Known as the MPEG-7 digital signature tool, the technology centres on the fact that any digital media file has a unique fingerprint and, if the fingerprint differs from the original – or clones of the original – then the copyright holder can spot this.
NEC claims that the technology is sufficiently accurate to detect an illegal copy of an MPEG file within 60 frames – around two seconds on a typical media file.
Unlike digital watermarking, which allows the copyright holder to trace where a digital file has originated from, the MPEG-7 digital signature tool allows the copyright holder to scan to see if a file has been altered in any way, such as by removing DRM signals, or changing the format.
Furthermore, because the technology only requires a short extract from the media file, if the copyright holder – or their agent – monitors a filesharing session on the internet, then NEC says they can detect, with 96% accuracy, whether the file is legal or not.
There's no word on which companies will be using the technology, but NEC claims it is talking to a number of DRM vendors, especially now that the system has been ratified by the International Standards Organisation (ISO).
In a press statement issued by NEC Japan, the company said: "These developments are expected to significantly reduce the time and cost of manual content inspections as well as improve the scale and accuracy of content assessment."
"These technologies achieved an average detection rate of 96% at a very low false alarm rate of 5ppm (5 in one million) through tests conducted by the ISO", said the company.
According to NEC, by designing a compact signature size of 76 bytes per frame, the storage memory required for the matching process is minimised.
"Looking forward, NEC will further develop this technology in order to provide a variety of applications that establish a content distribution structure where all video rights are respected", the firm said.
The standard is expected to be published in September 2010, following approval from ITTF member countries and will be demonstrated at the 13th Embedded System Expo when it opens in Tokyo tomorrow.