Method and system for granting access to system and content

• US 8,108,687 B2
• Filed: 12/11/2002
• Issued: 01/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Valve Corporation
• Original Assignee: Valve Corporation
• Inventors: Ellis, Richard Donald, Newcombe, Christopher Richard, Jones, Paul David, Birum, Derrick Jason, Dunkle, Harold Michael, Thompson, Mikel Howard
• Primary Examiner(s): PYZOCHA, MICHAEL J
• Application Number:
  US10/317,845
• Publication Number:
  US 20030221112A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,338 Days
• Field of Search: 713/189, 726/28, 726/29
• US Class Current: 713/189
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for commerce, e.g. marketing, shopping, billing, auctions or e-commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0896 Bandwidth or capacity management, i.e. automatically increasing or decreasing capacities flow or congestion control using dynamic resource allocation, e.g. in-call renegotiation, H04L47/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/045 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply hybrid encryption, i.e. combination of symmetric and asymmetric encryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements using a plurality of keys or algorithms H04L9/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0807 using tickets, e.g. Kerberos cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using tickets or tokens H04L9/3213
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/289 Intermediate processing functionally located close to the data consumer application, e.g. in same machine, in same home or in same sub-network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests

Abstract

A method and system for granting access to system and content is provided. A key is provided that allows access by a client computer to content that includes a plurality of resources. A server is accessed and the key is provided to the server. Based on the key, access is granted to the content. A program on the client computer requests a resource of the plurality of resources. If the resource is located locally, the resource is provided to the program. Otherwise, the resource is downloaded from the content server and stored locally. A data structure is modified to indicate that the resource is stored locally and the resource is provided to the program.

Claims

1. A method for granting access to a system and content, comprising:

providing a key that is used by a client computer to validate access to the content comprising resources;

displaying at the client computer information about the content, based on the validation of access to content enabled by the key, wherein at least one subset of the content is selected by a user at the client computer;

based on the subset of content selected by the user of the client computer, delivering by a server, a separate authentication ticket to the user of the client computer for enabling an authentication of the user and a determination of at least one user right to receive at least one of a plurality of content tickets;

employing an affirmative authentication of the user and the determination of the at least one user right to receive the at least one of a plurality of content tickets and to provide the at least one content ticket to the user for accessing at least a portion of the selected subset of content and a granting of access by the user to at least the portion of the subset of the content selected by the user for a defined period of time;

using the at least one content ticket to enable at least the portion of the selected subset of the content to be downloaded onto the client computer, wherein the downloaded portion includes executable code blocks and data blocks, the executable code blocks being part of an application;

executing some of the downloaded portion of executable code blocks on the client computer;

modifying at least one downloaded block of executable code to modify execution of at least a portion of the application using the at least one downloaded block of data before all of the subset of selected content including additional executable code blocks is downloaded and available on the client computer; and

if the defined period of time for at least one of the tickets associated with the portion of the at least one selected subset of the content is expired, degrading a performance of the modified application over time, while enabling execution of at least a portion of the modified application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the key is encoded onto at least one of a coupon, a computer display, a file on a computer, a file on a disk;

mail, email, a business card, a receipt, a dongle, a USB-style plug, a compact flash memory card, a smart card, and a credit card.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein providing the key, further comprises, encoding the key from at least one of a magnetically encoded, a barcode encoded, and an ink encoded.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the file on the computer is located locally and includes at least one of a cookie, a registry, and a database.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the application includes a computer game.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein delivering the authentication ticket, further comprises storing the ticket locally and providing the ticket to the server before using the at least one content ticket to access on the client computer the portion of the content.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the key is provided by a third-party to a customer, and the third-party is charged a fee based, at least in part, on an amount of content utilized by the modified application.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising notifying the client computer of a time remaining before access to the content is terminated.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

associating the key with at least one of a smart card and a credit card; and

retrieving the key upon identification of at least one of the smart card and the credit card.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving within the portion of the content an advertisement associated with a third-party; and

modifying the execution of the application to display the advertisement.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a user associated with the client computer a purchase option associated with the key, wherein the purchase option includes a rental fee that provides access to particular content for a period of time.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a user associated with the client computer a purchase option associated with the key, wherein the purchase option includes a subscription fee that may be based on resources used, a fixed fee, or a recurring fee.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the key, further comprises providing the key from a third-party over a network.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the key further comprises:

providing the key to a customer by a third-party based at least in part on a purchase transaction of other than the portion of the content or the application by the customer; and

associating the key to the customer.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the information includes at least one of a type of the content, a price for the content and a length of time the content is accessible.

16. A system for granting access to content, comprising:

a content server that provides content; and

a client computer that employs a key for validation, an authentication ticket for authentication of a user, and at least one of a plurality of content tickets to enable the user to gain access to at least a portion of content selected by the user, the client computer including a process of downloading at least one resource that includes blocks of executable code of an application from the content server, while the client computer is executing the application using at least on the client computer an other portion of the application that includes other blocks of executable code, the client computer performing acts, comprising;

displaying information about a set of resources, wherein the set of resources provided is based on a validation of the client computer that is enabled by the key;

selecting at least one resource by the user at the client computer;

receiving an authentication ticket based on the at least one selected resource, wherein the authentication ticket enables authentication of the user and enables the user to receive at least one of a plurality of content tickets;

receiving at least one of a plurality of content tickets based on the authorization ticket, wherein the at least one content ticket enables the user to gain access to at least a portion of the at least one selected resource for a defined period of time;

requesting the at least one selected resource based on the at least one content ticket;

providing the requested resource based at least on the at least one content ticket, wherein providing comprises providing the requested resource locally if the requested resource is located local on the client computer; and

otherwise, downloading the requested resource from the content server and indicating that the downloaded resource is currently local on the client computer, wherein the downloaded resource includes at least one block of executable code and at least one block of data; and

modifying the at least one downloaded block of executable code to modify the application using the at least one block of data before all of the at least selected portion of the content is available for access on the client computer;

receiving within the portion of the content an advertisement associated with a third-party; and

displaying the advertisement while accessing the resource.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the content includes a computer program and data associated with the computer program.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the key is encoded onto at least one of a coupon, a computer display, a file on a computer, mail, email, a business card, a receipt, a dongle, a USB-style plug, a compact flash memory card, a smart card, and a credit card.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the content server performs acts, comprising:

associating the key with a username and password; and

providing the key upon receiving the username and password.