Patent Application
20200151303
The present invention generally relates to digital rights management, and more specifically, to a digital rights management engine abstractions.
Digital rights management (DRM) is a technology for securing digital content. DRM works by encrypting content before distribution, and by limiting access to only those end-users who have acquired a proper license to play the content. Typically, the DRM license enforcement is done at the player/client. A complete DRM system typically comprises several parts: encryption, business-logic, and license-delivery. DRM starts by encrypting the content. Once the content is encrypted, a key is required to unlock (decrypt) the content. The encrypted content can be delivered to the end user through any appropriate delivery methods. Typically, an end-user who desires to obtain the content visits an e-commerce web site and transacts with the business-logic process, usually involving one of registration, login, and/or payment; once this is done, the end-user is issued a license to play the content. The issued license typically comprises (i) a key (for decrypting the content), (ii) a set of rights (e.g. play exactly once, play for 30 days, or the like), and (iii) with the property that the license is valid only on the end-user machine to which it is issued. When an end-user attempts to play the DRM-protected content, the player first checks to see whether the license exists on the local machine; if so, the playback starts by decrypting the content. If a license is not found, the player attempts to get a license, typically from the storefront URL that is embedded in the content.
Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a computer-implemented method for digital rights management. A non-limiting example of the computer-implemented method includes receiving, by a processor, a request to access media content from a requestor, wherein the media content is protected by a digital rights management (DRM) system that requires a license, obtaining context data associated with the requestor, analyzing the context data to determine a validity score for the request, and transmitting a license or access key to the requestor based on determining that the validity score exceeds a threshold.
Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a system for digital rights management. A non-limiting example of the system includes a processor coupled to a memory, the processor being configured to receive a request to access media content from a requestor, wherein the media content is protected by a digital rights management (DRM) system that requires a license, obtain context data associated with the requestor, analyze the context data to determine a validity score for the request, and transmit a license to the requestor based on determining that the validity score exceeds a threshold.
Embodiments of the invention are directed to a computer program product for digital rights management, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith. The program instructions are executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform a method. A non-limiting example of the method includes receiving, by a processor, a request to access media content from a requestor, wherein the media content is protected by a digital rights management (DRM) system that requires a license, obtaining context data associated with the requestor, analyzing the context data to determine a validity score for the request, and transmitting a license or access key to the requestor based on determining that the validity score exceeds a threshold.
Additional technical features and benefits are realized through the techniques of the present invention. Embodiments and aspects of the invention are described in detail herein and are considered a part of the claimed subject matter. For a better understanding, refer to the detailed description and to the drawings.
The specifics of the exclusive rights described herein are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other features and advantages of the embodiments of the invention are apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
The diagrams depicted herein are illustrative. There can be many variations to the diagram or the operations described therein without departing from the spirit of the invention. For instance, the actions can be performed in a differing order or actions can be added, deleted or modified. Also, the term “coupled” and variations thereof describes having a communications path between two elements and does not imply a direct connection between the elements with no intervening elements/connections between them. All of these variations are considered a part of the specification.
Various embodiments of the invention are described herein with reference to the related drawings. Alternative embodiments of the invention can be devised without departing from the scope of this invention. Various connections and positional relationships (e.g., over, below, adjacent, etc.) are set forth between elements in the following description and in the drawings. These connections and/or positional relationships, unless specified otherwise, can be direct or indirect, and the present invention is not intended to be limiting in this respect. Accordingly, a coupling of entities can refer to either a direct or an indirect coupling, and a positional relationship between entities can be a direct or indirect positional relationship. Moreover, the various tasks and process steps described herein can be incorporated into a more comprehensive procedure or process having additional steps or functionality not described in detail herein.
The following definitions and abbreviations are to be used for the interpretation of the claims and the specification. As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having,” “contains” or “containing,” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a composition, a mixture, process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements but can include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such composition, mixture, process, method, article, or apparatus.
Additionally, the term “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance or illustration.” Any embodiment or design described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. The terms “at least one” and “one or more” may be understood to include any integer number greater than or equal to one, i.e. one, two, three, four, etc. The terms “a plurality” may be understood to include any integer number greater than or equal to two, i.e. two, three, four, five, etc. The term “connection” may include both an indirect “connection” and a direct “connection.”
The terms “about,” “substantially,” “approximately,” and variations thereof, are intended to include the degree of error associated with measurement of the particular quantity based upon the equipment available at the time of filing the application. For example, “about” can include a range of ±8% or 5%, or 2% of a given value.
