Sound marks by Cambridge and US group

Cambridge Consultants, the 350-strong technology and product design consultancy, is developing “audio watermarking” technology, in anticipation of spiralling on-line music sales.

The consultancy is going into partnership with US group AudioTrack Watermark Solutions to develop the technology in the UK. Digital watermarking can be used to prevent unauthorised copying of audio content whether it is on-line or on a film soundtrack.

By embedding an invisible code into the audio data, piracy can be prevented. The code acts as a key that can unlock the playing device used to listen to the music.

“We chose to work and invest in AudioTrack because we are confident that it will become the leading provider of watermark solutions to the entertainment industry,” says Steve Barlow, leader of Cambridge Consultants Embedded Digital Systems Group. Cambridge Consultants has taken equity in the group in exchange for representation on its board.

The partnership’s first product, AudioTrack Adaptive Watermark, will go on sale later this year.