Patent ID: 7639833

Claim:
A process for distributing a video stream according to an original video stream conforming to a nominal format comprising a succession of frames, individual ones of the frames including at least one numerical block comprising coefficients corresponding to simple video elements, comprising: generating a principal stream conforming to the nominal format of the original video stream by modifying at least one of the numerical blocks of the original video stream; generating complementary information comprising: data and functions to enable reconstruction of the original video stream, wherein the data comprise portions of the original video stream modified in the principal stream; and markup data and numerical routines to enable construction of a visual element to display information specific to one or more intended recipients, wherein the data and functions do not provide for reconstruction of the original video stream at locations of the video stream where the visual element is to be displayed; and transmitting the principal stream and the complementary information to destination equipment to generate a marked video from the principal stream as a function of the complementary information.