Convention Paper
EBU Tests of Commercial Audio Watermarking Systems
AES Convention 116 · Paper 6011 · May 2004
Abstract
Audio watermarking has recently had a resurgence of interest, spurred on by the desire for copyright protection of digital audio recordings. Several audio watermarking techniques, some dating back more than 30 years are described briefly here. The uses to which watermarking might be put are also summarised. Attention is then focussed on the requirements identified by the EBU applicable to distribution over the Eurovision and Euroradio networks.
The EBU issued a call for systems to meet its requirements. Subjective and objective tests were done on the systems supplied for testing. Audibility and robustness of the watermarks were measured. The results are encouraging for those considering using audio watermarking in broadcast applications.
