Digital watermarks and trading cards

• US 6,735,324 B1
• Filed: 07/31/2000
• Issued: 05/11/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Conwell, William Y., Miller, Marc D., McKinley, Tyler J., Carr, J. Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Johns, Andrew W.
• Application Number:
  US09/630,243
• Time in Patent Office: 1,380 Days
• Field of Search: 273/292, 273/293, 273/296, 273/297, 273/298, 273/308, 283/72, 283/74, 283/79, 283/85, 283/93, 283/113, 283/901, 283/902, 382/100, 382/232, 380/210, 380/252, 380/287, 380/51, 380/54, 713/176, 399/366, 463/1, 463/40, 463/42, 463/43
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/02 Cards; Special shapes of cards card-printing methods B41K, B41M
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/00643 Electric board games; Electric features of board games electric word or number games A63F3/0421; computer chess G06F; electric raffle games A63F3/081
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 3/10 Watermarks
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 15/00 Printed matter of special format or style not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0042 Fragile watermarking, e.g. so as to detect tampering
• 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 2201/3225 of data relating to an image, a page or a document
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3271 Printing or stamping

Abstract

Digital watermarks can be employed in conjunction with trading cards (e.g., baseball cards, fantasy game cards, etc.) to serve a variety of purposes. Among these are facilitating on-line collecting and game-play. Digital watermarks may also be used in distinguishing genuine cards from counterfeits.

Claims

1. A trading card comprising a substrate and an image formed thereon, wherein the card conveys a frail steganographic watermark representing plural-bit digital data, the frail watermark permitting a copy of the card to be differentiated from the original.

2. The card of claim 1, formed by a user printing-out a virtual card image corresponding thereto.

3. The card of claim 2 wherein the user is associated with said card by reference to the plural-bit digital data.

4. The card of claim 1 wherein the trading card has a sports player depicted thereon, and the digital data serves as an index to a data repository, said data repository having stored therein information relating to a particular card collector or custodian.

5. A method of playing a fantasy role-playing game involving playing cards, wherein:

at least one of said cards conveys a plural-bit steganographic watermark;

a first player presents a watermarked card to an optical input device, and is issued a virtual card corresponding thereto; and

the game provides for the conquest of said virtual card by a second player, and its consequent loss by the first player.

6. The method of claim 5 that further includes maintaining a database record indicating current ownership of the virtual card in a registry database.

7. A trading card comprising a substrate and an image formed thereon, wherein:

the card conveys a steganographic watermark representing plural-bit digital data,

the trading card has a sports player depicted thereon; and

the digital data serves as an index to a data repository, said data repository having stored therein information comprising at least the following, or a hyperlink to at least the following;

recent auction prices relating to said trading card.

8. A method comprising:

issuing a trading card comprising a substrate and an image formed thereon, the card conveying a steganographic watermark representing plural-bit digital data;

receiving data from a first custodian of the card when said first custodian presents the card to a system equipped with an optical image sensor and the system decodes the plural-bit digital data from the steganographic watermark; and

entering information in a database that associates said card with said first custodian, said information including electronic address data corresponding to an internet resource associated with said first custodian.

9. The method of claim 8 that further includes receiving data from a second, different, custodian of the card when said second custodian presents the card to a system equipped with an optical image sensor and the system decodes the plural-bit digital data from the steganographic watermark.

10. The method of claim 9 that includes entering information in said database that associates said card with the second custodian, said information including electronic address data corresponding to an internet resource associated with said second custodian.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the plural-bit digital data also includes serialization data, wherein cards that appear—

to human inspection—

to be identical, convey serialization data by which they can be distinguished.