sdmi info

[Phosgene <phosgene () SETEC ORG>]

let me give you some quotes from an article which have more info about the
SDMI protocol...

"To better understand this concept, consider the SDMI scheme (Figure 2).
SDMI requires that any device storing digital audio contain a 32-bit
predefined manufacturer ID or 128-bit random number to generate security
keys. Where does this identifier come from? One possible source is a data
pattern embedded within a smart card, parallel-port "dongle," or
flash-memory card....

However, DMI's Version 1.0 specification defines a specific watermark
technique that Verance developed and DVD Audio also plans to incorporate.
It lets you make, by default, four copiesadjustable from zero to an
infinite number of copiesof the downloaded media for distribution to and
movement among devices such as other PCs or portable audio players. You
must check a copy back in before you can make another. SDMI also specifies
multiple access levels. SDMI 1.0-compliant devices must search for the
Verance watermark at least every 15 seconds. SDMI-compliant hardware will
carry the DMAT (Digital Music Access Technology) stamp of approval

The not-yet-finalized SDMI 2.0 specification defines another set of
watermarks. They include a "do-not-import-if-previously-compressed" flag
that would prevent playback of, for example, MP3 files that users obtained
by some means other than from their private audio-CD collections using an
SDMI-compliant "ripping" (extracting-to-hard-drive) program (Reference 3).
SDMI 1.0-compliant players must search for the 2.0-indicating "trigger"
and then cannot play SDMI-compliant media until the user upgrades the
player firmware. These additional proposed watermarks may inhibit users'
abilities to play their MP3 libraries. If implemented in the final
specification, these additional security measures will likely trigger a
consumer uproar like the one that the "millennium trigger" caused during
the early drafts of the SDMI 1.0 specification."


you might as well check the article
http://www.ednmag.com/ednmag/reg/2000/06222000/13tt.htm

phosgene