Abstract: Usage rights for a digital work are established prior to creation of the corresponding content. The rights can be associated with the content after the content is created. A content creation, such as a video recorder or a still camera, device can store labels of the rights and can associate usage rights with content in real time as the content is created.

Abstract: A system and method for distribution of digital works in a tree-like structure of devices. A hierarchical right may include a first usage right governing a use for the digital work and a first delegation right governing distribution of the digital work to child nodes of the tree-like structure. A second usage right and/or a second delegation right may be generated based on the hierarchical right, the second usage right governing a use for the digital work and the second delegation right governing distribution of the digital work to child nodes of a first child node of the tree-like structure. The second usage right and/or the second delegation right may be assigned to a version of the digital work, and the second usage right and/or the second delegation right and the version of the digital work may be forwarded to the first child node.

Abstract: A method for creating a digital work having content and usage rights related to the content, the digital work being adapted to be used within a system having repositories for controlling use of content, the method including issuing a license to a consumer, the license permitting the consumer to access the content of the digital work to be created in the future. The issuing step further includes determining the usage rights that can be included in the license, the usage rights specifying a type of use of the content that is enforceable by a repository; electronically generating a license based on the usage rights; and creating the digital work as the content is being created or after the content is created, wherein the step of creating the digital work includes securing the content before the digital work is distributed to the consumer.

Abstract: A system for managing use of digital content within a trusted community. An access list defines the trusted community. License requests for use of content made from outside the trusted community are handled in accordance with a license request policy process.

Abstract: A system and method for creating a rights expression for association with an item for use in a system for controlling use of the item in accordance with the rights expression, including specifying rights expression information indicating a manner of use of an item, the rights expression information including at least one element, the element having a variable and corresponding value for the variable; and performing an encoding process, including determining an identifier associated with a template corresponding to the rights expression information, extracting from the rights expression information the value for the variable corresponding to the element, and encoding a license adapted to be enforced on a device based on the variable and the identifier, the license including an identification of the template and the value for the variable.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product for exercising rights based on determining trust in an issuance of a rights expression, including issuing rights expressions by a chain of servers, forming a chain of rights expressions issued from server to server and finally from the last server to a client, such that each of the rights expressions except the last includes a specification of rights for the next server to issue the rights in the next rights expression; determining whether or not each of the servers has a right to issue the respective rights expression; exercising by the client the rights expressed in the last rights expression as being trusted, if it is determined that each of the servers had a right to issue the respective rights expression; and not exercising by the client the rights expressed in the last rights expression as not being trusted, if it is determined that at least one of the servers did not have the right to issue the respective rights expression.

Abstract: The publishing system and method automates at least some portion of a publishing process. The system publishes content using metadata, rights templates and/or specifications, publishing profiles and business rules.

Abstract: A system and method for processing a rights expression for association with an item for use in a system for controlling use of the item in accordance with the rights expression. A rights expression is specified in a conventional manner in an original format. An intermediate format of the rights expression is generated based on at least one of syntax information and semantics information associated with the original format. The rights expression specifies a manner of use of said item for enforcement on a device. The intermediate format can be converted to a device specific format or a simplified format for resource constrained devices to permit rights enforcement on various devices.

Abstract: The publishing system and method automates at least some portion of a publishing process. The system publishes content using metadata, rights templates and/or specifications, publishing profiles and business rules.

Abstract: A system and method for managing use of items having usage rights associated therewith. The system includes an activation device adapted to issue a software package having a public and private key pair, the public key being associated with a user, a license device adapted to issue a license, a usage device adapted to receive the software package, receive the license and allow the user to access the item in accordance with the license, and a subscription managing device adapted to maintain a subscription list including the public key associated with the user. License's is issued by the license device upon verifying presence of the public key in the subscription list corresponding to requested content.

Abstract: Legality expressions are systematically pre-processed, organized, and stored to achieve faster real-time response, improved predictability, and increased reliability for queries against a large volume of legality expressions. Exponential improvements in both the time to locate the set of legality expressions matching specified search criteria and the processing costs of evaluating the request against the matching legality expressions are achieved using the disclosed systems, devices, and methods. The systems, devices, and methods are unique to the optimization of legality expression processing, but they can also enable the use of other optimization techniques for processing large amounts of data.

