Just in time delivery of entitlement control message (ECMs) and other essential data elements for television programming

• US 7,912,219 B1
• Filed: 08/12/2005
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: The DIRECTV Group, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: The DIRECTV Group, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Klauss, Peter M., Michener, James A., Basse, Hanno, Kahn, Raynold M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Truong; Thanhnga B
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEE, JASON T
• Application Number:
  US11/202,977
• Time in Patent Office: 2,048 Days
• Field of Search: 380/239, 380/278, 380/255, 380/279, 380/200, 380/202, 380/293, 725/116, 725/117, 725/137, 725/25, 726/30, 375/240.26, 375/240.28
• US Class Current: 380/239
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26606 for generating or managing entitlement messages, e.g. Entitlement Control Message [ECM] or Entitlement Management Message [EMM] arrangements for conditional access to broadcast information or to broadcast-related services H04H60/14

Abstract

Essential data elements, particularly entitlement control messages (ECMs), are inserted in a manner that reduces the overhead bit rate without effecting overall tuning time at the customer receiver or security in satellite, cable or other programming networks. ECMs are inserted into the transport stream by detecting random access points (RAPS) in the encoded programming and inserting the ECM packets in a window just ahead of the RAP.

Claims

1. A method of generating an encrypted transport stream, comprising:

encoding at least one program into a compressed video stream;

coding random access points (RAPs) into the compressed video stream at which a decoder can begin decoding each said program;

detecting the occurrence of RAPs in the video stream;

generating encryption keys;

upon detecting the occurrence of a RAP in the video stream, triggering an ECM generator to generate an entitlement control message (ECM) based on the current encryption key, said ECM including a message that allows the decoder to derive the current encryption key needed to decrypt the associated video stream;

delaying the video stream to insert the ECM into the video stream just ahead of the detected RAP, said pairing of the ECM with the RAP allows the decoder to derive from the ECM the current encryption key needed to decrypt the associated video stream just in time to begin decoding the compressed video stream at the RAP; and

encrypting the video stream with a crypto codeword appropriate to the associated ECM to provide an encrypted transport stream.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising inserting a presentation time stamp (PTS) with the RAP.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the PTS is inserted during the encoding of the program.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein PTSs are only inserted with RAPs.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the ECMs are only inserted just ahead of the RAPs.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the ECMS are inserted into a window just ahead of the RAPs, said window is bounded by a minimum ECM decoding time required to decode the ECM and a maximum insertion time.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the stream contains a plurality of closely spaced RAPs, further comprising waiting at least the minimum ECM decoding time to insert another ECM.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the ECMs are ECM packets that are inserted into the stream by replacing a NULL or non-critical packet with the ECM packet.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the NULL or non-critical packet that is closest to the RAP is replaced.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the ECMs are ECM packets that are inserted into the stream between packets and the packets that follow are time-shifted until a NULL or non-critical packet can be removed.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the ECMs inserted in a window just ahead of a RAP are channel surfing ECMs, further comprising:

receiving a new encryption key;

inserting a look ahead ECM in the transport stream with the new encryption key;

waiting for a period of time longer than said window;

updating the channel surfing ECMs with the new encryption key; and

repeating as new encryption keys are received.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the program comprises audio and compressed video streams, said ECMs being inserted just before RAPs in the video stream.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

broadcasting the stream via satellite.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one program is encoded by removing temporal redundancy from the associated video stream.

15. An apparatus, comprising:

an encoder that encodes a program into a compressed video stream including random access points (RAPs) at which a decoder may begin decoding said compressed video stream;

a detector that detects the occurrence of RAPs in said compressed video stream;

a codeword generator that provides encryption keys;

an entitlement control message (ECM) generator that upon the detection of an occurrence of a RAP triggers the generation of an ECM based on the current encryption key, said ECM including a message that allows the decoder to derive the current encryption key needed to decrypt the associated video stream;

a delay line that delays the compressed video stream;

a multiplexer that inserts the ECM into the delayed compressed video stream within a window just ahead of the detected RAP, said pairing of the ECM with the RAP allows the decoder to derive from the ECM the current encryption key needed to decrypt the associated video stream just in time to begin decoding the compressed video stream at the RAP; and

an encryption box that encrypts the compressed video stream with a crypto codeword appropriate to the associated ECM.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the encoder inserts a presentation time stamp (PTS) in the compressed video at the RAP.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the ECMs are only inserted within the window just ahead of the RAPs and the PTS are only inserted at the RAP.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the window is bounded by a minimum ECM decoding time required to decode the ECM and a maximum insertion time.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the stream contains a plurality of closely spaced RAPs, wherein the multiplexer waits at least the minimum ECM decoding time to insert another ECM.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein ECMs are ECM packets the multiplexer inserts into the stream by replacing a NULL or non-critical packet in the window with the ECM packet.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the multiplexer replaces the NULL or non-critical packet in the window that is closest to the RAP.

22. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein ECMs are ECM packets the multiplexer inserts between packets in the window and time-shifts the packets that follow until a NULL or non-critical packet can be removed.

23. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the ECMs inserted in the window ahead of a RAP are channel surfing ECMs, wherein when the ECM generator receives a new encryption key, it generates a look ahead ECM with the new encryption key that the multiplexer inserts into the stream, said generator waits for a period of time longer than said window and then updates the channel surfing ECM with the new encryption key.

24. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising:

a satellite that broadcasts the stream.

25. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein said encoder implements MPEG-2 or JVT.

26. A method, comprising:

encoding a plurality of programs into respective compressed program streams, each compressed program stream including random access points (RAPs) at which a decoder may begin decoding for said program;

multiplexing the compressed program streams to create a transport stream;

continuously generating encryption keys;

detecting the occurrence of RAPs in the transport stream;

only upon detecting the occurrence of a RAP, triggering the generation of an entitlement control message (ECM) based on the current encryption key, said ECM including a message that allows the decoder to derive the current encryption key needed to decrypt the associated video stream;

delaying the transport stream to insert the ECM into the transport stream within a time window just ahead of the detected RAP, said pairing of the ECM with the RAP allows the decoder to derive from the ECM the current encryption key needed to decrypt the associated program stream just in time to begin decoding the compressed program stream at the RAP;

encrypting the stream with a crypto codeword appropriate to the associated ECM; and

broadcasting the encrypted transport stream.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the time window is bounded by a minimum ECM decoding time required to decrypt the program stream and a maximum insertion time.