Abstract: Digital content contained on physical media rented to a customer who fails to return said media once the rental term has expired. Date information encoded onto the media or encoded within the content is used to determine that the rental period has expired. If the media containing the expired content is residing in a media player, the user is notified through a plurality of notification schemes. Customers of expired digital content can also be notified if the media player is connected to the internet even if the media containing the content is not currently residing in the media player. This invention solves several problems currently effecting content rental services and allows the rental services to conserve costs normally associated with notifying customers that their rental has expired.

Abstract: Write once media is used to store many different versions of metadata along with recorded video program. The metadata can be written many times over, for example once for each renter. The metadata can include rental information, or movie trailers, or other information.

Abstract: A customer can rent and later buy digital content that is encoded onto rewritable media where the customer had selected at least one piece of content to be encoded on the media. The user has the ability to use the previously selected content and later purchase the content without the need to interact with the content seller indicating the desire to purchase the content. Purchased content is transferred to customer's local storage device. The rewritable media can also contain other digital content from which the user can temporary access after which he can rent or purchase the content.

Abstract: The current invention addresses the problem of securely encrypting video content or any other content where a secret symmetrical key is used to decrypt the data by a hardware device such as a DVD player. The invention uses the same length of symmetrical key as used by current technology but the key is changed for every dataset encrypted. The symmetrical key is itself contained inside a packet attached to the first encryption data set where the packet is encrypted with a device's public key. The invention further adds to the security of the asymmetrical private key where the device itself only has part of the private key and the user has the other part of the private key.

Abstract: A housing and memory card, usable to store data, and where the operation connects directly to contacts on the memory devices that are housed within the card. The pinouts can be usb pinouts.

Abstract: A customer can rent digital content that is encoded onto rewritable media at the time of rental or purchase. The user has the ability to select the digital content, the media that the content is encoded onto, the method of delivery, and the period of the rental if applicable, and options for the cost for the purchase or rental. This system gives the customer control over the complete transaction from first contact with the system to acquisition of the content.

Abstract: Flash memory often cannot be written at speeds approaching those of rotating magnetic storage speeds. This embodiment permits normal NAND flash to be written much faster and to be read at speeds exceeding typical speeds and through put for normal hard disk storage and enables these speeds while removing incremental cost from the device packaging.