Patent ID: 8060923

Claim:
A computer-implemented method of removing a digital license from a client computing device, the digital license including an identification of a removal service that can authorize removing such license, the method comprising: the client selecting the license to be removed, the license comprising a public key of the service; the client selecting the service by identifying the service using the public key of the service comprised in the license, the service comprising computing logic adapted to coordinate removal of licenses from the client; the client constructing a challenge including therein a challenge license identification block (LIB) identifying the license to be removed, an identification of the client, and a challenge transaction ID identifying the challenge and being separate and not derived from an identification of the client, a license, or licensed content; the client sending the challenge to the service; the service receiving the challenge and storing at least a portion of the challenge in a database; the service constructing a response corresponding to the challenge and including therein a response LIB identifying the license to be removed, the transaction ID identifying the challenge, and a public key of the service, and sending the response to the client; the client receiving the response, confirming that the transaction ID in the response matches the transaction ID in the challenge, and employing the response LIB from the response to identify the license to be removed; the client removing the identified license upon confirming that the public key of the service in the identified license matches the identification of the service in the response; the client constructing an acknowledgment corresponding to the response and including therein the transaction ID from the response, and sending the acknowledgement to the service, and the service receiving the acknowledgment, confirming that the transaction ID in the acknowledgement matches the transaction ID in the response, and noting in the database that the response was acknowledged.