New York, 10 August 2017 – NexGuard, a Kudelski Group (SIX:KUD.S) company and the leading provider of forensic watermarking technology and solutions, today announced that it will demonstrate how its forensic watermarking product portfolio helps secure the revenue and livelihoods of the creative and sports industries to protect creativity at IBC 2017 (stand #1.C81).

Content owners, service providers and sports leagues all face increased pressure from unauthorized re-streaming of content, which is costing the creative and sports broadcast industry significant revenue, threatening future production budgets and innovation.

“Piracy is not only threatening the budgets that are driving innovation in the premium content industry today. Beyond the salaries of the stars, it also endangers the livelihoods of the people making the magic happen behind the scenes,” said Harrie Tholen, Managing Director at NexGuard. “At IBC 2017, we will showcase how content protection can deter piracy at every step of the content production and distribution chain. Our solutions help the creative industry to fully focus on creating compelling experiences that consumers crave. At the show, we will demonstrate how easily this can be achieved with the right tools.”

To enable the content industry to better tackle this critical security challenge, NexGuard will demonstrate a variety of products at IBC 2017, including:

• Forensic watermarking for pre-release or pre-aired content, with the introduction of two new NexGuard products:
  • NexGuard File Delivery, which secures downstream content distribution of mezzanine files
  • NexGuard Network ID, which secures primary distribution feeds for linear TV
• Forensic watermarking for early-release content, delivered to set-top-boxes or by OTT streaming.
• Content protection for Live Sports. The demo will feature NexGuard’s subscriber-level watermark insertion as well as pirate service monitoring, identification of rogue subscribers and countermeasure options from NexGuard’s sister company Nagra.

Used for over 10 years by all major Hollywood studios to help track pirates, NexGuard forensic watermarking was recognized through a Technology and Engineering Emmy® award, demonstrating the central role played by the solution in the fight against piracy. Following the publication of the MovieLabs specifications for enhanced content protection, the studios are also making forensic watermarking a key security requirement for any operator providing early release or UHD/4K content.

NexGuard works with top tier content producers, broadcasters, Pay TV operators and OTT providers around the world, including all major Hollywood studios; AMC Networks in the US; iQiyi, the largest Internet and mobile video service provider in China; ZEE TV in India; sports leagues and many more. NexGuard also works with the majority of the members of the newly founded Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, a new global coalition dedicated to protecting the dynamic legal market for creative content and reducing online piracy.

Forensic watermarking is a process by which a unique identifier can be added to video or audio content. The watermark is designed to remain with the content, regardless of how it might be transcoded, resized, downscaled, captured by camcorder or otherwise altered for distribution.

Harrie Tholen, Managing Director at NexGuard, will also be speaking at the IBC Show Live panel “Protecting media assets and countering cyber threats in the OTT world” held on Monday, September 18^th, 15:30 – 16:15 at Content Everywhere Hub, #14.J10.

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Note to editors: If you’d like to meet NexGuard at IBC 2017 (Amsterdam Rai, The Netherlands, 15-19 September 2017) or to find out more about the company’s solutions, please contact Ségolène Roche of Platform Communications: nexguard@platformcomms.com, or +44 207 486 4900. 

About NexGuard

NexGuard (www.nexguard.com), a Kudelski company, provides the most widely deployed forensic watermarking solutions in the movie and entertainment industry across the globe. Its technology and solutions protect valuable media content, such as premium entertainment and live sports, against illegal distribution. Follow us on Twitter: @NexGuard and LinkedIn. The Kudelski Group (www.nagra.com) is a global leader in digital security and convergent media solutions for the delivery of digital and interactive content.

Media Contacts:

Lauren Alboini / Ségolène Roche

Tel: +44 (0) 207 486 4900

nexguard@platformcomms.com