About DCP

AACS: Advanced Access Control System. The content protection scheme used with HD-DVD and Blu-ray discs.

ATC: Authorized Test Center (generic).

ATSC: Advanced Television System Committee, Inc. This group developed the standards for digital terrestrial television broadcasting, which will replace analog broadcasts in the United States. “ATSC” is often used to refer to these broadcasts, i.e., “ATSC Tuner” means a device that can receive the formats described in the ATSC standard.

ATT: Authorized Test Tool (generic).

Audiovisual Content. Audiovisual works (as defined in the United States Copyright Act as in effect on January 1, 1978), text and graphic images, as referred to as Audiovisual Content.

Authorized Device. A Device that is permitted access to HDCP Content is referred to as an Authorized Device. An HDCP Transmitter may test if an attached HDCP Receiver is an Authorized Device by successfully completing the first, and when applicable, second part of the authentication protocol. If the authentication protocol successfully results in establishing authentication, then the other device is considered by the HDCP Transmitter to be an Authorized Device.

Beagle. Total Phase Beagle is a device for reading or tracing data on the DDC interface (also called I2C traffic) used to communicate control signals between devices on the HDMI or DVI interface.

Digital Content. Digital media data such as audio, video and image (or a combination of these).

DVR: Digital Video Recorder, a device which stores digital content such as audio, video and other multimedia content. It is sometimes referred to as a Personal Video Recorder (PVR).

CTS: Compliance Test Specification (generic). The HDCP Compliance Test Specification is referred to as the “CTS”.

DCP or DCP, LLC. The Digital Content Protection Agency, L.L.C., is the licensing agency for HDCP technology. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Intel Corporation.

Device Key Set. Each HDCP Device has a Device Key Set, which consists of a set of Device Private Keys along with the associated Key Selection Vector.

Device Private Keys. A set of Device Private Keys consists of 40 different 56-bit values. A set of Device Private Keys is associated with a unique Key Selection Vector. The combination of Private Keys and Key Selection Vector are used to create the cipher that encrypts (or decrypts) content for transmission over a digital interface that uses HDCP.

DisplayPort. A digital video interface. DisplayPort signaling and protocol are different than DVI or HDMI, however DisplayPort uses HDCP.

Downstream. The term downstream is used as an adjective to refer to being towards the sink of the HDCP Content stream. For example, when an HDCP Transmitter and an HDCP Receiver are connected over an HDCP-protected Interface, the HDCP Receiver can be referred to as the downstream HDCP Device in this connection. For another example, on an HDCP Repeater, the HDCP-protected Interface Port(s) which can emit HDCP Content can be referred to as its downstream HDCP-protected Interface Port(s).Connections made to the DUT on its Output Ports. See also, upstream.

DTV. Digital TVs include direct-broadcast satellite services, digital cable TV transmissions and ATSC-format digital TV broadcasts.They are not necessarily high definition (HD).

DUT: Device Under Test (generic).

DVI: Digital Visual Interface.

Enhanced Encryption Status Signaling (EESS). EESS is a protocol for signaling whether encryption is enabled or disabled for a frame. EESS is always used with the HDMI protocol, but is an optional feature with the DVI protocol. See also, Original Encryption Status Signaling (OESS).

Frame. For purposes of the HDCP specification, a frame consists of the pixel data between vertical synchronization signals.HDCP may be used with both progressive and interlaced video formats. For interlaced video, every field is an HDCP frame.

GVIF: Giga-bit Video Interface. A digital video interface developed by Sony Corp. The GVIF uses a single differential pair for signaling.

HDCP. High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection.

HDCP Content. HDCP Content consists of Audiovisual Content that is protected by the HDCP System. HDCP Content includes the Audiovisual Content in encrypted form as it is transferred from an HDCP Transmitter to an HDCP Receiver over and HDCP-protected Interface, as well as any translations of the same content, or portions thereof. For avoidance of doubt, Audiovisual Content that is never encrypted by the HDCP System is not HDCP Content.

HDCP Device. Any device that contains one or more HDCP-protected Interface Ports and is designed in adherence to the HDCP specification is referred to as an HDCP Device.

HDCP Encryption. HDCP Encryption is the encryption technology of HDCP when applied to the protection of HDCP Content in an HDCP System.

