Cinea, a subsidiary of Dolby Labs and based in Reston, VA, has developed what it calls a new approach to watermarking video-on-demand (VOD) content that will make the unique serialization of video streams easy and affordable. The idea is to take the benefits of software-upgradeable set-top boxes and move them upstream to the headend VOD server.
The new Cinea product, Running Marks, allows system operators to add watermarks to content at the headend with a simple software upgrade to their network servers. These watermarking services can be deployed without any additional server power, involves no change in the distribution infrastructure and requires no updates to devices already deployed in the field.
Robert Schumann, general manager of Cinea, explained that Running Marks provided a seamless layer of security at the headend server, which identifies and targets the illegal redistribution of content. The system inserts watermarks within the compressed domain, offering security and increased implementation flexibility that discourages attempts to be removed or otherwise bypassed. Watermarks are transparent to the end consumer.
Forensic watermarking (or media serialization) enables a unique, session-specific ID or serial number to be placed in every video stream sent from a system operator into a home. By watermarking individual streams, the natural flow of distributed content remains untouched and uninterrupted, yet pirated content can be traced back to the source. Forensic marks also deter piracy by removing the anonymity usually associated with the downloading and sharing of content.
In addition to the new VOD functionality, Cinea also announced Running Marks support for H.264, baseband video and live broadcast.
During NAB, Cinea will demonstrate watermarking for multistream VOD, live broadcast and H.264 in the Dolby booth (#N2513).
For more information, visit http://www.cinea.com/.
