Method and apparatus for secure transfer and playback of multimedia content

• US 10,158,837 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2016
• Issued: 12/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TiVo Solutions Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: TiVo Solutions Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Van Hoff, Arthur, Barton, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Harold, Jefferey F
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sanders, Justin B
• Application Number:
  US15/144,644
• Publication Number:
  US 20160249095A1
• Time in Patent Office: 960 Days
• Field of Search: 725 38
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/32 on separate auxiliary tracks of the same or an auxiliary record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91364 the video signal being scrambled
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/21 Server components or server architectures
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2343 involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements video transcoding H04N19/40; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2393 involving handling client requests scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25816 involving client authentication restricting access to computer systems by authenticating users using a predetermined code G06F21/33; cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08; authentication in wireless network security H04W12/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4112 having fewer capabilities than the client, e.g. thin client having less processing power or no tuning capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4122 additional display device, e.g. video projector digital output for controlling a plurality of local displays G06F3/1423
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4135 external recorder interface circuits between an apparatus for recording television signals and a television receiver H04N5/775
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4227 Providing Remote input by a user located remotely from the client device, e.g. at work
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 : Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 : Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 : Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43622 : Interfacing an external recording device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4367 : Establishing a secure communication between the client and a peripheral device or smart card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440236 : by media transcoding, e.g. video is transformed into a slideshow of still pictures, audio is converted into text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4405 : involving video stream decryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4408 : involving video stream encryption, e.g. re-encrypting a decrypted video stream for redistribution in a home network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44204 : Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 : Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/472 : End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content end-user interfaces for retrieving video data from a database G06F16/739; network services for supporting unicast streaming H04L65/612
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 : for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 : Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47815 : Electronic shopping payment schemes, payment architectures or payment protocols for electronic shopping systems G06Q20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 : communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 : End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 : involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 : using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6543 : for forcing some client operations, e.g. recording remote booting in general G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 : Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 : Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 : Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 : between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/7755 : the recorder being connected to, or coupled with, the antenna of the television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 : on disks or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 : on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 : for scrambling ; for copy protection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/95 : Time-base error compensation H04N5/932 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/088 : the inserted signal being digital
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/173 : with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 : Transmission or handling of upstream communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 : involving data reduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 : involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/83 : the recorded chrominance signal occupying a frequency band under the frequency band of the recorded brightness signal

Abstract

A method and apparatus for secure transfer and playback of multimedia content enables the secure transfer of multimedia content from a digital video recorder (DVR) to a personal computer (PC) and further to a handheld device. A DVR determines which devices on a Local Area Network (LAN) are authorized to share and/or retrieve content from the DVR. The DVR receives a connection request from a PC on the LAN, authorizes the connection request and establishes a secure connection between the DVR and the PC. Once the secure connection is established, the DVR receives a request for multimedia content from the PC, prepares the multimedia content for transfer and transfers the multimedia content to the PC.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a first user device, a message from a server across a network, the message instructing the first user device to request a specific item of multimedia content from a second user device, the message transmitted to the first user device in response to receipt by the server of a request to view the specific item of multimedia content on a third user device and a determination by the server that the specific item of multimedia content is available from the second user device;

responsive to the message, the first user device requesting the specific item of multimedia content from the second user device, wherein the second user device is different from the first user device and the server;

responsive to requesting the specific item of multimedia content, the first user device receiving the specific item of multimedia content from the second user device;

transcoding, at the first user device, the specific item of multimedia content into a format suitable for playback at the third user device;

sending the transcoded specific item of multimedia content from the first user device to the third user device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second user device is a digital video recorder.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the specific item of multimedia content is content recorded or downloaded by the second user device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the third user device is a portable device configured to receive the specific item over a local area network and/or wireless interface.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to the first user device receiving the message:

receiving, by the third user device, from the server, a listing of content accessible at the second user device;

the third user device sending a request for the specific item of multimedia content to the server.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the first user device, key information from the server;

using, by the first user device, the key information to establish a connection with the second user device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user device is a personal computing device.

8. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions that, when executed by one or more computing devices, cause performance of:

receiving, at a first user device, a message from a server across a network, the message instructing the first user device to request a specific item of multimedia content from a second user device, the message transmitted to the first user device in response to receipt by the server of a request to view a specific item of multimedia content on a third user device and a determination by the server that the specific item of multimedia content is available from a second user device;

responsive to the message, the first user device requesting the specific item of multimedia content from the second user device, wherein the second user device is different from the first user device and the server;

responsive to requesting the specific item of multimedia content, the first user device receiving the specific item of multimedia content from the second user device;

transcoding, at the first user device, the specific item of multimedia content into a format suitable for playback at the third user device;

sending the transcoded specific item of multimedia content from the first user device to the third user device.

9. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the second user device is a digital video recorder.

10. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the specific item of multimedia content is content recorded or downloaded by the second user device.

11. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the third user device is a portable device configured to receive the specific item over a local area network and/or wireless interface.

12. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause performance of, prior to the first user device receiving the message:

receiving, by the third user device, from the server, a listing of content accessible at the second user device;

the third user device sending a request for the specific item of multimedia content to the server.

13. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause performance of:

receiving, by the first user device, key information from the server;

using, by the first user device, the key information to establish a connection with the second user device.

14. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the first user device is a personal computing device.

15. A system comprising:

a service provider server, executing on one or more computing devices coupled to a network; and

a first user device configured to;

receive a message from the server across the network, the message instructing the first user device to request a specific item of multimedia content from a second user device, the message transmitted to the first user device in response to receipt by the server of a request to view a specific item of multimedia content on a third user device and a determination by the server that the specific item of multimedia content is available from a second user device;

responsive to the message, requesting the specific item of multimedia content from the second user device, wherein the second user device is different from the first user device and the server;

responsive to requesting the specific item of multimedia content, receiving the specific item of multimedia content from the second user device;

transcoding the specific item of multimedia content into a format suitable for playback at the third user device; and

sending the transcoded specific item of multimedia content from the first user device to the third user device;

the second user device, configured to receive a request for the specific item of multimedia content from the first user device;

access the specific item of multimedia content; and

send the specific item of multimedia content to the first user device.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the second user device is a digital video recorder.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the specific item of multimedia content is content recorded or downloaded by the second user device.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the third user device is a portable device configured to receive the specific item over a local area network and/or wireless interface.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the service provider server is further configured to, prior to the first user device receiving the message, send a listing of content accessible at the second user device to the third user device;

and receive a request for the specific item of multimedia content from the third user device.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the first user device is further configured to:

receive key information from the service provider server; and

use the key information to establish a connection with the second user device.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein the first user device is a personal computing device.