Digital Rights Transfer System for Seamless Content Portability

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Solution Overview

Problem

Digital multimedia rights are typically tied to a specific device or location, limiting their portability and accessibility to users when they travel or visit friends, leading to restrictions on content usage.

Innovation Solution

A system and method for transferring digital multimedia rights between devices and locations, involving user request processing, permission management, automatic or manual provisioning, and inter-carrier token arbitration, allowing seamless access to multimedia content across different devices and service providers.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If digital multimedia rights are tied to a specific device or location, then security and access control are improved, but portability and accessibility are worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaccess controlVSAvoidportability
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements dynamic rights transfer by allowing digital multimedia rights to be transferred between different devices and locations. The system enables a user's rights to move from a home device to a portable device or different location, making the access control mechanism dynamic rather than static. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining security through controlled transfer processes while enabling portability through the ability to relocate rights.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a rights transfer server as an intermediary between the user device and the content delivery system. This intermediary manages the transfer of digital rights, validating transfer requests, updating rights information in the database, and coordinating the transfer process. The intermediary enables secure rights relocation without compromising access control, resolving the contradiction between security and portability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Ease of operation

If digital multimedia rights are transferred between devices, then accessibility is improved, but system complexity is worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveaccessibilityVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements self-service functionality where the user initiates the rights transfer process through simple user actions (such as selecting a portable device), while the system automatically handles the complex transfer operations. The user profile server and rights transfer server automatically validate requests, update databases, and coordinate transfers without requiring manual intervention for complex configuration, thereby improving accessibility while managing system complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates a universal rights transfer system that can operate across multiple devices, locations, and service providers. The user profile server and rights transfer server provide multi-functional capabilities including transfer initiation, validation, execution, and cancellation across different platforms. This universality simplifies the user experience while distributing system complexity across a standardized architecture.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Ease of operation

If automatic rights transfer is implemented, then user convenience is improved, but control and authorization are worsened

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser convenienceVSAvoidcontrol
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSExtent of automation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements preliminary action by having the system prepare and validate transfer requests before execution. The user profile server pre-conditions the transfer by verifying user authorization, checking rights availability, and preparing transfer parameters. This preliminary validation ensures that automatic transfers occur only when appropriate conditions are met, maintaining user control while enabling convenience through automated execution of pre-approved transfers.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms where the system continuously monitors transfer status, user location, and rights information. The system provides feedback to the user through status updates and can cancel transfers based on feedback conditions (such as user location changes or rights expiration). This feedback loop enables automatic transfer functionality while maintaining user control through real-time monitoring and conditional cancellation capabilities.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS11580198B2System and method for providing multimedia digital rights transfer
Publication Date: 2023.02.14 AT&T INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY I L P
  • US11580198B2 patent drawing
  • US11580198B2 patent drawing
  • US11580198B2 patent drawing

AI summary

A method for transferring digital multimedia rights, the method including but not limited to requesting permission from the destination end user to transfer the digital multimedia rights to the destination end user device; and if the permission is received from the destination end user, canceling the source set of digital multimedia rights associated with the source end user and transferring the source set of digital multimedia rights associated with the source end user to the destination end user device. A system and computer program product are disclosed for performing the method.