Abstract: A method comprises providing a change to apply to video; dividing video into blocks; creating propagation map which captures only specific changes to blocks that would be changed by the application of the change; evaluating the change based on a luminance criterion as being a perceptible change or an imperceptible change; for propagation maps of an imperceptible change, storing the propagation map to a list, wherein the propagation map is the principle data structure to be applied to the video. The propagation map can be created by using motion vector changes associated with the change.

Abstract: A method and system of detecting colluders conducting a collusion attack including a minority-type collusion attack on a digital product includes the generation of codewords used as watermarks in the digital product. The inner code of the codewords is generated using permutations of rows in a Hadamard matrix and concatenating them together. A typical outer code of the codeword is the Reed Solomon code. An adaptive detector is able to accurately detect one of three or more colluders of a minority-type attack. Prior art schemes using an error correcting code-based watermarking mechanism with an inner code fail to detect colluders with a minority-type collusion attack which includes three colluders.

Abstract: A method comprises receiving original encoded video stream as one input, accessing encoded data divided into slices which are further divided into blocks, receiving the list of possible changes or watermarks as another input, accessing at least one block, decoding each slice, setting down each slice, extracting from the list those changes that apply to the at least one block, and constructing propagation maps from inter-prediction or intra-prediction using changes for the at least one block. The method can further comprise decoding luminance data using the propagation maps, comparing the luminance data to a fidelity threshold, and applying possible changes or watermarks to those not exceeding the fidelity threshold.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are described including generating a unique code for each of a plurality of users using a plurality of symbols, generating a plurality of codes representing the plurality of symbols, substituting the plurality of codes into the unique code for each of the plurality of users, permuting the code resulting from the substitution to produce a codeword for each of the plurality of users and embedding the codeword into digital content. The second generating act further includes generating a string of first symbols followed by second symbols, wherein the first symbols are all ones and the second symbols are all negative ones, wherein a number of first symbols is equal to a number of the second symbols, and wherein if a length of the first symbols followed by the second symbols is less than a length of the code, then the first symbols followed by the second symbols are repeated until the code length is filled.

Abstract: A method comprises accessing changes which can be watermarks in a list for coded data, the changes having an syntax element, an original value and an candidate alternative value; determining for a subset a group of compliant changes from the changes, the complaint changes being compliant with a coding protocol such as a CABAC encoding protocol; and selecting for the subset only compliant changes that result in the subset having only one candidate alternative value for each syntax elements and result in only compliant changes also meeting at least one performance criterion. The method can include determining fidelity, recoverability, or robustness of the watermarks and removing or preventing watermarks from being in the subset based on the fidelity, recoverability, or robustness, wherein fidelity, recoverability, and robustness are performance criteria.

Abstract: A device to measure pressure is disclosed. In one embodiment, the device comprises at least one element comprising two layers (24, 26) separated by a space, wherein a dimension of the space changes over a variable time period in response to a voltage applied across the two layers and a measuring module configured to measure the time period, wherein the time period is indicative of the ambient pressure about the device.

Abstract: A method comprises accessing encoded video data; accessing a list of watermarks to the encoded video data; determining syntax elements for current blocks of video data and syntax elements of currents blocks with the watermarks; removing watermarks that cause visible artifacts based on differences in the syntax elements between the current blocks and current blocks with watermarks, thereby creating filtered list of acceptable watermarks. The method can further include determining coding variable ranges for the current block and current block with watermarks from the list; comparing the coding variable ranges for the current blocks and current blocks with watermarks from the list; and filtering out watermarks that yield coding variable ranges outside the coding variable ranges of the current blocks.

Abstract: A method of providing CABAC compliant changes such as watermarks comprises accessing encoded data such as video which comprise at least two blocks; creating or accessing a list of changes to the encoded data that include a direct change to a block; determining motion character or motion vector differential of non-immediate block, non-immediate blocks being adjacent to an immediate block that are immediately adjacent to the block; determining change to the immediate block based on original motion character of the block and the non-immediate block and the motion character of the block that would result from the application of the change; storing the change to the list if the change does not cause a difference to the immediate block; and evaluating other potential changes if other potential changes are available, wherein the other potential changes are subjected to the same process steps as the direct change.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a method, apparatus and system for temporal synchronization of digital content based on a marker symbol and a marker code. A marker symbol is inserted at an identifiable location of a payload (e.g., the beginning and/or end of a payload) at regular intervals in the digital content and the payload is marker coded to form a periodic sequence. The payload is marker coded such that the maker symbol is not repeated by the coded payload. The periodic sequence is then embedded into digital content. A decoder is able to re-synchronize the payload by determining the location of the marker symbol. As such, a method, apparatus and system is provided for robust temporal synchronization for, for example, content encoding and decoding for applications such as audio and video water-marking and the like.

