When I go through iTunes I am able to play my HD movies in 1080p with no problem.
But when I try to use my HD library through Ultraviolet (VUDU), I get an HDCP error and it flips down to SD.
My computer is a Mac mini, and when I bootcamp over to Windows Vista, it works in HD just fine. My monitor is a new Samsung that supports HDCP
How can I view them on my Mac mini in OS X?
Mac mini, OS X Mavericks (10.9.1), HDMI connection to Samsung S27C500
The Apple Mac mini has a built-in HDMI 1.4 port and a Mini Displayport 1.2 port. Both of these support HDCP, I don't know which exact version of HDCP in this case but it is certainly older than version 2.2 of HDCP. As such the Mac mini does support HD i.e. 1920x1080 content and as you yourself have confirmed this works in iTunes and in Windows via Bootcamp.
Therefore it is not a hardware issue with the Mac, nor is it an issue with your monitor, or the cable. Rather this would seem to be the fault of the Ultraviolet software.
See if there is a newer version of their software available and contact them to report the problem.
I did find this http://www.vudu.com/faq.html which suggests that Ultraviolet and HDCP only works with built-in monitors on Mac laptops. Clearly a Mac mini does not have a built-in screen so even though its component design is somewhat similar to a laptop this should not apply. Again the fact it works in iTunes etc. suggests it is their software at fault. If you are using a web-browser the same article suggests trying Google Chrome rather than Safari and this would certainly be worth trying.
I also found a user authored thread which seems far, far more helpful than Vudu's pathetic FAQ above. See https://forum.vudu.com/showthread.php?934641-VUDU-does-not-work-with-OSX-and-an- external-monitor-even-if-it-is-HDCP-compliant-3342
This user authored message suggests the problem is down to Adobe Air and Microsoft Silverlight with a possible issue from Apple as well. Other posts suggest having the latest versions particularly of Silverlight may help.
Note: Google Chrome has its own built-in Flash although I don't know if this also covers Adobe Air which is a superset of Adobe Flash.
To summarise -
Note: Some very early FullHD screens did have bugs in their HDCP implementation but supposedly this was fixed years ago. The fact it works in other software on the same Mac suggests it is as I indicate above more likely the Ultraviolet software.
PS. DRM as used by DVDs, Blu-Rays, Streaming and HDCP is pointless. If it worked perfectly and was completely unbreakable it might be justifiable. The reality is it is always broken by far more clever people than the idiots who run media firms. It also causes no end of problems to legal paying customers like yourself.
PPS. Microsoft are apparently giving up on Silverlight meaning it will at some point be discontinued. Adobe is also gradually giving up on Adobe Flash. The future will be to use HTML5 with its built-in video support something Netflix have already started to support. Sadly DRM support has been added to HTML5 so that has made the idiots in charge of media firms deliriously happy. However from a Mac point of view I would expect HTML5 even with DRM to work better even or especially in Safari.
The Apple Mac mini has a built-in HDMI 1.4 port and a Mini Displayport 1.2 port. Both of these support HDCP, I don't know which exact version of HDCP in this case but it is certainly older than version 2.2 of HDCP. As such the Mac mini does support HD i.e. 1920x1080 content and as you yourself have confirmed this works in iTunes and in Windows via Bootcamp.
Therefore it is not a hardware issue with the Mac, nor is it an issue with your monitor, or the cable. Rather this would seem to be the fault of the Ultraviolet software.
See if there is a newer version of their software available and contact them to report the problem.
I did find this http://www.vudu.com/faq.html which suggests that Ultraviolet and HDCP only works with built-in monitors on Mac laptops. Clearly a Mac mini does not have a built-in screen so even though its component design is somewhat similar to a laptop this should not apply. Again the fact it works in iTunes etc. suggests it is their software at fault. If you are using a web-browser the same article suggests trying Google Chrome rather than Safari and this would certainly be worth trying.
I also found a user authored thread which seems far, far more helpful than Vudu's pathetic FAQ above. See https://forum.vudu.com/showthread.php?934641-VUDU-does-not-work-with-OSX-and-an- external-monitor-even-if-it-is-HDCP-compliant-3342
This user authored message suggests the problem is down to Adobe Air and Microsoft Silverlight with a possible issue from Apple as well. Other posts suggest having the latest versions particularly of Silverlight may help.
Note: Google Chrome has its own built-in Flash although I don't know if this also covers Adobe Air which is a superset of Adobe Flash.
To summarise -
Note: Some very early FullHD screens did have bugs in their HDCP implementation but supposedly this was fixed years ago. The fact it works in other software on the same Mac suggests it is as I indicate above more likely the Ultraviolet software.
PS. DRM as used by DVDs, Blu-Rays, Streaming and HDCP is pointless. If it worked perfectly and was completely unbreakable it might be justifiable. The reality is it is always broken by far more clever people than the idiots who run media firms. It also causes no end of problems to legal paying customers like yourself.
PPS. Microsoft are apparently giving up on Silverlight meaning it will at some point be discontinued. Adobe is also gradually giving up on Adobe Flash. The future will be to use HTML5 with its built-in video support something Netflix have already started to support. Sadly DRM support has been added to HTML5 so that has made the idiots in charge of media firms deliriously happy. However from a Mac point of view I would expect HTML5 even with DRM to work better even or especially in Safari.
is HDCP supported on Mac mini?
