Protecting videos on my websiteso people can't download them

[Carl Jensen]

Is there a way to protect the videos I put on my page from people right clicking and saving target as to download them. I put them on my site in wmv format. Thanks for any and all suggestions!

CJ

[LBA]

It is impossible to view web content without delivering that content to the user's computer. You can put up a few small obstacles that might deter people who barely know how to use their own computer, but everyone else can find a way to save the content if they want to.

[Carl Jensen]

Thanks for the response, LBA. I suspected there is not much I can do.

CJ

[RayC]

There are a few sites that seem to manage this, but it involves custom streaming software. YouTube has given up since there are so many apps and addons specifically designed to grab these videos.

If you've ever checked out Lynda.com training videos, they seem to have a fairly robust system. But, of course, this is their source of revenue to it's a major priority. Also, webinar delivery sites seem to have a fairly secure delivery method as well. E.G. GoToMeeting.com.

Of course, you can just open a screen capture program and re-record the video as it streams. A little time consuming, but impossible to stop.

[franko]

When somebody plays a movie on tv, you can record it onto something like windows media center. The internet protocols were designed specifically for the sharing of content, not its protection. So accessing information on the internet has always involved the downloading of content from a server to a client before it's displayed. Streaming only allows the display of content while it is still downloading, but it is still downloaded. So trying to prevent the copying of content on the web is akin to taking a leak facing into a gale-force wind. It goes against the very purpose the internet was created in the first place.