Digital transactions for the delivery of media files

Abstract

An incomplete / partly corrupted media file is delivered ‘in the clear’; in addition, a delta file is delivered to users meeting access control criteria which, when combined with the incomplete / partly corrupted parts allows a complete and uncorrupted version of the media file to be re-constructed. The method allows, in one implementation, a secure music purchase system to operate over digital radio: for example, the start of a song when played over the radio is usually deliberately talked over and the end cut short to prevent listeners being able to record a complete copy. With the present system, this practice can continue, but listeners can also purchase the missing or corrupted sections to enable them to possess a complete and uncorrupted version for playback.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] This invention relates to the field of digital transactions, particularly to transactions in which copies of digital media files are acquired. The media files are typically music files (but can be any other type of media file) and the delivery mechanism may be, but is not limited to, a digital radio transmission such as DAB (Eureka-147) or the Internet. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART [0002] Conventional analogue radio systems (such as FM or AM) can cause significant channel noise to be introduced into the transmitted audio signal payload; the payload is in any event generally rendered into the analogue domain before being allowed to modulate the carrier. As a result, analogue systems are inappropriate vehicles for selling music directly, since any recording will be significantly compromised with respect to the (in these days, usually digital) original which can be purchased through conventional music stores (e.g., as a CD) or through the Internet (e.g., a...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0016] Hence, the method envisages delivering an incomplete / partly corrupted media file ‘in the clear’; in addition, a delta file is delivered to users meeting access control criteria which, when combined with the incomplete / partly corrupted parts allows a complete and uncorrupted version of the media file to be re-constructed. The method allows, in one implementation, a secure music purchase system to operate over digital radio: for example, the start of a song when played over the radio is usually deliberately talked over and the end cut short to prevent listeners being able to record a complete copy. With the present system, this practice can continue, but listeners can also purchase the missing or corrupted sections to enable them to possess a complete and uncorrupted version for playback. Hence, spontaneous purchasing of complete, played over the air tracks is possible, which is not only very convenient for listeners but highly attractive for content owners and radio stations.

Problems solved by technology

Conventional analogue radio systems (such as FM or AM) can cause significant channel noise to be introduced into the transmitted audio signal payload; the payload is in any event generally rendered into the analogue domain before being allowed to modulate the carrier.

As a result, analogue systems are inappropriate vehicles for selling music directly, since any recording will be significantly compromised with respect to the (in these days, usually digital) original which can be purchased through conventional music stores (e.g., as a CD) or through the Internet (e.g., as an MP3 file).

Potential lack of source compression.

However, using radio as the vehicle for the commercial sale of music turns out not to be practicable using existing known mechanisms, in the general case, for the following reasons: Radio stations tend not to transmit all of a particular music item—for example they will often ‘cut’ the start and ends of popular music tracks to make them fit a particular play slot.

(This is also a problem with ‘classic request’ channels which may play only one movement from a classical piece, or worse, a selection from a single movement).

Even if the above two factors were not a concern, then piracy would prove problematical for the music vendor.

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