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Research beat

A guard against digital theft?

by Melissa Abraham
UCLA TODAY

Researchers led by Professor Rajit Gadh from the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science are working on a breakthrough technology, the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology to protect DVD content against unauthorized use. If successful, it could save the U.S. film industry losses totaling more than $3 billion in potential worldwide revenues annually.

If a product has an RFID tag microchip, containing data about its manufacturer, point of origin or price, the information can be transmitted to an RFID reader. No contact or even line-of-sight is needed for the reader to retrieve this data.

Are RFID tags already in use?

Wal-Mart and other large corporations use RFID tags to track goods throughout the world. The tags are also in library books and on apparel and airline baggage. The technology is even used at toll booths to collect tolls electronically and in identification badges and electronic cash cards.

So how can this technology be used to stop digital piracy?

The UCLA research group is developing the software and hardware components of a system that would embed DVDs with an RFID tag and insert an RFID reader into DVD players. Tagged DVDs would theoretically only be playable by RFID-enabled players that can authenticate the DVD’s tag.

How far along is their research?

The scientists are in the very early stages of this project. “We have the different pieces of the technology and a pretty good idea of how it’s going to fit together. But right now we’re examining whether this technology is really feasible,”Gadh. said The UCLA-based Wireless Internet for Mobile Enterprise Consortium, which Gadh directs, will host an RFID Industry Forum on campus Oct. 26. For details, visit www.winmec.ucla.edu.