Verimatrix, the leading developer of IPTV content protection and security solutions, today announced at NAB 2006 the next generation of the Verimatrix Content Authority System (VCAS) 2.0. VCAS 2.0 is an enhanced version that protects the network operator's revenue stream by providing patent-pending theft of service prevention, while offering a redistribution feature to increase the value of the network and provide additional revenue opportunities.

The major objectives for VCAS 2.0, which were driven by customer input, included protection against theft of services, providing a reseller model for additional revenue, integrating analog copy protection and offering a single system to provide conditional access (CA) for the cable, satellite, and IPTV markets.

"Until now, content security solutions only focused on protecting content for Hollywood studios in order for network operators to gain access to premium content. However as IPTV gains momentum service providers are becoming more concerned with protecting their own revenues from theft, which is rampant in the more mature cable and satellite markets," said Van Baker, Research VP at Gartner.

Theft of service prevention from Verimatrix is a proactive, multifaceted approach to eliminate revenue loss due to service piracy, such as cloned set-top boxes (STB) and attacks on the software downloading platform. Network operators are looking for technology solutions to avoid the degree of theft that the cable and satellite industries have been experiencing. Because IPTV networks provide two-way capabilities, VCAS is able to detect and prevent theft of service in a dynamic environment responding instantly to unauthorized network use. In addition, VCAS is able to make continual improvements and address the changing needs of network operators, negating the need for smart cards.

"Because of the maturing IPTV market and the availability of premium content, service providers are now asking, 'What's in it for me?'," said Steve Oetegenn, EVP of Global Sales and Marketing, Verimatrix. "Verimatrix not only provides content protection solutions approved by Hollywood studios and linear broadcasters, it now provides value-added security solutions for network providers to retain and enhance revenues. We are committed to providing leading-edge solutions that advance worldwide IPTV deployments and we feel that focusing on the network provider will help this effort."

"The advances in VCAS 2.0 represent a breakthrough in smart card-less content security solutions," said Bob Kulakowski, CTO, Verimatrix. "When compared with traditional conditional access or digital rights management solutions, Verimatrix is truly pushing the envelope in content security software for Pay TV resulting in the best available security for any network."

Technology Building Blocks of VCAS 2.0:

• VideoMark is the industry's first robust and invisible content tracking solution that enables forensic, user-specific marking of individual video copies to track piracy to the individual STB. Every STB contains an individual user identification, which is linked to that consumer via a unique digital certificate. Because piracy can be traced back to the source, and not just the network operator, content owners are ensured a higher protection level than other distribution methods, such as DVDs and VHS tapes.
• SimulCAS provides a single content security system for both Digital Video Broadcasting-Cable (DVB-C) and IPTV by supporting the simultaneous transmission of channels in both analog and digital formats.
• Quantum Authentication detects 100 percent perfect clones of real STBs where clones are exact in every way. Regular data sent to the Verimatrix server reveals operational differences between real STBs and cloned STBs, such as watching different channels or asking for keys at different times.
• Federated Authentication ensures the STB is connected to the correct physical line at the subscriber's house or apartment. On a daily basis, VCAS sweeps the network to detect cloned STBs where the credentials have been cloned, but the physical connection between the DSLAM and STB can never be duplicated.
• DVB Simulcrypt Support provides the network operator the option to act as a content or broadcast aggregator by reselling or redistributing a single IPTV video feed to other IP video service providers. Service providers can send a single secure video feed to numerous video service providers or telcos resulting in a single video feed resold by multiple operators.
• ADAPT copy protection sits with the STB to prevent digital video from being recorded and distributed as analog onto a VHS tape. It distorts the video making it unwatchable when the tape is replayed.