System for regulating access to and distributing content in a network

• US 20050125528A1
• Filed: 11/16/2004
• Published: 06/09/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Multimedia Content Management LLC (IPValuation Partners, LLC)
• Original Assignee: David Z. Carman, Robert M. Burke, II
• Inventors: Burke, Robert M. II, Carman, David Z.
• Granted Patent: US 8,122,128 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/1085 Content sharing, e.g. peer-to-peer [P2P]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/184 Intellectual property management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/26 Government or public services business processes related to the transportation industry G06Q50/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for commerce, e.g. marketing, shopping, billing, auctions or e-commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/02 for separating internal from external traffic, e.g. firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1458 Denial of Service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/30 for supporting lawful interception, monitoring or retaining of communications or communication related information circuit switched telephony call monitoring H04M3/2281

Abstract

There is provided a system for regulating access and managing distribution of content in a network, such as the Internet. The system includes communication gateways, installed at a subscriber site, internet control points, installed remotely, and various network elements installed throughout the network. The communication gateways and network elements operate in conjunction with the internet control points to restrict or allow access to specified Internet sites and to manage efficient distribution of content such as music, video, games, broadband data, real-time audio and voice applications, and software to subscribers.

Claims

1. A system for regulating access to a network, the system comprising:

a controller node coupled to the network, the controller node comprising;

a first processor for generating controller instructions; and

a first network interface for transmitting the controller instructions over the network; and

a plurality of gateway units, the gateway units comprising;

a user interface receiving user-entered network access requests;

a second network interface coupled to the network and receiving the controller instructions from the network; and

a second processor, the second processor selectively transmitting at least some of the network access requests over the network in accordance with the controller instructions, and transferring content data responsive to the transmitted network access requests over the network via the second network interface.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the gateway units further comprise a storage device for storing instructions;

the gateway units further comprise an identifier uniquely associating the gateway units with a user; and

the storage device is operable to store user-specific information.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the gateway units comprise a user interface receiving requests to transmit data; and

the gateway units comprise a second processor inspecting the data to selectively transfer the data in accordance with the controller instructions.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the gateway units comprise a user interface receiving requests to receive data; and

the gateway units comprise a second processor inspecting the data to selectively transfer the data in accordance with the controller instructions.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first processor generates the controller instructions automatically.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the first processor generates the controller instructions in response to an operator-entered request.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller nodes comprise a first processor generating the controller instructions by operator-controlled network crawling.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller nodes comprise a first processor generating the controller instructions to deny user access to a first group of network servers.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the gateway units comprise a second processor to generate a notification to a controller node if a network access request designates a network server of the first group of network servers.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the gateway units comprise a second processor to:

detect a network access request designating a network server a first group of network servers; and

re-direct the access request to a second group of network servers, in accordance with the controller instructions.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the controller nodes comprise a first processor generating the controller instructions, the controller instructions including a file identifier; and

the system comprises a plurality of gateway units associated with a user file system, the gateway units comprising a second processor to detect a file in a user file system corresponding to the file identifier.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the gateway units are operable between an active state and an inactive state.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the second processors notify a controller node if the associated gateway unit enters an inactive state.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the second processors delete the detected files from a user file system in accordance with the controller instructions.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the second processors delete the detected files from a user file system during the inactive state.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the gateway units notify a controller node if a file corresponding to the file identifier is detected.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units comprise:

a housing; and

a detector for detecting an attempt to open the housing.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the gateway unit notifies the controller node of a detected attempt to open the housing after a user-initiated event.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the gateway units comprise a storage device and the second processor prevents access to the storage device when the detector detects an attempt to open the housing.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units comprise a second processor that enters a user-controlled operational mode after receiving permission from the controller node.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller node comprises a copyright registry for tracking copyright status of content data files distributed to gateway units in the system.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the user interface receives registrations of the content data files for transmission to the copyright registry.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein the second processor causes the gateway unit to access a predetermined network site upon initiation of network browser software, in accordance with the controller instructions.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the second processor selects the predetermined network site from a list of predetermined network sites received via the controller instructions.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the second processor selects the predetermined network site according to a weighting function such that at least a portion of the predetermined network sites are selected more often than others.

26. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units:

receive registration information from a user via the user interface; and

receive initial operating parameters via the second network interface.

27. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units:

receive registration information from a user via the user interface; and

receive software updates via the second network interface.

28. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the gateway units transmit advertising via the user interface to a user display, the advertising being customized in accordance with information received via at least one of the second network interface and the user interface.

29. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units:

transmit pay-per-view advertising via the user interface for selective display by a user; and

generate payment credits for the user upon display of the advertising by the user.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the gateway units generate one of a plurality of viewing modes for viewing the pay-per-view advertising in response to a user selection.

31. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units receive software via the second network interface for execution on the second processor, the software enabling at least one of a fee-based network service, network video calling, and network gaming.

32. The system of claim 1, wherein the second processor detects a denial-of-service attack.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein the second processor detects a denial-of-service attack initiated by a virus.

34. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units selectively transmit to law enforcement terminals information describing at least one of incoming data and outgoing data to the gateway units.

35. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units:

detect a user attempt to at least one of transmit and receive voice traffic; and

selectively block the detected attempt in accordance with the controller instructions.

36. The system of claim 35 wherein the gateway units transmit, via the user interface, an advertisement offering voice transmission services.

37. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units:

detect a user attempt to at least one of transmit and receive at least one of audio and video traffic; and

selectively block the detected attempt in accordance with the controller instructions.

38. The system of claim 37, wherein the gateway units transmit, via the user interface, an advertisement offering at least one of audio and video traffic services.

39. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units:

detect at least one of audio and video traffic flowing through the second network interface; and

selectively reduce the quality of service of the at least one of audio and video traffic in accordance with the controller instructions,

wherein reduction of quality of service comprises at least one of;

reducing a duty cycle, inserting TCP/IP messages in the at least one of audio and video traffic, inserting Nak/Ack pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic, and inserting X-On/X-Off pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic.

40. The system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of access nodes, wherein the controller node comprises a first processor for generating authorization instructions and transmitting the authorization instructions over the network to the access nodes, and the access nodes:

receive the authorization instructions from the controller node; and

selectively permit the gateway units to access the network in accordance with the authorization instructions.

41. The system of claim 1, wherein the gateway units comprise data storage units partitioned into a network portion and a user portion, and at least one of a first group of gateway units selectively shares data stored in the network partition with at least one of a second group of gateway units, via the second network interface, in accordance with the controller instructions.

42. The system of claim 1, wherein the second processor in at least a first one of the gateway units selectively forwards content data received from at least a second one of the gateway units to at least a third one of the gateway units in accordance with the controller instructions.

43. The system of claim 42 wherein the second processor in at least a first one of the gateway units:

receives portions of a content data file from a group of gateway units in accordance with the controller instructions; and

assembles a data file based on the received portions for transmission to the user via the user interface.

44. The system of claim 1, further comprising an intervention node, the intervention node comprising:

an operator interface for receiving operator-entered spoofing attack instructions; and

a third network interface for transmitting at least one substitute file pointer to addresses in the network in accordance with the spoofing attack instructions.

45. The system of claim 1, further comprising network units, the network units comprising:

a network interface coupled to the network and receiving the controller instructions from the network and network traffic from a gateway unit; and

a processor for selectively reducing the flow of the received network traffic in accordance with the controller instructions.

46. The system of claim 45, wherein the network units:

detect the flow of voice traffic; and

selectively block the detected traffic in accordance with the controller instructions.

47. The system of claim 45, wherein the network units:

detect the flow of at least one of audio and video traffic; and

selectively block the detected traffic in accordance with the controller instructions.

48. The system of claim 45, wherein the network units:

detect the flow of at least one of audio and video traffic; and

selectively reduce the quality of service of the detected at least one of audio and video traffic in accordance with the controller instructions,

wherein the reduction of quality of service comprises at least one of;

reducing a duty cycle, inserting TCP/IP messages in the at least one of audio and video traffic, inserting Nak/Ack pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic, and inserting X-On/X-Off pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic.

49. A system for regulating access to a network that is accessed by a plurality of users, the system comprising:

a controller node coupled to the network, the controller node comprising;

a first processor for generating controller instructions; and

a first network interface for transmitting the controller instructions over the network; and

a plurality of network units associated with a first group of users, the network units comprising;

a second network interface coupled to the network and receiving the controller instructions from the network; and

a second processor, the second processor inhibiting access for a second group of users to content in the network in accordance with the controller instructions.