Abstract: Systems and methods of utilizing communications networks and multivariate analysis to predict or recommend optimal products from a predefined population of commercially available products are disclosed. The recommendations are based on intelligence contained in processing elements and subjective and/or objective product information received from consumers or input to the systems as part of their initial setup. The output of the systems comprise sets of products that they predict the consumer will prefer and/or perform well for the problem or concern identified by the consumer. The performance and preference predictions are a function of consumer problems and product responsiveness patterns. Objective product information is generally obtained with diagnostic instruments. Data measured with the diagnostic instruments may be communicated to the data processing portions of the invention via the Internet.

Abstract: Systems and methods of utilizing communications networks and multivariate analysis to predict or recommend optimal products from a predefined population of commercially available products are disclosed. The recommendations are based on intelligence contained in processing elements and subjective and/or objective product information received from consumers or input to the systems as part of their initial setup. The output of the systems comprise sets of products that they predict the consumer will prefer and/or perform well for the problem or concern identified by the consumer. The performance and preference predictions are a function of consumer problems and product responsiveness patterns. Objective product information is generally obtained with diagnostic instruments. Data measured with the diagnostic instruments may be communicated to the data processing portions of the invention via the Internet.

Abstract: Implementations may relate to various aspects of modifying, or using, a coded bitstream, or to recovering watermarking information from data. In one implementation, a coded bitstream is modified to allow for the application of a watermark to the coded bitstream without changing the coding of any other syntax elements in the bitstream. This is performed by identifying conditions necessary to change a coded syntax element without disrupting the interpretation of subsequent coded elements. The coded syntax element is replaced with another coded value if the modified value generates the same decoding variables as the original value would have generated. Particular implementations focus on syntax elements coded using entropy coding, including, for example, Context-based Adaptive Binary Arithmetic Coding (CABAC). Regardless of the type of coding or watermarking, various implementations may provide for recovering watermarking information.

Abstract: Various implementations are provided for, for example, determining watermarking data, performing the watermarking, and processing watermarked data. At least one implementation watermarks AVC bitstream that uses CAVLC entropy coding. The watermarking data may be determined in a pre-processing stage and stored for later use in watermark a bitstream. One method accesses variable-length encoded data including an encoding of information identifying an actual reference used to predictively encode an image. The encoding of the information has a particular value. The method determines an alternative value that is different from the particular value, such that the alternative value is an encoding of alternative information that identifies a different reference from the actual reference. The alternative value is for use in watermarking the variable-length encoded data.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for embedding watermark data into a data stream using the insertion of low frequency carriers modulated by the watermark data into selected spatio-temporal volumes having equal total luminance values

Abstract: Detection of faults in a transmitted signal stream occurs by recovering, from the information stream, a water mark embedded in the stream prior to transmission. The embedded watermark has data characteristic of stream quality. Thereafter, the at least one watermark property is analyzed to detect faults in the received information stream.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are described for determining a threshold, including selecting a desired false result probability, and selecting a threshold value from a threshold table corresponding to the desired false result probability. Also described are a method and apparatus for determining a threshold corresponding to a desired false result probability, including calculating a false result probability, calculating a difference value between the calculated false result probability and the desired false result probability, comparing the difference value to a first predetermined value and comparing the difference value to a second predetermined value if a result of the first comparing act is positive.

Abstract: Implementations may relate to various aspects of modifying, or using, a coded bitstream, or to recovering water-marking information from data. In one implementation, a coded bitstream is modified to allow for the application of a watermark to the coded bitstream without changing the coding of any other syntax elements in the bitstream. This is performed by identifying conditions necessary to change a coded syntax element without disrupting the interpretation of subsequent coded elements. The coded syntax element is replaced with another coded value if the modified value generates the same decoding variables as the original value would have generated. Particular implementations focus on syntax elements coded using entropy coding, including, for example, Context-based Adaptive Binary Arithmetic Coding (CABAC). Regardless of the type of coding or watermarking, various implementations may provide for recovering watermarking information.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a method, apparatus and system for the secure distribution of content such as audiovisual content in a way that prevents users from misusing the content and provides a mechanism for tracking pirated material back to the original location of misappropriation. A security device, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, incorporates encryption methods to insure the broadcast encryption key remains secure. A marking device, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, incorporates, for example, digital watermarking methods that attach to the content information to identify a location of origin of the misappropriation, such as a Set-top Box (STB) and/or smart card.

Abstract: Information available at a decoder is embedded into image content after decoding by first representing that information by at least one film grain pattern and then blending that at least one film grain pattern with the decoded image content. Such image content is typically in the form of a movie and examples of the information to be embedded include identification of the specific decoding device, the user of the decoding device, the time and date of decoding, the model number of the device, the versions of software running on the device, the status of the device or connections to the device, the contents of device registers or memory locations within the device, among many other possible data. When an unauthorized copy of image content is discovered, the copied image content undergoes a comparison to the decoded image content to generate difference data. Thereafter, the difference data undergoes comparison with a database of film grain patterns to recover the embedded data.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for inserting a low frequency watermark into a compressed data stream carrying compressed content is disclosed. A portion of the compressed data stream is decoded to generate decoded content. The decoded content is analyzed to generate watermark insertion information. The compressed content is embedded with a low frequency watermark using the watermark insertion information.