Windows media player’s first version was launched in 1991, and it was called Media Player at the time. While Windows media player allows for ripping of audio CDs, the same does not apply to DVDs owing to Copyright restrictions. Examples of compatible formats are MP3, WMV, AVI, WAV, MPEG-4, CDA, etc. WMA file format, asides this, Windows media player can play almost all audio and video formats. Other functions are that it allows its users to rip CD tracks to MP3, burn MP3 tracks to CDs, stream online radio, and download content from online music stores. A free copy of a Windows media player is available on any Windows device.

It runs on all Microsoft based platforms like Microsoft Windows, Windows Mobile-based devices as well as on Pocket PC. Windows media player is a media player produced by Microsoft, and its primary function is that it allows its users to view pictures, and play both music and video files. Technipages Explains Windows Media Player (WMP) See antitrust, Digital Rights Management (DRM), monopoly, MP3, trusted system, WMA. To discourage the use of MP3s, the latest versions of WMP contain only limited support for such files, and MP3 support may be eliminated in future versions of the program. Users will not be able to copy such content, or indeed to access the content, without payment and subsequent authorization. WMA, include features that will enable Microsoft to enable a Digital Rights Management (DRM) infrastructure for the distribution of commercial digital content via the Internet. Unlike MP3 files, which contain no copyright management features, WMP and its proprietary file format. Microsoft developed WMP to counter the growing popularity of the Real audio and video player by providing streaming audio and video services. Windows media player is an audio and video player distributed with all recent versions of Microsoft Windows.

Windows media player version 12