Method and apparatus for an adapter card providing conditional access in a communication system

• US 6,125,184 A
• Filed: 05/23/1997
• Issued: 09/26/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hughes Network Systems LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Hughes Electronics Corporation (Rtx Corporation)
• Inventors: Dillon, Douglas M., Cassagnol, Robert D.
• Primary Examiner(s): CANGIALOSI, SALVATORE A
• Application Number:
  US08/862,346
• Time in Patent Office: 1,222 Days
• Field of Search: 380/23, 380/25, 380/43, 380/44, 455/575
• US Class Current: 380/44
• 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: H04B 7/18523 Satellite systems for providing broadcast service to terrestrial stations, i.e. broadcast satellite service arrangements specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving H04H40/90; picture transmission via satellite H04N1/00103; television transmission via satellite H04N7/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18593 Arrangements for preventing unauthorised access or for providing user protection arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/74 of satellite networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/18 Arrangements characterised by circuits or components specially adapted for receiving
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/90 specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/15 on receiving information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/23 using cryptography, e.g. encryption, authentication, key distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/062 for key distribution, e.g. centrally by trusted party cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key distribution involving a central third party H04L9/0819
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/065 for group communications cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key management involving conference or group key H04L9/0833
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/105 Multiple levels of security
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4181 for conditional access
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/436 Interfacing a local distribution network, e.g. communicating with another STB or one or more peripheral devices inside the home
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43607 Interfacing a plurality of external cards, e.g. through a DVB Common Interface [DVB-CI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4623 : Processing of entitlement messages, e.g. ECM [Entitlement Control Message] or EMM [Entitlement Management Message] arrangements for conditional access to broadcast information or to broadcast-related services H04H60/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6143 : involving transmission via a satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 : by receiver means only
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 : Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

A method and apparatus for an adapter card, for use in a computer, to provide conditional access by the computer to incoming data streams while maintaining the security of information by maintaining a listing of addresses corresponding to data streams which the computer is authorized to receive, receiving and determining the address of a frame, determining whether the frame address matches an address maintained in an Access Table, and processing and transmitting only those frames of data streams which the computer is authorized to receive.

Claims

1. An apparatus connectable to a computer, said apparatus comprising:

input means for inputting a data stream from a satellite receiver, wherein the data stream comprises a plurality of data streams, each data stream having a unique address, each of the plurality of data streams being individually conditional access controlled by different encryption;

conditional access means for determining whether or not the computer is authorized to receive a data stream of the plurality of data streams by comparing the address of the data stream to a stored address; and

output means for outputting a decrypted data stream to the computer through a bus interface for further processing by the computer, in accordance with the determination by said conditional access means.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said conditional access means decrypts the data stream using a key selected in accordance with the address.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said apparatus is an adapter card.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said output means interrupts the computer to inform the computer that the decrypted data stream is ready to be retrieved by the computer.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said output means buffers the decrypted data stream in memory in said apparatus.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each said apparatus has a unique key, and

wherein said conditional access means uses the unique key to decrypt a group key used to control access to a group of data streams, uses the group key to decrypt data keys respectively corresponding to each data stream in the group of data streams, and uses the data keys to decrypt the respective data streams in the group of data streams.

7. A method comprising:

inputting a data stream from a satellite receiver, wherein the data stream comprises a plurality of data streams, each data stream having a unique address, each of the plurality of data streams being individually conditional access controlled by different encryption;

determining whether or not a computer is authorized to receive a data stream of the plurality of data streams by comparing the address of the data stream to a stored address; and

outputting a decrypted data stream to the computer through a bus interface for further processing by the computer, in accordance with the determination by said determining step.

8. An apparatus connectable to a computer, said apparatus comprising:

input means for inputting a data stream from a satellite receiver, wherein the data stream comprises a plurality of data streams, each data stream having a unique address, each of the plurality of data streams being individually conditional access controlled by different encryption;

conditional access means for determining whether or not the computer is authorized to receive a data stream of the plurality of data streams by comparing the address of the data stream to a stored address; and

output means for outputting a decrypted data stream to the computer in accordance with the determination by said conditional access means,

wherein said apparatus is an adapter card.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said adapter card is insertable into the computer.

10. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said output means interrupts the computer to inform the computer that the decrypted data stream is ready to be retrieved by the computer.

11. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said output means buffers the decrypted data stream in memory in said apparatus.

12. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein each said apparatus has a unique key, and

wherein said conditional access means uses the unique key to decrypt a group key used to control access to a group of data streams, uses the group key to decrypt data keys respectively corresponding to each data stream in the group of data streams, and uses the data keys to decrypt the respective data streams in the group of data streams.

13. A method comprising:

inputting a data stream from a satellite receiver, wherein the data stream comprises a plurality of data streams, each data stream having a unique address, each of the plurality of data streams being individually conditional access controlled by different encryption;

determining whether or not a computer is authorized to receive a data stream of the plurality of data streams by comparing the address of the data stream to a stored address; and

outputting a decrypted data stream to the computer in accordance with the determination by said determining step,

wherein said outputting step is effected by using an adapter card connected to the computer.

14. An apparatus connectable to a computer, said apparatus comprising:

an input unit configured to input a data stream from a satellite receiver, wherein the data stream comprises a plurality of data streams, each of the plurality of data streams including identifying information that uniquely identifies the data stream and being encrypted so that the data stream is decrypted using a key selected in accordance with the identifying information;

a conditional access unit configured to determine whether or not the computer is authorized to receive a data stream of the plurality of data streams by comparing the identifying information of the data stream to stored identifying information; and

an output unit configured to decrypt and output a data stream to the computer through a bus interface for further processing by the computer, in accordance with the determination by said conditional access unit.

15. An apparatus connectable to a computer, said apparatus comprising:

an input unit configured to input a data stream from a satellite receiver, wherein the data stream comprises a plurality of data streams, each of the plurality of data streams including identifying information that uniquely identifies the data stream and being encrypted so that the data stream is decrypted using a key selected in accordance with the identifying information;

a conditional access unit configured to determine whether or not the computer is authorized to receive a data stream of the plurality of data streams by comparing the identifying information of the data stream to stored identifying information; and

an output unit configured to decrypt and output a data stream to the computer, in accordance with the determination by said conditional access unit,

wherein said apparatus is an adapter card.

16. An apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said adapter card is insertable into the computer.

17. An apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the stored identifying information indicates which data stream or data streams the computer is authorized to receive.