your computer, and it will not expire, you will not need another license to watch that same piece of content on that computer. Each piece of content requires its own license. Further, content licenses can expire, depending on the terms of your download. You can download and view the content on multiple computers if you wish – there is no restriction on the number of computers that can be authorized.
What are the system requirements?
Can I use other media players like QuickTime, RealPlayer, etc?
Can I use dial-up Internet access?
Can I view my video download from a Macintosh?
Can I transfer video clips to my iPod, Zune, or other portable hand devices?
What are the dimensions of the video window and the streaming bit rate?
Can I play downloaded videos on my TV?
Do I have to install any special software to view USPTA videos?
Can I save content on my computer?
What are the system requirements?
To successfully view video downloads, your computer must have:
*Unsupported Windows Versions: We are unable to provide support or troubleshooting for issues relating to older versions of Windows, such as Windows 95/98, or pre-release/beta versions of the Windows OS. In addition, we cannot support unauthorized, pirated or “borrowed” copies of Windows.
Mobile Platforms: Windows operating systems on mobile platforms (Windows CE, Windows Mobile) may not contain the required Digital Rights Management (DRM) components and are therefore not currently supported. This policy also applies to non-Windows mobile platforms.
Can I use other media players like QuickTime, RealPlayer, etc?
Our video downloads are secured using Windows Digital Rights Management which requires the use of Windows Media Player (WMP) for viewing. If you have more than one media player on your computer (RealPlayer, QuickTime, etc), please set WMP as your default player to avoid problems with your video downloads. Below are instructions for creating the default:
Can I use dial-up Internet access?
A dial-up connection is not recommended. We recommend a broadband (high-speed) Internet connection.
Can I view my video download from a Macintosh?
No, the Mac version of Windows Media Player (WMP) does not support the Digital Rights Management features we use to protect our content from unauthorized use. If/when Microsoft releases a version of WMP for the Macintosh that supports these security features, Mac users will be able to view our video downloads. Please contact Microsoft if you have further questions about this issue.
Can I transfer video clips to my iPod, Zune, or other portable hand devices?
Due to licensing and technical restrictions, our videos are not compatible with portable devices, including Apple iPods, Sony PSPS, and Microsoft Zune players.
What are the dimensions of the video window and the streaming bit rate?
The default video window is 320x240 and the streaming bit rate is approximately 548 kbps. You can expand the video to full screen mode but image resolution may degrade and slow down your frame refresh rate.
Can I play downloaded videos on my TV?
Our videos are optimized for viewing on a computer monitor, however with the right equipment you may also connect your PC to your TV. Many PCs have S-Video and RCA audio ports that allow you to connect them directly to a TV. S-video only transfers the video image, so you will also need to connect your computer to external speakers (via the audio out port) or to your TV (via RCA cables, if your PC has RCA ports). Please refer to the documentation for your computer for more information.
If you are using a Microsoft Media Center PC, detailed information is available on their Media Center Web site (link opens in a new window).
Do I have to install any special software to view USPTA videos?
There is no special software necessary to play USPTA content other than what is listed as our minimum system requirements. Click here if you don't already have the latest version of Windows Media Player. You should also run Windows Update in Internet Explorer under the Tools menu to make sure you have the latest updates to your operating system and Internet Explorer.
Can I save content on my computer?
Yes, the Windows Media files can be saved to your computer and viewed offline once a DRM license for that file is obtained. Periodically, licenses have to be renewed, which will require Windows Media Player to connect to the Internet to reauthorize your license.
Why am I being asked to log in over and over again?
Why am I hearing sound but my video is choppy, frozen or missing entirely?
Why does your Web page look odd or not work right with other Web browsers like AOL, Firefox, Netscape, Opera, etc?
What if I can see the video, but cannot hear anything?
I downloaded my video, but it will not play.
I saw the following error messages: “Error 500” or “DRM License Acquisition.”
I am getting this error message when I try to download videos: "Error: Unable to write to DRM license store."
Why isn’t the upgrade button available when I try to upgrade the security license?
Why isn’t the play button available after I enter my username and password?
How do I get a user name and password?
Why won’t my username and password work?
When I clicked the upgrade button, I got an error message that indicates Windows Media Player incurred an unknown error in the security upgrade.
What if I’ve tried everything you suggested but I still can’t get my download to play?
Why am I being asked to log in over and over again?
This is often caused by problems with your computer’s cookie management. We suggest you clear your cookies, delete your temporary Internet files and lower your Internet Explorer Privacy settings. Below are detailed instructions:
Why am I hearing sound but my video is choppy, frozen or missing entirely?
If you have a broadband connection but still have poor video quality, excessive buffering, or cannot view the video, this can be due to a lack of computer processing power or general traffic congestion on the Internet. Try not to run other applications while accessing streaming media.
Also, if you are accessing the video through a Local Area Network (LAN), you may experience excessive buffering or connectivity delays as a result of network congestion from the other users on your LAN.
Finally, if you continue to experience poor quality video (for example: pink or green lines, choppy or flickering video or garbled audio) we recommend you check the “Buffer” setting in your Windows Media Player:
Why does your Web page look odd or not work right with other Web browsers like AOL, Firefox, Netscape, Opera, etc?
Each web browser renders web pages slightly differently and this makes it hard to give every user a great experience across all web browsers. Therefore, we decided to design our service specifically to work with the stand-alone version of Internet Explorer. Even AOL's integrated web browser is a non-standard version of Internet Explorer. If you are having problems when using another web browser, please switch to the stand-alone version of Internet Explorer (located under the "Start" button or on your desktop) for the best experience. Please also run Windows Update to make sure you have the latest updates to your software.
