.WMA files

1.3 Why can I play some protected files, but not others?

Content providers can protect Windows Media files from unauthorized playback by using a technology called digital rights management (DRM). A Windows Media file that has been assigned digital rights is called a "protected," or "licensed," or "secured" file.

To play a protected file, you must obtain a license (a kind of electronic key) from the content provider. In many cases, the Player can acquire a license for you automatically when you attempt to play the file. In other cases, the content provider may not issue you a license until you pay a fee or provide additional information, such as your e-mail address.

Content providers can issue several different versions of DRM licenses; however, Windows Media Player 9 for Mac OS X only supports version 1 licenses. This means that you might be able to play some protected files, but not others.

We have informed our content partners about this issue so that they can decide whether to offer version 1 licenses to their customers who use Macintosh computers.

just in case anyone has an answer to this:

i transferred a .WMA file to my mac (yosemite macbook air) and used quicktime player 7 to convert it so something a mac can play

but it has no sound (and since all it *is* is sound -- it's an interview -- this is annoying): no sound on QT, no sound on iTunes

(it's playing ok on the recording device i used but i need to transcribe it and it would be easier to stop and start if it was on the mac)

I've had good luck with using the free ffmpegx (at ffmpegx.com) for converting difficult audio files. It does handle WMA. You'll have to install a couple of additional files aside from the app itself (detailed on the "download" page).

vlc will play anything you throw at it, always good to have around: http://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html

yeah, I would say that VLC is a good choice in that it's meant for playing things but does a decent enough job of providing conversion options for output