System and method for embedding additional information in video data

Abstract

A method and system for embedding an electronic watermark directly in an MPEG stream is provided. An intra-macroblock of an I-frame or of a P or B-frame is detected in an MPEG stream, and following the detection of an intra-macroblock of the I-frame or of the P or B-frame, data for one macroblock are extracted from the MPEG stream and buffered. An embedding pattern is embedded in the buffered macroblock without changing the length of VLC, and the resultant macroblock is returned to the MPEG stream. More specifically, a DC factor is extracted from the buffered macroblock, and a pseudorandom number is generated to produce an embedding pattern. Then, whether the bit length of the DC factor will not be changed by embedding the obtained embedded pattern is determined. When the bit length of the DC factor not be changed, the embedding pattern is embedded in the buffered macroblock. When the bit length will be changed, whether ½ of the embedding pattern can be embedded is determined. If possible, ½ of the embedded pattern is embedded in the macroblock.

1 . A system for controlling the copying of digital data, said system comprising: 
 means for detecting CCI in input data;    means for, when said CCI is detected, detecting ECCI in said input data;    means for, when said ECCI is detected, inhibiting the copying of the digital data; and    means for, when said ECCI is not detected permitting the embedding of said ECCI in said digital data and the copying of the resultant digital data.