For the sake of brevity, conventional techniques related to making and using aspects of the invention may or may not be described in detail herein. In particular, various aspects of computing systems and specific computer programs to implement the various technical features described herein are well known. Accordingly, in the interest of brevity, many conventional implementation details are only mentioned briefly herein or are omitted entirely without providing the well-known system and/or process details.
It is to be understood that although this disclosure includes a detailed description on cloud computing, implementation of the teachings recited herein are not limited to a cloud computing environment. Rather, embodiments of the present invention are capable of being implemented in conjunction with any other type of computing environment now known or later developed.
Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing, memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or interaction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may include at least five characteristics, at least three service models, and at least four deployment models.
Characteristics are as follows:
On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provision computing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, as needed automatically without requiring human interaction with the service's provider.
Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network and accessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneous thin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).
Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physical and virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according to demand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumer generally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of the provided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher level of abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).
Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elastically provisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out and rapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilities available for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can be purchased in any quantity at any time.
Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimize resource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level of abstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage, processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can be monitored, controlled, and reported, providing transparency for both the provider and consumer of the utilized service.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to the consumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and other fundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy and run arbitrary software, which can include operating systems and applications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage, deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networking components (e.g., host firewalls).
Deployment Models are as follows:
Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for an organization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party and may exist on-premises or off-premises.
Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by several organizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns (e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and compliance considerations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third party and may exist on-premises or off-premises.
Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the general public or a large industry group and is owned by an organization selling cloud services.
Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or more clouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities but are bound together by standardized or proprietary technology that enables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting for load-balancing between clouds).
A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus on statelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability. At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure that includes a network of interconnected nodes.
Referring now to
Referring now to
Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and software components. Examples of hardware components include: mainframes 61; RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture based servers 62; servers 63; blade servers 64; storage devices 65; and networks and networking components 66. In some embodiments, software components include network application server software 67 and database software 68.
Virtualization layer 70 provides an abstraction layer from which the following examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers 71; virtual storage 72; virtual networks 73, including virtual private networks; virtual applications and operating systems 74; and virtual clients 75.
In one example, management layer 80 may provide the functions described below. Resource provisioning 81 provides dynamic procurement of computing resources and other resources that are utilized to perform tasks within the cloud computing environment. Metering and Pricing 82 provide cost tracking as resources are utilized within the cloud computing environment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of these resources. In one example, these resources may comprise application software licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloud consumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources. User portal 83 provides access to the cloud computing environment for consumers and system administrators. Service level management 84 provides cloud computing resource allocation and management such that required service levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planning and fulfillment 85 provides pre-arrangement for, and procurement of, cloud computing resources for which a future requirement is anticipated in accordance with an SLA.
Workloads layer 90 provides examples of functionality for which the cloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads and functions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping and navigation 91; software development and lifecycle management 92; virtual classroom education delivery 93; data analytics processing 94; transaction processing 95; and digital rights management 96.
Referring to
In exemplary embodiments, the processing system 300 includes a graphics processing unit 41. Graphics processing unit 41 is a specialized electronic circuit designed to manipulate and alter memory to accelerate the creation of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display. In general, graphics processing unit 41 is very efficient at manipulating computer graphics and image processing and has a highly parallel structure that makes it more effective than general-purpose CPUs for algorithms where processing of large blocks of data is done in parallel.
Thus, as configured in
Turning now to an overview of technologies that are more specifically relevant to aspects of the invention, there are several widely utilized Digital Rights Management (DRM) protection services in the marketplace. For companies that utilize a multi-tenant, multi-device cloud video platform, a protection system must support protected playout of content regardless of which DRM system is employed by the user. Thus, a need exists for an abstraction layer for a unified interface that can provide a single, trusted, and secure source for encryption key management and license acquisition requests regardless of the type of DRM system employed.
Turning now to an overview of the aspects of the invention, one or more embodiments of the invention address the above-described shortcomings of the prior art by providing a process by which a media player can request a license for specified media content from different types of media devices regardless of the form of the DRM that is employed. The process includes a decision as to whether or not to grant a license delegated at the time of receipt of the request to access the specified content. The specified media content can include access to video data, audio data, and the like. The process implements an abstraction layer in the form of a license acquisition service that provisions decryption keys and/or licenses for media content or software that is protected by a digital rights management (DRM) system and requires a license.
