Remove Embedded Watermarks in Videos

[Nzyme]

Hi, can someone suggest some windows programs that can either remove, blur, overwrite watermarks or logos that are embedded in videos? Thanks!

[4wd]

More information required, ie. video format, codecs, etc.

eg. I've used this method successfully but it's only good for AVI files which are getting increasingly rare.  But you can always convert to a RAW video AVI, process through VirtualDub, and then encode to final format.

ffmpeg also has a builtin delogo filter if you want to give it a try, I've never used it so don't know how effective it is.

[Nzyme]

Most of them but currently I am interested in wmv and I tried the steps earlier but it doesn't work with wmv. Thanks!

[Curt]

A few years back these interesting instructions were posted:

How to Remove a Watermark From a Video

Download and install Adobe Premiere Pro. Adobe Premiere Pro has a free-trial download and the software can quickly eliminate watermarks.
or
Download and install Sony Vegas. Sony Vegas has a free-trial download and the software can quickly eliminate watermarks.
or
Download and install Adobe After Effects. Adobe After Effects has a free-trial download and the software can quickly eliminate watermarks.

For full instructions:
http://www.ehow.com/how_8654082_remove-watermark-video.html

But of course, that was then. I don't know if the trials  still are 'free'.

[Curt]

I have tested the $140 SoftOrbits RemoveLogoNow, and the result was unacceptably poor. I would not even accept the result if their asking price had been a hundred dollar lower!

You will get a better result the hard way, if you split each video into individual frames, one picture per frame, (at, say, 25 per second, that is a lot of pictures!!), and then run the $20 >Batch Inpaint< from Teorex; it will do a much, much better job. But to finish, you will of course have to first merge the pictures into a video file again, and then sync the new video with the sound from the original video - which is why it is important that the 'split' is "per frame", not just some easier frequency. I don't know what program can do this split, for you.

All in all, you'll probably get the best result the easiest way, if you trial Adobe and Sony, and such.

[MilesAhead]

Most of them but currently I am interested in wmv and I tried the steps earlier but it doesn't work with wmv. Thanks!

wmv can be tough since it is not a royalty free format.  You may need to either convert to another format first, or use AviSynth to produce a stream that can be edited.  This tutorial shows watermark removal using AviDemux.  Supposedly it has a built in filter.  I've used AviDemux in the past but that's a few years ago now.  The name implies for AVI only but that's not the case.

https://sites.google.com/site/90124x/remove-video-watermarks-efficiently-easily

also see http://www.videohelp.com
for free software that can convert from most anything to .mp4

[Nzyme]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions! I also found "Remove Logo Now!" which does a pretty good job and works with wmv as well.

http://www.removelogo.com/remove-logo-from-video

[Jimdoria]

So glad to see we have threads about pirating content now! Maybe we can get some threads going on the best way to pirate software as well.

[4wd]

So glad to see we have threads about pirating content now! Maybe we can get some threads going on the best way to pirate software as well.

I'm interested from a purely objective point of view, do you know for a fact that:
a) Where he lives/works/whatever is subject to the same corporate laws that govern the good ol' US of A?
b) He doesn't have permission of the content provider to modify the content of whatever he has got for whatever purpose he's putting it to?

Or have you just jumped to a conclusion without any facts?

[mouser]

There are also legitimate other reasons one might want to remove a video watermark -- for example if the watermark makes it extremely annoying to watch some content you are legally entitled to.
But I take Jimdoria's point -- if you are doing this in order that you can distribute/sell/remove-credit-from videos that someone else has made, against their wishes, we don't approve of such things and this forum is not the appropriate place to learn how to do that.

[MilesAhead]

if you are doing this in order that you can distribute/sell/remove-credit-from videos that someone else has made, against their wishes, we don't approve of such things and this forum is not the appropriate place to learn how to do that.

That's one reason I usually refer people to videohelp.com.  Messing with video gets complex fast.  Plus the board owner there has already made the commitment to do the policing on his site what is a legit "fair use" question and what he deletes as possibly getting into the piracy area.  It's a can of worms is the short way to express what I'm trying to say. 

[daggg]

Here's what I have found... Results are pretty good, since the shutterstock logo is very hard to be removed...

But there is no how-to tutorial...

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6zu7_tz98YIOv-YlUp9Dgg/videos