Digital rights management in a mobile environment

• US 9,124,650 B2
• Filed: 10/12/2010
• Issued: 09/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DIRECTV, LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Quickplay Media Inc (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Maharajh, Kavi, Walker, Torin, Sandler, Igor, Minka, Eloi, Sachithananthan, Balayogan, Dingle, Nick, Zhang, Hui Gang, MacNeil, Bart
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayes, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Winter, John M
• Application Number:
  US12/903,125
• Publication Number:
  US 20110225417A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,785 Days
• Field of Search: 705/56
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/60 Business processes related to postal services shipping G06Q10/083; franking apparatus G07B17/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for commerce, e.g. marketing, shopping, billing, auctions or e-commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1059 End-user terminal functionalities specially adapted for real-time communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/752 adapting media to network capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/756 adapting media to device capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/762 at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles

Abstract

Embodiments provide a method that causes a plurality of virtual machine instructions to be interpreted for indications of a mobile device'"'"'s hardware identification information, thus forming a plurality of hardware instruction interpretations. The embodiment also combines each of the plurality of hardware instruction interpretations and hashes the combination to form a quasi-hardware device identifier. An encryption process is based on the quasi-hardware encryption device identifier and the media is then encrypted using the encryption process. The encrypted media is transferred to the mobile device wherein the mobile device decrypts the media based at least in part on the mobile device'"'"'s internal knowledge of the quasi-hardware device identification.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

interpreting, by a computing device, a plurality of virtual-machine instructions of a virtual machine for detecting data representative of a mobile device'"'"'s hardware identification information, resulting in a plurality of hardware instruction interpretations, the virtual machine executable on an application server that is separate from the mobile device;

combining by the computing device each of the plurality of hardware instruction interpretations forming a quasi-hardware mobile unique device identifier (UUID) based on properties of the virtual machine;

basing an encryption process on the UUID and encrypting media using the encryption process;

transferring by the computing device the encrypted media to the mobile device; and

decrypting at the mobile device the media based, at least in part, on the mobile device'"'"'s internal knowledge of the UUID.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein transferring the encrypted media to the mobile device is performed via a server.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein transferring the encrypted media to the mobile device is performed via a streaming media server.

2. A method, comprising:

interpreting, a plurality of virtual-machine instructions of a virtual machine for detecting data representative of a mobile device'"'"'s hardware identification information, resulting in a plurality of hardware instruction interpretations, the virtual machine executable on an application server that is separate from the mobile device;

combining each of the plurality of hardware instruction interpretations forming a quasi-hardware mobile unique device identifier (UUID) based on properties of the virtual machine

basing a unique encryption process on at least two factors;

the UUID, and

an understanding of what prior encryption process was used in a previous media delivery to the mobile device, the unique encryption process being different than the prior encryption process;

encrypting by the computing device media using the unique encryption process;

transferring by the computing device the encrypted media to the mobile device; and

decrypting at the mobile device the media based, at least in part, on the mobile device'"'"'s internal knowledge of the UUID.

5. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein transferring the encrypted media to the mobile device is performed via a server.

6. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein transferring the encrypted media to the mobile device is performed via a streaming media server.