Safari 8 fails to play any (mp4) video in-browser

safarivideo

I'm using Safari 8.0.4 on OS X 10.10.2. Anywhere and everywhere, Safari refuses to play any (mp4) video on any website. Youtube and Apple's website are the only places where Safari plays any videos.

Even on my own Google Drive account, my uploaded videos fail to play.

This is what I see:

Screenshot

How can I resolve this?

Best Answer

It could be caused by a corrupt or incompatible video codec or interfering third-party software. Playing MP4 video files should work in any browser.

Here is what you can try…

  1. Installing the latest OS X Yosemite Updates also updates the Quicktime framework which is used by Safari. Safari loads video Codecs from the /Library/Internet Plug-Ins directory. So make sure Safari is updated by going to App Store -> Updates -> Safari (version 10.x is the latest version).

  2. Make sure that the Internet plugin-ins checkbox is enabled. Safari -> Preferences -> Security -> Internet plugin-ins -> Allow Plug-ins allow plugins image

  3. Does using a browser with Flash built-in (like Chrome) allow you to play mp4 files? If so, try deleting or updating Flash in System Preferences, which could fix Safari.

If none of this helps, just try switching to a different browser (popular ones include Chrome, Firefox, Vivaldi, and Opera) or a different WiFi network.

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