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Multiple channels displaying different codes, targeted to different groups of receivers. Even with only two channels, I expect you could binary search it down
by sveiss 11y ago
Multiple channels displaying different codes, targeted to different groups of receivers.
Even with only two channels, I expect you could binary search it down to a single receiver over the course of a single season of matches.
- mikeash 11y agoCould you just program the receiver to overlay the numbers after receiving the unadulterated video from the satellite?
- mootothemax 11y agoCould you just program the receiver to overlay the numbers after receiving the unadulterated video from the satellite? I've been informed that some streaming services simply cut off the side of the screen where the Sky logo starts to appear.
- sveiss 11y agoHeh. Simple solutions! I wonder if they also use something like Digimarc for a non-visible watermark? They could publicly credit the visible watermark as a distraction from the real technique.
- mikeash 11y agoThat was actually my first thought when I saw the screenshot with the numbers near the top of the screen. Slice that part off, stream the rest. A similar thing shows up on YouTube a lot, actually. People heavily crop uploads of copyrighted material to get around their content identification stuff.
- sveiss 11y agoYou could, but modifying the receiver firmware then becomes an attractive target. A Sky STB is just an embedded Linux device, after all. Doing the overlay in the smartcard would make it a harder target, if the smartcard has the processing power to do it.
- mikeash 11y agoIf one were so inclined, I imagine it could be done with dedicated hardware specifically made for generating the overlay. May not be worth the cost though.
- jamesbrownuhh 11y agoThe smart card has nothing like the power required to process video - but it doesn't need to. The Sky receivers are fortified sufficiently to make changing the firmware a distinctly non-trivial operation.
- jamesbrownuhh 11y agoThat's exactly how it works. The numbers are hashed by the receiver and uniquely identify that particular viewing card, then displayed in a position selected by the channel operator, when triggered at a time of their choosing.