Case Profile Echostar v. NDS
The Case
EchoStar distributes TV content via satellite. NDS makes security programs to protect the chips in satellite set-top boxes from piracy. EchoStar accused NDS of both paying to have the security of their set-top box chip broken, and of publishing on the Internet how to circumvent the EchoStar chip security so that satellite TV “pirates” could make and sell set-top box cards that would allow a user access to all programming for free. EchoStar claimed that NDS did this to cast a shadow on their security competitor, who supplied the security measures for EchoStar’s set-top boxes.
The Challenge
Explain how a set-top box works, and more importantly, show how different techniques are used to “crack” the code used in the chip that controls access to programming. Finally, illustrate the complex tale of high-tech labs in Israel, satellite pirates in Ontario, set-top boxes stuffed with cash in Texas, and the journey of encryption cracking on the Internet.
The Approach
Fulcrum developed a series of 2D animations to show how the chip on a satellite decoder card normally works when tuned to a channel. In example #1, we anthropomorphized the operation of the CPU as it takes in requests and processes data. In example #2, we show how a computer attached to the card can “attack” the chip by causing a buffer overflow – when the buffer overflows, the CPU reads the contents of the chip out of memory, thus giving the hacker the code that protects the chip. In example #3, we demonstrated that a “strong MACM” could protect the chip from a buffer overflow attack, a well-known technique in the art. Finally, in example #4, we summarize the key evidence that points to the lab in Ontario as the source of the attack published on the Internet.
The Result
While the jury found that NDS was guilty of cracking the Echostar card, rather than award the $1 billion in damages Echostar was asking for, the jury awarded Echostar a mere $1,500 in damages. In contrast, the jury found that a substantial part of Echostar’s claims were without merit, and thus awarded NDS attorney’s fees of approximately $18 million dollars.
Sample Graphics
