Windows 8 Won't Play DVDs Unless You Pay For the Media Center Pack

An anonymous reader writes "You may already know that Microsoft plans to sell Windows Media Center as a separate, paid pack, but now the company has revealed that Windows 8 will also stop default support for DVD playback. You'll only be able to play DVDs and Blu-rays if you upgrade to the Media Center pack. 'Acquiring either the Windows 8 Media Center Pack or the Windows 8 Pro Pack gives you Media Center, including DVD playback (in Media Center, not in Media Player), broadcast TV recording and playback (DBV-T/S, ISDB-S/T, DMBH, and ATSC), and VOB file playback. Pricing for these Packs, as well as retail versions of Windows 8, will be announced closer to the release date. To give you some indication of Media Center Pack pricing, it will be in line with marginal costs.'" In a comment, Microsoft's Steven Sinofsky elaborates: "(marginal is small, honest, and we just haven't determined the final prices yet based on ongoing work but we are aiming for single digit dollars but we don't control the truly marginal costs). We wanted to include Media Player for everyone without everyone incurring the cost even if they don't even have an optical drive."

Comments

Bad enough I pay for microtransactions in MMO's

[crazyjj]

Now I've got to pay for every damned little thing in the OS too.

What's next, is there going to be an extra $5 charge every time I change the BIOS settings? A $2 charge by the firmware when I add RAM?

It's like government. No politician has the balls for raise taxes openly and directly, so instead you get a million nickel-and-dime fees and surtaxes to annoy the shit out of you at every turn.

Just raise the price of Windows if that's what you need to do, MS. I'd much rather a Windows license go from $100 to $120 than to have a window popping up at every turn saying I need to pay for some expansion pack if I want this-or-that little feature to work.

Re:Bad enough I pay for microtransactions in MMO's

[Endo13]

Additionally, it sounds like they're cutting out the DVD functionality to save the royalty costs, AND that they plan to pass those savings on to customers. Whether that will actually be the case in reality remains to be seen. I'm not a Microsoft fan, but if that is what they end up doing, I have to give them kudos for that.

For myself, I won't miss DVD playback. My home PCs don't even have optical drives installed. I have a USB DVD drive, which I've used probably less than 5 times in the past year, and only once or twice for DVDs.

But besides all that, as you pointed out, there's plenty of free software players out there now. I prefer VLC over Media Center anyway.

Re:Bad enough I pay for microtransactions in MMO's

[IGnatius T Foobar]

Here is the thing.... in the next 18 months you won't see DVD players on most laptops.

Correction:

In the next 18 months Microsoft will strongarm OEM's into omitting the DVD drives on most laptops.

It'll be just like in the mid 1990's when Compaq switched the CD drives in their servers from SCSI models to IDE models because Microsoft told them to. And it'll be just like in the late 2000's when Microsoft started forcing netbook manufacturers to lard up the specs on the previously cheap devices because they needed just enough horsepower to run Windows XP.

Microsoft still has feet over the necks of all major OEM's. Until this problem is corrected, they will still call the shots.

Re:Bad enough I pay for microtransactions in MMO's

[erroneus]

Actually, I didn't know this. Glad someone pointed it out. Lately, I have been thrust into more of a "Windows, love it or... think about finding another job" kind of thing. I'm liking Windows 7 more and more but I dread Windows 8. Writing VB Script is kind of fun, but I think I would rather write in C... my roots are in C. I'll add this to my list of things to play with in the future.

I'm okay with Microsoft not including media playback so long as they do not prevent 3rd party software from doing media playback. Sorry, but I haven't yet read the article... somehow, I suspect they are preventing 3rd party software though, or it wouldn't be an article worth mentioning. And if that's the case, then this is a perfect example of "critical mass" monopolies are bad.

Re:Bad enough I pay for microtransactions in MMO's

[adonoman]

No, the article specifically says that they'll let third parties take care of DVD playing. A decent set of codecs will already be installed by default, and apps can also include additional decoders (such as FLAC, MKV, OGG, etc.) in their apps package for use within the apps. Windows media player will still be installed (just not windows media center), and will stil be able to use the codec packs floating around. Also, VLC and other third party software will continue to work as before.

Re:Bad enough I pay for microtransactions in MMO's

[Mitsoid]

I'm no fan of MS, but if this means they shave $5 off their OEM versions cost, Great... I don't even use MS's media player so saves me money hopefully.. Can always download DVD software later

Re:Bad enough I pay for microtransactions in MMO's

[houghi]

I read this as "Dammed if they do. Damned if they don't.".
If they give it away for free, they strangle the competition, because they are selfish bastards..
If they are asking for money, they are selfish bastards.

If this is dying of the monopolistic part of the company, I am all for it.

VLC

[Anonymous Coward]

Are they going to ban VLC and other 3rd party players?
If not, I'm happy not to have to pay for those licences as a part of my Windows licence

Incorrect article.

[Haxagon]

The OS won't play DVDs in Media Center-- because it's not included. MS said that they were confident that the PC DVD-playing software market was sufficiently full.
Windows 8 will still play DVDs with third-party-software. There's no reason to have such an inflammatory article.

Anti trust

[Anonymous Coward]

Now they can;t be sued but Dvd software companies for antitrust because they give are away there dvd software for free. The courts kept telling microsoft not to bundle apps with there operation systems... so now they are finaly listening.

Who's paying for Windows anyway?

[InvisibleClergy]

I know that in general, Windows comes subsidized on computers, and you can bet your ass that manufacturers aren't going to put non-media-enabled versions on there. If the DVD drive doesn't work right, the people who sold the computer are going to get the flak, not the guys who made the mysterious "Operating-System".

The people who will pay for this are the companies who do volume licensing, as usual.

Re:bundling

[IGnatius T Foobar]

Is everything Microsoft does wrong by definition?

Yes.

Microsoft's business practices over the years have earned them truckloads of bad karma. They've singlehandedly set the entire industry back by a decade or more. So yes, it will take more than getting something right once in a while for them to establish a reputation as a good citizen.

Re:DVD / BR patent holders are the big loosers

[marcosdumay]

They are also doing it to MPEG, and DVD, and MS is behind both. They're being quite fair here: less money to all the trolls, including Microsoft.

That's great both ways. As you said, it is less money for the trolls, also, it levels the playing field with free software. I just don't have any idea how Microsoft benefits. In another time I'd have said that they must benefit somehow, since Microsft doesn't do anything without a complex insidious plan that will surface later... But nowadays, I'm not sure they'll benefit. The most probable explanation is that they see that as a requisite for making W8 tablets and phones competitible.