Contents distribution system for handling secondary products utilizing raw material contents

• US 7,035,826 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2001
• Issued: 04/25/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Hamada, Shinichiro, Seki, Toshibumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHEUNG, MARY DA ZHI WANG
• Application Number:
  US09/962,149
• Publication Number:
  US 20020040435A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• Field of Search: 705 50- 59, 705/77, 705/22, 705 39- 40, 705 26- 27, 380200-203, 380231-233, 713165-169, 713/193, 707100-104
• US Class Current: 705/51
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/068 using time-dependent keys, e.g. periodically changing keys cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for controlling usage of secret information H04L9/088

Abstract

A contents distribution system uses a copyright rental use scheme in which the economical burden on the users at a time of utilizing contents can be reduced to a reasonable level, and appropriate fees can be collected for the copyrights of the contents created and provided at each stage by the raw material creators and the secondary product creators. In this system, the secondary product creator can create the secondary product contents by incorporating the raw material contents for free, and sell the secondary product contents. The end-user pays respective utilization fees to the secondary product creator and each raw material provider at a time of the purchasing the secondary product contents.

Claims

1. A contents distribution system for enabling utilization of a secondary product contents containing one or more raw material contents which are encrypted by using an encryption key and to which an information for a contract procedure to enable utilization of the raw material contents is attached, the contents distribution system comprising:

a server device configured to maintain the encryption key of the raw material contents; and

a client device configured to acquire the encryption key of the raw material contents from the server device, decrypt the raw material contents by using the encryption key and enable the utilization of the secondary product contents, by executing the contract procedure according to the information for the contract procedure attached to the raw material contents when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified;

wherein the information for the contract procedure comprises a description regarding charging of an end-user by each raw material contents provider and a secondary contents creator, and a description regarding charging between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator; and

the client device dynamically determines a price of each raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents according to prices of other raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents, executes the contract procedure with respect to the end-user as well as a charging processing between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator, and acquires the encryption key, decrypts the raw material contents and enables the utilization of the secondary product contents when all of the contract procedure and the charging processing are completed.

2. The contents distribution system of claim 1, wherein the client device executes the contract procedure for each raw material contents specified from the secondary product contents, according to the information for the contract procedure attached to each raw material contents.

3. The contents distribution system of claim 1, wherein the client device executes the contract procedure between an end-user of the secondary product contents and a raw material contents provider of each raw material contents

4. The contents distribution system of claim 1, further comprising an editor device configured to encrypt the secondary product contents by using a prescribed encryption key, register the prescribed encryption key in the server device, and attaches a prescribed information for a prescribed contract procedure to enable the utilization of the secondary product contents to the secondary product contents.

5. The contents distribution system of claim 4, wherein the client device also executes the prescribed contract procedure for the secondary product contents, according to the prescribed information for the prescribed contract procedure attached to the secondary product contents, when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified.

6. The contents distribution system of claim 1, wherein the client device enables the utilization of the secondary product contents created by a secondary product creator without paying any raw material fees to raw material providers of the raw material contents, when an end-user of the secondary product contents pays a raw material fee to each raw material provider of each raw material contents upon executing the contract procedure for each raw material contents at the client device.

7. The contents distribution system of claim 1, wherein the information for the contract procedure is described by an extended description in which a conditioned charging by which a manner of charging can be changed according to a property of contents is defined for each of the raw material contents and the secondary contents, and the client device is capable of determining and carrying out charging of each contents according to conditions described by the extended description of the information for the contract procedure.

8. An information processing device for enabling utilization of a secondary product contents containing one or more raw material contents which are encrypted by using an encryption key and to which an information for a contract procedure to enable utilization of the raw material contents is attached, the information processing device comprising:

an execution unit configured to execute the contract procedure according to the information for the contract procedure attached to the raw material contents when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified; and

a processing unit configured to acquire the encryption key of the raw material contents from a server that maintains the encryption key of the raw material contents, decrypt the raw material contents by using the encryption key and enable the utilization of the secondary product contents when the contract procedure is executed by the execution unit;

wherein the information for the contract procedure comprises a description regarding charging of an end-user by each raw material contents provider and a secondary contents creator, and a description regarding charging between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator; and

the execution unit dynamically determines a price of each raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents according to prices of other raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents, executes the contract procedure with respect to the end-user as well as a charging processing between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator, and the processing unit acquires the encryption key, decrypts the raw material contents and enables the utilization of the secondary product contents when all of the contract procedure and the charging processing are completed.

9. The information processing device of claim 8, wherein the execution unit executes the contract procedure for each raw material contents specified from the secondary product contents, according to the information for the contract procedure attached to each raw material contents.

10. The information processing device of claim 8, wherein the execution unit executes the contract procedure between an end-user of the secondary product contents and a raw material contents provider of each raw material contents.

11. The information processing device of claim 8, wherein the processing unit enables the utilization of the secondary product contents which is encrypted by using a prescribed encryption key, the prescribed encryption key being registered in the server device, and a prescribed information for a prescribed contract procedure to enable the utilization of the secondary product contents being attached to the secondary product contents.