50. The system of claim 49, wherein the second processor in the network units inhibits access for a second group of users by performing denial of service attacks in accordance with the controller instructions.

51. The system of claim 50, wherein the second processor performs attacks based on a schedule comprising at least one of:

a schedule based on duration of the attacks;

real time response to controller instructions; and

in response to an event.

52. The system of claim 49, wherein at least a portion of the network units comprise gateway units uniquely associated with a user.

53. The system of claim 52, wherein the gateway units:

are operable between an active state and an inactive state; and

perform denial of service attacks, in accordance with the controller instructions, during the inactive state.

54. The system of claim 49, wherein the second processor detects a denial-of-service attack.

55. The system of claim 54, wherein the second processor detects a denial-of-service attack initiated by a virus.

56. The system of claim 54, wherein the second processor prevents a denial-of-service attack upon detection.

57. The system of claim 49, wherein the network units selectively transmit to law enforcement terminals information describing at least one of incoming data and outgoing data to the gateway units.

58. A system for distributing content over a network, the system comprising:

a controller node coupled to the network, the controller node comprising;

a first processor for generating controller instructions; and

a first network interface for transmitting the controller instructions over the network; and

a plurality of network units, the network units comprising;

a second network interface coupled to the network, the second network interface in at least a first one of the network units receiving the controller instructions from the network and receiving a first portion of a content data file from at least a second one of the network units; and

a second processor, the second processor in the at least a first one of the network units selectively forwarding the received first portion of the content data file to at least a third one of the network units in accordance with the controller instructions.

59. The system of claim 58, wherein:

the second network interface receives a plurality of portions of a content data file from a group of network units in accordance with the controller instructions; and

the second processor assembles a data file based on the received portions for transmission to the user via the user interface.

60. The system of claim 58, wherein:

the second network interface of the second network unit receives a portion of a content data file from a content server; and

the second processor of the second network unit forwards the portion of the content data file to the at least first one of the network units in accordance with the controller instructions.

61. The system of claim 58, wherein the second processor deletes portions of content data in accordance with a predetermined deletion date associated with the content data.

62. The system of claim 58, wherein the second processor deletes portions of content data when new content data is delivered.

63. The system of claim 58, wherein the second processor deletes portions of content data when insufficient storage space remains, deleting oldest content data first.

64. The system of claim 58, wherein the second processor deletes portions of content data in accordance with an associated user'"'"'s selections.

65. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a user interface to receive requests to transmit data;

a network interface to receive controller instructions from the network; and

a processor to inspect the data and to selectively transmit the data in accordance with the received controller instructions.

66. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a user interface to receive requests to receive data;

a network interface to receive controller instructions from the network; and

a processor to inspect the data and selectively receive the data in accordance with the received controller instructions.

67. A controller node for regulating access to a network, the controller node comprising:

a processor to generate controller instructions for causing a plurality of gateway units to selectively transfer user-entered network access requests over the network, the processor generating the controller instructions by at least one of automatically generating instructions and generating instructions in response to an operator-entered request; and

a network interface to transmit the controller instructions over the network to the plurality of gateway units.

68. The controller node of claim 67, comprising a processor to generate the controller instructions by operator-controlled network crawling.

69. A controller node for regulating access to a network comprising:

a processor to generate controller instructions; and

a network interface to transmit the controller instructions over the network to a plurality of gateway units, the controller instructions causing at least one gateway unit to deny access to a first group of network servers.

70. The controller node of claim 69, wherein the network interface receives notification from at least one gateway unit if the at least one gateway unit detects a request to access a denied network server.

71. The controller node of claim 69, wherein the processor generates instructions causing a gateway unit to re-direct user access requests to a second group of network servers in accordance with the controller instructions.

72. A system for regulating file access in a network, the system comprising:

a controller node coupled to the network, the controller node comprising;

a first processor for generating controller instructions, the instructions including a file identifier; and

a first network interface for transmitting the controller instructions over the network; and

a plurality of gateway units associated with user file systems, the gateway units comprising

a second network interface to receive the controller instructions from the network; and

a second processor to detect files in the user file systems corresponding to the file identifier.

73. The system of claim 72, comprising a plurality of gateway units operable between an active state and an inactive state.

74. The system of claim 73, wherein the gateway units notify a controller node upon entering the inactive state.

75. The system of claim 73, wherein the gateway units comprise a processor to delete the detected files during the inactive state.

