# DRM Channel Support **URL:** \ **Category:** Feature Suggestions\ **Tags:** livetv-dvr\ **Created:** [December 29, 2018, 3:46am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320 "2018-12-29T03:46:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![LowAmmo](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/lowammo/32/105208_2.png) [@LowAmmo](https://forums.plex.tv/u/LowAmmo)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2018, 3:46am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/1 "2018-12-29T03:46:00Z")
I do realize this has been discussed on many other forums. But, it is almost 2019…and I’m up for a focused request to add DRM channel support to the DVR / Live TV feature set. Like many others, to get all the channels we want to watch in our area, we are forced to go with a provider that encrypts everything (practically). As a result, we have to still use Windows Media Center (and currently 3 XBox 360s). Plex is such a nice and updated replacement, i’d Love to switch over to using it 100%, but can’t without DRM support. I am already a lifetime Plex Pass user, but, would be willing to pay more to enable DRM support. Please, reconsider the current stance, and let more of us make the full switch to Plex. -Thanks ---
**Author:** ![nokdim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ab992/32.png) [@nokdim](https://forums.plex.tv/u/nokdim)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2018, 4:59am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/2 "2018-12-29T04:59:26Z")
WMC isn’t even a product anymore. Microsoft had enough money to pay for DRM and nobody else ever had it. I highly doubt anyone else will ever have this feature as cable providers and content providers want you to pay for a box monthly for that service. Would be nice but I’ll bet my last dollar you will never see that. ---
**Author:** ![nstig8](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/nstig8/32/108307_2.png) [@nstig8](https://forums.plex.tv/u/nstig8)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2018, 6:04am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/3 "2018-12-29T06:04:53Z")
> [@nokdim](#): > > t had enough money to pay for DRM and nobody else ever had it. > > I highly doubt anyone else will ever have this feature as cable providers and content providers want you to pay for a box monthly for that service. HDHomerun has support for DRM channels. Their Live TV / DVR service doesn’t have a traditional grid guide though so it’s a no-go in my house. Fortunately only a few of our channels are DRM encoded, and none of the wife’s deal-breakers. We use either Plex or the Channels DVR app (nice UI and features, but monthly subscription vs. Plex being ‘free’ with lifetime pass). Still deciding which to go with long term. ---
**Author:** ![cayars](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/cayars/32/6296_2.png) [@cayars](https://forums.plex.tv/u/cayars)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2018, 7:25am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/4 "2018-12-29T07:25:01Z")
You can use the HDHomeRuns via Android TV and Live Channels and get a traditional guide and DRM channels. LiveChannels is super fast and tunes to channels very fast. Everything direct plays, supports CC, and allows, play, pause, trick modes if enabled (even DVR). It’s a simple cable box replacement that integrates your HDHomeRun tuners and also IPTV sources including Pluto (which have a few worthy channels). But back to DRM and Plex. Never going to happen, end of story due to the software stack which can’t get approved. ---
**Author:** ![LowAmmo](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/lowammo/32/105208_2.png) [@LowAmmo](https://forums.plex.tv/u/LowAmmo)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 3:34am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/5 "2018-12-31T03:34:12Z")
Out of curiosity, what is it in the stack that makes it impossible to do DRM? Guessing it’s just too many other components that you don’t have access to the source of? I’m just wondering where the hangup is. Or, if nothing else, any lawyers want to lead a class action lawsuit around cable companies not providing reasonable access to their content?!?! 😉 I’ll try checking out LiveChannles, but unless it runs easily on the TV, not sure it’s really an option… -Thanks ---
**Author:** ![cayars](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/cayars/32/6296_2.png) [@cayars](https://forums.plex.tv/u/cayars)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 10:49am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/6 "2018-12-31T10:49:15Z")
There are other threads on this forum that cover many of the major issues involved. It’s really just not possible to do. What I’d suggest is to try and find alternatives to your CURRENT cable company to get away from the DRM. Do you have a different cable provider in your area? How is the OTA broadcasts in your area? If you have good/decent coverage where you live and get atleast the basics OTA like ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, PBS then you could go OTA for those stations and subscribe to Silicon Dust’s Premium TV service which gives you 45 of the more popular cable channels. Run them through an SD Quattro and you can watch/record any 4 channels from OTA or PTV with no DRM issues for $35 a month. There are other ways to get around DRM but are much harder. For example get a cable box that supports analog outputs and get a capture board with IR channel changer. You would need 1 capture board and one cable box per channel you want to record. This is the way many of us used to have to record everything. I had about a 1/2 dozen of these setup at one time. But for the cost/rental of the cable boxes and the cost of the capture boards this is a “dumb” solution these days as the rental fees are a lot higher then subscribing to SD’s Premium TV which gives you 45 cable channels DRM free and of course the major networks over OTA also DRM free. You could have this up and running in a couple of hours if you had the Quattro and OTA antenna in hand and chances are this would lower your current cable costs. ---
**Author:** ![darcilicious](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/darcilicious/32/3047_2.png) [@darcilicious](https://forums.plex.tv/u/darcilicious)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2019, 3:59pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/7 "2019-01-05T15:59:21Z")
> [@Will there ever be DRM support?](https://forums.plex.tv/t/will-there-ever-be-drm-support/216698/5): > > @fluharty13 said: Don’t I wish, but they’re the only cable provider we have here. Sorry that there’s no competition in your area. Unfortunately I don’t see us supporting DRM encrypted channels in the foreseeable future. Never say never, but there are technical and cost challenges associated with it. Costly certificates aside, DRM requires end-to-end encryption and can’t have a media server in the middle at all. See this [write up](https://community.getchannels.com/t/an-update-on-drm-support/501 "write up") for more on that. The content is encrypted from the HDHomeRun a… and all the other posts after that. ---
**Author:** ![danielrysz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@danielrysz](https://forums.plex.tv/u/danielrysz)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2019, 2:11pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/8 "2019-10-09T14:11:03Z")
I’m Late to this party. I just got a Prime on ebay for cheap and setup my cable service with it. i am finding this thread because i was wondering why some channels aren’t showing up. i finally got the card paired properly only to find out that some channels are DRM protected. never heard of this before today. my issue with this is that it seems hypocritical. the non-HD version of the channel are DRM protected but the SD channel variant of the channels are not. if they want to protect their content why dont they protect both versions. also, i dont see why an engineer can’t somehow get the encryption to work in plex. if SiliconDust can get the app to work in windows, why can’t plex get the media player to work? doesn’t make sense to me but i am not a software engineer. it seems that is only disney channels i can’t get like ESPNHD, etc. any update or workaround other than the HDhomeRun app would be appreciated. thanks, Dan my issue is ---
**Author:** ![tom80H](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/tom80h/32/19753_2.png) [@tom80H](https://forums.plex.tv/u/tom80H)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2021, 9:14am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/9 "2021-03-31T09:14:50Z")
Early 2021 clean-up: duplicate > [@Add support for live TV and DVR for Protected Channels (Channels with Copy-Once flag/DRM encryption)](https://forums.plex.tv/t/add-support-for-live-tv-and-dvr-for-protected-channels-channels-with-copy-once-flag-drm-encryption/328150): > > For those with CableCard tuners, many providers now implement DRM on TV channels. Currently Plex can not view or record channels with DRM. SIliconDust, Tivo, and Windows Media Center all have support for DRM channels. Plex could be a full replacement for those solutions if they implement DRM support. ---
**Author:** ![tom80H](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/tom80h/32/19753_2.png) [@tom80H](https://forums.plex.tv/u/tom80H)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2021, 12:22am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/drm-channel-support/354320/10 "2021-06-10T00:22:23Z")