Turning now to a more detailed description of aspects of the present invention,
In one or more embodiments of the invention, the license acquisition service 402, rights manager 404, and secure key storage system 408 can be implemented on the processing system 300 found in
In one or more embodiments of the invention, a media device 406 attempts to perform some action on protected content and determines that the content is encrypted, protected, or rights-limited in some way due to the presence of one or more forms of digital rights management. In this case, to perform the action on the content, the media device 406 requires a license and/or a decryption key. The content can be any type of digital content including audio files, video files, software, or any other binary content that is or can be subject to digital rights management. Based on the specific type of DRM employed by the content, the media device 406 attempts to obtain a license or decryption key through a pre-established or standard means that includes the media device 406 making a network request to the license acquisition service 402 using a license acquisition uniform resource locator (URL) provided to the media device 406 by a content owner 410 (or provider of the content). The content owner 410 can be an application on one or more servers housing the content being requested. This license acquisition URL directs the media device 406 to the license acquisition service 402 in a manner agnostic to the DRM system employed by the content owner 410. In embodiments of the invention, the license acquisition URL can be obtained by the media device 406 (e.g., the requestor or requesting application) by a variety of means include, but not limited to, being stored inside the content, stored inside a manifest associated with the content, read from a catalog associated with the content, or derived via algorithmic means based on one or more content attributes, such as, for example, a content identifier.
In one or more embodiments of the invention, the license acquisition service 402, after receipt of the license acquisition URL (e.g., request), obtains context information associated with the media device 406 (e.g., requestor) to determine the identity of the content for which a license or decryption key is requested. Also, additional context data can be collected or generated by the license acquisition service 402 from sources including, but not limited to, the requestor's network IP address, geolocation data collected from a GPS application on the media device 406, media device type, identity of the user of the media device 406, web, cookies, and/or header information associated with the request. This context data collected from the requestor (e.g., media device 406) or generated from other sources (e.g., IP address) is provided to the rights manager 404 via an application program interface (API). The rights manager 404 analyzes the context data to calculate a validity score representative of the likelihood that the media device 406 should have access to the content being requested. To determine whether the media device 406 should or should not have access to the content, the rights manager 404 can compare the validity score calculated from the context data to a predefined threshold score or value. If the validity score exceeds the threshold, the rights manager 404 indicates the media device 406 should have access to the content and the license acquisition service 402 can obtain the license or decryption key from the secure key storage system 408 and transmit the license or decryption key to the media device 406. If the validity score does not exceed the threshold, the rights manager 404 can send a denial to the license acquisition service 402. The license acquisition service 402 can transmit the denial to the media device 406 or transmit a request for additional data to verify the media device 406 should have access to the content. The rights manager 404 performs the analysis of the context data without knowing the type of DRM system used to protect the content.
In one or more embodiments of the invention, the validity score is calculated based on the context data associated with the request for access to content. For example, request for a specific content can be received by the license acquisition service 402. The context data can include the identification of the requestor, the identification of the requestor's account, and the identification of the requested content. Additional context data can be generated from information taken from the media device (e.g., the device is a smartphone, geo-location, etc.). Analyzing the context data can determine the validity score, and thus whether the requestor is entitled to access the requested content, and furthermore whether or not a particular license or decryption key should be returned to the requestor. In one or more embodiments of the invention, the license acquisition service 402 collects context data from both the requestor and from the content owner 410. The rights manager 404, for example, can provide information about the requestor's account status and payment information to be utilized when determining if the requestor is allowed access to the content. For example, a media device 406 might have access to specific content but only in certain formats. A request to play a movie using 4K technology might not be available based on the requestor's subscription information; however, the same movie might be available in a lower quality format. The rights manager 404 can determine the specific type of license or decryption key to be provided for the media device 406 so that the correct format or version of the content can be accessed by the media device 406. For example, the rights manager 404 can restrict access due to there being no current login session in place. The rights manager 404 can restrict access based on the requestor having too many simultaneous sessions open or there is a geographic restriction on where content can be accessed.
Additional processes may also be included. It should be understood that the processes depicted in
The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computer program product at any possible technical detail level of integration. The computer program product may include a computer readable storage medium (or media) having computer readable program instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of the present invention.
The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that can retain and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmitted through a wire.
Computer readable program instructions described herein can be downloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computer readable storage medium or to an external computer or external storage device via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprise copper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/or edge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing/processing device receives computer readable program instructions from the network and forwards the computer readable program instructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium within the respective computing/processing device.
Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations of the present invention may be assembler instructions, instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, configuration data for integrated circuitry, or either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++, or the like, and procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programming languages. The computer readable program instructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readable program instruction by utilizing state information of the computer readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, in order to perform aspects of the present invention.
Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer readable program instructions.
These computer readable program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises an article of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects of the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computer implemented process, such that the instructions which execute on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the blocks may occur out of the order noted in the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.
The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application or technical improvement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments described herein.
