Digital content store system

• US 7,493,289 B2
• Filed: 12/11/2003
• Issued: 02/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Callahan Cellular LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: AOL LLC (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pringle, Todd, Milligan, Adam, Goldfarb, Solomon D., Acharya, Kamal, Verosub, Ellis, Prakash, Shailesh, Bill, David S., Tenneti, Sanjeev
• Primary Examiner(s): Hewitt, II; Calvin Loyd
• Assistant Examiner(s): Winter; John M
• Application Number:
  US10/734,991
• Publication Number:
  US 20040205028A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,895 Days
• Field of Search: 705/50, 705/1, 705/56
• US Class Current: 705/51
• 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: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00369 wherein a first key, which is usually stored on a hidden channel, e.g. in the lead-in of a BD-R, unlocks a key locker containing a second

Abstract

The digital content store provides users with an opportunity to purchase authorized usage of digital content, such as single or multiple music tracks, video, movies, and/or video games. The users can also buy license to a desired track for a fixed number of times, e.g. preferably the users can listen on three different machines simultaneously. Users can also burn a play list of X number of times, for example ten. The burn limit preferably applies to the play list, not the song. Mixed media capability is provided that allows the purchase of digital content and/or physical media. The digital content store system comprises a unique digital rights management system and a back-end enabling system that controls these digital rights.

Claims

1. A process, comprising the steps of:

purchasing usage rights for an encrypted asset by sending purchase information from a client machine to a store server;

sending a ticket from the store server to the client machine, the ticket comprising an asset ID corresponding to the encrypted asset;

launching a download manager at the client machine with the received ticket;

sending an asset request for the encrypted asset using the asset ID from the launched download manager at the client machine to a fulfillment server;

sending the encrypted asset from the fulfillment server to the client machine in response to the received asset ID;

sending a license request from the client machine to the fulfillment server;

sending a license from the fulfillment server to the client machine, the license comprising an asset key and the usage rights associated with the encrypted asset;

encrypting the asset key and the usage rights at the client machine;

binding the encrypted asset key to the client machine;

combining the machine-bound encrypted asset key and encrypted user rights into machine-bound asset rights;

storing the machine-bound asset rights within a secure key locker within the client machine;

sending an acknowledgement of the receipt of the encrypted asset and the license from the client machine to the fulfillment server;

receiving a user request at an output module within the client machine, the user request received from a user for use of the encrypted asset;

sending an asset rights request from the output module through a tamper resistant asset rights module within the client machine to the secure key locker to get the machine-bound asset rights;

receiving the machine-bound asset rights at the tamper resistant asset rights module from the secure key locker in response to the asset rights request;

breaking the machine-bound asset rights at the tamper resistant asset rights module into the encrypted asset key and the encrypted usage rights;

sending the encrypted asset key and the encrypted usage rights from the tamper resistant asset rights module to the output module;

decrypting the machine-bound encrypted usage rights at the output module;

authenticating the user request based upon the machine-bound usage rights;

based upon the authentication of the user request, performing one of the following steps, either;

decrypting the encrypted asset key, decrypting the encrypted asset with the decrypted asset key, and serving the user request, or preventing use of the asset; and

updating the machine-bound usage rights within the secure key locker within the client machine based on the authentication of the request.

2. The process of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

saving the encrypted asset to an asset store at the client machine; and

attaching machine characteristics to the license.

3. The process of claim 2, wherein the machine characteristics comprise a unique identifier associated with the client machine.

4. The process of claim 2, wherein the machine characteristics comprise a unique machine fingerprint associated with the client machine.

5. The process of claim 2, further comprising the step of:

launching a digital content player to play the encrypted asset at the client machine.

6. The process of claim 5, wherein the digital content player allows usage of the purchased encrypted asset on the client machine if the asset key and the machine-bound usage rights associated with the purchased encrypted asset are present at the client machine.

7. The process of claim 6, wherein the allowed usage of the purchased encrypted asset is determined by the machine-bound usage rights associated with the purchased encrypted asset.

8. The process of claim 5, wherein the digital content player prevents usage of the purchased encrypted asset on the client machine if the asset key and machine-bound usage rights associated with the purchased encrypted asset are absent from the client machine.

9. The process Of claim 1, wherein the purchased encrypted asset comprises any of a song, an album, a video, a movie, and a video game.

10. The process of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

playing a sample of the asset if the digital content player detects any that the key is missing or is not valid for the client machine.

11. The process of claim 10, further comprising the step of:

presenting the user with a purchase opportunity.

12. The process of claim 11, further comprising the step of:

transferring the user to the digital music store to complete the process if the user chooses to purchase based upon the presented purchase opportunity.

13. The process of claim 1, wherein the use of the encrypted asset comprises playing the asset.

14. The process of claim 1, wherein the use of the encrypted asset comprises burning the asset to a medium.

15. The process of claim 1, wherein the use of the encrypted asset comprises loading the asset to a digital content player.