Systems and methods for secure transaction management and electronic rights protection

• US 8,141,165 B2
• Filed: 07/13/2007
• Issued: 03/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intertrust Technologies Corporation (Fidelio Acquisition Co LLC)
• Original Assignee: Intertrust Technologies Corporation (Fidelio Acquisition Co LLC)
• Inventors: Ginter, Karl L., Shear, Victor H., Spahn, Francis J., Van Wie, David M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chai, Longbit
• Application Number:
  US11/827,983
• Publication Number:
  US 20080022137A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,712 Days
• Field of Search: 726/27
• US Class Current: 726/27
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/1408 by using cryptography for digital transmission H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/109 by using specially-adapted hardware at the client
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/33 using certificates
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/86 Secure or tamper-resistant housings
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2211/007 Encryption, En-/decode, En-/decipher, En-/decypher, Scramble, (De-)compress
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2115 Third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2135 Metering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2151 Time stamp
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/023 the neutral party being a clearing house
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1235 with control of digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/24 Credit schemes, i.e. "pay after"
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0021 Image watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/026 for alarm, monitoring and auditing in vending machines or means for indication, e.g. when empty
• 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 2463/103 : applying security measure for protecting copyright
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/20 : for managing network security; network security policies in general filtering policies H04L63/0227
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2347 : involving video stream encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23476 : by partially encrypting, e.g. encrypting the ending portion of a movie
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 : Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2362 : Generation or processing of Service Information [SI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2541 : Rights Management protecting software against unauthorised usage in a vending or licensing environment G06F21/10; security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 : Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2547 : Third Party Billing, e.g. billing of advertiser
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25875 : involving end-user authentication restricting access to computer systems by authenticating users using a predetermined code G06F21/33; arrangements for secret or secure communication including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08; authentication in wireless network security H04W12/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 : embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 : Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 : Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4405 : involving video stream decryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44204 : Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/443 : OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4627 : Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4753 : for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6581 : Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8166 : involving executable data, e.g. software arrangements for executing specific programs G06F9/44; broadcasting computer programmes in broadcast systems H04H20/91; involving the movement of software or configuration parameters H04L67/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/835 : Generation of protective data, e.g. certificates protecting software against unauthorised usage in a vending or licensing environment G06F21/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8355 : involving usage data, e.g. number of copies or viewings allowed
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/83555 : using a structured language for describing usage rules of the content, e.g. REL
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8358 : involving watermark protecting executable software by watermarking G06F21/16; image watermarking in general G06T1/0021; watermarks inserted in still images for transmission purposes H04N1/32144; inserting watermarks during video coding H04N19/467
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/162 : Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 : Transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

The present invention provides systems and methods for secure transaction management and electronic rights protection. Electronic appliances such as computers equipped in accordance with the present invention help to ensure that information is accessed and used only in authorized ways, and maintain the integrity, availability, and/or confidentiality of the information. Such electronic appliances provide a distributed virtual distribution environment (VDE) that may enforce a secure chain of handling and control, for example, to control and/or meter or otherwise monitor use of electronically stored or disseminated information. Such a virtual distribution environment may be used to protect rights of various participants in electronic commerce and other electronic or electronic-facilitated transactions. Distributed and other operating systems, environments and architectures, such as, for example, those using tamper-resistant hardware-based processors, may establish security at each node. These techniques may be used to support an all-electronic information distribution, for example, utilizing the “electronic highway.”

Claims

1. A method performed by an electronic appliance comprising a processor and a memory encoded with program instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the electronic appliance to perform the method, the method comprising:

receiving, by the electronic appliance, a first electronic object, the first electronic object specifying one or more permitted uses of a group of electronic content objects, the first electronic object further comprising one or more decryption keys for decrypting one or more content items contained in said group of electronic content objects;

receiving, by the electronic appliance, via separate delivery from the first electronic object, a first electronic content object, the first electronic content object being protected separately from the first electronic object and comprising an identifier and an encrypted first piece of electronic content, wherein the first electronic content object is a member of said group of electronic content objects; and

using tamper resistant software to govern use of the first piece of electronic content in accordance with the one or more permitted uses specified by the first electronic object, including using at least one of the one or more decryption keys to decrypt the first piece of electronic content.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using the tamper resistant software to govern the use of a second piece of electronic content in accordance with the one or more permitted uses specified by the first electronic object, wherein the second piece of electronic content is contained in a second electronic content object, the second electronic content object being different from the first electronic content object.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first electronic object and the first electronic content object are received at the electronic appliance over different communications paths.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first electronic object and the first electronic content object are received at the electronic appliance at different times.

