So Microsoft thinks that Play Ready protects the content premium channels. Protects it from what>??????????????????????????????? I'll tell you what it is protecting. It is protecting 64bit users from watching the premium channels they are paying good money for. I can't watch any of them without Play Ready causing my ENTIRE PC from stuttering every 5 seconds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously what the F is it protecting???? Are both broadcasters and Microsoft that naive????? Play Ready does not help derail pirating for TV one bit. In fact, it is causing users to go out and download the TV shows and movies illegally more now than before. Here is an example... You have an individual that uses an HTPC in his living room for recording live TV. This person pays good money to his cable company for HBO, etc.. Now everytime this users wants to record a movie, the damn recording is stutters every friggin' 5 seconds. This makes him feel like an idiot for putting together an HTPC and buying windows 7 64bit and paying for HBO. But this person really wants to watch the movie he just recorded. He already spent money on the HTPC, the flat screen TV, the HBO, and Windows 7. He does not want to spend anymore money. So what does he do now? He goes and downloads the movie from the internet... sells his HTPC and Flatscreen, cancels cable TV and HBO, and watches the movie on his laptop. No fuss, no muss. So where in this story does Play Ready help protect the content from that Premium Channel???? It doesn't!!! Why?-Because people that record TV and upload it to the internet do not use windows media center!!!!!!! They use better software. Everyone but microsoft knows this!! Yet microsoft insists on forcing people to use Play Ready. Imagine if back in the 80s VCR makers installed software on their products that caused stuttering EVERYTIME you either viewed or recorded HBO, AMC, NatGeo, Encore, or Stars. Yea, you would still get stutter even if you weren't recording!! All you wanted to do was friggin' watch!!! It would suck wouldn't it? THAT IS PLAY READY IN A NUTSHELL!!! I and many other users have been having to deal with the stuttering for our premium channels for years now. I think it's about time Microsoft faces the truth: Play Ready causes problems. It has yet to solve ANYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GAWD.

Microsoft isn't forcing anyone to use Playready, CableLabs is.  Without Playready Media Center could not support cablecard.  What makes you think Playready is causing your studding?

lithium630

Microsoft isn't forcing anyone to use Playready, CableLabs is.  Without Playready Media Center could not support cablecard.  What makes you think Playready is causing your studding?

 

DRM is evil ergo DRM is causing all the problems.

Chances are the studdering is the Interlaced/pulldown transition issues that's been beaten to death here.

And you're right without the DRM there would be no cablecard support in Media Center.

This is a terrible solution. I rather eliminate the cable card and play ready all together. This is the beginning of the end of the media center effort. Is this the best we can do? This is a terrible solution, completely terrible. Stuttering video is demoralizing.