Ask Ed Felten About Watermarking Analysis And More

Dr. Edward Felten is in a funny position -- or perhaps not so funny. He's the Princeton researcher who took up the challenge posed by the music industry to find flaws in the SMDI watermarking scheme, but didn't enter into the 'no-telling' bargain (here's the click-through agreement [pdf]) which would have made him eligible for a reward, so wasn't bound by non-disclosure terms. When a scheduled academic presentation on the weaknesses [pdf] that he and his colleages found in SDMI became the object of lawsuit threats from the RIAA, and caused him to cancel the planned presentation, Felten decided to turn the tables, and in cooperation with the EFF, sue them instead, for interfering with his scholarly research. Though he did eventually get to present his research, the legal action is still going. Dr. Felten is at a hearing today in Trenton, NJ, but he's agreed to answer questions from Slashdot readers. Please confine your questions carefully (one per post), and we'll pass the highest-moderated ones on for his answers.

Comments

Mathematical feasability

[Mdog]

Do you believe that what the RIAA is trying to do is mathematically feasable, and that their attempt was merely the wrong way of going about the problem, or do you believe that what is being attempted is fundamentally impossible?

how has this affected you personally ?

[cats-paw]

Everybody likes to talk about standing up for free speech, but many would rather sit on the bench than actually step up to the plate.

How has this situation affected you personally ?

Has it increased your level of day to day stress ?

Do you lose sleep over it ?

I'm referring both to your original decision to publish your work and your current legal effort.