ytdl-org/youtube-dl · error · ExtractorError

This video is DRM protected.

Error message

This video is DRM protected.

What it means

The Hotstar extractor raises this expected ExtractorError when the fetched video metadata has drmProtected: true. DRM-protected streams (Widevine/FairPlay) cannot be downloaded by youtube-dl because the media is encrypted and the keys are only available to licensed DRM clients.

Source

Thrown at youtube_dl/extractor/hotstar.py:132

        webpage = self._download_webpage(url, video_id)
        app_state = self._parse_json(self._search_regex(
            r'<script>window\.APP_STATE\s*=\s*({.+?})</script>',
            webpage, 'app state'), video_id)
        video_data = {}
        getters = list(
            lambda x, k=k: x['initialState']['content%s' % k]['content']
            for k in ('Data', 'Detail')
        )
        for v in app_state.values():
            content = try_get(v, getters, dict)
            if content and content.get('contentId') == video_id:
                video_data = content
                break

        title = video_data['title']

        if video_data.get('drmProtected'):
            raise ExtractorError('This video is DRM protected.', expected=True)

        headers = {'Referer': url}
        formats = []
        geo_restricted = False

        if not self._USER_TOKEN:
            self._DEVICE_ID = compat_str(uuid.uuid4())
            self._USER_TOKEN = self._call_api_v2('um/v3/users', video_id, {
                'X-HS-Platform': 'PCTV',
                'Content-Type': 'application/json',
            }, data=json.dumps({
                'device_ids': [{
                    'id': self._DEVICE_ID,
                    'type': 'device_id',
                }],
            }).encode())['user_identity']

        playback_sets = self._call_api_v2(

View on GitHub (pinned to 956b8c5855)

Solutions

  1. Accept that the content cannot be downloaded with youtube-dl/yt-dlp; no flag bypasses DRM.
  2. Choose non-DRM content on Hotstar (most free/clips content is not protected).
  3. Verify with a newer youtube-dl/yt-dlp build in case the site stopped marking the item as DRM protected.
Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

info = ydl.extract_info(url, download=False) if not is_drm else skip  # not exposed; instead check page in browser for DRM badge before queueing

Try / catch

try:
    ydl.download([url])
except ExtractorError as e:
    if 'DRM protected' in str(e):
        mark_as_unsupported(url)  # permanent, do not retry

Prevention

When it happens

Trigger: Extracting any Hotstar URL whose contentData/contentDetail JSON contains 'drmProtected': true - typical for premium movies, live sports, and Hotstar Specials.

Common situations: Users attempt to download Hotstar originals or live cricket feeds which are always DRM protected; the extractor detects the flag before attempting format extraction.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of ytdl-org/youtube-dl@956b8c5855 (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/e91cc231d95c24fa. Report an issue: GitHub.