Microsoft licenses audio watermarking technology

Microsoft said Wednesday that it has signed a deal to license audio watermarking technology from its research labs to Seattle-based Activated Content.

While watermarking technology is often used as an antipiracy measure, Microsoft said its technology allows companies to add-in other types of content and services into the watermarked audio. One of the big potential applications is adding advertising to streaming media, according to a report on MediaPost.

"We are excited about this agreement with Activated Content because they are uniquely positioned to extend this audio watermarking technology to new emerging applications and we feel great about supporting the development of a company based in our own backyard," said Louis Carbonneau, general manager for the Intellectual Property Licensing Group of Microsoft, in a statement.

The deal is the latest in Microsoft's ongoing effort to license more of its intellectual property. Microsoft cracked open its research labs for tech licensing in 2005.

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Missplaced Microsoft Priorities

Audio "watermarking" does nothing but subtract value from the consumer's perspective. Any "value added" can only be from a short term corporate standpoint. Consumers are increasingly fed up with Microsoft and their friends in the media content cartel as they conspire against end user's choices and "fair use". Microsoft should have devoted more of its energies to making Vista a superior operating system instead of riddling it with layers of DRM and now this latest anti consumer scheme. In the long run consumer's growing contempt for these self serving corporate tactics will spell their doom.