Abstract: The present invention relates to an information providing system. More particularly, this invention relates to an information management apparatus capable of reliable management of distributed information and an information providing system employing the same information management apparatus. The information management apparatus comprises a main information reproducing means for reproducing main information recorded in a given recording medium; and a reproduction management means for managing the main information reproducing means for reproducing the main information. The present invention provides a receiving means provided with a means for recording distributed information and control information limiting the number of main information reproducing cycles on a recording medium, and a main information reproducing means provided with a reproduction disabling means for limiting the reproduction of main information.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and an apparatus that, when a copying is limited as “Copy One Generation”, prevent the copying from being made into infinite number of storage media without limitation, and thereby protect the profit of a copyright holder concerned.

Abstract: Encrypting/decrypting conversion method and apparatus capable of controlling dynamically cyclic shift independent of data to undergo encrypting/decrypting conversion includes two or more different fixed circulating shift processing means for shifting cyclically the data by a fixed bit number leftward or rightward, a cyclic shift processing selecting means for selecting fixed cyclic shift processing means. The selecting sequence determined by the cyclic shift processing means is determined on the basis of data for determining the shift number selecting sequence.

Abstract: A video signal input-output circuit and a recording-reproduction apparatus in which a digitally compressed video signal input in packet form can be recorded and reproduced efficiently and in stable fashion. In this apparatus, a clock reference is detected from a packet signal containing the clock reference and a digitally compressed video signal, a time stamp for a packet is generated using a clock signal in phase with the clock reference and added to the particular packet, and the packet signals with the time stamp added thereto are recorded closely to each other in a data storage element such as a magnetic recording medium. At playback, the packet interval is output by being restored to the original length on the basis of the time stamp added to the packet in store.

Abstract: A video signal input-output circuit and a recording-reproduction apparatus in which a digitally compressed video signal input in packet form can be recorded and reproduced efficiently and in stable fashion. In this apparatus, a clock reference is detected from a packet signal containing the clock reference and a digitally compressed video signal, a time stamp for a packet is generated using a clock signal in phase with the clock reference and added to the particular packet, and the packet signals with the time stamp added thereto are recorded closely to each other in a data storage element such as a magnetic recording medium. At playback, the packet interval is output by being restored to the original length on the basis of the time stamp added to the packet in store.

Abstract: A recording/reproducing apparatus is provided for effecting digital processing to convert an analog video signal into a digital signal without losing character data superimposed over a vertical blanking period of the analog video signal. The recording/reproducing apparatus for converting the analog video signal into the digital signal and recording/reproducing the converted digital signal has a detector which detects character data, which is superimposed over the vertical blanking period of the received analog video signal, at the recording time. A superimposer which encodes the detected character data and superimposes the encoded character data over a digital signal from which the character data was removed, whereby the digital signal with the superimposed character data is recorded on the recording media.

Abstract: A digital signal recording apparatus for recording in blocks on a recording medium an input digital signal in the form of a plurality of input packets. Each of the input packets has a predetermined number of bytes. A first time stamp has been added to each of the input packets in advance for indicating a time of transmission of the input packet. A time stamp generator generates a second time stamp having a different format than the first time stamp added to each of the input packets in advance. A time stamp adding circuit removes the first time stamp added to each of the input packets in advance and adds the second time stamp to each of the input packets. A recording signal processor generates a recording signal in blocks from the input digital signal with the second time stamp added to each of the input packets.

Abstract: According to a video information outputting apparatus, a video information receiving apparatus, a video information outputting method and a video information transmitting method, for receiving and outputting digital video information. The digital information is outputted in the same quality as it is, when it is certificated that an external apparatus operates according to a copy control information, while no information limited on copying thereof is outputted when it is not. It thereby prevents the information, which is outputted from the video information outputting apparatus to an external apparatus, from being used in other purposes than the original object thereof, thereby giving disadvantages onto the producer and/or copyright owner of the information.

Abstract: In a digital information recording/reproducing apparatus, information recorded on a hard disk with copy restriction thereof is protected from being copied onto other hard disks by means of a PC, etc., to be produced a large number of illegal copies, i.e., infringing a copyright.

Abstract: A digital information recording apparatus includes a recording circuit for recording information of a retention period included in the digital information and indicating a period for permitting the digital information to be held in the recording medium, starting with a time at which the digital information is recorded on the recording medium; and information of a playback permission period included in the digital information and indicating a period for permitting the digital information to be played back starting with a time at which the information is reproduced initially following recording of the digital information on the recording medium, permitting temporary recording or copying for the information permitted for “copy never” or “copy one generation.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is provided for receiving and/or reproducing a digital signal, capable of efficiently recording a compressed, packeted digital signal and inhibiting a copy thereof. An input packet signal is added with a time stamp indicating a relative time of an arrival of the packet, and the packet signals of digital information with the added time stamps are recorded at reduced intervals therebetween. In reproducing, a packet interval adjusting circuit restores the original packet intervals in accordance with the time stamps, and then a time stamp change circuit changes at least one bit of the time stamp and thereafter outputs the digital information.

