Method and System of Degital Content Sharing Among Users Over Communications Networks , Related Telecommunications Network Architecture and Computer Program Product Therefor

• US 20070243860A1
• Filed: 05/31/2004
• Published: 10/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telecom Italia S.p.A.
• Original Assignee: Telecom Italia S.p.A.
• Inventors: Aiello, Alessandro, Valetto, Giuseppe
• Granted Patent: US 8,706,886 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.300
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1076 Resource dissemination mechanisms or network resource keeping policies for optimal resource availability in the overlay network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A method and a system for digital content sharing between individual users in a peer-to-peer fashion, wherein each user is connected to a respective local access network through a transport network. The method and system provide local network storage areas associated with each user arranged for archiving digital contents, and carry out the transferring of contents via the transport network from a storage area associated with a user holding requested contents to a remote network storage area associated with a requesting user on a different access network according to the connectivity available on the transport network. The shared contents are made available for access by the requesting user on its local network storage area. A telecommunications network architecture includes the system so that there is a plurality of services of content sharing between pairs of individual users implementing the above method.

Claims

1-33. -33. (canceled)

34. A method of digital content sharing between a providing user and a requesting user in a peer-to-peer fashion, wherein the providing user and the requesting user are respectively connected to providing access networks and to a requesting access network and wherein at least one transport network is interposed between said access networks, comprising:

archiving digital contents by the providing user into a user storage area associated with the providing access network;

transferring contents via said at least one transport network from said user storage area associated with the providing access network to a further user storage area associated with the requesting access network on the basis of

connectivity available on the transport network, or

requirements associated with the requesting user; and

making available the digital contents for access by the requesting user on the further user storage area associated with the requesting access network.

35. The method according to claim 34, wherein the user storage area is on a respective storage server belonging to the access network to which the user is connected.

36. The method according to claim 34, wherein the archiving of digital contents by the user on the user storage area is carried out according to the connectivity available between the user and the access network to which the user connected.

37. The method according to claim 34, wherein the archiving of contents by the user on the user storage area comprises the step of indexing of the digital contents.

38. The method according to claim 37, further comprising

searching contents by the requesting user by means of indexes associated with the digital contents as indexed.

39. The method according to claim 34, wherein the digital contents made available by the providing user remain on the user storage area of the providing user even if the providing user is disconnected from the providing access network.

40. The method according to claim 34, wherein the requirements associated with the requesting user comprise scheduling instructions by the requesting user.

41. The method according to claim 34, wherein the step of transferring contents via said at least one transport network occurs when the digital contents become available on the user storage area associated with the providing user independently of the requesting user being connected to the requesting access network.

42. The method according to claim 34, comprising the step of:

transferring contents via said at least one transport network which comprises the step of;

transferring contents in predetermined delivery times to an access network temporarily associated with the requesting user and to which the user is temporarily connected.

43. The method according to claim 34, comprising the step of:

transferring contents via said at least one transport network which comprises the steps of;

monitoring the digital contents as transferred to the requesting access network; and

selectively transferring the digital contents in cases wherein the monitored contents have been already transferred to at least one user storage area of the requesting access network.

44. The method according to claim 34, wherein the step of transferring contents via said at least one transport network is made according to streaming techniques.

45. The method according to claim 34, wherein archiving contents, transferring contents over the transport network, and making available contents are managed by a control module operated by an operator of the transport network.

46. The method according to claim 34, wherein the digital contents are made available to said further user storage area for a limited time and/or for a limited number of accesses.

47. The method according to claim 34, wherein the digital contents are made available to said further user storage area in a secured and/or encrypted form.

48. The method according to claim 34, wherein the step of transferring contents via said at least one transport network comprises the step of:

accounting and billing the transferred contents.

61. A service of lending/borrowing of contents between a providing user and a requesting user in a peer-to-peer fashion, implementing a method of digital content sharing according to claim 34.

62. A service of content sharing between a providing user and a requesting user in a peer-to-peer fashion, according to a download-and-stream technique, implementing a method of digital content sharing according to claim 34.

63. A service of content sharing between a providing user and a requesting user in a peer-to-peer fashion, according to a two-step-streaming technique, implementing a method of digital content sharing according to claim 34.

64. A computer program product loadable in the memory of at least one computer and comprising software code portions capable of performing the steps of claim 34.

49. A system of digital content sharing between a providing user device and a requesting user device in a peer-to-peer fashion, wherein the providing device and the requesting device are respectively connected to providing access networks and to a requesting access network and wherein at least one transport network is interposed between said access networks, comprising:

a user storage area associated with the providing access network arranged for archiving digital contents; and

a control unit arranged for

providing access to the digital contents archived into the user storage area associated with the providing access networks, and for

managing transfer of the digital contents via said at least one transport network to a further user storage area associated with the requesting access network.

50. The system according to claim 49, wherein the user storage area is on a storage server belonging to the access network to which the user device is connected.

51. The system according to claim 50, wherein the storage server is partitioned into a plurality of user storage areas.

52. The system according to claim 51, wherein each user storage area of said plurality is assigned to a single user device and is partly under the control of the single device and partly under the control of the control unit.

53. The system according to claim 50, wherein the user device comprises a content processing module for managing communications both with the control unity;

and the respective storage server.

54. The system according to claim 53, wherein the content processing module comprises a control interface for providing interactions with the control unit.

55. The system according to claim 53, wherein the content processing module comprises a data interface for providing interactions with the respective storage server for managing contents upload/download through predetermined protocols.

56. The system according to claim 49, wherein the control unit comprises at least one of the following:

a control interface arranged for interacting with the user devices;

a search and location sub-module arranged for indexing, searing and locating contents archived into the user storage areas; and

a network control sub-module arranged for managing transfer of contents via the transport network.

57. The system according to claim 50, wherein said further user storage area associated with the requesting access network is implemented as a streaming buffer for temporary storage of the contents, according to data streaming techniques.

58. The system according to claim 50, wherein the storage servers are implemented on a firewall or gateway protecting the access network to which the user device is connected.

59. The system according to claim 49, for carrying out a method comprising:

archiving digital contents by the providing user into a user storage area associated with the providing access network;

transferring contents via said at least one transport network from said user storage area associated with the providing access network to a further user storage area associated with the requesting access network on the basis of;

connectivity available on the transport network, or

requirements associated with the requesting user; and

making available the digital contents for access by the requesting user on the further user storage area associated with the requesting access network.

60. A telecommunications network architecture comprising a system for digital content sharing according to claim 49.