What if I can see the video, but cannot hear anything?
Verify that your system volume and/or speakers are not muted or turned to a very low setting. Also, verify that there are no other streaming applications running on your computer.
If you continue to have trouble, we recommend the following change in Windows Media Player:
If you continue to have trouble, we recommend you reinstall Windows Media Player (link opens in a new window).
I downloaded my video, but it will not play.
If you see a 'loading' message, or black screen, we recommend the following steps:
(Note that some company firewalls prevent streaming content from displaying. If you are unable to view streaming content on any site from your computer, we recommend you contact your network administrator.)
A. Make the following change in Windows Media Player to permit the stream through a firewall:
B. Check for updates to Windows Media Player:
C. If you are still unable to view the video, we recommend you disable ad-blocking settings in your personal firewall, browser, or ad-blocking software to determine if this allows the video to play.
I saw the following error messages: “Error 500” or “DRM License Acquisition.”
Users can run into problems with Digital Rights Management (DRM) license acquisition for several different reasons. Listed below are the most common problems and suggested solutions:
If you are running the Windows XP SP2 Firewall, you can disable it by:
I am getting this error message when I try to download videos: "Error: Unable to write to DRM license store."
Deleting the contents of your DRM folder may resolve the issue. Please open Microsoft's DRM troubleshooting page (link will open in a new window). Review step three to locate the hidden DRM folder. Delete all the files inside the DRM folder, leaving the DRM folder empty, then perform step four. Do not delete the DRM folder itself.
Why isn’t the upgrade button available when I try to upgrade the security license?
Be sure that your ActiveX capabilities are enabled and that your security features do not block ActiveX. Also, add the Microsoft page with the upgrade to your trusted sites.
Enabling ActiveX Controls:
Click on Internet Explorer's Tools menu, and then on Options.
Click on the Security tab, and then on the Custom Level button
Make sure the following options are checked:
Adding Trusted Sites:
Open Internet Explorer and go to Tools-Internet Options-Security.
Click the "Security" tab and choose the "Trusted Sites" icon.
Then click on the button "Sites". A window will open, where you can add any sites that you wish to be in the Trusted zone. Be sure to remove the check by the entry "Require server verification (https:)...."
Enter the site of interest in the line provided. Site URLs can be typed in directly or entered by copying and pasting. A shortcut method of copying and pasting an URL from the IE address bar is to use the keyboard command ALT+D to select the Web address and then use CTRL+C to copy it to the Windows Clipboard. Then right-click in the space under "Add this Web site to the zone" and choose "Paste" from the context menu. The example below shows the NY Times site being added. Note that it is not an https site and that the appropriate box is unchecked. After entering a site click the "Add" button.
The site is now added to the list of trusted sites.
Enter the next site and repeat the procedure.
There is a "Remove" button (grayed out in the figure above), should you wish to take a site off the list.
One disadvantage of using a complete URL like http://www.nytimes.com is that it can be too specific. For example, there are related addresses such as http://topics.nytimes.com and these will be treated as a separate URL. To place anything contained within the entire domain "uspta.com" into the trusted zone, the asterisk wild card can be used. An entry such as "*.uspta.com" will put everything in the main domain into the trusted zone.
Why isn’t the play button available after I enter my username and password?
This problem is caused when one or more security updates are needed for Window Media Player.
1. Close Internet Explorer and Windows Media player.
2. Please open Microsoft's DRM troubleshooting page (link will open in a new window). Review step three to locate your hidden DRM folder. Delete all the files inside the DRM folder, leaving the DRM folder empty.
3. Go to http://drmlicense.one.microsoft.com/Indivsite/en/indivit.asp (link will open in a new window) and update the Windows Media security component.
4. Attempt to play the DRM .wmv file again.
This works in most cases, but in others, you may get an error when attempting to perform Step 3. In this situation, in place of Step 3, please go to http://drmlicense.one.microsoft.com/crlupdate/en/crlupdate.html (link will open in a new window) and update the Windows Media certificate revocation list which will fix the problem. This should complete the process of fixing Windows Media Player.
In rare case, after performing steps 1-4 above, attempting to play a DRM file resulted in Windows Media Player redirecting us to this certificate revocation list URL or to the Windows Knowledge Base article 919589 available at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/919589/en-us (link will open in a new window).
How do I get a user name and password?
USPTA video tips are for USPTA members and subscribers only. For a USPTA member, the user name is the last name and the password is the member number. For other Web site subscribers, the user name and password are what you selected when you subscribed.
Why won’t my username and password work?
Make sure your dues are paid (USPTA members) or that your subscription is current. Please also remove any spaces in front or behind the username and password.
When I clicked the upgrade button, I got an error message that indicates Windows Media Player incurred an unknown error in the security upgrade.
Delete the contents of your DRM folder. It is located in either C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft or in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users
You've encountered error message C00D11DC while using Windows Media Player.
Windows Media Player cannot play the specified protected file. The media usage rights cannot be found for this protected media file. You might encounter this error message for one of the following reasons:
To resolve this problem, try the following: Play the file again using your username and password. This restores the DRM.
What if I’ve tried everything you suggested but I still can’t get my download to play?
Please check the links in the additional help section.
Additional help
Using protected files (DRM) http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/player/faq/drm.mspx
Windows Media Player support Microsoft’s Windows Media Player website
EZDRM support page http://www.ezdrm.com/html/help.asp