System and methodology for validating anti-piracy security compliance and reporting thereupon, for one to a plurality of movie theaters
View Patent ↗A movie anti-piracy system with sensing and reporting is provided. A movie projector projects a light image to reflect off of a screen. An anti-piracy subsystem is utilized to preclude, interfere with and/or prevent videotaping of the light images reflecting from the screen. Anti-piracy compliance sensing selectively provides compliance violation signals respectively to a sensor response controller. The controller is responsive to the compliance violation signals to provide a violation status (and other data) signal output to a control center. The control center responds to the violation status and other data signals, from one or a plurality of theaters, and provides for reporting of information (such as security compliance, attendance, etc.) to one or multiple reporting sites (such as movie distribution studios, etc.). In a preferred embodiment, the control center determines whether there are violations of providing of anti-piracy protection within a theater (or theaters) and provides reporting on the anti-piracy compliance status and data. If a violation is indicated, then the control center sends a violation signal such as to the sensor response controller which can trigger an alarm and/or activate a violation inhibit output to shut down the movie projector and/or communicate to the control center for reporting purposes.
1. A method for preventing videotaping of a movie prior to, during or after projecting onto a projection screen for viewing by an audience, the method comprising:
projecting visible light images onto the projection screen to provide for a visual presentation;
selectively providing an anti-piracy means to preclude videotaping of the movie;
sensing an absence of the anti-piracy means; and
generating a violation signal responsive to the sensing an absence.
2. The method as in claim 1 , further comprising: communicating security compliance information as an output communication responsive to one of sensing a presence of the anti-piracy means and the sensing an absence of the anti-piracy means.
3. The method as in claim 2 , further comprising: receiving the output communication at a remote receiving entity.
4. The method as in claim 1 , further comprising: shutting-down the projecting of the visible light images responsive to the violation signal.
5. The method as in claim 2 , further comprising: providing specific data associated with a respective theater, along with the violation signal as an output for communication to a remote receiving entity.
6. The method as in claim 5 , wherein the specific data is theater data comprised of one or more of:
identification of theater, global positioning system (GPS) location data, identification of at least one of date and time of a movie being shown, identification of the movie being shown, identification of an operator of movie equipment, attendance data for a respective showing of the movie, and an identification code.
7. The method as in claim 1 , further comprising: providing an output communication for a plurality of showings of a particular movie;
providing identification information for said movie; and
providing identification information related to any presence of the violation signal occurring during the plurality of showings.
8. An anti-piracy method for use in preventing videotaping prior to, during or after projecting of a projected visible light image, the method comprising:
projecting a projected visible light image to provide a visual presentation for viewing, to reflect from a screen;
implementing means for preventing the videotaping of the projected visible light image;
sensing an absence of the means for preventing the videotaping; and
generating a violation signal responsive to the sensing an absence of the means for preventing.
9. The method as in claim 8 , further comprising: providing an output communication responsive to the violation signal.
10. The method as in claim 9 , further comprising: coupling the output communication to at least one remote receiving entity.
11. The method as in claim 9 , wherein there is a plurality of movie theaters, and each using the anti-piracy method, each providing a separate respective output communication.
12. The method as in claim 11 , further comprising:
accumulating and storing at least one separate respective output communication from the plurality of the movie theaters by at least one remote receiving entity; and
generating a summary report responsive to the accumulating and storing.
13. The method as in claim 8 , further comprising: reporting the violation signal to a remote reporting entity.
14. The method as in claim 13 , wherein the reporting is via at least one of: mail, electronic mail, facsimile, telephone, and data network connection.
15. The method as in claim 12 , further comprising: communicating the summary report to at least one reporting site on a regular periodic basis.
16. An anti-piracy system to prevent videotape recording of a movie prior to, during or after projecting as a light image to reflect off of a screen, the system comprising:
an anti-piracy subsystem comprising:
means for interfering with the videotape recording of the movie;
means for providing a status signal output responsive to sensing an absence of operation of the means for interfering; and
a control system for generating a violation signal responsive to the sensing of an absence of operation of the means for interfering with the videotape recording.
17. The system as in claim 16 , wherein the control system provides for communicating the violation signal as a communicated signal to a reporting subsystem.
18. The system as in claim 17 , wherein there is a plurality of the anti-piracy subsystems, each providing a respective one of a plurality of communicated signals; and
wherein the reporting subsystem provides for respectively storing a plurality of the communicated signals from the plurality of anti-piracy subsystems, and for accumulating a history of the violation signals responsive to the plurality of communicated signals.
19. The system as in claim 18 , wherein the reporting subsystem provides for generating a report responsive to the history.
20. The system as in claim 19 , wherein each of the plurality of anti-piracy subsystems is located in a respective one of a plurality of respective theaters; and
wherein the report is communicated to at least one of the plurality of respective theaters.