5. The method of claim 1, in which the electronic compliance is selected from the group consisting of:

computer, television set-top box, pager, telephone, sound system, video reproduction system, video game system, and smart card.

6. The method claim 1, in which the first electronic object comprises an administrative object.

7. The method claim 1, in which the first electronic object comprises a permissions record.

8. A method performed by a first electronic appliance comprising a processor and a memory encoded with program instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the first electronic appliance to perform the method, the method comprising:

sending, by the first electronic appliance, a first electronic object to a second electronic appliance, the first electronic object specifying one or more permitted uses of a group of electronic content objects, the first electronic object further comprising one or more decryption keys for decrypting one or more content items contained in said group of electronic content objects;

sending, by the first electronic appliance, a first electronic content object to the second electronic appliance, the first electronic content object being protected separately from the first electronic object and comprising an identifier and an encrypted first piece of electronic content, wherein the first electronic content object is a member of said group of electronic content objects;

wherein the first electronic object is sent to the second electronic appliance via separate delivery from the first electronic content object, and wherein the second electronic appliance comprises tamper-resistant software operable to govern use of the first piece of electronic content in accordance with the one or more permitted uses specified by the first electronic object.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

sending a second electronic content object to the second electronic appliance, the second electronic content object comprising a second piece of electronic content, wherein the second electronic content object is a member of said group of electronic content objects.

10. A method of distributing rights-protected electronic content, the method performed by an electronic appliance comprising a processor and a memory encoded with program instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the electronic appliance to perform the method, the method comprising:

distributing, by the electronic appliance, a first computer-readable object to a first computer system, the first computer-readable object comprising;

a public header comprising information that, at least in part, identifies the computer-readable object,

a private header comprising information for use in validating at least part of the computer-readable object,

an encrypted piece of electronic content, and

first cryptographic key information for use in decrypting the encrypted piece of electronic content; and

distributing, by the electronic appliance, via separate delivery from the first computer-readable object, a second computer-readable object to the first computer system, the second computer-readable object being protected separately from the first computer-readable object and comprising;

permission information specifying one or more permitted and/or prohibited uses of the electronic content;

wherein the first computer system comprises tamper-resistant hardware and/or software capable of governing use of the piece of electronic content in accordance with the permission information, the tamper-resistant hardware and/or software being resistant to tampering by users of the first computer system.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first computer system further comprises second cryptographic key information for use in decrypting the first cryptographic key information.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first computer system further comprises second cryptographic key information for use, in combination with the first cryptographic key information, in decrypting the encrypted piece of electronic content.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the second cryptographic key information is protected, at least in part, by the tamper-resistant hardware and/or software.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the tamper-resistant hardware and/or software is operable to automatically and transparently decrypt the encrypted piece of electronic content in accordance with the permission information.

15. The method of claim 10, in which the second computer-readable object further comprises code for controlling usage of the piece of electronic content in accordance with the permission information.

16. The method of claim 10, in which the permission information further comprises one or more conditions associated with one or more of said one or more permitted and/or prohibited uses.

17. The method of claim 16, in which at least one of the one or more permitted and/or prohibited uses is selected from the group consisting of:

displaying, encrypting, decrypting, printing, copying, saving, extracting, embedding, auditing usage of, and distributing the piece of electronic content.

18. The method of claim 17, in which at least one of the one or more conditions comprises an expiration date after which at least one of the one or more permissions is no longer allowed to be exercised.

19. The method of claim 17, in which at least one of the one or more conditions is selected from the group consisting of:

a condition relating to availability of credit from an authorized source;

a condition relating to execution of one or more load modules within a predefined time period; and

a condition relating to metering usage of the piece of electronic content.

20. The method of claim 10, in which at least one of the one or more permitted and/or prohibited uses is selected from the group consisting of:

displaying, encrypting, decrypting, printing, copying, saving, extracting, embedding, auditing usage of, and distributing the piece of electronic content.