Patent ID: 6958965

Claim:
An information reproducing drive for reproducing data from a removable information recording medium for recording digital contents having copyright and disc region information indicative of a specific region permitting reproduction of the digital contents, the information reproducing device comprising: an installation region information storage means for storing installation region information for specifying a region in which the information reproducing drive is installed; a regional information setting counter which is updated each time the installation region information storage means is updated by a drive user; a manufacturer initialization counter which is updated each time the regional information setting counter is initialized by a drive manufacturer; a regional comparing means which delivers a regional coincidence signal upon detection through comparison that the disc region information read from the information recording medium is coincident with the installation region information stored in the installation region information storage means; a reproduction control means which reproduces the digital contents from the information recording medium only when the regional comparing means has delivered the regional coincidence signal; an initialization medium decision means for deciding whether or not the information recording medium is a drive manufacturer initialization medium; a regional information updating means which updates, upon receipt of a command of update of the installation region information from the drive user, the installation region information storage means and the regional information setting counter; and a manufacturer initialization means which, upon receipt of a command of drive manufacturer initialization from the drive manufacturer, initializes the regional information setting counter and updates the manufacturer initialization counter only when the initialization medium decision means decides that the information recording medium is the drive manufacturer initialization medium and a count of the manufacturer initialization counter is not an initialization limit value.