Windows Media Player 11 SDK Publishing Codecs for Windows Media Player 

  • Article

Windows Media Player SDK banner art

Previous Next

Publishing Codecs for Windows Media Player

When users try to play a digital media file for which they do not have the correct codec, Windows Media Player attempts to download the codec from the Microsoft codec download server. If the codec cannot be found, Windows Media Player displays an error message and playback fails. To solve this problem, Microsoft has partnered with WMPlugins.com to enable codec developers to distribute custom codecs and to help users find and download missing codecs.

To make your codec discoverable by Windows Media Player users, submit a codec download Web page to WMPlugins.com. Once you have submitted the Web page, users will be able to locate your codec easily, either by searching WMPlugins.com for the appropriate FourCC code or WAVE Format ID, or by being directed to it through the Windows Media Player 9 Series or later Help.

For more information about FourCC and WAVE Format IDs, see Registered FOURCC Codes and WAVE Formats on the MSDN Web site.

See Also

Previous Next