Abstract: A rights management system, method and device for managing use of items having usage rights associated therewith by enforcement of the usage rights with repositories, including a client device adapted to request an item and receive the item and a usage right associated with the item and specifying a permitted manner of use of the item; and a server device adapted to send the item and the associated usage right to the client device in response to the request. The client device includes means for establishing a communication between the client device and a third party entity associated with the rights management system based on a received item and associated usage right.

Abstract: A method, system and computer program product for transferring a digital work, including receiving by a first device a first digital work including digital content which is associated with usage rights and transfer permission information; sending to a server a request to transfer the digital content to a second device, the request indicating an identification of the second device; receiving from the server permission to transfer the digital content, the permission being generated based on the identification indicated by the request and the permission indicating new usage rights associated with the digital content; and transferring the digital content associated with the new usage rights to the second device.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for facilitating transfer of usage rights for digital content. The system comprises digital content, a usage rights module containing usage rights information associated with the content for a user, a transfer permission module containing transfer permission information for the content, a current user identification module containing identity information indicating the identity of the user, and means for manipulating the current user identification module to change the identity information. The content can be transferred form one user to another and the current user identification module can be manipulated to reflect the current user and to permit the current user to have usage rights in the document.

Abstract: A system, method and computer program product for a digital content player having a DRM agent to perform rights management operations on a digital content package, including loading rights management instructions to be executed by the digital content player, the rights management instructions being associated with the digital content package, executing the rights management instructions on the digital content player, and loading supporting licenses associated with the digital content package for processing by the DRM agent. The DRM agent deciding whether to permit the rights management operations requested by the rights management instructions. Further exemplary embodiments include systems, methods and computer program products for associating usage rights with digital content packages, managing of digital rights tokens, managing of digital content packages having predetermined broadcast dates, preserving of usage rights when content is transferred between DRM environments, and distributing content packages.

Abstract: A self-contained device for protecting content, the content having usage rights associated therewith, includes a usage rights portion having usage rights that control the use of the content; a rights management module that authorizes a request to access to the content based on the usage rights; a rights assignment module that generates and updates the usage rights based on the content access; and an interface module that allows accessing of the content.

Abstract: A method, system and device for transferring usage rights associated with digital works, including generating, by a first party, first usage rights and hierarchical rights for a digital work, the first usage rights defining a use for the digital works, the first hierarchical rights specifying rights to derive usage rights or other hierarchical rights; presenting the first usage rights and hierarchical rights to a second party; receiving a selection from the second party indicating desired rights of the first usage rights and hierarchical rights; and granting the desired rights of the first usage rights and hierarchical rights to the second party.

Abstract: A method and system for managing the state of a protected resource in a system for granting access to a protected resource in accordance with usage rights. The usage rights include at least one state variable indicating a status of an associated protected resource. A message related to the state variable is transmitted from a resource control device to an interface framework. The resource control device is coupled to the resource to control use of the resource by enforcing the usage right. A state controller operative to track the value of the state variable is loaded into the framework and instructed to manipulate the value of the state variable in accordance with said message. For example, the message can be a query of the current value of the state variable.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for specifying and editing rights associated with a content includes a general model that comprehends rights specification at different levels of the content life cycle. The rights specification includes content association, and the protection of the content is a byproduct of the content and rights association. The general model includes a rights component, a conditions component, a rights offer component, and a rights label component. The rights offers specify the relationship between rights and conditions. The rights labels are collections of the offers.

Abstract: An enforceable property right and a system for controlling the manner of use of an item in accordance with usage rights. The enforceable property right includes an item ticket having a security mechanism incorporated therein and specifying an item for which the item ticket can be redeemed and a license associated with the item ticket. The license includes usage rights specifying a manner of use for redeeming the item ticket and a mechanism for unlocking said security mechanism.