Abstract: A method of providing conditional access to a content item, which content item is protected by a particular security mechanism, comprising providing unconditional access to a sample content item (105) protected by the same particular security mechanism. The sample content item (105) could be e.g. a trailer for the content item (104). Preferably the protected content item (104) is formatted using a particular formatting scheme like MPEG-2, and the sample content item (105) is formatted using the same formatting scheme. If acquisition of rights by a client (120) is necessary for playback of the content item (104), this is preferably refused until the sample content item (105) has been accessed by said client (120).