Method and system for subscription digital rights management

• US 8,275,716 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2002
• Issued: 09/25/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ContentGuard Holdings, Inc. (Pendrell Corporation)
• Original Assignee: ContentGuard Holdings, Inc. (Pendrell Corporation)
• Inventors: Lao, Guillermo
• Primary Examiner(s): Augustin, Evens J
• Application Number:
  US10/162,698
• Publication Number:
  US 20020198846A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,764 Days
• Field of Search: 705/59, 705/1, 717/168, 713/200
• US Class Current: 705/51
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/1015 to users
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6209 to a single file or object, e.g. in a secure envelope, encrypted and accessed using a key, or with access control rules appended to the object itself
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2117 User registration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2153 Using hardware token as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/0021 involving encryption or decryption of contents recorded on or reproduced from a record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/0071 involving a purchase action
• 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 63/0442 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply asymmetric encryption, i.e. different keys for encryption and decryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for public-key encryption H04L9/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• 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 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A system and method for managing use of items having usage rights associated therewith. The system includes an activation device adapted to issue a software package having a public and private key pair, the public key being associated with a user, a license device adapted to issue a license, a usage device adapted to receive the software package, receive the license and allow the user to access the item in accordance with the license, and a subscription managing device adapted to maintain a subscription list including the public key associated with the user. License'"'"'s is issued by the license device upon verifying presence of the public key in the subscription list corresponding to requested content.

Claims

1. A rights management system for managing use of items having usage rights associated therewith, said system comprising:

an activation device adapted to issue a software package that enforces usage rights to control use of an item, said software package comprising a public key and a private key associated with a subscribed user;

a user device adapted to receive said software package, receive a license having usage rights specifying a manner of use and being associated with the item, and allow said subscribed user to access said item in accordance with said license;

means for receiving a license request for the item on behalf of the subscribed user;

a license device adapted to issue said license associated with said item;

a subscription managing device including a subscription list having the public key associated with the subscribed user; and

a distribution point requesting and receiving the license from the license device, said distribution point further pre-packaging the received license with said item,

wherein said license device issues the license based on the identity of the subscribed user by communicating with said subscription managing device and verifying that the public key associated with said subscribed user seeking access to and use of the item is in said subscription list prior to issuing said license, and

said pre-packaged license and the item are delivered or made available to said subscribed user.

2. The rights management system of claim 1, wherein license requests from said distribution point include a list of subscribed users and their respective public keys and a content ID for which licenses are to be issued.

3. The rights management system of claim 1, wherein license requests from said distribution point are for multiple protected content for which the licenses are to be issued.

4. The rights management system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of subscribed users, each of said subscribed users having a public key as an identification mechanism.

5. The rights management system of claim 4, wherein said subscription managing device maintains a list of the identity of the subscribed users via said public key associated with each of said subscribed users.

6. The rights management system of claim 5, further comprising a plurality of items of protected content.

7. The rights management system of claim 6, wherein said plurality of items of protected content comprise at least one of a text file, an audio file, a video file, and digital multimedia files.

8. The rights management system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of items of protected content.

9. The rights management system of claim 1, wherein said distribution point is adapted to pre-package said license from said license device with said item for each user in said subscription list.

10. The rights management system of claim 9, wherein said distribution point is further adapted to count the number of items accessed by said subscribed user.

11. The rights management system of claim 10, wherein said subscription managing device is further adapted to remove said subscribed user from said subscription list when a predetermined number of items is accessed by said subscribed user.

12. The rights management system of claim 1, wherein said distribution point is an on-line storefront application.

13. The rights management system of claim 1, wherein said subscription managing device also includes a mail server directory.

14. The rights management system of claim 1, wherein said license further comprises one or more state variables representing a status of at least one of said item, said usage right, and said license.

15. The rights management system of claim 14, wherein said subscribed user is only allowed to access said item until said subscription expires or after a period of time lapses, in accordance with said usage right and said one or more state variables.

16. The rights management system of claim 1, wherein system is implemented with one or more hardware and/or software components.

27. The system of claim 1, wherein said user device is adapted to receive a client component that includes an engine for parsing or rendering protected items, said client component is installed in the user device after receipt at the user device, and said client component is configured for interpreting said license.

28. The system of claim 1, wherein said system provides subscribed users access to a plurality of items having respective usage rights and controlled by said software package.

17. A method for managing use of items having usage rights associated therewith, said method comprising the steps of:

providing, by an activation device, a software package to a user device of a subscribed user, said software package enforcing a license having usage rights to control use of an item and having a public key and a private key associated with said subscribed user;

storing, by a subscription managing device, the public key associated with said subscribed user in a subscription list corresponding to said item;

receiving, by a distribution point, a request from said subscribed user to access and use said item;

requesting, by said distribution point, the license from a license device;

issuing a license based on the identity of the subscribed user by;

verifying that said subscribed user requesting access to said item is listed in said subscription list based on verifying that the public key associated with said user is in said subscription list prior to issuing said license; and

issuing, by said license device, the license that grants usage rights to said subscribed user to use said item, if said public key associated with said user is in said subscription list;

receiving, by said distribution point, the license from the license device;

pre-packaging, by said distribution point, the received license with said item; and

delivering or making available, by said distribution point, said pre-packaged license with said item to said subscribed user.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising a plurality of items of protected content adapted to be accessed by said subscribed user.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising plural subscribed users and further comprising the step of issuing a plurality of licenses granting usage rights to each of said plural subscribed users to use said plurality of item of protected content.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of verifying that each of said plural subscribed users are listed in said subscription list prior to issuing each license that grants usage right to use each of said plurality of protected content.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of counting the number of items of protected content used by each of said plural subscribed users.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising the step of removing said public keys associated with the subscribed users when a predetermined number of items of protected content is used by the subscribed users.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein said license further comprises one or more state variables representing a status of at least one of said item, said usage right, and said license.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein said subscribed user is only allowed to access said item until said subscription expires or after a period of time lapses, in accordance with said usage right and said one or more state variables.

25. The method of claim 17, wherein said method is implemented with one or more hardware and/or software components configured to perform the steps of the method.

26. The method of claim 17, wherein said method is implemented with one or more computer readable instructions embedded on a computer readable medium and configured to cause one or more computer processors to perform the steps of the method.

29. The method of claim 17, further comprising providing a client component including an engine for parsing or rendering protected items to said user device, said client component being installed in the user device after receipt at the user device, and said client component configured for interpreting said license.