Back to Archived News
WideVineŽ Allowed Patent for Smart Card-Less Conditional Access and Digital Rights Management
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Covers Protection of Streaming Media, Progressive Downloads and Video on Demand
Seattle, WA – Widevine Technologies, the world’s leading provider of downloadable content protection, forensic watermarking and digital copy protection solutions, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademarking Office has allowed a new patent for the Widevine Cypher® Virtual SmartCard™ which enables separable security of multimedia content from consumer devices.
The new patent is intended to provide any service provider a fully licensable security solution for protecting streaming media, progressive downloads and video on demand (VOD). Virtual SmartCard technology has become a standard method for managing digital rights management (DRM) and downloadable conditional access (DCAS) within consumer devices. Introduced by Widevine in 2000, it has become the foundation for delivering cost effective separable security in any consumer device and is essential for service providers to deliver multimedia content to a wide range of platforms.
According to Glenn Morten, Widevine’s CTO and patent co-inventor, "Persistent content security and consumer electronics flexibility are vital to anyone delivering streamed media or VOD. I am excited that the USPTO continues to recognize Widevine’s innovation. With this new patent, Widevine is confident in our ability to offer a sustainable competitive advantage for service providers worldwide."
Widevine’s intellectual property portfolio now comprises 10 issued U.S. and international patents, with 346 claims. Widevine has more than 45 other patents pending in the USPTO and international pipelines. Widevine’s patents cover a broad range of content security technologies required for video delivery to multiple devices, in multiple formats and on multiple platforms including:
- Downloadable conditional access, which is the basis of the FCC’s separable security requirement.
- Selective encryption to enable persistent encryption of broadcast, VOD, streamed media and file downloaded content on any network transport including cable, telco, internet and mobile.
- Digital copy protection using real-time, evolving detectors to monitor, detect and respond to piracy post-decryption.
"We are confident that this new patent will be of particular use and interest to any entity that makes, uses, or offers to sell DRM or DCAS for streaming media or video on demand," says Mani Aliabadi, Widevine’s General Counsel.
Widevine’s previous patents include: U.S. 6,449,719 B1, U.S. 6,965,993 B2, U.S. 7,007,170 B2, U.S 7,043,473, U.S. 7,150,045, R.O.C. 1268080, U.S. 7,165,175, KR 10-0749947-0000 and KR 10-0747755-0000.
About Widevine Technologies, Inc.
Widevine is the leading provider of downloadable content protection and forensic solutions for video operators worldwide. Widevine enables telco, internet, mobile, cable and satellite service operators to generate new revenue opportunities through the secure distribution, identification and tracking of multimedia content.
Utilizing a combination of downloadable conditional access, digital rights management and digital copy protection techniques, Widevine enables operators to acquire and distribute premium studio content and, through unique patented technologies, reduce video related capital and operational expenditures. An innovator in the industry, Widevine invented downloadable, renewable client security with the Cypher Virtual SmartCard—which today protects more IP video set top boxes, personal video recorders, PCs, portable media players and mobile devices in the industry than any other vendor.
Widevine is a privately held corporation headquartered in Seattle, WA, USA, funded by Cisco Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO), Charter Ventures, Constellation Ventures, Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd (DNP), PaceSetter Capital Group, Phoenix Partners, TELUS (NYSE: TU) and VantagePoint Venture Partners.
Back to Archived News