HDCP-protected Interface. An interface for which HDCP applies is described as an HDCP-protected Interface.

HDCP-protected Interface Port. A connection point on an HDCP Device that supports an HDCP-protected Interface is referred to as an HDCP-protected Interface Port.HDCP Receiver. An HDCP Device that can receive and decrypt HDCP Content through one or more of its HDCP-protected Interface Ports is referred to as an HDCP Receiver or a sink.

HDCP Repeater. An HDCP Device that can receive and decrypt HDCP Content through one or more of its HDCP-protected Interface Ports, and can also re-encrypt and emit said HDCP Content through one or more of its HDCP-protected Interface Ports, is referred to as an HDCP Repeater. An HDCP Repeater may also be referred to as either an HDCP Receiver or an HDCP Transmitter when referring to either the upstream side or the downstream side, respectively.

HDCP System. An HDCP System consists of an HDCP Transmitter and one or more HDCP Receivers connected through their HDCP-protected interfaces in a tree topology. The HDCP Transmitter is the most upstream device, and receives content from another Content Control Function, prior to HDCP encryption, upon which time, the content becomes HDCP Content. All HDCP Devices connected to other HDCP Devices in an HDCP System over HDCP-protected Interfaces are part of the HDCP System.

HDCP Transmitter. An HDCP Device that can encrypt and emit HDCP Content through one or more of its HDCP-protected Interface Ports is referred to as an HDCP Transmitter.

HDMI. High Definition Multimedia Interface

HDTV: High Definition Television, a generic term used for TV technology that produces higher quality picture than standard definition TVs. An HDTV set, for example, displays 720 up to 1,080 visible lines.

Key Selection Vector. Each HDCP Device contains a set of Device Private Keys. A set of Device Private Keys is associated with a Key Selection Vector (KSV). Each HDCP Transmitter has assigned to it a unique KSV from all other HDCP Transmitters. Also, each HDCP Receiver has assigned to it a unique KSV from all other HDCP Receivers. See Device Private Keys.

NTSC. The National Television System Committee developed the NTSC technical standard that is an analog TV standard historically used in North America, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines and most of South America. The term “NTSC” is used to generically describe the formats in the standard.

Original Encryption Status Signaling (OESS). OESS is a protocol for signaling whether encryption is enabled or disabled for a frame. OESS is only used with the DVI protocol. See also, Enhanced Encryption Status Signaling (EESS).

Repeater. An HDCP Device that can receive and decrypt HDCP Content through one or more of its HDCP-protected Interface Ports, and can also re-encrypt and emit said HDCP Content through one or more of its HDCP-protected Interface Ports.

SDTV. SDTV is an acronym for standard definition TV. See also NTSC.

Sink. A Presentation Device (display). Also called an HDCP Receiver.

Source. A device which transmits HDMI or DVI signals. Also called an HDCP Transmitter.        

TE. Test Equipment (generic), such as the Panasonic UITA-2000, High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection Protocol Analyzer.

UDI: Unified Display Interface. A digital video interface compatible with DVI, HDMI and HDCP.

Upstream. The term upstream is used as an adjective to refer to being towards the source of the HDCP Content stream. For example, when an HDCP Transmitter and an HDCP Receiver are connected over an HDCP-protected Interface, the HDCP Transmitter can be referred to as the upstream HDCP Device in this connection. For another example, on an HDCP Repeater, the HDCP-protected Interface Port(s) which can receive HDCP Content can be referred to as the upstream HDCP-protected Interface Port(s). See also, downstream.

Upstream Content Control Function. The HDCP Transmitter most upstream in the HDCP System receives content from theUpstream Content Control Function. The Upstream Content Control Function is not part of the HDCP System, and the methods used, if any, by the Upstream Content Control Function to determine for itself the HDCP System is correctly authenticated or permitted to receive the Audiovisual Content, or to transfer the Audiovisual Content to the HDCP System, are beyond the scope of the HDCP specification. On a personal computer platform, an example of an Upstream Content Control Function may be software designed to emit Audiovisual Content to a display or other presentation device that requires HDCP.

VGA. Video Graphics Array, which is a five-wire interface originally designed for computer monitors, now used in some HDTV monitors. While the 640×480 resolution has been superseded in the computer market, it is becoming a popular resolution on mobile devices.