Viewers watching videos from the Austrian Parliament online will soon find it easier to verify the authenticity of the content. Big Blue Marble, an international broadcast and streaming specialist, is now creating C2PA Content Credentials for all newly produced content on the Parliament’s video-on-demand platform. These credentials serve as digital seals of authenticity, allowing viewers to trace the source of the content and determine if it has been altered before publication.
“As a public institution, it is particularly important to us that audiovisual content can be clearly identified as reliable. C2PA provides greater transparency and makes the provenance of our published videos technically traceable. This builds trust in our content and strengthens our democratic mission,” explains Roland Weinert, Director of the Austrian Parliament.
“Our collaboration with the Austrian Parliament showcases how public institutions can successfully embrace new digital content standards. We’re committed to seamlessly integrating these innovations into current systems, ensuring they deliver meaningful value in everyday operations. C2PA is at the forefront of making this happen,” says Norbert Grill, CTO of Big Blue Marble.
New security standard sets new benchmarks
C2PA stands for the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity. It is an open technical standard designed to certify the origin of digital content. Content Credentials are embedded in videos, providing information about the source, editing history, and a digital signature. This ensures that the video’s origin and the relevant steps taken during its creation or publication are recorded. Video players that integrate C2PA can read these credentials and confirm the content’s origin.
Big Blue Marble is listed on the official C2PA Conformance List, meaning its video-processing services meet the requirements of this standard. For the Austrian Parliament, signing occurs directly through Big Blue Marble’s Cloud Video Kit, which serves as the technical foundation for video processing and delivery on the Parliament’s platform. There is no need for separate tools or complex manual editing steps, as C2PA certification is fully automated during the preparation process for publication.
Cooperation for security and credibility
Big Blue Marble and the Austrian Parliament have maintained a close partnership for years to ensure that the Parliament’s digital communications are both secure and trustworthy. Earlier this year, a separate pilot project involving ORF and the Vienna-based technology scale-up zerothird utilized quantum cryptography for the first time to secure a television transmission between the Parliament and ORF. Quantum keys generated through a dedicated fiber-optic connection were employed to detect any interference with this exchange and to prevent manipulation of live streams.
The introduction of C2PA adds an important layer to this approach. While quantum cryptography safeguards the transmission path, C2PA ensures that the origin and integrity of published videos can be traced. This project enhances the fight against deepfakes, manipulation, and disinformation, while also assisting the Austrian Parliament in establishing its digital content as a trustworthy official source.
