Audio watermarking and fingerprinting: for which applications?

Gomes, Leandro de C.T.; Cano Vila, Pedro; Gómez Gutiérrez, Emilia, 1975-; Bonnet, Madeleine; Batlle i Mont, Eloi

doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1076/jnmr.32.1.65.16803

Audio watermarking and fingerprinting: for which applications?

Citation

Gomes L, Cano P, Gómez E, Bonnet M, Batlle E. Audio watermarking and fingerprinting for which applications?. J New Music Res. 2003;32(1):65-81. DOI: 10.1076/jnmr.32.1.65.16803

Abstract

Although not a new issue, music piracy has acquired a new status in the digital era, as recordings can be easily copied and distributed. Watermarking has been proposed as a solution to this problem. It consists in embedding into the audio signal an inaudible mark containing copyright information. A different approach, called fingerprinting, consists in extracting a ?fingerprint? from the audio signal. In association with a database, this fingerprint can be used to identify a recording, which is useful, for example, to monitor audio excerpts played by broadcasters and webcasters. There are far more applications to watermarking and fingerprinting. After a brief technical review, this article describes potential applications of both methodologies, showing which one is more suitable for each application.