What prevents an oem from Widevine L1 certification/official streaming apps?
#1
I'm referring to the hundreds of Chinese Android tv boxes etc. Most of them only have L3, and a tablet/phone version of Android.
However there are a few which do have this, and thus support Netflix/Prime etc in full HD/4k.

Is this because of lacking official Android Tv? And is this controlled by Google?
Is it controlled by Netflix who also have a list of certified devices?

Is this simply due to fees involved? 

You'd think Netflix/Google would want their content to be accessible on as many devices as possible, and there's nothing illegal about these. They are just as legal as any other officially supported dongle from the big companies like Amazon/Google/Nvidia.
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#2
(2020-10-11, 02:37)MrCrispy Wrote: I'm referring to the hundreds of Chinese Android tv boxes etc. Most of them only have L3, and a tablet/phone version of Android.
However there are a few which do have this, and thus support Netflix/Prime etc in full HD/4k.

Is this because of lacking official Android Tv? And is this controlled by Google?

WideVine is actually a Google controlled company.

Most cheap Chinese device manufacturers simply either cannot be bothered or are unwilling to spend the $$ for device testing, compliance and Google certification. They would rather churn out the latest and greatest ARM based chipset Android device, and be first to market when doing so.

Even companies like MINIX with their T5 and Ematic with their ATV devices contract all manufacturer, device testing and compliance / certification to a 3rd party like SDMC:

https://sites.google.com/view/droid-tv/oem/sdmc

And even then companies like MINIX and Mecool are unwilling to pay the extra $$ for Netflix Approval which is a seperate certification on top of everything else.

It’s the video content production and distribution companies that dictate the levels of media player certification and video copy protection required.

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#3
Ok so its all about the certification fees and $$$ then. May also be certain bias against Chinese products from US companies.

I wonder how many of these Android boxes are sold in US/Western market? Isn't the audience mostly people who dont care that much for Netflix? 

It is same as with phones, the ones available in Asia have 2x the hardware and features for much lower price. But a lot of them are actually certified by Google too. 

Just a sad state of affairs. The devices that do support streaming services are locked down and less capable. Recent GTV being perfect example.
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#4
(2020-10-11, 02:37)MrCrispy Wrote: I'm referring to the hundreds of Chinese Android tv boxes etc. Most of them only have L3, and a tablet/phone version of Android.
However there are a few which do have this, and thus support Netflix/Prime etc in full HD/4k.

Also worth remembering that Widevine L1 doesn't give you Netflix in 4K on its own. Your box also needs to be specifically approved by Netflix too.
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#5
This is beyond just Android phones. A short few years back, all Chinese branded Android phones sold in US are without L1 certification, that includes popular brands like Huawei, OnePlus etc. Only after public outcry a year or two back, some phone makers like OnePlus started to do L1 certification. It seems L1 certification must be done at factory assembly lines as OnePlus asked phone owners to send back their phones to add L1 certification for one existing model.
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#6
(2020-10-11, 14:10)noggin Wrote:
(2020-10-11, 02:37)MrCrispy Wrote: I'm referring to the hundreds of Chinese Android tv boxes etc. Most of them only have L3, and a tablet/phone version of Android.
However there are a few which do have this, and thus support Netflix/Prime etc in full HD/4k.

Also worth remembering that Widevine L1 doesn't give you Netflix in 4K on its own. Your box also needs to be specifically approved by Netflix too.
That is definitely true. Other applications also require additional certification. For example, HDHomerun app will require Google play store certification in order to play DRM channels. Disney+ require the similar thing. This means your box must be fully Google Play store certified and not rooted or running custom OS.
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#7
(2020-10-11, 14:53)foxbat121 Wrote:
(2020-10-11, 14:10)noggin Wrote:
(2020-10-11, 02:37)MrCrispy Wrote: I'm referring to the hundreds of Chinese Android tv boxes etc. Most of them only have L3, and a tablet/phone version of Android.
However there are a few which do have this, and thus support Netflix/Prime etc in full HD/4k.

Also worth remembering that Widevine L1 doesn't give you Netflix in 4K on its own. Your box also needs to be specifically approved by Netflix too.
That is definitely true. Other applications also require additional certification. For example, HDHomerun app will require Google play store certification in order to play DRM channels. Disney+ require the similar thing. This means your box must be fully Google Play store certified and not rooted or running custom OS.

That would explain why Disney+ is the ONLY service NOT to work on my old Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" from 2013 running Linage OS 14.1 while Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and others work fine for me on this device.
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What prevents an oem from Widevine L1 certification/official streaming apps?0