System for transmitting the scrambled broadcast-signals in single frequency network, and a method thereof

• US 8,619,987 B2
• Filed: 11/04/2005
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, KT Corporation
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, KT Corporation
• Inventors: Hong, Chung-Pyo, Chae, Tae-June, Park, Won-Jin, Lee, Hyun, Lee, Soo-In, Lee, Gwang-Soon, Lee, Bong-Ho, Lim, Jong-Soo
• Primary Examiner(s): Shiferaw, Eleni
• Assistant Examiner(s): VU, PHY ANH TRAN
• Application Number:
  US11/909,543
• Publication Number:
  US 20100177895A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,979 Days
• Field of Search: 380/270, 380/42, 380/200, 380/210, 380202-204, 725 62- 63
• US Class Current: 380/270
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/06 among broadcast stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/67 Common-wave systems, i.e. using separate transmitters operating on substantially the same frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/21 Billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/23 using cryptography, e.g. encryption, authentication, key distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2347 involving video stream encryption
• 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 21/4405 involving video stream decryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6131 involving transmission via a mobile phone network wireless downlink channel access H04W74/006
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309

Abstract

Disclosed is a system for transmitting encrypted broadcast signals to different transmitters on a single frequency network (SFN) in a digital broadcasting system. The system for transmitting encrypted broadcast signals on the SFN includes: a main broadcasting system for transmitting encrypted broadcast signals including data streams and transmitter identification information (TII) through a main broadcasting network; a repeating system for amplifying encrypted broadcast signals of the main broadcasting network and transmitting the amplified broadcast signals, or modulating and amplifying streams input by the main broadcasting system through a private line and repeating broadcast signals of the main broadcasting system through a repeating network; and a decrypting key provider for receiving a decrypting key value from the main broadcasting or repeating system and transmitting a user authentication and decrypting key to a charged subscriber terminal through a mobile communication network.

Claims

1. A system for transmitting encrypted broadcast signals on a single frequency network (SFN) for terrestrial and satellite digital broadcasting, comprising:

a main broadcasting unit comprising a hardware processor configured to transmit the encrypted broadcast signals including data streams and transmitter identification information (TII) of the main broadcasting unit through a main broadcasting network;

a repeating unit comprising a hardware processor configured to;

amplify the encrypted broadcast signals of the main broadcasting network and transmit the amplified encrypted broadcast signals, and

modulate and amplify the data streams input by the main broadcasting unit through a private line and repeat the encrypted broadcast signals of the main broadcasting unit through a repeating network;

a decrypting key provider comprising a hardware processor configured to;

receive a decrypting key value from at least one of the main broadcasting unit and the repeating unit, and

transmit a user authentication and decrypting key to a charged subscriber terminal through a mobile communication network,

wherein the TII of the main broadcasting unit is included in the encrypted broadcast signals transmitted from the main broadcasting unit and is used to decrypt the encrypted broadcast signals received by a subscriber terminal on the main broadcasting network,

wherein a repeating system TII value of the repeating unit is included in the encrypted broadcast signals transmitted from the repeating unit and is used to decrypt the encrypted broadcast signals received in a subscriber terminal on the repeating network,

wherein the repeating unit is configured to allocate the repeating unit TII value, which is different from the TII of the main broadcasting unit, and transmits the repeating unit TII value when repeating at least one of the data streams.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the main broadcasting unit comprises:

a service multiplexer configured to multiplex audio, data, and video data respectively provided by a contents provider with related additional information;

a system multiplexer configured to multiplex the data multiplexed by the service multiplexer into broadcast signals in a transmission frame format;

an encryptor configured to encrypt the broadcast signals transmitted by the system multiplexer;

an encrypting key generator configured to generate an encrypting key from the system multiplexer;

a main broadcasting station TII inserter configured to insert the TII into the encrypted broadcast signals;

a modulator configured to modulate the encrypted broadcast signals and the TII; and

a transmitter configured to transmit the encrypted broadcast signals as modulated to a subscriber through the main broadcasting network.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the main broadcasting unit is configured to:

scramble at least one of multimedia programs and contents, and

transmit a decrypting key for decrypting the encrypted broadcast signals according to a predetermined encrypting method.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the repeating unit is configured to transmit the repeater TII value in the repeater encrypted broadcast signals such that the charged subscriber terminal is configured to determine based on the TII that the encrypted broadcast signals are main broadcasting network signals.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the main broadcasting unit is configured to periodically generate modified TII by modifying the TII, and apply the modified TII when corresponding encrypting is performed.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the main broadcasting unit is configured to apply the TII as a key value of transmission streams and enables conditional access to respective transmitters, the TII being used to receive different values from transmitters on the SFN.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the decrypting key provider is configured to periodically transmit the decrypting key to the charged subscriber terminal through at least one of the mobile communication network and the Internet.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the decrypting key provider is a mobile communication system comprising a user authentication server.

9. A method for transmitting broadcast signals on a single frequency network (SFN) for terrestrial and satellite digital broadcasting, comprising:

multiplexing, by a main broadcasting station, data into broadcast signals;

encrypting the broadcast signals;

generating an encrypting key;

inserting transmitter identification information (TII) of the main broadcasting station into the encrypted broadcast signals to enable a subscriber terminal to determine whether the encrypted broadcast signals are transmitted through at least one of a main broadcasting station and a repeating system, wherein the repeating system repeats the encrypted broadcast signals of the main broadcasting station through a repeating network;

transmitting the encrypted broadcast signals to at least one of an uncharged subscriber and a charged subscriber through the main broadcasting station; and

providing a decrypting key of the encrypted broadcast signals to a mobile communication system, wherein the providing is through a mobile communication network,

wherein the TII of the main broadcasting station is included in encrypted broadcast signals transmitted from the main broadcasting station and is used to decrypt the encrypted broadcast signals received in a subscriber terminal on the main broadcasting network,

wherein a repeating TII value of the repeating system is included in the encrypted broadcast signals transmitted from the repeating system and is used to decrypt the encrypted broadcast signals received in a subscriber terminal on the repeating network, and

wherein the repeating system is configured to allocate the repeating TII value, which is different from the TII of the main broadcasting station, and transmits the repeating TII value when repeating at least one data stream of the main broadcasting station.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

the main broadcasting station periodically modifying the TII to create a modified main broadcasting station TII,

applying the modified main broadcasting station TII to scramble broadcast signals to create scrambled broadcast signals, and

transmitting the scrambled broadcast signals.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising the mobile communication system transmitting the decrypting key for decrypting the encrypted broadcast signals according to a request by the charged subscriber terminal.

12. The method of claim 9 further comprising providing a user authentication server in the mobile communication system.