Patent ID: 7877811

Claim:
A method for retransmission of use authorization information received by a retransmission device in encoded or unencoded form, together with at least one of sound and image contents from transmission networks of any kind to a consumer electronic device, comprising: hierarchically structuring, by the retransmission device, said use authorization information in the manner of a tree structure having decision branch points, wherein said use authorization information consists of use restrictions or use permissions; making a decision, by the retransmission device, at each branch point as to whether or not the use restrictions or the use permissions will be signaled on one or more descending branches from each branch point; and transmitting, by the retransmission device, a mark indicating that all of the descending branches from a respective branch point are not relevant during retransmission of the use authorization information to the consumer electronic device, instead of transmitting individual pieces of information that would signal the absence of the use restrictions or the use permissions in each of the descending branches.