Formation and analysis of signals with common and transaction watermarks

• US 6,430,301 B1
• Filed: 08/30/2000
• Issued: 08/06/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Vobile Incorporated (Vobile Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Verance Corporation
• Inventors: Petrovic, Rade
• Primary Examiner(s): Johns, Andrew W.
• Application Number:
  US09/651,729
• Time in Patent Office: 706 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/232, 380/210, 380/252, 380/287, 380/54, 713/176, 370/527, 370/529, 704/200.1, 704/273, 381/73.1, 705/57, 705/58, 348/460, 348/463
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0063 in relation to collusion attacks, e.g. collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00905 multiple watermarks used in combination
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/12 Applying verification of the received information cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for data integrity or data verification H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32144 embedded in the image data, i.e. enclosed or integrated in the image, e.g. watermark, super-imposed logo or stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32304 Embedding different sets of additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23892 involving embedding information at multiplex stream level, e.g. embedding a watermark at packet level
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3235 Checking or certification of the authentication information, e.g. by comparison with data stored independently
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3239 using a plurality of different authentication information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 for scrambling ; for copy protection

Abstract

A system for embedding and detecting digital watermarks, e.g., for copyright protection of digital content distributed via the Internet or other channels. Different copies of content, such as audio data, are formed with a common watermark (CW), and different transaction watermarks (TW). Based on a user transaction request, portions of the different copies of the content are assembled to provide a copy with a unique sequence of TWs associated with the user. A copy of content which is subsequently located can be analyzed to determine if it has been used in a collusion attack, where a pirate attempts to modify the watermarks, e.g., in an averaging or cut-and-splice attack. The CWs are provided in time-aligned intervals of the different copies of the content so they are not modified by the attack. Content from different web sites can be analyzed by first determining if a particular CW is embedded in the content, and, if so, recovering the TW to identify the unauthorized distributor.

Claims

1. A method for embedding watermarks in a host signal, comprising the steps of:

forming watermarked copies of the host signal with at least one different transaction watermark and at least one common watermark embedded therein; and

assembling portions of the different watermarked copies according to a transaction code such that an output signal with transaction watermarks that correspond to the transaction code is formed and such that the at least one common watermark can be subsequently used to recover the at least one transaction watermark.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the common watermark identifies a distributor of the host signal.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the transaction code identifies a user that receives the output signal.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the transaction code is generated in response to a user request to access the host signal.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising the further step of:

storing the watermarked copies for subsequent use in said assembling step.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the different transaction watermarks in the watermarked copies define respective different symbols.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the transaction watermarks are provided according to different associated steganographic keys.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

in the watermarked copies, the common watermarks are time-aligned with one another in respective matching signal intervals.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein:

in the watermarked copies, the transaction watermarks are time-aligned with one another in respective transaction watermark intervals.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein:

in the watermarked copies, the common watermarks are time-aligned with one another in respective matching signal intervals that are interleaved with the respective transaction watermark intervals.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein:

a segmentation pattern associated with the transaction code is used in said assembling step to define time intervals during which portions of the watermarked copies are selected to form the output signal.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the watermarked copies are provided in a compressed form.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein:

said assembling step is responsive to compression frame boundaries of the watermarked copies for forming the output signal.

14. An apparatus for embedding watermarks in a host signal, comprising:

a plurality of embeddors for forming watermarked copies of the host signal with at least one different transaction watermark and at least one common watermark embedded therein; and

a multiplexer assembly for assembling portions of the different watermarked copies according to a transaction code to form an output signal with transaction watermarks that correspond to the transaction code such that the at least one common watermark can be subsequently used to recover the at least one transaction watermark.

15. A method for analyzing a watermarked signal with at least one common watermark that identifies a distributor thereof, the method comprising the steps of:

using the common watermark to recover a plurality of transaction watermarks of the watermarked signal that define respective symbols thereof;

providing at least one hypothesis transaction code that defines respective symbols thereof;

comparing the symbols of the transaction watermarks to corresponding symbols of the hypothesis transaction code to determine a correspondence therebetween; and

based on said correspondence, determining a probability that the hypothesis transaction code matches a transaction code that is associated with at least some of the transaction watermarks.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the recovering step comprises the step of obtaining a difference between the watermarked signal and an original signal.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the recovering step further comprises the step of:

using the common watermark to align the watermarked signal with a corresponding original signal.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the probability is based on a number of the symbols used in said comparing step, and a portion of the symbols of the watermarked signal that match the corresponding symbols of the hypothesis transaction code.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the watermarked signal is retrieved from a suspected unauthorized distributor.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the watermarked signal is formed, at least in part, by splicing together a plurality of signal portions that comprise respective transaction watermarks that are associated with respective different transaction codes.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein:

the plurality of signal portions further include respective common watermarks that are interleaved with the transaction watermarks.

22. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the watermarked signal is formed, at least in part, by averaging a plurality of signals that comprise respective transaction watermarks that are associated with respective different transaction codes.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein:

the plurality of signals further include respective common watermarks that are interleaved with the transaction watermarks.

24. The method of claim 15, comprising the further steps of:

providing a plurality of hypothesis transaction codes that define respective symbol thereof;

for each hypothesis transaction code, comparing the symbols of the transaction watermarks to corresponding symbols of the hypothesis transaction code to determine a correspondence therebetween; and

for each hypothesis transaction code, determining a probability based on the correspondence thereof that the hypothesis transaction code matches a transaction code that is associated with at least some of the transaction watermarks.

