Video watermarking, including audio watermarking in the protection of theatrical releases is important in the battle against piracy.
It is a powerful anti-piracy technology that detects an undetectable audio watermark that is included in the soundtrack and prevents any unauthorised content from playing back. The watermark can only be heard by the original creator of the soundtrack. As a consequence of this, audio watermarking has evolved into a powerful technology that can protect premium video content against D/A and A/D attacks that are carried out by pirates.
It has become necessary to use audio watermarking as a preventative measure against the piracy of premium video content as a result of the proliferation of over-the-top (OTT) platforms and premium content delivery networks, as well as shifts in the manner in which movies are provided and played in theatres. This is in addition to shifts in the manner in which movies are provided and played online. The watermark should be robust enough to withstand attacks such as cropping, in addition to more advanced audio processing procedures such as time-scaling. Cropping is an example of such attack.
Premium content with audio watermarking, which is typically utilised in conjunction with video watermarking, is rendered useless when a signal is transmitted over a public announcement system that also has a microphone that is tapped on it. This is due to the fact that audio watermarking is typically utilised alongside video watermarking. Spread spectrum watermarking, which is also referred to as SSW in some circles, is one of the approaches that is utilised the most frequently for putting these kinds of plans into reality. It is important to send a signal with a narrow band across a bandwidth that is somewhat broad in order to make the signal energy undetectable at any frequency. This can only be accomplished by sending the signal across a bandwidth that is relatively large. It is necessary to inject significant quantities of noise throughout all frequency bands in order to eliminate a watermark. This effectively renders the premium video content linked with this account unusable.
The fast growth of over-the-top (OTT) and video-on-demand (VoD) services has created a desire for an additional layer of security on DRM protected content, in addition to increased robustness. As a consequence of this, audio watermarking has developed into a requirement for all different kinds of devices. This technology can defend against A/D and D/A assaults, and it is a useful supplement to video watermarking because it offers protection for content during its entire lifecycle.
It is of the utmost importance that techniques used for audio watermarking find a happy medium between the strength of the process and levels of acoustic perceptibility thresholds that are tolerable. As a result of the development of this new technology, it is now possible to track down any irregularities that might take place in the process of releasing movies in theatres across the entirety of the movie distribution chain.
The unauthorised duplication and dissemination of premium content was one of the primary motivations behind the development of the Advanced Copy Protection System (AACS), which is a standard for the utilisation of digital rights management (DRM) and for the dissemination of material. When compared to an illegal copy, a genuine copy of a theatrical release can be distinguished from an illegal copy if it contains a watermark or an AACS key that is identical to the one on the original.
The application of a technology known as audio watermarking is the solution to the challenges posed by verifying ownership and protecting intellectual property. It should therefore not come as a surprise that it is one of the technological fields that has undergone one of the greatest amounts of research and is currently undergoing one of the most rapid evolutions in order to assist Hollywood studios in preventing their theatrical releases from being stolen.
