As people become more and more mobile, their demand for accessing pay-TV on anywhere, anytime-basis is rising, and this is posing a great challenge for service providers, as they have to adopt unified content-security strategies, which can support the seamless three-screen experience customers are looking for.

The service providers have to securely deliver the content to multiple devices. And at the same time they need to take care of the data protection measures across different types of networks. The major challenge for the service provider here is to find a platform that delivers protection to any screen under any network, in order to meet any security threat. The platform must be able to dynamically apply the correct layers of security to each individual content stream, irrespective of the network and device the customer is using.

When the pay-TV operators seek to implement an all-encompassing security solution, they need to consider all the functional details pertaining to each dimension. The solution has to be unique in the sense that it must be responsive to all the requirements, in each of the dimensions. The content security requirements from the network, device and content-owner perspectives must be well understood by the service providers to ensure the value of their network.

Indisputable demand

The service providers understood long back that eventually one day they will have to provide the customers the three-screen access to content. However, there was a bit of speculation about the customers' response to the service and how useful it would for them. The service providers were not very sure whether their hard work would be rewarded.

Now, however, there is a running wave of appreciation for this kind of a service around the world, and so this is time that the right content security solution should be found. At this stage, three-screen access can be a bit cumbersome and a costly undertaking for individual users, but even then many people are using the Internet and mobile 3G networks to access content that was once available only through TV or on CDs/VCDs. According to a recent study conducted in the US, around 62 percent of American consumers prefer to watch video online. According to another report, around 16 percent of Americans watch TV broadcasts online. Researchers have also found that the mobile content market is also fast growing, estimated to be growing from about USD 20 billion in 2007, to over USD 44 billion in 2011.

Content portability is another issue. The acceptability of IP-enabled video devices, which are not set-tops, has been growing continuously. These devices include game consoles; media center PCs, IP-to-TV digital media adapters, and proprietary systems like the SlingBox SlingCatcher. By 2012, over 200 million such devices are estimated to ship worldwide. These are certain trends worth giving importance to, by cable service providers. A major market-driven imperative representing an upside opportunity for service providers, in order to expand revenues and differentiate service offerings, is service convergence.

Because of the technological advancement, it has become possible now to meet the security requirements essential for delivering a consumer-friendly cross-platform service. The key is to make sure that all the bases are covered with respect to network, device and protection perspectives.

Network perspective

From the network point of view, a unified content security system has to meet certain challenges.

All network operators are looking toward extending the reach of their services by using a variety of networks beyond their allowed range of infrastructure. Users accessing those services do not necessarily want to go through separate authentication processes whenever they are on a different network.

Normally, as the service providers seek to extend market reach by using multiple networks, so hardware-based security works are generally adopted against the goal of ubiquitous reach, by imposing limits on the variety of devices which are used to access content.

These developments point toward the need for a unified content security system based on IP-core technology as it can operate in software mode without requiring any dedicated hardware for the purpose.

The central role of IP goes well beyond the content security requirements. There are a lot of benefits of an IP-centric delivery system which are frequently seen in the latest international standards for delivery of content. Certain leading organizations such as the Digital Video Broadcast Project (DVB) have started delivering and securing content using IP protocols across diverse network types, by merging legacy MPEG-2 delivery with IP infrastructures, as well as IP-centric clients. DVB has also provided a very flexible series of Simulcrypt standards for accommodating co-existence of multiple stream types and different security platforms within a single given deployment. A good example is a pay-TV operator with a legacy encryption system, implementing a cross-platform security solution for providing a converged service.

Cable operators wanting to extend their network reach over DSL and mobile infrastructures can also implement a single solution which is competitive with any IP-based TV service system. Satellite service providers can now use a single system to enable broadband, video-¬?on-demand (VoD) and mobile service components through tie-ins with terrestrial networks. With the help of a single content protection solution, a telephone company can also provide MPEG-2 RF and IPTV-based services.

Device perspective

For a seamless experience that consumers expect, service providers have to ensure that any cross-platform security solution they choose should be applicable to the largest possible population of set-tops, PCs, handhelds and other relevant devices. The more devices the content security system supports, the more compelling the user experience would be.

Using a software-based content security system is essential for providing protection across any type of device consumers might use to view content. Once it becomes clear, then one can consider the appropriateness of the reach, flexibility and robustness of the protection regimes.

Another important point for the service providers to note in evaluating solutions is whether the platform can provide adequate protection to the PC.

Security perspective

There is a need to support portability for high-value content if we need additional security capabilities beyond encryption to address multiple types of threats. The service providers have to apply these various content security layers on an as-needed basis, depending upon the type of content and the requirement of the content owner. The content protection solutions for pay-TV have evolved from analog scrambling to digital encryption, from analog copy protection to high-bandwidth digital content protection (HDCP), and are continually generating new technologies and techniques for addressing the challenges of piracy.

For the service providers to win the support of motion picture studios and broadcasters for distribution of high-value assets, e.g., early release movies, a watermark is inserted at the point of consumption so as to trace piracy to the specific individual and not simply the pay-TV operator. Content owners are fully assured of protection that extends beyond the digital network.

Apart from watermarking security, there is another need to protect against a very common type of service theft in pay-TV services known as cloning. Through the use of illegal devices designed specifically to emulate brand models for providing a way for people to access content without paying for it, leads to loss of subscription-fee in the order of tens of millions of dollars annually.

To overcome this tactic, the content security system must be able to detect even the most cleverly designed device clones. It must be able to detect operational differences between real and cloned devices by properly analyzing the data it receives regularly. And it must also ensure that the device is connected to the appropriate physical network at the correct location.

The three-dimensional content security solution offers significant benefits for a true competitive advantage. For the first time, network service providers can now proceed with service models that completely address both the ease of use and accessibility requirements of customers and the requirements of protection of content suppliers across multiple platforms. Putting a three-dimensional content security solution in place, service providers can introduce new revenue-generating business schemes and ensure the loyalty of customers in today's chaotic service environment. Moreover, they can do it cost-effectively, and without worrying about security threats, as they can address all situations from a single software-based security system that extends the reach of security updates to any device which can be used by the customers.

The present and growing IP-revolution sweeping the digital entertainment market is the most positive aspect for the service providers to prepare for future opportunities and challenges that come with meeting the needs of the content providers and the customers on a same platform.