Camcorder pirates collared by audio watermark

by The Inquirer on Mar 7, 2009

Tags: Camcorder | piracy | cinema | movies

5 Comments

5 comments in this discussion

"Pugsley wrote: Who the hell does that these days? If your not going to pay for a legit copy, why would you pay for a pirated product if you can get it from a million places on the web for ..."

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Movie industry boffins have come up with another weapon in the war against people who sneak video cameras into cinemas and make crappy copies of blockbuster movies to sell at car boot sales.

Video watermarking has been around for a while now but this technology can only reveal in which cinema a recording was made. The latest invention goes one step further and can tell investgators exactly which seat the cammer was sitting in to an accuracy of 44cm.

It's only a matter of time before cinema owners are forced by the big studios to start taking night vision snaps of movie-going audiences before every screening.

We dread to think what else they might catch going on in the dark.

Torrent Freak

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Comments: 5

Thoughts on this article? Add a comment below.

spazdor Mar 8, 2009 9:34 AM	Fantastic. Now all they have to do is institute assigned seating, require ID at cinemas, and start keeping a massive seating database. Also, maybe they don't know anything about phase analysis, but the same trick they use to pinpoint the microphone, can also be used by the pirates to process their recording and make it appear to have been taken from some other spot instead. Comment made about the PC Authority article: Camcorder pirates collared by audio watermark? Movie industry boffins have come up with another weapon in the war against people who sneak video cameras into cinemas and make crappy copies of blockbuster movies to sell at car boot sales. What do you think? Join the discussion.
Slatts Mar 8, 2009 10:18 AM	I personally feel that theater proprietors should be compelled to institute full body searches of customers before allowing patrons the privilege of entering the haloed hall of theater. Watching the monumental works of art by the great and wise makers of movies should be seen for what it is. A precious privileged. If patrons were made to undergo full body searches including cavity searches, and sign nondisclosure statements before being allowed to view Hollywoods' latest extravaganza, we could nip this piracy scourge in the bud and guaranty the safety of the intellectual children of the near destitute artists. We know these people. We follow every intimate detail of their lives! How could we allow their work to be devalued and debased in this way. Strip searches and cavity searches. Those camcorders can be pretty blood small. There's no shortage of teenage ushers just waiting to be upskilled!
spazdor Mar 9, 2009 12:28 PM	A cavity search. Hmm. Know what? I think I'll torrent it instead.
Pugsley Mar 10, 2009 12:37 AM	"another weapon in the war against people who sneak video cameras into cinemas and make crappy copies of blockbuster movies to sell at car boot sales." ??? Who the hell does that these days? If your not going to pay for a legit copy, why would you pay for a pirated product if you can get it from a million places on the web for free? There is no profit to be made in piracy.
Lost-Benji Mar 10, 2009 7:47 AM	Pugsley wrote: Who the hell does that these days? If your not going to pay for a legit copy, why would you pay for a pirated product if you can get it from a million places on the web for free? There is no profit to be made in piracy. Actually, it is still very prolific and common. Not everyone likes the internet or has the time or knowledge to DL good copies, so they just buy a cheap boot-leg.