Content monitoring

• US 7,168,083 B2
• Filed: 07/19/2001
• Issued: 01/23/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Oostveen, Job Cornelis, Kalker, Antonius Adrianus Cornelis Maria
• Primary Examiner(s): Koenig; Andrew Y.
• Application Number:
  US09/908,597
• Publication Number:
  US 20020059580A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,014 Days
• Field of Search: 725/19, 725/20
• US Class Current: 725/19
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/785 using colour or luminescence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0028 Adaptive watermarking, e.g. Human Visual System [HVS]-based watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0065 Extraction of an embedded watermark; Reliable detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/14 for monitoring programmes
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/31 using in-band signals, e.g. subsonic or cue signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 2201/50 characterised by the use of watermarks

Abstract

A method and arrangement are disclosed for distributing multimedia content such that that the actual distribution of said content can be monitored in an efficient and reliable manner. The invention combines the extensiveness of feature extraction and the robustness of watermarking. Characteristic features of the content, e.g. luminance distribution, are extracted (11) to constitute a signature (SIG) of the content. In addition, a watermark is embedded (12) having a payload representing an index (ID) in a database (10) in which the content to be monitored is stored. The watermark serves as an index for limiting the database search needed for monitoring the signatures.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

providing a database having a plurality of database sections; and

for each of a plurality of media content items, and for one of the database sections,

extracting features of the media content item and generating a signature representing the extracted features;

storing a record corresponding to the media content item in the database section, the record including the signature; and

generating a watermarked media content item by embedding in the media content item a watermark Identifying the database section.

2. A method comprising:

receiving a media content item having a watermark, the watermark identifying a database section in a database having a plurality of database sections, the identified database section being adapted to store a plurality of records, each record having a signature representing extracted features of a media content item;

extracting features of the received media content item, and generating a signature representing the features extracted from the received media content item; and

searching the database section identified by the watermark for a record having the signature.