25. The method of claim 24, comprising the further step of:

recovering a content identifier from the watermarked signal for use in selecting the plurality of hypothesis transaction codes from a transaction code database.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein:

the content identifier is determined according to common watermarks that are interleaved with the transaction watermarks in the watermarked signal.

27. An apparatus for analyzing a watermarked signal with at least one common watermark that identifies a distributor thereof, the apparatus comprising:

a detector which uses the common watermark to recover a plurality of transaction watermarks of the watermarked signal that define respective symbols thereof;

storage for providing at least one hypothesis transaction code that defines respective symbols thereof;

a comparator for comparing the symbols of the transaction watermarks to corresponding symbols of the hypothesis transaction code to determine a correspondence therebetween; and

an hypothesis testing block for determining, based on said correspondence, a probability that the hypothesis transaction code matches a transaction code that is associated with at least one of the transaction watermarks.

28. A method for analyzing content that is distributed via a plurality of distribution points in a network, comprising the steps of:

obtaining the content from the plurality of distribution points;

retrieving a common watermark from the content;

determining, for each of the distribution points, whether the retrieved common watermark corresponds to a predetermined common watermark code; and

for the content that comprises the retrieved common watermark that corresponds to the predetermined common watermark code;

retrieving a transaction watermark from the content, and

identifying a transaction code associated with the transaction watermark.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein:

a first duration of the content is obtained from the distribution points for use in said determining step and said retrieving a transaction watermark step.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein:

the distribution points are associated with respective web sites in a computer network.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein:

the transaction code identifies a distributor of the content.

32. The method of claim 28, wherein:

a first duration of the content is obtained from the distribution points for use in said determining step, and a second, longer duration of the content is obtained from the distribution points for use in said retrieving a transaction watermark step.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein:

the first duration is at least twice a duration of the common watermark.

34. The method of claim 28, comprising the further step of:

comparing the identified transaction code with at least one hypothesis transaction code to determine a correspondence therebetween.

35. The method of claim 34, comprising the further step of:

determining, based on the correspondence, a probability that the identified transaction code matches the hypothesis transaction code.

36. An apparatus for analyzing content that is distributed via a plurality of distribution points in a network, comprising:

a crawler for obtaining the content from the plurality of distribution points;

a common watermark detector for retrieving a common watermark from the content and determining, for each of the distribution points, whether the retrieved common watermark corresponds to a predetermined common watermark code; and

a forensic analysis block for retrieving a transaction watermark from the content, and identifying a transaction code associated with the transaction watermark, for the content that comprises the retrieved common watermark that corresponds to the predetermined common watermark code.

37. A method for embedding watermarks in a host signal, comprising the steps of:

forming watermarked copies of the host signal with at least one different transaction watermark and at least one common watermark embedded therein; and

assembling portions of the different watermarked copies according to a transaction code to form an output signal with transaction watermarks that correspond to the transaction code wherein the common watermarks are time-aligned with one another in respective matching signal intervals.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein:

the transaction watermarks are provided according to different associated steganographic keys.

39. The method of claim 37, wherein:

in the watermarked copies, the common watermarks are time-aligned with one another in respective matching signal intervals that are interleaved with the respective transaction watermark intervals.

40. A method for analyzing a watermarked signal comprising the steps of:

recovering a plurality of transaction watermarks of the watermarked signal that define respective symbols thereof,

providing a plurality of hypothesis transaction codes that define respective symbols thereof;

for each hypothesis transaction code, comparing the symbols of the transaction watermarks to corresponding symbols of the hypothesis transaction code to determine a correspondence therebetween;

for each hypothesis transaction code, determining a probability based on the correspondence thereof that the hypothesis transaction code matches a transaction code that is associated with at least some of the transaction watermarks; and

recovering a content identifier from the watermarked signal for use in selecting the plurality of hypothesis codes from a transaction code database wherein the content identifier is determined according to common watermark that are interleaved with the transaction watermarks in the watermarked signal.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein:

the watermarked signal is formed, at least in part, by splicing together a plurality of signal portions that comprise respective transaction watermarks, that are associated with respective different transaction codes and that include respective common watermarks which are interleaved with the transaction watermarks.

42. The method of claim 40, wherein:

the watermarked signal is formed, at least in part, by averaging a plurality of signals that comprise respective transaction watermarks that are associated with respective different transaction codes.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein:

the plurality of signals further include respective common watermarks that are interleaved with the transaction watermarks.

44. A method for analyzing content that is distributed via a plurality of distribution points in a network, comprising the steps of:

obtaining a first duration of the content from the plurality of distribution points;

determining, for each of the distribution points, whether the first duration of content comprises a common watermark that corresponds to a predetermined common watermark code; and

for the content that comprises the common watermark that corresponds to the predetermined common watermark code;

obtaining a second duration of the content from the plurality of distribution points;

retrieving a transaction watermark from the second duration of the content, and

identifying a transaction code associated with the transaction watermark.

45. The method of claim 44, wherein:

the first and second durations are equal to on another.

46. The method of claim 44, wherein:

the second duration is longer than the first duration.

47. The method of claim 46, wherein:

the first duration is at least twice a duration of the common watermark.