Patent EP-1356622-A4 (EP)
Title: Digital content distribution and subscription system
Inventor: BI DEPENG
IPC: G06Q30/06
Filed: 2001-11-06
Abstract: A digital content distribution and subscription system for digital data files, such as digital audio and video data files, which provides subscribers, for example, with music or video from locally-stored digital files or on demand for a fee. The system may optionally provide streaming digital data as well as locally-stored digital files. After registration onto the system, a subscriber may select from a relatively wide variety of available digital content, for example, music content ripped from a high-quality digital source to provide relatively consistent digital quality to subscribers. In one exemplary implementation, subscribers may subscribe to a predetermined number of songs slots for a period of time, for example, about 200-400 song slots per month. The subscriber may then select songs from various playlists which causes encrypted digital audio files for the selected music to be downloaded to the subscribers's PC. A license key is downloaded to the subscribers' PC to "unlock" the selected songs to enable them to be decoded and played on the subscriber's personal computer or remote audio equipment for a predetermined time period. At the expiration of the predetermined time period, the license key expires, thereby preventing further playback of the encrypted audio data files. The selections of each subscriber are tabulated for the purpose of royality tracking and payment of an appropriate license fee to the holders of copyright rights for the selections. The system may also be used to provide additional digital information, such as special events which may be live or pre-recorded. The digital content distribution and subscription system includes a digital content management system, a system for token-based authentication allowing secure data retrieval and a royality administration system.  The digital content management system manages the amount of digital content data delivered to a client over a predetermined period. The server manages the number client access devices, such as personal computers (PC), which can access the digital content over a predetermined time period.  The token-based authentication system provides for anonymous authentication that does not require knowledge of the individual user requesting the download of digital content data or real-time access to user account information. Instead, the token-based authentication system embeds the authentication information, or token, in the download request information itself. In this way, the download or content server authenticates the download request using the token contained in the download request information and therefore does not require any additional information to carry out this authentication, such as access to user account information.  The royality administration system operates as part of a digital content subscription service to track usage of digital content, for example, music, by subscribers of the digital content subscription service and to calculate royalty payments to, for example, publishing and performance rights holders of the digital music. The digital content subscription service makes available to subscribers a plethora of, for example, digital music. Legally a music subscription service is required to compansate rights holders of the digital content for use of their works. In order to accurately provide compensation, the digital content subscrition service must track usage of the digital music by subscribers of the digital content subscription service. The digital content subscription service also maintans accurate information on the rights holders of the digital music in order to facilitate calculation of royalty payments. With the digital music usage information and the rights holder information, the digital content subscription service is able to effectively and accurately calculate payment to the digital music rights holders for use of their works.  The current system provides subscribers with relatively high-quality consistent digital audio files and allows subscribers to select from a relatively wide range of stored digital audio files on demand while not violating copyright laws.