In the long and uneven story of computing, Windows on Arm has promised a new kind of laptop that runs cool and sips power, yet its best-known software has lagged behind. Vivaldi, Brave and their Chromium kin want to meet it with native builds, but a piece of Google's copy-protection machinery stands between them and the ability to play the films people expect to watch. Whether that gate opens will shape how far this platform travels beyond its early, half-finished promise.
Google's Widevine DRM, Not Browser Code, Keeps Chromium Rivals Like Vivaldi and Brave Off Windows on Arm
A browser could be built, but streaming services wouldn't work in it.
Mark
So the headline is that it's not the browsers holding things up. What is it, exactly?
Mimi
Widevine, Google's DRM. Netflix and similar services need it to play video in a browser, and Google doesn't offer it for Windows on Arm.
Mark
Why does Edge get a pass?
Mimi
Microsoft rebuilt Edge on Chromium but stripped out most Google parts, and it uses PlayReady, its own DRM. Smaller makers don't have those resources.
Luke
Worth flagging that this is one reporter's analysis. The Vivaldi statement is on the record, but nothing from Google confirms why Widevine isn't offered. Google didn't respond.
Mark
And the early 2019 claim about a finished Arm64 Chrome?
Mimi
That came from an unnamed source, compared to Prime Video on Chromecast, a deal between two companies.
Luke
Right, so it's a rumor. Useful context, not established fact.
Mark
Brave sounds more upbeat than Vivaldi.
Mimi
Brian Clifton said there are no roadblocks to building the browser and hinted at a workaround. The author says it seems Brave is already working on one.
Luke
Seems, though. We don't know what the workaround is or when it might ship. And Opera said nothing.
Mark
Does the performance gap matter that much?
Mimi
Emulation struggles with code browsers generate on the fly, so Edge feels noticeably better. Qualcomm's custom chips next year may help, but that's a hope, not a result.
O Pulso
- Vivaldi says a native Arm64 browser is blocked because it cannot ship working Netflix and Disney+ playback without Google's Widevine for Windows on Arm.
- Brave's engineering leadership sees no real barrier to building the browser and is reportedly working on a workaround around Widevine.
- Users on Windows on Arm machines run Chromium browsers through emulation, and the slowdown against Edge pushes them toward Edge or Intel PCs.
- Google has not commented, and the only realistic exit now is a Widevine release for Arm or a costly switch to Microsoft's PlayReady.
In the long and uneven story of computing, Windows on Arm has promised a new kind of laptop that runs cool and sips power, yet its best-known software has lagged behind. Vivaldi, Brave and their Chromium kin want to meet it with native builds, but a piece of Google's copy-protection machinery stands between them and the ability to play the films people expect to watch. Whether that gate opens will shape how far this platform travels beyond its early, half-finished promise.
When XDA Developers asked Vivaldi whether it would build a native Arm64 version of its browser for Windows, the answer was no, and the reason had little to do with Vivaldi itself. It came down to Widevine, a Google DRM system that Vivaldi does not control and that Google does not offer for Windows on Arm.
The pattern is an old one. Chrome has never run natively on Microsoft's Arm platforms, from Windows RT to Windows 11 on Arm. Today only Edge and Firefox run natively on Arm64 Windows PCs, while Chromium rivals stay behind. Microsoft could rebuild Edge on Chromium and strip out Google's components, but smaller browser makers rely on Widevine to play Netflix and other services, and without it a browser that otherwise works still fails where users need it most.
Vivaldi said it would build the browser if Google released Widevine for Arm. Its alternative, switching to Microsoft's PlayReady, would take real work, and with a small installed base after five years on the market, that effort is hard to justify. Brave was more hopeful. Its engineering leadership saw no build barrier and suggested a clever workaround, which the company appears to be pursuing. Opera declined to comment.
The cost is performance. Emulation lets these browsers run on Windows on Arm, but they run poorly, and users notice the gap against Edge. Qualcomm says its partners are investing in native Arm software, while Google has not responded. Until Google decides whether to offer Widevine for Arm, the platform's progress depends on a single open question.
