Patent ID: 7681244

Claim:
A packet transmitter apparatus which transmits packet data to a packet receiver apparatus, said transmitter apparatus comprising: an audio and video (AV) data information obtainment unit operable to obtain AV data information including: input terminal information indicating a terminal to which AV data is inputted; data format information indicating a data format of the AV data; and attribute information indicating an attribute of the AV data; a data input unit operable to receive the AV data and non-AV data; a transmitting condition setting management unit operable to extract at least one of charge information, playback control information and copy control information of the AV data, from the non-AV data or the AV data, and generate, based on the extracted information, encryption mode information indicating an encryption mode which serves as a condition at the time when the AV data is transmitted; an encrypted data generation unit operable to generate encrypted data by encrypting, based on transmitting conditions, the AV data received by said data input unit, and adding encryption information headers based on the encryption mode information to the encrypted AV data, the transmitting conditions being determined as a combination of the input terminal information, the data format information and the attribute information; a packet generation unit operable to generate packets by adding packet headers to the encrypted data generated by said encrypted data generation unit; an authentication unit operable to perform authentication processing for encryption or decryption of the AV data with the packet receiver apparatus using Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) information indicating an access position of the AV data in the packet transmitter apparatus or extended URI information; a transmission protocol determination unit operable to determine a transmission protocol of the AV data between said packet transmitter apparatus and said packet receiver apparatus, using at least one of the input terminal information, the attribute information and information indicating a transmission mode specified by said packet receiver apparatus; and a transmission unit operable to transmit the packets including the encrypted data generated by said packet generation unit to said packet receiver apparatus according to the transmission protocol determined by said transmission protocol determination unit, after the authentication processing with said packet receiver apparatus is completed, wherein said packet generation unit is operable to generate the packets according to one of HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP), TCP and Internet Protocol (IP).