Movies That Fight Back
In a few years, if you’re in a theater watching some sci-fi robot thriller, a real-life battle of the machines might unfold quietly before you: gadgets at the front of the house may seek out the optical signatures of bootleggers’ camcorders, then fire narrow beams of light directly into the lenses, blinding the cameras and saving the day for Hollywood’s bottom line.

With the Motion Picture Association of America estimating that piracy of newly released movies involves in-theater camcorders 90 percent of the time, a counteroffensive is taking shape. Technology prototyped by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology in June exploits the fact that all digital cameras use light-catching sensors that also reflect light back. The Georgia Tech system shines a weak infrared beam–invisible to humans–into the audience and identifies cameras by the reflected infrared light. If the system spots a camcorder, it zaps it with a narrow beam of white light, producing large splotches on the recording. Gregory Abowd, the computer scientist who led development of the technology, has launched a startup company to commercialize it, DominINC.
A different approach comes from the Content Security subsidiary of Paris-based Thomson, which opened a demo center in Burbank, CA, this year. Its technology damages illicit recordings by doctoring the movies themselves, digitally inserting extra frames containing things like flashes of light or the words “illegal copy,” says chief technology officer Jian Zhao.
The inserted frames are undetectable to people in the theater, but because of the difference between movie and video frame rates, they show up in the pirated copies. The doctored frames appear at random rates so bootleggers can’t beat the system.
Brad Hunt, chief technology officer for the Motion Picture Association, says the industry wants to make sure such technologies won’t distract moviegoers. But with hundreds of millions of dollars on the line, the industry is eager for solutions in the next several years, he says.
Keep Reading
Most Popular

Why China is still obsessed with disinfecting everything
Most public health bodies dealing with covid have long since moved on from the idea of surface transmission. China’s didn’t—and that helps it control the narrative about the disease’s origins and danger.

These materials were meant to revolutionize the solar industry. Why hasn’t it happened?
Perovskites are promising, but real-world conditions have held them back.

Anti-aging drugs are being tested as a way to treat covid
Drugs that rejuvenate our immune systems and make us biologically younger could help protect us from the disease’s worst effects.

A quick guide to the most important AI law you’ve never heard of
The European Union is planning new legislation aimed at curbing the worst harms associated with artificial intelligence.
Stay connected

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.