Apple Removing DRM Protection From Purchases

[metamaster]

I can't get any songs that I bought off iTunes to play on other MP3 devices because of the DRM protection (Fairplay).
Does anyone know of a program or a method that can remove it?

 

[Hakoda]

Try this. If I recall, DRM encrypted songs from iTunes are in the format of *.m4a, correct?

 

[auser]

Might give doubletwist a whirl? Its from the guy who broke dvd's drm

http://download.doubletwist.com/doubleTwistSetup.exe

 

[Dialexio]

You could try to use Requiem (requires Java... type "tag3ulp55xczs3pn" into Google) and iTunes 10.0. (You'll also need to delete the FairPlay keys already on your computer, so iTunes 10.0 can make a set of keys Requiem can use... this is pretty complex, I know.)

Or shell out the extra 30¢ (per song) for iTunes Plus.

NOTE: Don't use Requiem for piracy. You'll be stupid if you do so.

 

[metamaster]

Thanks for all the suggestions, but I finally decided to try Dialexio's thing, looks like what I need.

You could try to use Requiem (requires Java... type "tag3ulp55xczs3pn" into Google) and iTunes 10.0. (You'll also need to delete the FairPlay keys already on your computer, so iTunes 10.0 can make a set of keys Requiem can use... this is pretty complex, I know.)

NOTE: Don't use Requiem for piracy. You'll be stupid if you do so.

I found the program, and a bunch of odd things happened... First of all, it wouldn't accept .m4a, but changing the extension to .m4p made it work. I tried it with one song, and it said it that it produced a new .m4a file, but it wasn't there. Also, how exactly do I delete my FairPlay keys? I imagine this has something to do with my problem.
And don't worry, I won't use this for piracy (most of my music isn't from iTunes

)

 

[Dialexio]

(Both of the following directories are hidden.)
For Windows XP, the directory to delete is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\SC Info\.
For Windows Vista/7, the keys are found at C:\ProgramData\Apple Computer\iTunes\SC Info\.

Then, you'll need to uninstall iTunes, since you need to downgrade to 10.0 (be sure to back up your iTunes library, in case it gets corrupted!). (32-bit, 64-bit)

Once you have iTunes 10.0 installed, try to open a protected song. It should ask for your Apple ID and password, because it needs to fetch the keys again. When the song's playing, that means Requiem should be able to decrypt the song.

When the songs decrypt fine, you can upgrade once more to 10.1.1, and restore your iTunes library.

Hope I didn't lose you in that!

And before someone asks about it... Requiem does not remove the DRM found on IPAs (or rented videos).

 

[Jamstruth]

There's always the easy way. Burn to a CD-RW then re-rip. Suddenly, you've got a copy of the song with no DRM.

 

[CannonFoddr]

I had similar problem with my Nokia 'Comes-with-music' DRM music - I really wanted copies of the tunes in the car, so I tried (& finally brought) 'Tunebite'

 

[metamaster]

There's always the easy way. Burn to a CD-RW then re-rip. Suddenly, you've got a copy of the song with no DRM.

I hear that doing so either ruins the quality, or makes the file a lot bigger...

QUOTE(CannonFoddr @ Jan 26 2011, 07:39 AM) I had similar problem with my Nokia 'Comes-with-music' DRM music - I really wanted copies of the tunes in the car, so I tried (& finally brought) 'Tunebite'

Thanks, but I'm looking for a free tool that actually decrypts my files.

@Dialexio: I deleted my FairPlay keys and downgraded to iTunes 10, but now, I can't open iTunes: "The file "iTunes Library.itl" could not be read because it was created by a newer version of iTunes". I can play songs with QuickTime, but it doesn't ask for my Apple ID. And Requiem still doesn't decrypt my songs... Any ideas?

 

[SifJar]

If your files are .m4a, they don't have DRM AFAIK. DRM'd files are .m4p (the "p" presumably standing for "protected" or something similar) I believe. To the best of my knowledge, iTunes stopped their policy of selling music with DRM a year or two ago. So unless you bought the music long ago, it doesn't have DRM, it just isn't in the correct format.

Which is a slight issue, because AAC (codec used in .m4a/.m4p files) is a "lossy" codec, as is MP3. This means that converting from AAC to MP3 will murder any quality in the files, and probably make your songs unbearable.

In other words, there may be no (good) way to convert the files to a format playable on a generic MP3 playing device

 

[Jamstruth]

Some devices support M4A format. I remember my old Creative Zen made a song and dance about supporting unprotected iTunes content.

 

[Dangy]

Use this. It costs money, but, you know, cracks and such are available.

 

[dalimartin]

Requiem is a free iTunes DRM protection remover, but it only works with iTunes 10.7 and below. In addition, myFairTunes, Ebook DRM Removal FreewareHandbrake, DRmare is also a good choice.

 

[Captain_N]

you could always play the song and record it with a phone. Old school