Highlights from NAB 2025: Content security in the spotlight

After spending a few days at NAB 2025 in Las Vegas, I came away energized and reflective about the role security continues to play for media and entertainment. Representing Intertrust and our ExpressPlay team, I had the opportunity to meet with partners, competitors, and industry leaders who are all tackling the challenges of securing content in an increasingly complex world of streaming, live events, and hybrid delivery models.

While NAB is always a showcase of dazzling new video workflows and distribution innovations, what stood out to me most this year was how front and center content protection and anti-piracy technologies have become across the ecosystem.

Evolving security perimeter: from DRM to geo-blocking

DRM (digital rights management) remains a critical foundation for protecting premium content, but what’s clear from my conversations at NAB is that content security today extends far beyond DRM.

Vendors and platform providers are now looking at the broader security perimeter—integrating technologies like geo-blocking and VPN detection to enforce content rights based on accurate user location, not just IP addresses. This shift is especially important for live sports, regional broadcasting, and content that needs to respect geographic licensing boundaries.

We had some great discussions about how solutions like ExpressPlay DRM combined with advanced geo-blocking can create a layered security approach—ensuring content is both encrypted and restricted to authorized regions or devices. It’s no longer about “one size fits all” and today’s security has to account for  new distribution models, including mobile, CTV, and hybrid delivery platforms.

Content provenance and authenticity: the next frontier

Another key topic gaining traction is content provenance, ensuring that media assets are verifiable, tamper-proof, and traceable throughout the distribution chain.

While standards like C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity) are still early in adoption across the streaming space, it’s clear that the industry recognizes the growing need to combat deepfakes, unauthorized modifications, and content misuse.

In combination with DRM and watermarking, content provenance technologies will play an essential role in future-proofing content security. Especially for premium content providers, news organizations, and live event broadcasters, having trusted metadata and verifiable content will be critical.

A collaborative fight against piracy

Ultimately, what struck me most at NAB 2025 is how content security is becoming a collaborative effort across the ecosystem.

It’s not just about protecting content at the point of playback—it’s about securing every link in the chain, from contribution and production workflows to distribution, monetization, and playback. Technologies like forensic watermarking, real-time piracy monitoring, and automated takedown services are now seen as essential complements to traditional DRM.

The industry is moving toward a more proactive stance on anti-piracy, not just reacting to leaks or violations but building proactive security into every layer of the media supply chain.

Looking ahead

As streaming continues to expand globally, and as new distribution models like FAST (Free Ad-supported Streaming TV), CTV advertising, and edge-based workflows grow, content security will only become more critical.

At Intertrust, we’re excited to continue partnering with innovative companies across the industry to enable trusted, scalable content protection, from DRM and geo-blocking to content provenance and anti-piracy strategies.

NAB 2025 made it clear: securing content in a fragmented, fast-moving media world isn’t easy,but with collaboration, innovation, and the right technologies in place, it’s absolutely achievable.