Apparatus and method for playback of digital content

• US 8,769,698 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2007
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Aisu, Hideyuki, Ito, Satoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): LEE, JASON T
• Application Number:
  US11/661,365
• Publication Number:
  US 20090083856A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,734 Days
• Field of Search: 726/1, 726/26, 369/30.9, 707/999.104, 707/999.107
• US Class Current: 726/26
• 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: 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 20/00427 advanced access content system [AACS]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00847 wherein the usage restriction is defined by a licence file
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2541 Blu-ray discs; Blue laser DVR discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2579 HD-DVDs [high definition DVDs]; AODs [advanced optical discs]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/322 used signal is digitally coded

Abstract

There is provided with a digital content playback apparatus which generates new digital content by replacing a content part in digital content by an other content parts, including: a storage to store license conditions defined for the content parts in the digital content, each of which includes at least a replacement permission condition and a replacement target specification condition, a specifying unit configured to allow a user to specify a replacement source content part as a content part to be replaced, and a replacement target content part as a content part for adding to the digital content for replacing the replacement source content part, and a verifying unit to verify whether license conditions of content parts in the digital content and the replacement target content part would be satisfied when replacing the replacement source content part in the digital content by the replacement target content part.

Claims

1. A digital content playback apparatus which generates new digital content by replacing one or more content parts included in digital content by one or more other content parts, the digital content playback apparatus comprising:

content storage configured to store a plurality of content parts,

license information storage configured to store license information describing license conditions defined for the content parts, each of which includes at least a replacement permission condition and a replacement target specification condition among conditions in which

the replacement permission condition defines that a content part which has replacement permission is replaceable by another content part,

the replacement target specification condition specifies content parts which are replacement target candidates when the replacement permission condition is replaceable,

a complementary relationship condition specifies another content part that must be contained in digital content when using the content part which has replacement permission, and

an automatic replacement permission condition specifies whether to allow replacement of the content part which has automatic replacement permission without user instruction,

a content part selecting unit configured to allow a user to specify a replacement source content part as a content part that should be replaced among content parts in the digital content including content parts in the content storage, and a replacement target content part as a content part for adding to the digital content for replacing the replacement source content part,

verifying unit configured to verify whether license conditions of content parts in the digital content and the replacement target content part would be satisfied when replacing the replacement source content part by the replacement target content part, and automatically replace the content part to satisfy complementary relationship conditions of all content parts,

a content generation unit configured to generate new digital content by replacing the replacement source content part by the replacement target content part when the license conditions are determined as being satisfied by the verifying unit, and

a content playback unit configured to play back the generated new digital content,

wherein the content part selecting unit presents to the user content parts whose replacement permission condition is replaceable and whose automatic replacement permission condition is impermissible as candidates for the replacement source content part among content parts in the digital content and content parts specified by replacement target specification conditions of the candidates for the replacement source content part as candidates for the replacement target content part.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when replacing the replacement source content part by the replacement target content part, if a content part specified by the complementary relationship condition of a certain content part in digital content after the replacing is not contained in the digital content after the replacing, the verifying unit verifies whether there exists in the digital content a content part whose replacement target specification condition specifies the content part specified by the complementary relationship condition of the content part violating complementary relationship condition and whose automatic replacement permission condition is permissible and if such a content part exists, decides to replace the content part by the content part specified by the complementary relationship condition.

3. A digital content playback method which generates new digital content by replacing one or more content parts included in digital content by one or more other content parts, the method comprising:

providing content storage configured to store a plurality of content parts, and

license information storage configured to store license information describing license conditions defined for the content parts, each of which includes at least a replacement permission condition and a replacement target specification condition among conditions in which

the replacement permission condition defines that a content part which has replacement permission is replaceable by another content part,

the replacement target specification condition specifies content parts which are replacement target candidates when the replacement permission condition is replaceable and

a complementary relationship condition specifies another content part that must be contained in digital content when using the content part which has replacement permission, and

an automatic replacement permission condition specifies whether to allow replacement of the content part which has automatic replacement permission without user instruction,

receiving, from a user, specification of a replacement source content part as a content part that should be replaced among content parts in the digital content including content parts in the content storage, and a replacement target content part as a content part for adding to the digital content for replacing the replacement source content part,

verifying whether license conditions of content parts in the digital content and the replacement target content part would be satisfied when replacing the replacement source content part by the replacement target content part, and automatically replacing the content part to satisfy complementary relationship conditions of all content parts,

generating new digital content by replacing the replacement source content part by the replacement target content part when the license conditions are determined as being satisfied as a result of the verifying; and

playing back the generated new digital content, wherein

license conditions of the content parts in the content storage include an automatic replacement permission condition specifying whether to allow replacement of the content part without receiving user instruction, and

the specifying includes presenting content parts whose replacement permission condition is replaceable and whose automatic replacement permission condition is impermissible as candidates for the replacement source content part among content parts in the digital content and content parts specified by replacement target specification conditions of the candidates for the replacement source content part as candidates for the replacement target content part, to the user.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein when replacing the replacement source content part by the replacement target content part, if a content part specified by the complementary relationship condition of certain content part in digital content after the replacing is not contained in the digital content after the replacing, the verifying includes verifying whether there exists in the content storage a content part whose replacement target specification condition specifies the content part specified by the complementary relationship condition of the content part violating complementary relationship condition part and whose automatic replacement permission condition is permissible and if such a content part exists, deciding to replace the content part by the content part specified by the complementary relationship condition.

