Video Research Gears up to Launch New Commercial Monitoring System
Using Verance Watermarking Technology
June 25th, 2001
Video Research Ltd. announced today that it has demonstrated a new commercial monitoring system using the watermarking technology of California, USA-based Verance to a gathering of 159 broadcasting industry representatives. Video Research is currently gearing up to launch a service based on the system, which can also be used with HDTV broadcasts. The demonstration took place on Tuesday, June 19, 2001, at the Ginza Tobu Hotel.
As previously announced, Video Research has taken an equity stake in Verance as part of a strategic business partnership between the two. Verance is the world's leading developer of audio watermarking applications for broadcast monitoring, content rights management, and wireless systems.
ConfirMedia™, a broadcast confirmation system employing Verance's patented watermarking technology, is used to monitor and report on ID-encoded commercials, music, and programs broadcast by major TV stations, the national TV networks, and cable TV networks in the US's top 100 markets. Video Research is planning to use this same technology for monitoring commercials in Japan.
Since late 2000, Video Research has been using an encoding system to monitor commercials broadcast on traditional terrestrial broadcasting systems, but the strategic alliance with Verance means that Video Research will be able to monitor HDTV broadcasts as well. Video Research also plans to have the new system ready for deployment by the time all Japan's terrestrial broadcasters go digital in 2003.
Watermarking technology
Watermarking technology is used to protect and manage media content. It comes in two varieties, "audio watermarking" and "video watermarking"; but for video, watermarking techniques will have to be adapted separately for each of the many image-encoding formats that are likely to be developed in our digital-media age. In contrast, audio watermarking-because it entails encoding and identifying ID information in the audio track using sounds imperceptible to the human ear-can be used virtually independently of video format, giving it promise as the more advantageous technology moving forward. Audio watermarking thus offers a wider range of possible applications covering both video and non-video media.
The Verance watermark is designed so the ID encoding can withstand the degradation associated with all types of compression used in the broadcasting industry whose specifications have been made public. The Verance watermark is superior in that it is detectable in a wide range of situations, including playback speeds different from that of the original content
Verance:
 Company
name: |
Verance |
| Industry: |
Technology development company |
| President: |
Robert Warren (CEO) |
| Address:
|
6525 Greenwich Drive Suite 500, San Diego, California, USA 92122 |
| Established:
|
August 3, 1999 |
| Major
shareholders: |
Constellation Ventures, MMC Capital, Qualcomm Corporation, Ocean Fund Advisors |
| Employees:
|
85 |
| Businesses:
|
Verance designs, develops and licenses audio watermarking technology solutions for broadcast monitoring and management of media content. Verance audio watermarking technologies are the industry standards for Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) Phase 1 Copy Control and other systems. Licensees include major record labels (EMI, BGM, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner-Universal), Microsoft, Matsushita Electronics, Toshiba, and many other information technology industry leaders. |