76. The system of claim 72, wherein the plurality of gateway units notify a controller node if at least one file matching the list of file identifiers is detected.

77. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network, comprising:

a user interface receiving user-entered network access requests;

a network interface for transmitting the network access requests to the network;

a housing; and

a detector for detecting a user attempt to open the housing.

78. The gateway unit of claim 77, wherein the detector notifies the controller node of a detected attempt to open the housing after a subsequent user-initiated event.

79. The gateway unit of claim 77 further comprising a storage device and an interlock to prevent access to the storage device when the detector detects an attempt to open the housing.

80. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network, comprising:

a network interface for providing access to the network;

a user interface to receive user-entered network access requests; and

a processor that enters a user-controlled operational mode after receiving permission over the network from a controller node via the network interface.

81. A controller node for regulating file access in a network, comprising a copyright registry and a processor, wherein the processor:

receives registrations of content data files distributed to a plurality of gateway units; and

tracks copyright status of the content data files.

82. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface for providing access to the network and for receiving controller instructions from the network;

a user interface for transferring content between the network and a user; and

a processor for connecting to a predetermined network site upon initiation of network browser software, in accordance with the received controller instructions.

83. The plurality of gateway units of claim 82, wherein the processor selects the predetermined network site from a list of predetermined network sites.

84. The plurality of gateway units of claim 83, wherein the processor selects from the list of predetermined network sites according to a weighting function such that at least a portion of the predetermined network sites are selected more often than others.

85. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network;

a user interface to transfer content between the network and a user; and

a processor to gather registration information from the user via the user interface and to receive initial operating parameters via the network interface.

86. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network;

a user interface to transfer content between the network and a user; and

a processor to gather registration information from the user via the user interface and to receive software updates via the network interface.

87. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to receive information from the network;

a user interface to receive information from a user; and

a processor to transmit advertising via the user interface to a user display,

wherein the advertising is customized in accordance with information received via at least one of the network interface and the user interface.

88. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive pay-per-view advertising from the network;

a user interface to transfer content between the network and a user; and

a processor to transmit the pay-per-view advertising via the user interface for selective display by a user and to generate payment credits to the user upon display of the advertising by the user.

89. The gateway unit of claim 88, wherein the processor generates one of a plurality of viewing modes for viewing the pay-per-view advertising in response to a user selection.

90. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive software from the network;

a user interface to transfer content between the network and a user; and

a processor to execute the software to enable the user to use, via the user interface, at least one of a fee-based network service, network video calling, and network gaming.

91. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network;

a user interface to receive network access requests from a user; and

a processor to detect a denial-of-service attack received from the user interface and transmitted to the network via the network interface.

92. The plurality of gateway units of claim 91, wherein the processor detects a denial-of-service attack initiated by a virus.

93. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions;

a user interface to transfer incoming data and outgoing data between a user and the network interface; and

a processor to selectively transmit to law enforcement terminals information describing at least one of the incoming data and the outgoing data in accordance with the received controller instructions.

94. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions;

a user interface to transfer traffic between the network and a user; and

a processor to detect a user attempt to at least one of transmit and receive voice traffic over the network, the processor selectively blocking the detected attempt in accordance with the received controller instructions and transmitting, via the user interface, an advertisement offering voice transmission services.

95. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions;

a user interface to transfer traffic between the network and a user; and

a processor to detect a user attempt to at least one of transmit and receive at least one of audio and video traffic over the network, the processor selectively blocking the detected attempt in accordance with the received controller instructions and transmitting, via the user interface, an advertisement offering at least one of audio and video traffic services.

96. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions;

a user interface to transfer traffic between the network and a user; and

a processor to detect at least one of audio and video traffic flowing through the user interface, the processor selectively reducing the quality of service of the detected at least one of audio and video traffic in accordance with the received controller instructions,

wherein reduction of quality of service comprises at least one of;

reducing a duty cycle, inserting TCP/IP messages in the at least one of audio and video traffic, inserting Nak/Ack pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic, and inserting X-On/X-Off pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic.

97. A network unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions and network traffic; and

a processor to detect voice traffic over the network, the processor selectively blocking the traffic in accordance with the received controller instructions.

