Patent ID: 8688583

Claim:
In a first computing device comprising a processor and a first memory, the first memory storing a digital rights management engine including a virtual machine, a method of authorizing access to or other use of a piece of electronic content, comprising: retrieving, using the first computing device, from a remote computer system, a license associated with the piece of electronic content, the license comprising a control program and a content key; executing the control program using the virtual machine; obtaining, as a result of executing the control program, a conditional output from the control program, the conditional output indicating that a request to access or otherwise use the piece of electronic content is authorized as long as an obligation is met; determining that a host application running on the first computing device is able to meet the obligation; and permitting the requested access or other use of the piece of electronic content to be made, while fulfilling the obligation, including using the content key to decrypt the piece of electronic content.