Patent ID: 8056103

Claim:
A method comprising: receiving in a set-top-box a signal having a conditionally accessible content and encoded based on a first audio/video encoding scheme; conditionally accessing the content of the received signal in the set-top-box based on predetermined access criteria; transmitting the conditionally accessed content to a decoder within the set-top box and maintaining the conditionally accessed content entirely within the set-top box if a logic within the set-top box determines that the first audio/video encoding scheme is compatible to a second audio/video encoding scheme supported by the decoder within the set-top-box; transmitting the conditionally accessed content to a device external to the set-top-box in lieu of transmitting the conditionally accessed content to the decoder after the logic within the set-top-box determines that the first audio/video encoding scheme is incompatible with the second audio/video encoding scheme supported by the decoder within the set-top-box; transcoding the conditionally accessed content by the device from the first audio/video encoding scheme to the second audio/video encoding scheme if the conditionally accessed content is transmitted to the device external to the set-top box; and providing the transcoded content back to the set-top-box if the conditionally accessed content is transmitted to the device external to the set-top box.