98. A network unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions and network traffic; and

a processor to detect at least one of audio and video traffic over the network, the processor selectively blocking the traffic in accordance with the received controller instructions.

99. A network unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions and network traffic; and

a processor to detect at least one of audio and video traffic, the processor selectively reducing the quality of service of the detected at least one of audio and video traffic in accordance with the received controller instructions,

wherein reduction of quality of service comprises at least one of;

reducing a duty cycle, inserting TCP/IP messages in the at least one of audio and video traffic, inserting Nak/Ack pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic, and inserting X-On/X-Off pairs in the at least one of audio and video traffic.

100. A controller node for regulating subscriber access to a network comprising:

a processor to generate authentication instructions on behalf of an authenticated subscriber; and

a network interface to transmit the authentication instructions to an access node coupled to the network,

wherein the access node selectively permits subscriber access to the network in accordance with the authentication instructions.

101. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions;

a data storage unit partitioned into a network portion and a user portion; and

a processor to selectively transmit data stored in the network partition, via the network interface, in accordance with the received controller instructions.

102. A network unit for regulating access to a network, comprising:

a user interface receiving user-entered network access requests;

a network interface coupled to the network and receiving controller instructions from the network; and

a processor, the processor selectively transmitting at least some of the network access requests over the network in accordance with the controller instructions, and transferring content data responsive to the transmitted network access requests over the network via the network interface;

wherein the network unit selectively forwards content data received from a first associated network unit to at least a second associated unit in accordance with the controller instructions.

103. The network unit claim 102, wherein the processor

receives portions of a content data file from a group of third associated network units in accordance with the controller instructions;

and

assembles a data file based on the received portions for transmission to a user via the user interface.

104. The network unit of claim 102, wherein the processor:

receives a portion of a content data file from a content server; and

forwards the portion of the content data file to the first associated network unit in accordance with the controller instructions.

105. A network unit for regulating access to a network comprising:

a network interface to provide access to the network and to receive controller instructions;

a processor to perform denial of service attacks in accordance with the received controller instructions.

106. A method for regulating access to a network, the method comprising:

receiving controller instructions from a network at a gateway unit associated with a user;

receiving a network access request at the gateway unit from a user;

selectively transmitting the network access request over the network in accordance with the controller instructions; and

receiving content data responsive to the transmitted network access request from the network.

107. A method for regulating access to a plurality of content servers, the method comprising:

receiving controller instructions from the network at a network unit associated with a first group of users; and

selectively inhibiting access to a portion of the content servers by a second group of users in accordance with the controller instructions.

108. The method of claim 107, wherein inhibiting access for a second group of users comprises performing denial of service attacks.

109. A method for distributing content data over a network, the method comprising:

receiving content distribution instructions from the network;

storing a first portion of content data from the network at a first network unit;

initiating a request over the network, in accordance with the content distribution instructions and in response to a user request, for the remainder of the content data;

receiving the remainder of the content data from the network;

assembling the first portion of content data with the remainder of the content data; and

supplying the assembled content data to the user.

110. The method of claim 109, further comprising selectively forwarding the first portion of content data to a second network unit in accordance with the content distribution instructions.

111. A gateway unit for regulating access to a network, the gateway unit comprising:

a user interface receiving user-entered network access requests;

a network interface coupled to the network and receiving controller instructions from a controller node in the network; and

a processor, the processor selectively transmitting at least some of the network access requests over the network in accordance with the controller instructions, and transferring content data responsive to the transmitted network access requests over the network via the network interface.

112. A network unit associated with a first group of users for regulating access to a network, the network unit comprising:

a network interface coupled to the network and receiving controller instructions from a controller node associated with the first group of users; and

a processor, the processor inhibiting access for a second group of users to content in the network in accordance with the controller instructions.

113. A controller node for regulating access to a network, the controller node comprising:

a processor for generating controller instructions; and

a network interface for transmitting the controller instructions over the network, the controller instructions being configured to cause a user-associated gateway unit to selectively transmit over the network at least some user-entered network access requests.

114. The controller node of claim 113 further comprising a content server for providing content data in response to the user-entered network access requests.

115. A controller node for regulating access to a network, the controller node comprising:

a processor for generating controller instructions; and

a network interface for transmitting the controller instructions over the network to network units associated with a first group of users, the controller instructions being configured to cause the network units to inhibit access for a second group of users to content in the network.