A group of researchers have developed a way to identify pirated movies by reducing the original to a signature genetic code. The system can match even videos that have been altered or had their colors changed to the source, an area where many video piracy mechanisms fall short.
Drs. Alex and Michael Bronstein and Professor Ron Kimmel have come up with a way to isolate a certain subset of data from video files that serves an analogous role to a fingerprint at a crime scene. While the creators haven't published research on this exact project in order to guard the proprietary technology, it works by applying a series of grids over the film to reduce it to a series of numbers.
Once the film has been systematically reduced, copyright holders can take the "DNA signature" of the video and scan sites that host pirated videos for it. According to the three researchers, the signature should be able to find correct matches even if the videos' borders have been changed, commercials have been added, or scenes have been edited out, which is a capability that sites that patrol for piracy, like YouTube, currently lack.
There are no details on the limitations of the system, such as video length, style, or quality. "We have a fully working prototype and have established a company that commercializes it," Dr. Bronstein told Ars.
While the website is no more revealing about how the video DNA matching works, Bronstein adds that they've already had a few companies interested in licensing the technology.