Kodi Clarifies DRM Stance, Shuts Down Rumors
he popular open source media player Kodi has
responded to recent rumors surrounding the software's embrace of Digital Rights Management (DRM) and the fact that it has been falsly portrayed as a piracy platform.
Kodi has been under pressure over the availability of third party plug-ins that has allowed pirated content to be viewed via the software.
Kodi says that it is a free, open-source neutral software, and that it will never, ever require DRM to work, nor will it ever be a locked software. In an effort to distance from all the piracy related talk, Kodi says that supporting low-level DRM is a first step.
"Basically, what this means is providing some sort of interface to work with the DRM already present on your system," Kodi says. For example, Android ships with software that plays back DRMed content from Netflix. Kodi could hook into this already existing software in Android to playback the same content, so you never have to leave Kodi. As another example, in Windows, there isn't a very good interface for Netflix, but if you have installed Chrome, you can watch Netflix from your desktop. Supporting low-level DRM means that Kodi could hook into the binary blob inside Chrome and use it purely for handling the DRM while video playback and control stays with Kodi.
"Because the GPL and closed source binary blobs aren't compatible, we can't ship them along Kodi. What we can do is use them to play DRMed content if they are present on your system. Combine that with a specific provider add-on and you could access Netflix, HBO Go or your favorite legit content provider from inside Kodi," Kodi's representatives added.
As for the availability of unwanted piracy plug-ins, Kodi says their position is clear. They will never prevent users from using Kodi in any way they like, including the use of piracy plug-ins, and they will not "condone, condemn, encourage or recommend any particular use of Kodi", whether these plug-ins contain DRM or not.
