Recording system, fee calculation device, and content distribution method

• US 8,296,237 B2
• Filed: 12/31/2007
• Issued: 10/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Okiyama, Toshiki, Akiyama, Akira, Miyawaki, Tadamitsu, Oshino, Hiroshi, Akahira, Shinji, Anraku, Hiroaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Reagan, James A
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHEUNG, CALVIN K
• Application Number:
  US12/003,729
• Publication Number:
  US 20080123857A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,758 Days
• Field of Search: 705 51- 52, 726 29- 30
• US Class Current: 705/51
• 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 21/608 Secure printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2135 Metering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2151 Time stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/60 Digital content management, e.g. content distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0807 using tickets, e.g. Kerberos cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using tickets or tokens H04L9/3213
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/083 involving central third party, e.g. key distribution center [KDC] or trusted third party [TTP]

Abstract

An information service system works to record or print out, at a fee, information contents downloaded from Web servers, information received from facsimiles and information carried on portable storage mediums. The system includes a recording part which records, duplicates and prints out the image of digitized information, an information accumulating part which accumulates information by making relation with users, a user authenticating part which receives user authentication information and authenticates the legitimacy of the user, a fee calculating part which calculates the fee for information recording, a payment reception part which receives the payment of fee by the user, and a management part which manages the charging data and payment data. The recording part records the supplied information only after authentication of user legitimacy and payment of fee by the user. Based on the authentication of user legitimacy and the management of payment of individual users, the recording part can be used commonly among multiple users and the charged information recording service can be run easily.

Claims

1. An information distributing system, comprising:

a content distribution device,

wherein the content distribution device issues a first signed ticket corresponding to a first content and a second un-signed ticket corresponding to a second content, and distributes the first signed ticket, the second un-signed ticket, an encrypted first content generated by encryption of the first content, and an encrypted second content generated by encryption of the second content,

the first signed ticket including first decryption key information that is customized to a first user and that is used for decrypting the encrypted first content, and

the second unsigned ticket including second decryption key information that is effective for any user including the first user and that is used for decrypting the encrypted second content; and

a user terminal,

wherein the user terminal includes;

a receiving section that receives the first signed ticket, the second un-signed ticket, the encrypted first content, and the encrypted second content from the content distribution device through a network;

a judging section that judges whether the encrypted first content is decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information, the unique user information being acquired from a token provided to the user terminal by a user; and

a controller that controls;

(a) a display device to display first information, which represents the first content, on a screen, when the judging section judge that the encrypted first content is decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information, so that the first user can designate the first information on the screen for outputting the first content,

(b) the display device to not display the first information on the screen, when the judging section judges that the encrypted first content is not decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information, and

(c) the display device to display second information, which represents the second content, on the screen so that all the users can designate the second information on the screen for outputting the second content.

2. The information distributing system according to claim 1,

wherein the token is an IC card, and the user terminal further comprises an acquiring section that acquires the unique user information from the IC card.

3. The information distributing system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a decryption section that decrypts the encrypted first content; and

an output control section that controls the first content decrypted by the decryption section to be output to a printer when the judging section judges that the encrypted first content is decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information.

4. The information distributing system according to claim 1,

wherein the first information and the second information includes at least one of an icon and an abstract that represents the first content and second content.

5. The information distributing system according to claim 1, the token further comprising an ID record, common information, and charging data recorder information.

6. The user terminal according to claim 1, the token further comprising an ID record, common information, and charging data recorder information.

7. A user terminal, comprising:

a receiving section that receives, from a content distribution device through a network, a first signed ticket corresponding to a first content, a second un-signed ticket corresponding to a second content, an encrypted first content generated by encryption to the first content, and an encrypted second content generated by encryption to the second content,

the first signed ticket including first decryption key information that is customized to a first user and that is used for decrypting the encrypted first content,

the second un-signed ticket including second decryption key information that is effective for any user including the first user and that is used for decrypting the encrypted second content;

a judging section that judges whether the encrypted first content is decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information, the unique user information being acquired from a token provided to the user terminal by a user; and

a controller that controls;

(a) a display device to display first information, which represents the first content, on a screen, when the judging section judges that the encrypted first content is decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information, so that the first user can designate the first information on the screen for outputting the first content,

(b) the display device to not display the first information on the screen, when the judging section judges that the encrypted first content is not decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information, and

(c) the display device to display second information, which represents the second content, on the screen so that all the users can designate the second information on the screen for outputting the second content.

8. The user terminal according to claim 7,

wherein the token is an IC card, and the user terminal further comprises acquiring section that acquires the unique user information from the IC card.

9. The user terminal according to claim 7, further comprising:

a decryption section that decrypts the encrypted first content; and

an output control section that controls the first content decrypted by the decryption section to be output to a printer when the judging section judges that the encrypted first content is decrypted by using unique user information and the first decryption key information.

10. The user terminal according to claim 7,

wherein the first information and the second information includes at least one of an icon and an abstract that represents the first content and second content.