System for identifying content of digital data

1. A method comprising:

receiving a first list comprising 1) a plurality of events from a portion of digital data of an unknown work and 2) one or more metrics between each pair of adjacent events from the plurality of events, wherein each of the plurality of events comprises a visually or audibly perceptual occurrence at a time location in the unknown work;

comparing, by a hardware processor, the first list to a second list comprising events and metrics between events for a known work to determine a first quantity of hits and a second quantity of misses, wherein a hit is determined for a match between an event or metric in the first list and a corresponding event or metric in the second list and a miss is determined for an event or metric in the first list that fails to match an event or metric in the second list;

determining whether the first quantity of hits at least equals a hit threshold;

comparing a miss ratio to a miss ratio threshold, wherein the miss ratio is a ratio of the first quantity of hits to the second quantity of misses;

determining, by the hardware processor, whether the first list matches the second list based on the comparing of the miss ratio to the miss ratio threshold and further based on the determining of whether the first quantity of hits at least equals the hit threshold; and

determining, by the hardware processor, that the unknown work is a copy of the known work responsive to determining that the first list matches the second list.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

performing a secondary test to verify an identity of the unknown work responsive to a determination that the first list matches the second list.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list comprises: returning a match if the first quantity of hits is least equals the hit threshold.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list based on the first quantity of hits and the second quantity of misses comprises:

determining whether the second quantity of misses exceeds a miss threshold; and

returning an indication of no match responsive to the second quantity of misses exceeding the miss threshold.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the unknown work comprises an unknown video work, and wherein the plurality of events comprises visually perceptual occurrences at the time locations in the unknown video work, the plurality of events comprising at least one of a scene change between neighboring scenes in the portion of digital data, a blank frame preceding or following a non-blank frame, or a first frame having pixels with a first color distribution preceding a second frame having pixels with a second color distribution that differs from the first color distribution by a threshold amount.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

determining a regression line through a set of points (x,y), where each x is a time location of a particular event on the first list having a corresponding event on the second list and each y is a time location of the corresponding event on the second list;

determining a regression error for the regression line; and

comparing the regression error to a regression error threshold;

wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list comprises determining whether the regression error is lower than the regression error threshold, wherein the first list matches the second list if the regression error is lower than the regression error threshold.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list comprises determining whether the miss ratio is less than the miss ratio threshold, wherein the first list matches the second list if the miss ratio is less than the miss ratio threshold.

8. A system comprising:

a memory; and

a hardware processor coupled with the memory to:

receive a first list comprising 1) a plurality of events from a portion of digital data of an unknown work and 2) one or more metrics between each pair of adjacent events from the plurality of events, wherein each of the plurality of events comprises a visually or audibly perceptual occurrence at a time location in the unknown work;

compare the first list to a second list comprising events and metrics between events for a known work to determine a first quantity of hits and a second quantity of misses, wherein a hit is determined for a match between an event or metric in the first list and a corresponding event or metric in the second list and a miss is determined for an event or metric in the first list that fails to match an event or metric in the second list;

determine whether the first quantity of hits at least equals a hit threshold;

compare a miss ratio to a miss ratio threshold, wherein the miss ratio is a ratio of the first quantity of hits to the second quantity of misses;

determine whether the first list matches the second list based on the comparing of the miss ratio to the miss ratio threshold and further based on the determining of whether the first quantity of hits at least equals the hit threshold; and

determine that the unknown work is a copy of the known work responsive to determining that the first list matches the second list.

9. The system of claim 8 , wherein the hardware processor is further to:

perform a secondary test to verify an identity of the unknown work responsive to a determination that the first list matches the second list.

10. The system of claim 8 , wherein to determine whether the first list matches the second list based on the first quantity of hits and the second quantity of misses the hardware processor is further to return a match if the first quantity of hits at least equals the hit threshold.

11. The system of claim 8 , wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list based on the first quantity of hits and the second quantity of misses comprises:

determining whether the second quantity of misses exceeds a miss threshold; and

returning an indication of no match responsive to the second quantity of misses exceeding the miss threshold.

12. The system of claim 8 , wherein the unknown work comprises an unknown video work, and wherein the plurality of events comprises visually perceptual occurrences at the time locations in the unknown video work, the plurality of events comprising at least one of a scene change between neighboring scenes in the portion of digital data, a blank frame preceding or following a non-blank frame, or a first frame having pixels with a first color distribution preceding a second frame having pixels with a second color distribution that differs from the first color distribution by a threshold amount.

13. The system of claim 8 , wherein the hardware processor is further to:

determine a regression line through a set of points (x,y), where each x is a time location of a particular event on the first list having a corresponding event on the second list and each y is a time location of the corresponding event on the second list;

determine a regression error for the regression line; and

compare the regression error to a regression error threshold;

wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list comprises determining whether the regression error is lower than the regression error threshold, wherein the first list matches the second list if the regression error is lower than the regression error threshold.

14. The system of claim 8 , wherein to determine whether the first list matches the second list the hardware processor is further to determine whether the miss ratio is less than the miss ratio threshold, wherein the first list matches the second list if the miss ratio is less than the miss ratio threshold.

15. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium that provides instructions that, when executed on a hardware processor, cause the hardware processor to perform operations comprising:

receiving a first list comprising 1) a plurality of events from a portion of digital data of an unknown work and 2) one or more metrics between each pair of adjacent events from the plurality of events, wherein each of the plurality of events comprises a visually or audibly perceptual occurrence at a time location in the unknown work;

comparing, by the hardware processor, the first list to a second list comprising events and metrics between events for a known work to determine a first quantity of hits and a second quantity of misses, wherein a hit is determined for a match between an event or metric in the first list and a corresponding event or metric in the second list and a miss is determined for an event or metric in the first list that fails to match an event or metric in the second list;

determining whether the first quantity of hits at least equals a hit threshold;

comparing a miss ratio to a miss ratio threshold, wherein the miss ratio is a ratio of the first quantity of hits to the second quantity of misses;

determining, by the hardware processor, whether the first list matches the second list based on the comparing of the miss ratio to the miss ratio threshold and further based on the determining of whether the first quantity of hits at least equals the hit threshold; and

determining, by the hardware processor, that the unknown work is a copy of the known work responsive to determining that the first list matches the second list.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list comprises returning a match if the first quantity of hits at least equals the hit threshold.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list based on the first quantity of hits and the second quantity of misses comprises:

determining whether the second quantity of misses exceeds a miss threshold; and

returning an indication of no match responsive to the second quantity of misses exceeding the miss threshold.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the unknown work comprises an unknown video work, and wherein the plurality of events comprises visually perceptual occurrences at the time locations in the unknown video work, the plurality of events comprising at least one of a scene change between neighboring scenes in the portion of digital data, a blank frame preceding or following a non-blank frame, or a first frame having pixels with a first color distribution preceding a second frame having pixels with a second color distribution that differs from the first color distribution by a threshold amount.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a regression line through a set of points (x,y), where each x is a time location of a particular event on the first list having a corresponding event on the second list and each y is a time location of the corresponding event on the second list;

determining a regression error for the regression line; and

comparing the regression error to a regression error threshold;

wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list comprises determining whether the regression error is lower than the regression error threshold, wherein the first list matches the second list if the regression error is lower than the regression error threshold.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein determining whether the first list matches the second list comprises determining whether the miss ratio is less than the miss ratio threshold, wherein the first list matches the second list if the miss ratio is less than the miss ratio threshold.