Next Version of Chrome Browser Contains Always-On DRM

The next stable version of Google’s Chrome internet browser – Chrome 57 – will remove the option to disable Widevine DRM, making the plugin mandatory and always-on. Widevine is Chrome’s version of EME, or Encrypted Media Extensions, which is a web video DRM system developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that is favoured by the likes of Netflix for protecting its content from being ripped when being streamed through a browser.

The move to force-enable EME emerged on the Chromium bugs forum, where users reported that Widevine could not be disabled in Chrome 57.0.2987.13. EME force-enables High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP), which can cause display issues itself, while Widevine has already been cracked using a six-year-old flaw, making the decision to make the plugin compulsory a point of consternation for users.

Google is understandably keen to adopt Widevine in order to appeal to Netflix users; remarkably, the two best browsers to watch Netflix with on PC are made by Microsoft, since Netflix uses Silverlight to encrypt HD video. If you want 1080p content on your computer – rather than Netflix apps, such as those for consoles, smartphones/tablets, and smart TVs, which have their own encryption system to deliver HD content, and are the only platforms which offer 4K video – Internet Explorer or Edge are your best bets. Browsers that do not use Silverlight are limited to a maximum of 720p with Netflix content. Chrome’s always-on Widevine won’t suddenly allow 1080p content to be played through the browser, but it does move it one step closer to working with Netflix to protect such content should the video-on-demand company make it available.