초록 ▼

Disclosed are processes and apparatus that, when practiced according to the principles of the present invention, ensure that a digital storage device will only be able to download or play files that were obtained from sources deemed, either by the manufacturer of the device or by an overseeing organ

Disclosed are processes and apparatus that, when practiced according to the principles of the present invention, ensure that a digital storage device will only be able to download or play files that were obtained from sources deemed, either by the manufacturer of the device or by an overseeing organization, to be acceptable.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A digital content encryption apparatus, comprising:a central server maintaining an Approved Web Site Database comprising a list of web sites determined to be authorized sources of files for digital storage devices manufactured to use a key to decrypt and play the files, said central server being

1. A digital content encryption apparatus, comprising:a central server maintaining an Approved Web Site Database comprising a list of web sites determined to be authorized sources of files for digital storage devices manufactured to use a key to decrypt and play the files, said central server being connectable to an Internet, and wherein: when prompted by a user via one of a computer and an Internet enabled digital storage device, said central server determines whether a submitted IP address supplied by the user is on said Approved Web Site Database; when a determination is made that said submitted IP address is on the Approved Web Site Database, said central server generates an encryption key and encryption information that is unique to a selected file requested by the user to be downloaded and to any device to which it is being downloaded, and transmits the encryption key and the encryption information to a Software Program; and said central server transmits unique encryption key/encoding information to the Software Program when the Software Program requests the unique encryption key/encoding information for the purpose of encoding digital content that is being copied from a media storage peripheral device onto a digital storage memory; a personal computer comprising a memory storing the Software Program, said Software Program executing the steps of: identifying an IP address from which a file is being downloaded; sending a query to said central server to determine whether the identified IP address is on the Approved Web Site Database; retrieving the encryption key from said central server when the identified IP address is on the Approved Web Site Database; encrypting the downloaded file; encrypting digital content being copied from a PC peripheral onto a memory of said personal computer; and initializing a digital storage device to download and play/display encrypted files downloaded from said personal computer; and a digital storage device having a PC interface, and connectable to said personal computer, for accommodating retrieval by said Software Program of information stored by said digital storage device, for storing download files received through a user interface of the Software Program, for retrieving encryption keys from said Software Program for downloaded files, for playing and displaying only files that are encrypted in conformity with said encryption key/encoding information, and for refusing to play and display files in an unencrypted format. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said Software Program encrypts the downloaded file on its own.3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said Software Program requests the unique encryption key/encoding information from said central server for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said Software Program also generates own encryption key for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said Software Program generates own encryption key for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said Software Program encrypts the downloaded file using the encryption key provided by said central server.7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said Software Program requests the unique encryption key/encoding information from said central server for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said Software Program also generates own encryption key for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said Software Program generates own encryption key for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said Software Program requests the unique encryption key/encoding information from said central server for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said Software Program also generates own encryption key for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said Software Program generates own encryption key for the purpose of encrypting the digital content being copied from the PC peripheral.13. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an additional server holding files for downloading, said personal computer communicating with said additional server via the Internet.14. A method of ensuring that downloading over an Internet of a file designated by a user is an authorized downloading, comprising the steps of:(a) providing a central server with an Approved Web Site Database comprising a list of servers authorized to be source of files for downloading over the Internet; (b) receiving at said central server from the user an IP address of an additional server providing the file designated by the user as downloadable data; (c) determining whether the IP address of the additional server is on the Approved Web Site Database; (d) when it is determined that the IP address of the additional server is on the Approved Web Site Database, notifying the user that downloading from the additional server is authorized; and (e) downloading the file designated by the user from the additional server; wherein step (d) further comprises transmitting at least one of an encryption key and encryption information unique to the file designated by the user from said central server to a personal computer of the user. 15. The method of claim 14, wherein step (b) further comprises receiving at said central server from the user at least one of information specific to a personal computer of the user and information specific to the file designated by the user.16. The method of claim 15, wherein step (e) further comprises encoding the file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.17. The method of claim 16, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key stored in the personal computer of the user.18. The method of claim 16, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using the encryption key transmitted from said central server to the personal computer of the user.19. The method of claim 14, wherein step (e) further comprises encoding the file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.20. The method of claim 19, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key stored in a personal computer of the user.21. The method of claim 19, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key transmitted from said central server to the personal computer of the user.22. A method of ensuring that downloading over an Internet of a file designated by a user is an authorized downloading, comprising the steps of:(a) providing a central server with an Approved Web Site Database comprising a list of servers authorized to be source of files for downloading over the Internet; (b) receiving at said central server from the user an IP address of an additional server providing the file designated by the user as downloadable data; (c) determining whether the IP address of the additional server is on the Approved Web Site Database; (d) when it is determined that the IP address of the additional server is on the Approved Web Site Database, notifying the user that downloading from the additional server is authorized; and (e) downloading the file designated by the user from the additional server; said method further comprising the steps, after step (d), of: receiving at said central server a request from a personal