12. The information processing device of claim 11, wherein the execution unit also executes the prescribed contract procedure for the secondary product contents, according to the prescribed information for the prescribed contract procedure attached to the secondary product contents, when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified.

13. The information processing device of claim 8, wherein the processing unit enables the utilization of the secondary product contents created by a secondary product creator without paying any raw material fees to raw material providers of the raw material contents, when an end-user of the secondary product contents pays a raw material fee to each raw material provider of each raw material contents upon executing the contract procedure for each raw material contents by the execution unit.

14. A contents distribution method for enabling utilization of a secondary product contents containing one or more raw material contents which are encrypted by using an encryption key and to which an information for a contract procedure to enable utilization of the raw material contents is attached, the contents distribution method comprising:

(a) maintaining the encryption key of the raw material contents at a server device; and

(b) acquiring the encryption key of the raw material contents from the server device, decrypting the raw material contents by using the encryption key and enabling the utilization of the secondary product contents, by executing the contract procedure according to the information for the contract procedure attached to the raw material contents at a client device when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified;

wherein the information for the contract procedure comprises a description regarding charging of an end-user by each raw material contents provider and a secondary contents creator, and a description regarding charging between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator; and

the step (b) dynamically determines a price of each raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents according to prices of other raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents, executes the contract procedure with respect to the end-user as well as a charging processing between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator, and acquires the encryption key, decrypts the raw material contents and enables the utilization of the secondary product contents when all of the contract procedure and the charging processing are completed.

15. The contents distribution method of claim 14, wherein at the step (b), the client device executes the contract procedure for each raw material contents specified from the secondary product contents, according to the information for the contract procedure attached to each raw material contents.

16. The contents distribution method of claim 14, wherein at the step (b), the client device executes the contract procedure between an end-user of the secondary product contents and a raw material contents provider of each raw material contents.

17. The contents distribution method of claim 14, wherein at the step (b), the client device enables the secondary product contents which is encrypted by using a prescribed encryption key, the prescribed encryption key being registered in the server device, and a prescribed information for a prescribed contract procedure to enable the utilization of the secondary product contents being attached to the secondary product contents.

18. The contents distribution method of claim 15, wherein at the step (b), the client device also executes the prescribed contract procedure for the secondary product contents, according to the prescribed information for the prescribed contract procedure attached to the secondary product contents, when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified.

19. The contents distribution method of claim 14, wherein at the step (b), the client device enables the utilization of the secondary product contents created by a secondary product creator without paying any raw material fees to raw material providers of the raw material contents, when an end-user of the secondary product contents pays a raw material fee to each raw material provider of each raw material contents upon executing the contract procedure for each raw material contents.

20. A computer program product embodied on a computer readable media for causing a computer to function as an information processing device for enabling utilization of a secondary product contents containing one or more raw material contents which are encrypted by using an encryption key and to which an information for a contract procedure to enable utilization of the raw material contents is attached, the computer program product comprising:

first computer program codes for causing the computer to execute the contract procedure according to the information for the contract procedure attached to the raw material contents when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified; and

second computer program codes for causing the computer to acquire the encryption key of the raw material contents from a server that maintains the encryption key of the raw material contents, decrypt the raw material contents by using the encryption key and enable the utilization of the secondary product contents when the contract procedure is executed by the first computer program codes;

wherein the information for the contract procedure comprises a description regarding charging of an end-user by each raw material contents provider and a secondary contents creator, and a description regarding charging between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator; and

the first computer program codes dynamically determines a price of each raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents according to prices of other raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents, execute the contract procedure with respect to the end-user as well as a charging processing between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator, and the second computer program codes acquire the encryption key, decrypt the raw material contents and enable the utilization of the secondary product contents when all of the contract procedure and the charging processing are completed.

21. A method for providing a contents distribution service, comprising:

providing a secondary product contents containing one or more raw material contents which are encrypted by using an encryption key and to which an information for a contract procedure to enable utilization of the raw material contents is attached, the secondary product contents being created by a secondary product creator without paying any raw material fees to raw material providers of the raw material contents;

executing the contract procedure according to the information for the contract procedure attached to the raw material contents when the utilization of the secondary product contents is specified; and

acquiring the encryption key of the raw material contents from a server device that maintains the encryption key of the raw material contents at a server device, decrypting the raw material contents by using the encryption key and enabling the utilization of the secondary product contents, when an end-user of the secondary product contents pays a raw material fee to each raw material provider of each raw material contents upon executing the contract procedure for each raw material contents;

wherein the information for the contract procedure comprises a description regarding charging of an end-user by each raw material contents provider and a secondary contents creator, and a description regarding charging between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator; and

the executing step dynamically determines a price of each raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents according to prices of other raw material contents constituting the secondary product contents, executes the contract procedure with respect to the end-user as well as a charging processing between each raw material contents provider and the secondary contents creator, and the acquiring step acquires the encryption key, decrypts the raw material contents and enables the utilization of the secondary product contents when all of the contract procedure and the charging processing are completed.