5. A digital content playback apparatus which plays back first digital content by playing back content parts recorded in an optical disk based on a playback control sequence for controlling playback of the content parts and a first license file including a plurality of license information pieces describing license conditions defined for the content parts, the digital content playback apparatus comprising:

a reading unit configured to read the playback control sequence, the first license file, identification information of the first digital content, information on a place to obtain a playback control sequence to be edited, and the content parts from the optical disk;

an editing unit configured to

access the place shown in the information,

obtain the playback control sequence to be edited and a second license file including one or more license information pieces describing the license conditions for one or more content parts among the content parts, based on identification information of the playback control sequence and the identification information of the first digital content,

select content parts which have license information pieces describing a permission of enlisting a link and a condition to permit the link, among the content parts, and

enlist the link to the selected content parts from the playback control sequence to be edited such that the conditions to permit the link described in the license information pieces of the selected content parts are satisfied;

storage configured to store the playback control sequence edited by the editing unit and the second license file; and

a playback unit configured to play back second digital content by playing back content parts based on the playback control sequence edited by the editing unit and the second license file,

wherein the playback apparatus utilizes further license information describing further license conditions defined for the content parts, each of which includes at least a replacement permission condition and a replacement target specification condition among conditions in which

the replacement permission condition defines that a content part which has replacement permission is replaceable by another content part,

the replacement target specification condition specifies content parts which are replacement target candidates when the replacement permission condition is replaceable,

a complementary relationship condition specifies another content part that must be contained in digital content when using the content part which has replacement permission, and

an automatic replacement permission condition which specifies whether to allow replacement of the content part which has automatic replacement permission without user instruction, and

the playback apparatus presents to the user content parts whose replacement permission condition is replaceable and whose automatic replacement permission condition is impermissible as candidates for a replacement source content part among content parts in the digital content and content parts specified by replacement target specification conditions of the candidates for the replacement source content part as candidates for a replacement target content part.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the conditions to permit the enlisting of the link described in the license information pieces of the selected content parts include addresses on the optical disk where the selected content parts exist, and

the editing unit enlists the link to the addresses on the optical disk from the play back control sequence to be edited as the link to the selected content parts.

7. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the condition to permit the enlisting of a link described in the license information piece of the selected content parts include a condition of adding simultaneously an enlisting of a link to the selected content parts,

when the license information piece of the other content parts describes a permission of enlisting a link and a condition to permit the enlisting of the link, the editing unit enlists a link to the address of the other content parts from the playback control sequence to be edited such that the condition to permit the enlisting described in the license information piece of the other parts is satisfied.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the address of the other content part is an address on the optical disk, an address on any recording medium or an address of an external server.

9. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the condition to permit the enlisting of the link described in the license information piece of the selected content part includes an address on any recording medium or an external server as an address of the other content part and further includes an address indicating a storage location where the other content part is to be stored, and

the editing unit

accesses the recording medium or the external server based on the address of the recording medium or the external server to download the other content part and license information piece of the other content part, and

when the downloaded license information piece includes a permission of enlisting a link and a condition to permit an enlisting, enlists a link to the address indicating the storage location from the playback control sequence to be edited such that the condition to permit the enlisting of the link described in the license information piece of the other part satisfied and adds the downloaded license information piece to the second license file.

10. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the condition to permit the enlisting of the link described in the license information piece of the selected content part specifies an order of playing back the selected content part and the other content part, and

the editing unit adds a link to the selected content part and the other content part to the playback control sequence to be edited such that the order of playback is satisfied.

11. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the editing unit selects content parts which have license information pieces describing a permission of delisting a link and a condition to permit the delisting of the link among content parts for which a link is enlisted from the playback control sequence edited by the editing unit and delists a link to the selected content parts from the playback control sequence edited by the editing unit such that the conditions to permit the delisting of a link described in the license information pieces of the selected content parts are satisfied.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11 wherein the condition to permit the enlisting of the link or the condition to permit delisting of the link specifies identifiers of one or more playback control sequence to be edited for which enlisting or delisting of a link is permitted, and

the editing unit makes the enlisting or delisting of a link only when an identifier of the playback control sequence to be edited or the playback control sequence edited by the editing unit is specified by the condition to permit the enlisting of the link or the condition to permit delisting of the link.

13. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the condition to permit delisting of the link includes a condition of enlisting another link and information on other content parts to which the other link is to be enlisted, and

when the license information piece on the other content part to which the other link is to be enlisted includes a permission of a link and a condition to permit the link, the editing unit delists a link to the selected content part from the playback control sequence edited by the editing unit and enlists a link to the other content part to the playback control sequence edited by the editing unit such that the condition to permit the link described in the license information piece of the other content part is satisfied.