computer of the user for at least one of a unique encoding key and unique encoding information; generating at said central server at least one of a unique encryption key and unique encryption information; and transmitting said at least one of the unique encryption key and the unique encryption information from said central server to the personal computer of the user. 23. The method of claim 22, wherein step (e) further comprises encoding the file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.24. The method of claim 23, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key stored in the personal computer of the user.25. The method of claim 23, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using the encryption key transmitted from said central server to the personal computer of the user.26. The method of claim 22, wherein said personal computer of the user uses said at least one of the unique encryption key and the unique encryption information to encode digital content that is being copied from a peripheral of the personal computer of the user onto a digital storage device of the user.27. An apparatus for ensuring that downloading over an Internet of at least one file designated by a user is an authorized downloading, comprisinga central server containing an Approved Web Site Database comprising a list of servers authorized to be sources of files for downloading over the Internet; an additional server providing downloadable data; and a personal computer of the user for communicating with said central server and with said additional server over the Internet; wherein said central server receives from the user an IP address of the additional server, and determines whether the IP address of the additional server is on the Approved Web Site Database; and wherein, when it is determined that the IP address of the additional server is on the Approved Web Site Database, said central server notifies the personal computer of the user that downloading from the additional server is authorized; wherein said central server transmits to the personal computer of the user at least one of an encryption key and encryption information unique to said at least one file designated by the user. 28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein said central server also receives from the user identification of said at least one file designated by the user for downloading from the additional server.29. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein said central server also receives from the user at least one of information specific to a personal computer of the user and information specific to said at least one file designated by the user.30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the personal computer of the user encodes said at least one file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.31. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein said at least one file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key stored in the personal computer of the user.32. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein said at least one file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using the encryption key transmitted by the central server to the personal computer of the user.33. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the personal computer of the user encodes said at least one file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.34. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein said at least one file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key stored in the personal computer of the user.35. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein said at least one file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key transmitted by the central server to the personal computer of the user.36. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein said at least one file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key stored in the personal computer of the user once said at least one file designated by the user is downloaded from said additional server.37. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein said at least one file designated by the user is encoded by the personal computer of the user using an encryption key transmitted to the personal computer of the user by the central server once said at least one file designated by the user is downloaded from said additional server.38. A memory medium containing software provided for the purpose of ensuring that downloading over an Internet of a file designated by a user is an authorized downloading, said software carrying out the steps of:(a) transmitting, to a central server having an Approved Web Site Database, an IP address of an additional server providing the file designated by the user; (b) when the IP address of the additional server is determined by the central server to be on the Approved Web Site Database, receiving from the central server notification that downloading from the additional server is authorized; and (c) downloading the file designated by the user from the additional server; wherein said central server transmits at least one of an encryption key and encryption information unique to the file designated by the user to the personal computer of the user. 39. The memory medium of claim 38, wherein said central server receives from the software at least one of information specific to a personal computer of the user and information specific to the file designated by the user.40. The memory medium of claim 39, wherein said software encodes the file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.41. The memory medium of claim 40, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the software using an encryption key stored in the personal computer of the user.42. The memory medium of claim 40, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the software using the encryption key transmitted from said central server to the personal computer of the user.43. The memory medium of claim 38, wherein said software encodes the file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.44. The memory medium of claim 43, wherein said software encodes the file designated by the user using an encryption key stored in a personal computer of the user.45. The memory medium of claim 43, wherein software encodes the file designated by the user using an encryption key transmitted from said central server to the personal computer of the user.46. A memory medium containing software provided for the purpose of ensuring that downloading over an Internet of a file designated by a user is an authorized downloading, said software carrying out the steps of:(a) transmitting, to a central server having an Approved Web Site Database, an IP address of an additional server providing the file designated by the user; (b) when the IP address of the additional server is determined by the central server to be on the Approved Web Site Database, receiving from the central server notification that downloading from the additional server is authorized; and (c) downloading the file designated by the user from the additional server; wherein said software: transmits to said central server a request for at least one of a unique encoding key and unique encoding information; and receives from said central server at least one of a unique encryption key and unique encryption information. 47. The memory medium of claim 46, wherein said software encodes the file designated by the user once it is downloaded from the additional server.48. The memory medium of claim 47, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the software using an encryption key stored in the personal computer of the user.49. The memory medium of claim 47, wherein the file designated by the user is encoded by the software using the encryption key transmitted from said central server to the personal computer of the user.50. The memory medium of claim 46, wherein said software uses said at least one of the unique encryption key and the unique encryption information to encode digital content that is being copied from a peripheral of a personal computer of the user onto a digital storage device of the user.