Disney + May Not Work on Your Device

Those looking forward to the upcoming Disney + may want to double check which devices they prefer, if they can even start the streaming service. Linux PCs, Chromebooks, and some Android devices cannot meet Disney’s strict DRM requirements to access Disney + via web browsers, according to Linux developer Hansdegoede .

Disney + uses Widevine DRM, which restricts access to content based on a security level from 1 (low) to 3 (high). Most non-4K content streaming services only require Level 1 devices, but Disney + is only available for Level 3 devices. Linux, Chromebooks, and some older Android devices are only Level 1 compatible, meaning all of these devices locked for service. Disney is aware of this issue and has informed Hansdegeode that the issue was being addressed back in September, but the bug has not gone away.

Hansdegeode and a number of other Linux developers are urging DRM-affected Linux, Chromebook and Android users to voice their concerns to Dingxi and boycott the service until support is officially enabled for those devices.

I, of course, advocate that users vote with their wallets, but I sympathize with those who want an easier solution. Unfortunately, there are currently no workarounds for watching Disney + on affected devices. VPNs will not solve the problem and it will be difficult to crack Disney’s DRM. You can technically create a second Windows boot partition on your hard drive, but if that’s the only reason you need to install Windows, then it might not be worth the effort and disk space.

The best solution is to just use another Disney + enabled device. There are quite a few that will support the service at startup , so it’s possible that something else you already have will work. If it’s a secondary device, say a smartphone, but you want to watch on a big screen, there are adapter cables that can be connected to your TV or monitor , and Chromecast , Airplay , VLC and Miracast allow you to send multimedia files played on one device to your TV. Of course, this requires that you have access to such devices and that they are DRM-compliant in the first place. We’ll keep an eye on the best fixes for those whose only option is Linux, but for now, your only option is to skip Disney + or find another way to watch.

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