Content distribution system and method

• US 7,716,245 B2
• Filed: 01/11/2006
• Issued: 05/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Omae, Koji, Matsumoto, Yoichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Trujillo; James
• Assistant Examiner(s): Black; Linh
• Application Number:
  US11/329,099
• Publication Number:
  US 20060171535A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,581 Days
• Field of Search: 707 1- 2, 707/6, 707/9, 707/104.1, 707/783, 707/785, 707/787
• US Class Current: 707/787
• 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: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2137 Time limited access, e.g. to a computer or data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/123 Shopping for digital content
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1235 with control of digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/102 applying security measure for e-commerce
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2347 involving video stream encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4405 involving video stream decryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/63345 by transmitting keys key distribution for secret or secure communication H04L9/08; network support of key management H04L63/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

In a content distribution method, two or more certification marks (130) are produced for the content to be delivered, each of the certification marks containing a temporary access information item defining an accessing right to the content. Each of the certification marks is distributed to a user at a shop. In a content delivery server, two or more content delivery information items are stored in association with the content, each of the delivery information items containing said temporary access information item. A network device (120) reads the temporary access information item from the certification mark purchased by the user. The network device accesses the content delivery server (110) using the temporary access information item, and receives the content from the content delivery server.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a multimedia content server configured to provide a user with a multimedia content requested by the user; and

a network device configured to communicatively couple to the multimedia content server, the network device configured to obtain the requested multimedia content from the multimedia content server,

the multimedia content server comprising;

a storage unit configured to store one or more multimedia contents and one or more pairs of access IDs and encryption keys, each of the pairs being associated with the respective multimedia contents, the access ID identifying the associated multimedia content and having a limited number of access allowed times, the encryption key encrypting the associated multimedia content;

a certification mark generation unit configured to generate an optically readable barcode associated with each of the multimedia contents,

the barcode including

an access ID identifying the associated multimedia content,

a network address for the content server storing the associated multimedia content, and

a decryption key decrypting the associated multimedia content encrypted with the associated encryption key;

an encryption unit configured to encrypt, in response to a receipt of an access ID associated with the requested multimedia content in the storage unit from the network device, the multimedia content with an encryption key associated with the multimedia content; and

a data delivery unit configured to transmit the encrypted multimedia content to the network device,

the network device comprising;

a reading unit configured to read, in response to a presentation of a barcode associated with the requested multimedia content and physically obtained by the user from a retailer, the barcode and to extract the access ID, the network address for the multimedia content server and the decryption key associated with the requested multimedia content;

a transmission and reception unit configured to access the extracted network address, to transmit the extracted access ID to the multimedia content server, and to receive the requested multimedia content encrypted by the multimedia content server; and

a decryption unit configured to decrypt the encrypted multimedia content with the extracted decryption key,

wherein the network device is allowed to use a certain access ID to access the multimedia content associated with the certain access ID the limited number of access allowed times.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the network device is configured to automatically access the multimedia content server after the reading unit reads the barcode.

3. A method of obtaining a multimedia content from a multimedia content server via a network device, the method comprising:

generating an optically readable barcode associated with a multimedia content;

obtaining the barcode associated with the multimedia content requested by a user from a retailer, the barcode including an access ID identifying the associated multimedia content and having a limited number of access allowed times, a network address for the multimedia content server storing the associated multimedia content, and a decryption key decrypting the associated multimedia content;

reading the barcode at the network device and extracting the access ID, the network address for the multimedia content server and the decryption key;

accessing the extracted network address to transmit the extracted access ID to the multimedia content server;

encrypting the multimedia content associated with the transmitted access ID and transmitting the encrypted multimedia content to the requesting network device;

obtaining the requested multimedia content from the multimedia content server, the multimedia content server storing one or more multimedia contents and one or more pairs of access IDs and encrypting the one or more multimedia contents, one of the encryption keys encrypting the associated multimedia content; and

decrypting the transmitted multimedia content with the extracted decryption key,

wherein the network device is allowed to use a certain access ID to access the multimedia content associated with the certain access ID the limited number of access allowed times.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the obtaining step comprises controlling access by the user to the barcode while displaying actual products associated with the barcodes.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein information about payment for the barcode is not transmitted to the multimedia content server.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the accessing step is allowed to be performed for the same access ID up to only the limited number of access allowed times.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the multimedia content is received at the network device by streaming or downloading.