Optical disc having RFID tag, optical disc apparatus, and system for preventing unauthorized copying

• US 7,317,396 B2
• Filed: 05/26/2005
• Issued: 01/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Funai Electric Co., Ltd. (Funai Electric Holdings Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Funai Electric Co., Ltd. (Funai Electric Holdings Company Limited)
• Inventors: Ujino, Masanori
• Primary Examiner(s): GOINS, DAVETTA WOODS
• Application Number:
  US11/137,489
• Publication Number:
  US 20050270964A1
• Time in Patent Office: 957 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572.1, 340/572.5, 340/572.7, 340/572.8, 340/10.1, 340/10.51, 380/201, 380/202, 380/203, 705/51, 705/57, 713/169, 726/26, 726/27, 369/53.21, 369/53.41
• US Class Current: 340/572.1
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00876 wherein physical copy protection means are attached to the medium, e.g. holograms, sensors, or additional semiconductor circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 23/0042 with provision for auxiliary features sensing such features G11B17/00, G11B19/02
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 23/284 on the record carrier

Abstract

In an optical disc having an RFID tag, disc control information needed for control of reproduction of the content recorded in the disc body of the optical disc is stored in the RFID tag. Thereby, even if the content recorded in the disc body is illegally copied in some way, common optical disc apparatus incapable of reading RFID tags cannot read and copy the disc control information stored in the RFID tag. Accordingly, unauthorized copying of the content recorded on the optical disc can be reliably prevented without the use of special cryptographic technology.

Claims

1. An optical disc apparatus comprising:

an optical pickup that reads contents recorded in a disc body of a first optical disc;

a reader that reads key information stored in an RFID tag disposed on a disc body of a second optical disc;

reproduction means for reproducing the contents read by the optical pickup; and

a microprocessor that determines whether or not to allow reproduction of an additional content other than contents that are capable of being reproduced by an optical disc apparatus not having the reader, based on the key information read by the reader from the RFID tag on the second optical disc;

wherein a plurality of RFID tags are used to store the key information; and

wherein the microprocessor generates new key information based on the key information read from the plurality of RFID tags, and determines whether or not to allow reproduction of the additional content based on the new key information.