DRM in latest QuickTime cripples Adobe video editing code

Artists and producers fume

By Dan Goodin in San Francisco • Get more from this author

Posted in Applications, 26th January 2008 01:23 GMT

Understand how application security is evolving

The latest version of Apple's QuickTime media player has video production people venting their spleens after discovering that new digital rights management features have crippled the use editing software from Adobe.

Shortly after updating to QuickTime 7.4, legions of people charged chat groups to report they were unable to access files created with Premier and After Effects, two pricey Adobe programs used for editing video. A product manager for After Effects is suggesting users hold off installing the QuickTime update until Adobe and Apple get things straightened out.

Those After Effects users unfortunate enough to have installed the update get a DRM-related error when trying to access their video files. It reads: "After Effects error: opening movie - you do not have permission to open this file (-54)."

The error is the result of periodic checks QuickTime carries out on video files for piracy violations. Videos created using Adobe products don't supply the needed headers until the movies are rendered, prompting the overly protective QuickTime to conclude they are contraband that should be barred.

Apple doesn't make it easy for users to revert back to an earlier version of QuickTime, so the update has plagued many video production users on tight deadlines. Work-arounds include rolling back the entire system using Time Machine, if you've got it, or turning to a special-purpose program like Pacifist to roll back QuickTime to an earlier version. ®

Tune into our application security webcast, click here