[Opensim-users] Speaking of Content Theft, How About Our Own Backyard?

[Len Brown]

The greatest weakness of our virtual environment is that it must ultimately
be rendered within the confines of a viewer application to make the world
visible on our computer screens.  This, by its very nature, makes it
impossible to protect any content whatsoever.

It's like all the copyguards surrounding video.  they all work well and
great when attempting media to media copying, as in disc duplication.
However, the moment the video is rendered on a screen then it is ultimately
vulnerable to exploitation.

One of the easiest, fastest and most sure-fire ways to "steal" a new movie
in the theaters is by simply using a video camera in the theater to record
the video as it plays on-screen.

With virtual worlds, the fact that everything must ultimately be rendered so
that we can see and enjoy it, also means that circumventions can easily
exist to exploit the rendering and thus be "recorded" and saved by an
unscrupulous pirate who can then do whatever they wish with the end result.

- Len

On Wed, Feb 24, 2010 at 8:43 PM, Master_Mirage <mirage123 at verizon.net>wrote:

>
> Actulay ill dabble in a bit of what IF here. 1st off blocking users or
> clients isant the problem and as we know not effective really.
> The problem is the content it selph has no safegurds.
> In my way of thinking at this stage of opensimulator dev. We can add in
> some.
> One could be what ill call a 3rd state of perms. for example: I make a
> chair
> i set it no copy. That could also set a 3rd state that sets a NO EXPORT
> FLAG
> to the assest server. Now lets say i do want to give it away to anyone. So
> i
> set it so anyone can copy. It would then drop the no export flag from the
> oject and insted add the users water mark. That item can now be exported
> and
> be traceable at the same time.
>
> Other Opensimulators can test for the watermark and export flag used to
> decide if it can be imported. (might help keep fakes out). Watermarks could
> be portable for the user that can be used to authenticate them as the
> creator and where it was 1st made evan if its on another grid.
>
> Im shure i havent thought this thru well enough but i still feel protection
> of content has to be part of the content its selph. At least the abuilty to
> do things like that would give Opensimulator the tools to make a good 1st
> step twords anti-content theft.
>
> I know all this is alot more complicated todo than it sounds and thats why
> its just a What If .
>
>
> :-)
> --
> View this message in context:
> http://n2.nabble.com/Speaking-of-Content-Theft-How-About-Our-Own-Backyard-tp4622175p4630118.html
> Sent from the opensim-users mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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>



-- 
- Len W. Brown
  lenwbrown at gmail.com
     http://www.lenfocenter.com
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