Microsoft patent spies on consumers to enforce DRM

[Brink]

A new patent application filed by Microsoft and granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office details a content distribution system which uses cameras to detect whether or not you've been paying for your content.
Credit: CNET

The patent, US20120278904, works as a surveillance mechanism, inbuilt within devices including television sets, computers, smartphones and tablets in order to enforce digital rights management (DRM). In other words, if you're streaming content without a license, it can be detected -- and your media stream cut off.

Read more at source:
Microsoft patent spies on consumers to enforce DRM | ZDNet

 

[oreo27]

I'm entirely not sure if this is an innovation or just a plain and simple violation of privacy.

 

[SIW2]

How can you not be sure?

 

[bdstx4]

How could turning on someones Webcam and watching/recording have anything to do with what you are online surfing or doing, or have done? Looking at your face in a Webcam does not tell anyone what you are doing. Major privacy
invasion yes. Telling someone what you are doing no.

Your internet enabled and connected TV would have to have a front facing camera to even turn on!

 

[neo101]

Nah!

I read yrs ago the panel producers patented/boasted about a spying mechanism whereby they use the spaces in between pixels on your screen as a giant camera to spy on you.
No doubt applies to mobile phone screens too!
No need for a specific camera.

All hard drives have a built in 'spy chip' with unique id invented/built by a Swiss company too!

Who do these 'unidentified' people spying on users think they are?

 

[bdstx4]

Reading in detail the link Brink gave, this could be defeated with a piece of tape over your phone/tablet/computer/tv
webcam.

 

[bdstx4]

To keep this discussion clear. If you discover a bootleg movie on say Youtube. It is the account that posted the movie
that is in violation, not the viewer. And at any point in time there are many bootleg movies on Youtube. I personally do not download and save any movies or music. I know how to do it. Just not worth the time, trouble and disk space to me.

 

[indianacarnie]

" However, when technology in the home can detect how many people are present, their ages and potentially store their facial profiles, if this is made commercial, it's unlikely the latest privacy intrusion will go down well with the general public."

Boy, is THAT an understatement! Total big brother ........... I ...... I ...... words fail me

 

[bigcitycat]

Open Source is the future of software. So yeh I don't pay and there is really nothing they can do about it.

 

[arkhi]

Your internet enabled and connected TV would have to have a front facing camera to even turn on!

This technology is actually related to the Kinect (in case you're unfamiliar, it's Microsoft's Xbox 360 motion sensor platform). It HAS a camera. Microsoft will essentially use this technology to detect the number of people watching a movie to determine if the audience is in a "private" setting or "public". Remember you need to have a license for film viewing on a public place/audience.

Personally, I think this is stupid as you can bring your whole class to your private home to watch a movie and would still be within licensing terms because of the venue.

 

[SIW2]

Not really.

If you have that technology - you change the licensing to make money from it.

E.g. Only two people can watch.

Any more than two people - it won't play and you will have to pay more.

That is what spying on you in your own home is for.

Force more money out of the customer.

Right now - your whole family can watch it .

With that technology - you will pay more for the same thing.

That is the purpose of it.

I already know how they will attempt to justify it.

You have 3 guesses.

 

[bobafetthotmail]

dunno. Knowing most manufacturers, they'll make so rushed jobs at both hardware and software that it will be a breeze to crack and won't tell the difference between a photo of my face and my actual face.

If they want this to be really reliable, they have to make it as an addon. But it is no guarantee that someone won't hack it or reverse engineer it to make a "unlock all" gimmick you then find on Alibaba or similar sites that sell stuff from china.

If they want to make it really airtight they have to offload all the recognition tasks to their own servers, AND keep a live camera feed to avoid people tricking the camera (yes, cheap cameras in quite a few image recognition locks can't tell the difference between a photo and real life, now justify a 200 or even 400$ increase in product price to install decent cameras). I can hear laughing from here about the costs and bandwith required for this nonsense.
And even then, devices that read the movie/music/whatever anyway will likely be still easily available from shady sources.

Yep, you guessed it. Sounds a lot like current DRM measures.

 

[mjf]

Sounds like absolute "Big Brother" stuff. No way should Corporations play this game.

 

[richnrockville]

FWIW: Some people seem to be getting paranoid. Not me, No one is out to get me, YET

Rich

 

[msgerbs]

So, unplug your Kinect? Unless they're going to start making Kinect a requirement to watch movies.

 

[indianacarnie]

FWIW: Some people seem to be getting paranoid. Not me, No one is out to get me, YET

Rich

“Paranoia is just having the right information.”
― William S. Burroughs

“Strange how paranoia can link up with reality now and then.”
― Philip K. Dick

 

[bobafetthotmail]

So, unplug your Kinect? Unless they're going to start making Kinect a requirement to watch movies.

That's the point of that patent.