Methods and apparatuses for sharing media content, libraries and playlists

• US 7,483,958 B1
• Filed: 03/26/2002
• Issued: 01/27/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Sahasrabudhe, Sandeep S., Elabbady, Tarek Z., Alkove, James M., Chan, Shannon J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar; Saleh
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hamza; Faruk
• Application Number:
  US10/108,174
• Time in Patent Office: 2,499 Days
• Field of Search: 709/231, 709/200, 709/203, 709217-219, 709/229, 709/230, 709/238, 705/50, 705/51, 705/59
• US Class Current: 709/217
• 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 12/2812 describing content present in a home automation network, e.g. audio video content retrieval from the Internet G06F16/95
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2849 Audio/video appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26258 for generating a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlist, or scheduling item distribution according to such list retrieval of multimedia data based on playlists G06F16/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4126 The peripheral being portable, e.g. PDAs or mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8355 involving usage data, e.g. number of copies or viewings allowed
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Methods and systems suitable for sharing media content are provided. One system includes at least one media holder, at least one media cataloger, at least one user control point, at least one media player, and at least one network operatively connecting them. The media holder is configured to selectively output shared media metadata, media content and at least one corresponding media playing license over the network. The media cataloger is configured to receive the metadata identifying the shared media content that is available from the media holder(s). The media cataloger is configured to output at least one media catalog over the network. The media catalog identifies the shared media content that is available from the media holder(s). The user control point is configured to receive the media catalog(s) and request the shared media content as selected from the media catalog, for example, by a user. The user control point configures the media player to receive the media playing license and the media content over the network. The media player cannot play protected media content without having a proper license. The license may be withheld if certain authentication criteria are not met by the playing device. In certain implementations, the network includes a Universal Plug-and-Play network that allows the various devices to quickly integrate with one another without user intervention. The network also provides a robust environment, such that, e.g., media content sharing can easily be accomplished even if the media cataloger is not available.

Claims

1. A system to share media content stored on a home network among devices of the home network, the system comprising:

a processor; and

memory accessible to the processor, the memory comprising;

a content database storing media content files available for sharing among the devices of the home network, the home network utilizing universal plug-and-play (UPnP) protocols;

a media library service to provide metadata associated with the media content files available for sharing to a media catalog service;

a content server to;

receive a request from a home network device to access a particular media content file;

retrieve the particular media content file from the content database; and

send the particular media content file to the home network device;

a digital rights management client to;

determine whether an original media playing license associated with the particular media content file is available; and

generate a temporary media playing license from the original media playing license, the temporary media playing license specifying restrictions relating to playback of the particular media content file via the home network device;

a license generator to;

receive a request from the home network device for a media playing license relating to the particular media content file;

determine whether the home network device is properly registered;

send a request to the digital rights management client for the temporary media playing license relating to the particular media content file when the home network device is properly registered; and

send the temporary media playing license to the home network device.

2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the media catalog service is configured to gather additional metadata associated with additional media content which is available for sharing from one or more of the devices of the home network, to generate a media catalog using the metadata and the additional metadata, and to output the media catalog over the home network.

3. The system as recited in claim 2, wherein the media catalog service is configured to query a respective media library service of each of the one or more of the devices of the home network about information associated with the additional media content which is available for sharing.

4. The system as recited in claim 2, wherein the media catalog service is configured to convert at least a portion of the metadata, at least a portion of the additional metadata, or a combination thereof, to produce the media catalog in the form of a markup language file selected from a group of different types of markup language files comprising a HyperText Markup Language (HTML) file, a Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) file, an Extensible HyperText Markup Language (XHTML) file, an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file, a Wireless Markup Language (WML), a Handheld Device Markup Language (HDML) file, a ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML) file, and a Compact HyperText Markup Language (CHTML) file.

5. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the metadata includes at least one type of information selected from a set of different types of information that includes media content location information, media content format information and media content descriptive information.

6. The system as recited in claim 5, wherein the media content location information includes at least one location identifier selected from a group of location identifiers comprising a uniform naming convention (UNC) identifier and a unified resource locator (URL) identifier.

7. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein

the content server is operatively configured to output selected media content over the home network, and wherein the memory comprises

a media player to play the media content files stored at the media content database.

8. The system as recited in claim 7, wherein the selected media content is identified over the home network using at least one location identifier selected from a group of location identifiers comprising a uniform naming convention (UNC) identifier and a unified resource locator (URL) identifier.

9. The system as recited in claim 7, wherein the media player is further configured to verify integrity of the particular media content file based on a hash value associated with the particular media content file.

10. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the license generator is configured to determine whether the home network device is associated with at least one registered device for an entity associated with the original media playing license.

11. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the entity is selected from a group of entities including a user, an account, a group of users, a group of accounts, an organization, a group of organizations, a company, a group of companies, all users, all accounts, all organizations, and all companies.

12. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the license generator is configured to receive unique device identifying information from the home network device and determine if the unique device identifying information matches previously registered device identifying information.

13. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the temporary media playing license is a portable media license.

14. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the content server is configured to provide the particular media content file to the home network device using at least one data transferring technique selected from a group of data transferring techniques comprising a file transfer protocol (FTP) technique, a streaming media technique, and a progressive download technique.

15. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein a media player of the home network device is configured to play the particular media content file when provided with the temporary media playing license.

16. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein a specified entity is assessed a monetary fee in return for the temporary media playing license.

17. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the media content files stored at the content database include at least one type of media data selected a group of different types of media data comprising audio data, video data, image data, multimedia data, graphic data, textual data, graphical user interface (GUI) data, interactive programming data, computer game data, and virtual reality data.

18. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the home network device includes a desktop computing device, a notebook computing device, a tablet computing device, a hand-held computing device, a personal digital assistant (PDA) device, an electronic paper device, an electronic book device, a wearable computing device, a digital audio receiver (DAR) device, a digital audio player device, a digital audio recording device, an automobile-based media player device, a digital television device, a digital video player device, a digital versatile disc (DVD) player device;

a set top box device, a digital video receiver device, a digital video recording device, a wireless communication device, or any combination thereof.

19. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the media library service is further configured to uniquely identify the media content files available for sharing using a hash algorithm.

20. The system as recited in claim 19, wherein the hash algorithm includes a Secure Hash Algorithm (SHA).

21. The system as recited in claim 19, wherein the media holder media library service is further configurable to access information about the particular media content file based on a hash value associated with the particular media content file.

22. The system as recited in claim 21, wherein the media library service is further configurable to access metadata associated with the particular media content file based on the hash value associated with the particular media content file.