When XDA Developers asked Vivaldi whether it would build a native Arm64 version of its browser for Windows, the answer was a flat no. The reason, according to the company, had nothing to do with the browser itself. It had to do with a piece of Google software that Vivaldi does not control.
The background is familiar. Google Chrome does not run natively on Windows on Arm, and the author notes that this pattern stretches across Microsoft's platforms: Windows RT, Windows Phone and now Windows 11 on Arm never got native Google apps. The first two are long dead; Windows on Arm is not. Yet today only two browsers run natively on Arm64 Windows PCs, Microsoft Edge and Mozilla Firefox. The author says he heard in early 2019 that Google had an Arm64 Chrome ready, and that a source compared the situation to Prime Video on Chromecast, meaning the two companies first have to reach a deal. Google already ships Chrome on plenty of Arm-powered Chromebooks, including ones with Qualcomm chips.
The larger question is why Chromium-based rivals such as Vivaldi, Brave and Opera are also missing. The answer, per the report, is Widevine, Google's DRM system, which is needed to play Netflix and other streaming services in a browser. Microsoft rebuilt Edge on Chromium and stripped out most of the Google components, but most browser makers lack Microsoft's resources. Vivaldi, Brave and nearly every Chromium browser except Edge rely on Widevine. Google does not offer it for Windows on Arm. A browser could be built, but streaming services wouldn't work in it.
A Vivaldi spokesperson put it bluntly in a statement to XDA: the biggest problem is that the browser would not work with big media platforms like Netflix, Prime and Disney+, and that this is out of Vivaldi's hands because Google does not produce Widevine for Windows Arm. Without it, the company cannot decrypt the DRM those platforms use. If and when Google offers Widevine for Arm on Windows, the spokesperson said, Vivaldi could and perhaps should build the browser.
Vivaldi acknowledged a theoretical alternative: dropping Widevine for Microsoft's PlayReady, which is how Edge runs natively on Arm. But that, the company said, would take some work. The author adds that Windows on Arm devices have been on sale for more than five years and the platform still isn't mature, so the installed base probably doesn't justify that effort for a smaller company like Vivaldi Technologies.
Brave was less categorical. Brian Clifton, its VP of Engineering, said there are really no roadblocks to building the browser itself, and suggested Brave might find a clever workaround in place of a native Widevine build. According to the author, the company appears to be working on one already. Opera declined to comment.
The stakes are performance. Windows on Arm can emulate any app built for Intel processors, so Chrome, Vivaldi, Brave and Opera all run today, just not well. Browsers generate code on the fly, which is harder to cache and emulate, and the gap against Edge is noticeable enough that users may switch to Edge or buy an Intel PC. This has been true since the platform's early days.
Qualcomm's statement said the Windows on Snapdragon app ecosystem momentum continues to accelerate as more market leaders invest in native Arm solutions, and that it looks forward to sharing releases as its software partners announce them. Google did not respond to requests for comment. Many people inside Qualcomm have told the author that emulation will eventually get good enough to be unnoticeable, though after five-plus years he finds hope harder to sustain.
Next year, Qualcomm is due to ship custom processors meant to compete with Apple Silicon; the current Snapdragon chips, based on Arm reference designs, aren't cutting it, the author writes. Until then, he argues, the platform's fate sits with Google: as long as native Arm64 browsers, Chrome included, stay unbuilt, Microsoft remains tied to Intel. The thing to watch is whether Google ever releases Widevine for Windows on Arm.
Citações Notáveis
We could make a browser but you couldn't use it for any of these services. If and when Google starts offering Widevine for Arm on Windows, then we could and perhaps should do it.— Vivaldi spokesperson, statement to XDA
Brave sees no real roadblocks to building the browser and may find a clever workaround to the Widevine gap.— Brian Clifton, VP of Engineering, Brave (paraphrased)
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