High security pay television system

• US 4,908,834 A
• Filed: 09/22/1987
• Issued: 03/13/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/1984
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: John D. Wiedemer
• Original Assignee: John D. Wiedemer
• Inventors: Wiedemer, John D.
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Assistant Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US07/100,577
• Time in Patent Office: 903 Days
• Field of Search: 380/5, 380/7, 380/10, 380/15, 380/16, 380/20, 380/22, 380/23, 358/86, 358/84, 455/3
• US Class Current: 380/228
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/343 Cards including a counter
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0014 for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00 meter-controlled dispensing of liquid, gas or electricity G07F15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/02 by keys or other credit registering devices
• 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 21/4181 for conditional access
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42684 Client identification by a unique number or address, e.g. serial number, MAC address, socket ID network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming H04L61/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• 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 21/47211 for requesting pay-per-view content payment schemes payment architectures or payment protocols G06Q20/00, G07F
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6334 for authorisation, e.g. by transmitting a key wireless communications network key management H04W12/04; wireless communications network access security H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/161 Constructional details of the subscriber equipment H04N7/164 takes precedence
• 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

Abstract

A high security pay television system is provided in which television receivers include a decoder and with periodically changed removable memory modules. The decoder only functions to properly descramble the scrambled broadcase signal when a changeable system-wide code is available in the decoder. The code can either be carried in the memory module, or an internal code unique to the decoder and resident in the decoder can be combined with an external code in the removable memory module, and also unique to that decoder, to generate the common systemwide system code. Program viewership is written on the removable memory module which is returned to a central facility for later subscriber billing.

Claims

1. A television receiver adapted for use in a pay television system in which broadcast signals are scrambled comprising

turner means for receiving the broadcast signal and for separating the broadcast signal into at least two components;

a decoder circuit connected to receive a first one of the components from the tuner means;

a mixer to combine the output of the decoder circuit with the first component of the output of the tuner means;

a television screen and associated driver circuitry to display the output of the mixer;

an electrically alterable memory module containing a first memory portion in which at least one pre-written external code is carried and a second memory portion in which program information may be entered;

a microprocessor in the decoder circuit programmed to (1) read the external code from the memory module, (2) derive a broadcast code from the video signal, (3) generate a descrambling signal from the external code and output the descrambling signal to the mixer, and (4) to write information about programs actually being descrambled, as determined by the broadcast code, in the memory module so that use of the receiver to view scrambled broadcasts can be billed on a usage basis; and

means for descrambling a second of the separated components of the broadcast signal from the tuner means separately from the other components so that full, descrambled composite video signal is not available at any one point in the receiver.

2. A television receiver as claimed in claim 1 wherein the tuner means includes a synch separator to separate a synch signal from the components video signal, wherein the separated synch signal is the second component, and wherein the descrambling means descrambles that synch signal independently of the composite video.

3. A television receiver adapted for use in a pay television system in which broadcast signals are scrambled comprising

a tuner to receive the broadcast signal and derive a video signal therefrom;

a decoder circuit connected to receive the video signal from the tuner,

a mixer to combine the output of the decoder circuit with a first component of the output of the tuner;

a television screen and associated driver circuitry to display the output of the mixer;

an electrically alterable memory module containing a first memory portion in which at least one pre-written external code is carried and a second memory portion in which program information may be entered; and

a microprocessor in the decoder circuit programmed to (1) read the external code from the memory module, (2) derive a broadcast code from the video signal, (3) recognize in the broadcast code whether the program signal is being received over the air or from a video cassette tape, (4) generate a descrambling signal from the external code, the descrambling signal being different depending on the source of the signal, and output the descrambling signal to the mixer, and (4) to write information about programs actually being descrambled, as determined by the broadcast code, in the memory module so that use of the receiver to view scrambled broadcasts can be billed on a usage basis and so that the receiver can descramble programming recorded on video cassette in partially descrambled format.

4. A television receiver adapted for use in a pay television system in which broadcast signals are scrambled comprising

a tuner to receive the broadcast signal and derive a video signal therefrom;

a decoder circuit connected to receive the video signal from the tuner;

a mixer to combine the output of the decoder circuit with a component of the output of the tuner;

a television screen and associated driver circuitry to display the output of the mixer;

an electrically alterable memory module containing a first memory portion in which at least one pre-written external code is carried; and

a microprocessor in the decoder circuit programmed to (1) read the external code from the memory module, (2) derive a broadcast code from the video signal, (3) recognize in the broadcast code whether the program signal is being received over the air or from a recorded media, and (4) generate a descrambling signal from the external code, the descrambling signal being different depending on the source of the signal, and (5) output the descrambling signal to the mixer, so that the user can view programs recorded on the recorded media in partially descrambled format.