Abstract: Generalized multiplicative watermarking can suit local contents in the host signal, and has a good performance in hostinterference rejection. We propose an improved scheme of generalized multiplicative watermarking that incorporates the human visual system (HVS). We explore the maximum watermark carrying capability of each DCT coefficient in JPEG compression in terms of the just noticeable distortion (JND). This way, the watermarked image maintains a good visual quality without perceptible distortion in texture and edge areas to assure transparency. Experiments show satisfactory performance of watermark detection after the marked image is JPEG compressed.

Key words: generalized multiplicative watermarking, human visual system (HVS), just noticeable distortion (JND)