NPO Start has been blocking stream downloads using drm since March

Since the beginning of March, the NPO has secured almost all its streams with DRM. This was already the case for videos whose broadcast was subject to certain rights. Saving NPO Start content with a download tool is currently impossible due to the DRM extension.

Only very old broadcasts and online-only content are still available for download. The developer of GemistDownloader, a well-known tool for this purpose, announces the development on the support forum. In an e-mail he also states that it is a DRM variant of Widevine. He also notes that circumventing protections such as DRM is unlawful and can lead to claims for damages. That is why he stops supporting NPO Start after almost ten years. Downloadmissed, a web-based variant, also encounters the same problem. This developer is still in development for the time being.

Users who still try to download a video file will now see a short video with a scene from the 1999 comedy Office Space. This is probably meant as a joke between the administrators of NPO Start and the developers of these download tools. Earlier this month, another music video by Rick Astley was served, thus rickrolling users. Perhaps the NPO does not have the rights to distribute this music video because the rickrolls have now been discontinued.

The NPO does not provide any text or explanation about the specific changes. The spokesperson for the NPO only states that it has been using DRM for a year and a half and that downloading programs from NPO Start is illegal because the copyright holders of the content, often the program makers themselves, have not given permission for offline storage by users. “Broadcasters and producers expect us to protect these rights – and we do.”

Downloading these files enabled multiple usage scenarios such as watching content without an internet connection, outside the country’s borders and after it is no longer offered via the NPO Start service. As far as offline viewing is concerned, the NPO says it is investigating the possibilities of legally meeting that need. There will probably not be an opportunity to look abroad. The public broadcaster states that it is simply too expensive to buy these rights worldwide.