Codecs allow you to play different formats of audio and video files. Media Player supports a wide variety of codecs. Most are included out of the box; some additional codecs can be installed from the Microsoft Store.

This article lists the multimedia file types that are supported by Windows Media Player 12. (How to determine your version of Windows Media Player). Note: Additional file formats might be supported if you install new codecs in Windows. For more information, see Codecs: frequently asked questions.

Discusses the cause and resolution of error 80040265 in Windows Media Player. This error is caused by an unsupported file format or codec or by corrupted Windows Media Player files.

Microsoft Windows Media Player 9 Series. Summary. This article describes the file formats that Microsoft Windows Media Player supports. More Information. Windows Media Player supports the following file formats: Windows Media Player 6.0. Windows Media formats. File name extensions: .asf, .asx, .avi, .wav, .wma, .wax, .wm, .wmv, .wvx.

Windows Media Player 12: Video codecs. To properly play video (and even music files), Windows Media Player required an appropriate codec. Codecs are small programs that encode digital signals in a file or data and decode. Only in this way, the player can interpret the streams as a music or film and play correctly.

Windows Media Player is available for Windows-based devices. Use this table to find the right version of the Player for your system. (If you've got a Mac, you can download Windows Media Components for QuickTime to play Windows Media files.)

If you're getting an error message that says an additional plug-in is required to play back Windows Media in your presentation, you likely need to download a plug-in like Flip4Mac or Switch before you can play some Windows Media files. Read this page to see which plug-in supports your version of Mac OS X.

This article lists resources that you can use to troubleshoot issues with Microsoft Windows Media Player 11 for Windows Vista, Windows Media Player 11 for Windows XP, Windows Media Player 10, and earlier versions of Windows Media Player.

Microsoft Windows Media Player 9 Series. Symptoms. When you try to play a file with Windows Media Player, you may receive one or more of the following error messages: Invalid File Format. (Error=8004022F) -or- Cannot play back the file. The format is not supported. (Error=80040265) -or-

Windows Media Player is available for Windows-based devices. Use this table to find the right version of the Player for your system. (If you've got a Mac, you can download Windows Media Components for QuickTime to play Windows Media files.)