ACCESSING RESTRICTED CONTENT BASED ON PROXIMITY

• US 20110320819A1
• Filed: 06/23/2010
• Published: 12/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Weber, Karon A., Pritchett, Thaddeus C., Saretto, Cesare John, Blinn, Arnold, Multerer, Boyd Cannon
• Granted Patent: US 8,447,986 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/176
• 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: H04L 2209/603 Digital right managament [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/045 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply hybrid encryption, i.e. combination of symmetric and asymmetric encryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements using a plurality of keys or algorithms H04L9/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/06 for supporting key management in a packet data network cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key management H04L9/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0825 using asymmetric-key encryption or public key infrastructure [PKI], e.g. key signature or public key certificates
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/32 including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system or for message authentication, e.g. authorization, entity authentication, data integrity or data verification, non-repudiation, key authentication or verification of credentials
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3215 using a plurality of channels network architectures or network communication protocols using different networks H04L63/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds

Abstract

A license to use content (e.g., a movie, song, application, etc.) is provided to a consumer. The license allows for use of the content by the device the consumer is using (e.g., logged into) and devices near the device the consumer is using. For example, a first computing device obtains a license to restricted content. A second computing device obtains a copy of the restricted content; however, the second computing device is not licensed to use the content and may not be able to access the content because the content is encrypted or otherwise restricted. The first computing device is brought into proximity with the second computing device. In response to detecting that the first computing device is in proximity with the second computing device, the second computing device is provided with legal access to the restricted content. The second computing device can then decrypt (or otherwise access) and play the content.

Claims

1. A method for presenting restricted content based on a first computing device being in proximity to a second computing device, comprising:

obtaining the restricted content at the second computing device;

determining that the second computing device is in proximity to the first computing device;

receiving the right to access the restricted content at the second computing device while the second computing device is in proximity to the first computing device and in response to the second computing device being in proximity to the first computing device; and

presenting the restricted content using the second computing device based on the right to access.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the obtaining restricted content includes downloading encrypted content; and

the receiving the right to access the restricted content includes receiving a key at the second computing device to decrypt the encrypted content.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

losing the right to access the restricted content at the second computing device and no longer being able to present the restricted content using the second computing device in response to the second computing device no longer being in proximity to the first computing device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first computing device is operating in association with a user identity for a first user and the second computing device is operating in association with a user identity for a second user that is a different person than the first user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the receiving the right to access the restricted content includes the second computing device providing a public key for the second computing device to the first computing device, receiving a content key that is encrypted based on the public key from the first computing device, decrypting the content key based on a private key for the second computing device that is associated with the public key and using the decrypted content key to decrypt the restricted content.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the receiving the right to access the content includes the second computing device providing a public key for the second computing device to the first computing device, receiving a first content key that is encrypted based on the public key from the first computing device for a first portion of the restricted content, decrypting the first content key based on a private key for the second computing device that is associated with the public key, using the decrypted first content key to decrypt the first portion of the restricted content, receiving a second content key that is encrypted based on the public key from the first computing device for a second portion of the restricted content only if the first computing device is in proximity to the second computing device, decrypting the second content key based on the private key for the second computing device that is associated with the public key and using the decrypted second content key to decrypt the second portion of the restricted content.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the receiving the right to access the restricted content includes the second computing device providing a public key for the second computing device to the first computing device, receiving a content key that is encrypted based on the public key from the first computing device, decrypting the content key based on a private key for the second computing device that is associated with the public key, using the decrypted content key to decrypt a first portion of the restricted content, verifying whether the first computing device is still in proximity to the second computing device, deleting the decrypted content key if the first computing device is not in proximity to the second computing device, using the decrypted content key to decrypt a second portion of the restricted content if the first computing device is still in proximity to the second computing device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the receiving the right to access the content includes the second computing device providing a public key for the second computing device to the first computing device, receiving a content key that is encrypted based on the public key, decrypting the content key based on a private key for the second computing device that is associated with the public key, using the decrypted content key to decrypt a first portion of the restricted content, deleting the decrypted content key in response to decrypting the first portion of the encrypted content, requesting and receiving the encrypted content key after the deleting of the decrypted content key, decrypting the content key, and using the decrypted content key to decrypt a second portion of the restricted content.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving verification information at the second computing device from the first computing device; and

presenting the verification information to a server, the receiving the right to access the content at the second computing device includes receiving a key at the second computing device from the server, the second computing device uses the key to decrypt the restricted content.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wirelessly sensing positional information at the second computing device;

transmitting the positional information from the second computing device to a server; and

receiving an indication that the second computing device is in proximity to the first computing device based on the transmitted positional information.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the second computing device is not physically connected to the first computing device;

the obtaining restricted content includes downloading encrypted content;

the receiving the right to access the content includes the second computing device providing a public key for the second computing device to the first computing device, receiving a content key that is encrypted based on the public key from the first computing device, decrypting the content key based on a private key for the second computing device that is associated with the public key and using the decrypted content key to decrypt the encrypted content; and

the method further comprises losing the right to access the content at the second computing device and no longer being able to present the restricted content using the second computing device in response to the second computing device no longer being in proximity to the first computing device.

12. One or more processor readable storage devices having processor readable code stored thereon, the processor readable code for programming one or more processors to perform a method comprising:

acquiring a right to access content at a first computing device;

identifying that the first computing device is in proximity to a second computing device; and

providing the right to access the content to the second computing device while the first computing device is in proximity to the second computing device and in response to the first computing device being in proximity to the second computing device.

13. One or more processor readable storage devices according to claim 12, wherein the providing the right to access the content to the second computing device comprises:

determining if the first computing device is in proximity to the second computing device;

encrypting a content key, the content key can be used to decrypt the content; and

sending the encrypted content key to the second computing device if the first computing device is in proximity to the second computing device.

14. One or more processor readable storage devices according to claim 12, wherein the identifying that the first computing device is in proximity to the second computing device comprises:

sensing positional data using one or more sensors; and

determining whether the first computing device is in proximity to the second computing device based on the positional data.

15. One or more processor readable storage devices according to claim 12, wherein the method further comprises:

removing the right to access the content to the second computing device when the first computing device is no longer in proximity to the second computing device; and

automatically regaining the right to access the content to the second computing device when the first computing device come back into proximity to the second computing device.

16. A system for presenting content, comprising:

a first computing device, the first computing device acquires a right to access content from an entity via a network; and

a second computing device, the second receives an access right to access the content in response to the first computing device being in proximity to the second computing device, the second computing device accesses the content using the access right.

17. A system according to claim 16, further comprising:

a licensing server, the first computing device acquires the right to access content from the licensing server;

proximity server, the first computing device and the second computing device transmit positional data to the proximity server and the proximity server determines whether the first computing device is proximity to the second computing device based on the positional data from the first computing device and the second computing device, the proximity server communicates to the licensing server whether the first computing device is proximity to the second computing device, the licensing server sends data embodying the right to access the content to the second computing device in response to the proximity server communicating to the licensing server that the first computing device is proximity to the second computing device.

18. A system according to claim 16, wherein:

the first computing device transmits to the second computing device the access right to access the content when the first computing device is in proximity to the second computing device and in response to the first computing device being in proximity to the second computing device; and

a watermark is intermittently added to the content to identify a user of the first computing device.

19. A system according to claim 16, wherein:

the second computing device loses access to the content in response to the first computing device no longer being in proximity to the second computing device.

20. A system according to claim 16, wherein:

the first computing device is not physically connected to the second computing device.