DRM for Course Creators: What L1 and L3 Mean

If your income depends on video courses, piracy is a real risk: one student can share a login or save a file and your product spreads for free. Platforms describe their protection in different ways, so it helps to know what each term means.

Three layers of protection

• Download protection. The player does not offer a download button, so students cannot save the video file. This stops casual copying but not a determined user.
• DRM (digital rights management). The video is encrypted and only plays through an approved player that holds the decryption key. This is what makes a saved file useless.
• Watermarking and account limits. Overlays showing the viewer's details, and limits on devices or simultaneous sessions, discourage sharing.

What L1 and L3 mean

Widevine, Google's widely used DRM system, has security levels. L1 means decryption and playback happen inside protected hardware on the device. L3 means they are handled in software, which is easier to attack. In practice higher levels give stronger protection, and some premium streaming services restrict the highest-quality video to devices that can prove L1.

Vendors label their plans loosely, and the level a student's device reaches also depends on the device itself. When a platform lists "L1" or "L3", ask exactly what it means for your videos and which devices it covers.

How platforms present it

• Learnyst lists DRM content protection on its Professional plan and L1 DRM on its Business plan.
• Graphy lists DRM protection on its Launch plan.
• On Synappses, the Medium plan includes security with DRM (L3) and download protection, and the Pro plan includes DRM (L1).

Questions to ask any platform

1. Is the video encrypted with DRM, or only hidden behind a login?
2. Which DRM level do I get on my plan, and on which devices?
3. Can students screen-record, and does the platform try to block it?
4. Can I limit devices or add a viewer watermark?
5. What happens to protection if I move the videos?

For the wider checklist, read what to check before you buy a white-label LMS, or see which Synappses plan includes which level.