Patent ID: 8443457

Claim:
A computer implemented method for controlling the use of a digital work in accordance with usage rights associated with the digital work, said method comprising: storing, on at least one of one or more server devices, a description file associated with a content file of a digital work, the description file including usage rights for the content file, the usage rights indicating a permitted use for the content file of the digital work; communicating, by at least one of the one or more server devices, with a rendering device, the rendering device being a device separate from the one or more server devices; receiving, by at least one of the one or more server devices, a request to render the content of the digital work, the request originating from the rendering device; processing, by at least one of the one or more server devices, the request to render, the processing including enforcing the usage rights by granting or rejecting the request to render in accordance with the usage rights, wherein granting the request includes allowing the rendering device to render the content of the digital work if the usage rights permit rendering of the content of the digital work and the rendering device is an authorized device; and performing closing transaction steps upon detecting that the rendering device has finished rendering the content of the digital work.