Granting greater rights to stored content

• US 20060195366A1
• Filed: 12/08/2005
• Published: 08/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: General Instrument Corporation (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: General Instrument Corporation (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Clayton, Richard M., Ulmer, David E., Gaumond, Michael T., Stinson, Jeffrey S., Villevieille, Jean-Marc A.
• Application Number:
  US11/296,971
• Publication Number:
  US 20060195366A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2135 Metering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2149 Restricted operating environment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]

Abstract

In a method for granting relatively greater rights to stored content, a target device is disconnected from a content service, content is played on the target device, and a purchase selection of the content is detected. In addition, an entry of the content purchase selection is logged and a characteristic of the content is modified to grant relatively greater rights to the selected content.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

disconnecting a target device from a content service;

playing content on the target device;

detecting a purchase selection of the content;

logging an entry of the content purchase selection; and

modifying a characteristic of the content to grant relatively greater rights to the selected content.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein disconnecting the target device from the content service further comprises disconnecting the target device from at least one of a personal computer and a cellular network, wherein the at least one of the personal computer and the cellular network is connected to the content service.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein playing content on the target device further comprises playing a downloaded webcast on the target device.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the target device comprises at least one of a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant, a digital music player, a car radio, a home stereo, a set-top box, and a digital video player, and wherein detecting a purchase selection of the content further comprises detecting activation of at least one of a purchase indicator physically located on the target device and a purchase indicator displayed on a display of the target device.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein logging an entry of the content purchase selection further comprises logging the content purchase selection in a data storage element of the target device.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein modifying a characteristic of the content further comprises modifying a characteristic of the content to at least one of enable the content to be played multiple times on the target device and enable the content to be played on another target device.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

downloading a first content at a first fidelity and a second content at a second fidelity from the content service prior to disconnecting the target device from the content service,

wherein the first fidelity is lower than the second fidelity; and

wherein playing content on the target device comprises playing the first content, and wherein modifying a characteristic of the content further comprises enabling play of the second content at the second fidelity.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

connecting the target device to the content service;

uploading the logged entry of the content purchase selection to the content service; and

charging a user for the purchased content.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein connecting the target device to the content service further comprises connecting the target device to a second target device, and wherein uploading the logged entry of the content purchase comprises uploading the logged entry of the content purchase to the second target device, and uploading the logged entry from the second target device to the content service when the second target device is connected to the content service.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein connecting the target device to the content service further comprises connecting the target device to the content service through at least one of a cellular network and a WiFi network.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein connecting the target device to the content service further comprises connecting the target device to a second target device connected to the content service, the method further comprising:

automatically uploading the logged entry of the content purchase selection to the content service in response to connection of the target device to the second target device.

12. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

downloading additional content related to the purchased content from the content service to the target device.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein downloading additional content related to the purchased content further comprises downloading a relatively higher fidelity version of the purchased content.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein downloading additional content related to the purchased content further comprises downloading at least one of advertisements, album information, and videos.

15. A target device comprising:

a data storage element for storing content;

a module for playing the stored content;

a module for detecting a purchase selection of the stored content being played;

a module for logging a detected purchase selection of the stored content; and

a module for modifying a characteristic of the content, wherein the module for modifying is configured to modify a characteristic of the content to afford relatively greater rights to the selected content while the target device is disconnected from a content service that provided the content to the target device.

16. The target device according to claim 15, wherein the target device comprises at least one of a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant, a digital music player, a car radio, a home stereo, a set-top box, and a digital video player.

17. The target device according to claim 15, further comprising:

a module for uploading the detected purchase selection logged by the module for logging; and

an interface for enabling communications between the target device and at least one of a personal computer configured for connection to a content service and a network configured for connection to a content service, wherein the interface is configured to upload the detected purchase selection of the content stored in the log when a connection between at least one of the personal computer and the network and the content service is made.

18. A system comprising:

a content service for providing content supplied by at least one content provider; and

a target device for receiving and storing the content provided by the content service, said target device being configured to enable relatively greater rights to be afforded to the content stored on the target device, while the target device is disconnected from the content service.

19. The system according to claim 18, wherein the target device comprises a module for detecting a selection to purchase the stored content, a module for logging a detected purchase selection, and a module for modifying a characteristic of the content to afford the relatively greater rights to the selected content, while the target device is disconnected from the content service.

20. The system according to claim 19, wherein the content service is further configured to charge a user of the target device for the selected content purchase.

21. The system according to claim 20, wherein the content service is further configured to download additional content related to the purchased content to the target device.

22. The system according to claim 18, further comprising:

a second target device in communication with the content service, wherein the target device is configured to connect to the second target device to thereby communicate with the content service.

23. A system comprising:

means for playing content;

means for detecting a purchase selection of the content;

means for logging an entry of the content purchase selection; and

means for granting relatively greater rights to the selected content, while the means for playing content is disconnected from a content service that provided the content to the means for playing.

24. A computer readable medium storing one or more computer programs including instructions that when executed perform the following:

play content on a target device;

detect a purchase selection of the content;

log an entry of the content purchase selection; and

modify a characteristic of the content, while the target device is disconnected from a content service that provided the content to the target device, wherein modification of the content characteristic grants relatively greater rights to the selected content.