Abstract: A digital signal processing apparatus including a time stamp generator generating a reference time having a same format as a first time stamp added to each packet of an inputted digital signal, a comparator comparing the first time stamp added to each packet of the inputted digital signal with the reference time, a time stamp converter converting the first time stamp added to each packet of the inputted digital signal into a second time stamp having a different format than the first time stamp, and an output circuit outputting an outputted digital signal in the form of a plurality of packets having the second time stamp converted by the time stamp converter added to each packet when the first time stamp of each packet of the inputted digital signal coincides with the reference time.

Abstract: A digital information recording apparatus, which solves a conventional problem that, when information of which copying is limited for a recording/reproducing apparatus provided with a plurality of recording circuits is to be copied on or moved to recording media over the authorized number of media.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a digital signal recording method and a digital signal recording apparatus, capable of readily producing a signal used to reproduce in a trick play mode from a digital compression video signal. The above-described object of the present invention may be achieved by such a digital video signal recording method for recording a first compression frame signal compressed without using a correlation between frames, and a digital compression video signal having preselected bytes of a packet format constituted by a second compression frame signal compressed with using the correlation between the frames, in which a third signal made of a packet containing the first compression frame signal is produced, and then is recorded in combination with the packet of the digital compression signal.

Abstract: A digital signal recording and reproducing method and apparatus using first, second, third, and fourth information as information to protect a copyright, the first and second information are added to the digital signal, the third information is inputted from the digital interface together with the digital signal, a value of the fourth information is decided from a combination of the first to third information, and the fourth information is recorded onto the recording medium. The first information is information to control a copy restriction of the digital signal, the second information is information to perform a control about whether the signal is protected against the illegal use or not, the third information is information to indicate whether the signal has been encrypted or not, and the fourth information is information to control the copy restriction of the digital signal recorded on the recording medium.

Abstract: A digital signal recording device or a digital signal recording and playback device which receives an inputted digital signal having a predetermined packet format and including a digital video signal and a digital audio signal. The device also receives an inputted analog video signal and an inputted analog audio signal, converts the analog video signal and the analog audio signal to a digital video signal and a digital audio signal, compresses the digital video signal and the digital audio signal, and multiplexes the compressed digital video signal and the compressed digital audio signal to produce a multiplexed digital signal having the predetermined packet format. The device outputs a selected one of the inputted digital signal and the multiplexed digital signal as a digital recording signal, and records the digital recording signal to produce a recorded digital signal.

Abstract: In transmission of stream data protected for copyright on a bus, transcription of stream data once recorded on a recording apparatus to a medium of another recording apparatus is realized. Authentication is carried out between a stream recording and playback apparatus and another recording apparatus to interchange a key for data scramble. By using this key, data is added with copy control information used when the data is recorded initially and thereafter the data is transmitted. After the data has been recorded on the recording apparatus, the data is deleted from an original recording medium. During transmission of the data, authentication from a different apparatus is rejected to prevent a plurality of copies from being made.

Abstract: A system and method for realizing a tamper-resistant system which can prevent software running on a personal computer from being analyzed or altered illegally in a static or dynamic manner by a potential transgressor. Two operating systems, an OS1 controllable by a user and an OS2 operable in background, are concurrently run on a personal computer. Player software is run on the OS2 to protect the player software against illegal analysis and alteration by the user. Further, a hardware module, a system startup, and a key management operation are implemented. Still further, OS1 cannot direct access OS2, whereas indirect access of OS2 by OS1 is allowed in a manner whereby OS2 refers to an OS2 reference region in a memory area managed by OS1.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a digital signal recording method and a digital signal recording apparatus, capable of readily producing a signal used to reproduce in a trick play mode from a digital compression video signal. The above-described object of the present invention may be achieved by such a digital video signal recording method for recording a first compression frame signal compressed without using a correlation between frames, and a digital compression video signal having preselected bytes of a packet format constituted by a second compression frame signal compressed with using the correlation between the frames, in which a third signal made of a packet containing the first compression frame signal is produced, and then is recorded in combination with the packet of the digital compression signal.

Abstract: The digital signal recording/reproducing apparatus inputs a digital signal having a control flag as to a temporary copy permission, and records the digital signal temporarily into a recording medium in accordance with conditions in the control flag, then reproducing the digital signal temporarily from the recording medium in accordance with the conditions in the control flag. The recording/reproducing of the temporary copy is permitted, depending on the following conditions: The recording medium's type, the reproducing point-in-time, the reproducing time-period, and the reproducing frequency. With this method employed, even in a program permitting no recording, the temporary recording/reproducing is permitted under a condition of being limited to the time-shift recording on the receiving side.