Systems and methods for secure transaction management and electronic rights protection

• US 8,316,449 B2
• Filed: 07/13/2007
• Issued: 11/20/2012
• 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): LEMMA, SAMSON B
• Application Number:
  US11/827,996
• Publication Number:
  US 20070261125A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,957 Days
• Field of Search: 726 26- 27, 705/51
• US Class Current: 726/26
• 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 comprising:

executing end user content processing application software in one or more virtual machine environments that are executed by a host operating system of a computer system;

executing rights management software by the host operating system of the computer system, wherein the rights management software executes outside the one or more virtual machine environments in which the end user content processing application software is executing;

processing a protected piece of digital content using the end user content processing application software; and

using the rights management software to make a determination as to whether to allow the protected piece of digital content to be transmitted between the one or more virtual machine environments and a resource external to the one or more virtual machine environments, wherein the determination is based at least in part on one or more controls associated with the protected piece of digital content that define usage conditions for the protected piece of digital content.

2. The method of claim 1, in which the end user content processing application software runs on an operating system that executes within the one or more virtual machine environments.

3. The method of claim 1, in which the resource is a communication channel.

4. The method of claim 1, in which the resource is a writable storage device.

5. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more controls identify a list of users permitted to access or use the protected piece of digital content.

6. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more controls include a requirement for an explicit permission to be granted from an originator of the protected piece of digital content.

7. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more controls include a requirement for use of the protected piece of digital content to be reported to an originator of the protected piece of digital content.

8. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more controls include a requirement for use of the protected piece of digital content to be reported to a clearinghouse.

9. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more controls include a requirement for use of the protected piece of digital content to generate a notice to an originator of the protected piece of digital content, the notice including information supplied interactively by a person using the protected piece of digital content.

10. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more controls include a requirement for information identifying a redistributor of the protected piece of digital content to be embedded in the protected piece of digital content prior to redistribution.

11. The method of claim 1, in which the one or more controls include a budget limiting usage.

12. The method of claim 11, in which the budget includes a limit involving a time of access.

13. The method of claim 1, in which the protected piece of digital content comprises a document.