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Microsoft Makes DVD Player for Windows 10 Free for Some

Select Windows 10 users can now download Microsoft's DVD Player for Windows 10 from the the Windows Store for free.

The "free" price tag comes with a few caveats. For instance, organizations using Windows Enterprise editions and upgrading to the Windows 10 Enterprise edition won't be getting the new player for free.

Microsoft lists the qualifying Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1 editions at this page, which includes Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate editions.

In addition, organizations or individuals that perform Windows 10 "clean installs" instead of upgrading the operating system on a machine won't get the free Windows DVD Player. If Windows 10 gets reinstalled on a machine, then the new player won't be free, too, according to Microsoft's Q&A page.

The player app is just free for Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 users that had Media Center on their machines prior to an upgrade to Windows 10. However, these users have to have upgraded during the one-year free Windows 10 upgrade time period. Otherwise, and for all others, this app can be downloaded from the Windows Store for $14.99.

Media Center is a Microsoft app that centralizes TV streams and media files for playback. It initially came with Windows XP systems and was continued with subsequent Windows releases, but it has hit product end. Microsoft won't support Media Center on Windows 10.

The new Windows DVD Player plays DVD disks but not Blu-ray media. However, Microsoft's Q&A noted that existing DVD players that ran on earlier Windows systems likely will continue to run on Windows 10 after an upgrade.

The free VLC media player for Windows, an open source VideoLAN project that takes donations, currently has a player that supports Windows 10.

About the Author

Kurt Mackie is senior news producer for 1105 Media's Converge360 group.

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