Method and system for digital rights management

• US 20050204405A1
• Filed: 03/04/2005
• Published: 09/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Cloakx LLC
• Original Assignee: Cloakx LLC
• Inventors: Wormington, Brian, Lear, William R. Jr.
• Application Number:
  US11/071,924
• Publication Number:
  US 20050204405A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/27
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2541 Rights Management protecting software against unauthorised usage in a vending or licensing environment G06F21/10; security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• 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 21/25875 involving end-user authentication restricting access to computer systems by authenticating users using a predetermined code G06F21/33; arrangements for secret or secure communication including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08; authentication in wireless network security H04W12/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4181 for conditional access
• 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 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• 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 21/6581 Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8358 involving watermark protecting executable software by watermarking G06F21/16; image watermarking in general G06T1/0021; watermarks inserted in still images for transmission purposes H04N1/32144; inserting watermarks during video coding H04N19/467
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

In a method and system for digital content management, in order for an end-user application on a consumer electronic device to be fully functional, the end-user must have a secure computing device, such as a smart card or dongle, in communication with the consumer electronic device. The secure computing device contains critical code fragments necessary for the complete execution of the end-user application and can hold the critical code fragments of multiple applications from multiple vendors. Applications can be updated by vendors when the secure computing device is in communication with a WAN. In a network environment, consumers can execute code from a secure computing device in communication with a local area network or a master secure computing device can transfer licenses to multiple secure computing devices in communication with the master secure computing device via a local area network server.

Claims

1. A method of digital rights management comprising:

allowing an end-user to execute a first portion of code on a consumer electronic device;

allowing the end-user to install a second portion of code on a secure computing device, in communication with the consumer electronic device, wherein the second portion of code is encrypted;

allowing the end-user to download a first decryption key for the second portion of code;

allowing the end-user to decrypt the second portion of code;

allowing the end-user to execute the second portion of code in the secure computing device; and

allowing the end-user to register the end-user application.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the second portion of code is copied or transferred from the consumer electronic device to the secure computing device.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the first portion of code contains at least one call to the second portion of code.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the end-user application can only be fully functional when the second portion of code is executed.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the second portion of code comprises at least one critical code fragment.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the decryption key is downloaded from a first end-user application vendor.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the first decryption key is downloaded to the secure computing device.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the second portion of code is downloaded from a first end-user application vendor.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

allowing an end-user to install a third portion of code on the secure computing device, wherein the third portion of code is encrypted; and

allowing an end-user to download a second decryption key for the third portion of code.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the third portion of code is downloaded from a second end-user application vendor.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the decryption key is downloaded from a second end-user application vendor.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the second decryption key is downloaded to the secure computing device.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the end-user must register the end-user application before the end-user is allowed to execute the second portion of the code.

14. A method of digital rights management comprising:

installing a first portion of code on a consumer electronic device;

installing a second portion of code on a secure computing device in communication with the consumer electronic device wherein the second portion of code is encrypted;

downloading a first decryption key for the second portion of code;

decrypting the second portion of the code; and

executing the second portion of code in the secure computing device.

15. A method of digital rights management comprising:

allowing an end-user to execute a first portion of code of a first end-user application on a consumer electronic device;

allowing the end-user to execute a second portion of code of the first end-user application on a secure computing device in communication with the consumer electronic device, wherein the end-user able to execute a portion of code of a second end-user application on the secure computing device.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the first end-user application is licensed or purchased from a first vendor and wherein the second end-user application is licensed or purchased from a second vendor.

17. A method of digital rights management comprising:

allowing a first end-user to execute a first portion of code of the end-user application on a first consumer electronic device;

allowing a second end-user to execute the first portion of code of the end-user application on a second consumer electronic device; and

allowing the first and second end-users to execute a second portion of code of the end-user application on a secure computing device in communication with a local area network server;

wherein the local area network server is in communication with both the first and second consumer electronic devices.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein a digital identification device is in communication with the first consumer electronic device.

19. A system of digital rights management comprising:

a local area network server;

a master secure computing device in communication with the local area network server, the master secure computing device having n transfer tokens;

at least one consumer electronic device in communication with the local area network server;

an end-user secure computing device in communication with one of the at least one consumer electronic device;

wherein a first portion of code of the end-user application can be executed on the at least one consumer electronic device and, after one of the n transfer tokens is transferred to the end-user secure computing device, a second portion of code of the end-user application can be executed on the end-user secure computing device.

20. A system of digital rights management comprising:

a local area network server;

a secure computing device in communication with the local area network server; and

at least one consumer electronic device in communication with the local area network server;

wherein a first portion of code of the end-user application can be executed on the at least on consumer electronic device and a second portion of code of the end-user application can be executed on the secure computing device.