JP2007243402A - Contents storage reproducing apparatus and method, contents storage apparatus, and contents reproducing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a contents storage reproducing apparatus and method, a contents storing apparatus, and a contents reproducing apparatus capable of preventing unauthorized copying and whereby a user can freely implement copying within the range of personal use. <P>SOLUTION: The contents storage reproducing apparatus includes a reception section 2 for externally receiving a stream that contains contents; a reproduction section 3 for reproducing the received contents; a storage section 4 for storing the received contents; an authentication section 6 for storing, in advance, prescribed authentication information and comparing and collating the information with authentication information from another apparatus; and a communication section 5 conducting communication with the another apparatus, and the authentication section 6 compares and collates the authentication information stored, in advance, with the authentication information from the another apparatus at the connection with the another apparatus using the communication section so as to transmit/receive the contents by using the communication section, when the collation result indicates agreement. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a content storage / reproduction apparatus and method, a content storage apparatus, and a content reproduction apparatus that enable copying of content within a personal use range.

  Content that has copyrights is restricted in its use. A simple solution for restricting usage is to prohibit copying of content, but there is also an idea of allowing copying within the scope of personal use. For example, in digital broadcasting, the copy range is limited in the form of copy once. Conventionally, as a copy-once implementation example, there is one that first encrypts content when storing it to prevent unauthorized copying, and then deletes the content once copied to another device (for example, patents) Reference 1).

  In this example, by encrypting the content using a device-specific key when storing, even if the stored content is copied elsewhere, it cannot be reproduced as it is because there is no decryption key. This prevents the spread of copies. If necessary, when copying the content to another device, the decryption key for decryption is transferred together with the content encrypted by the own device, and the decrypted content is decrypted by the other device. The encrypted content can be played back with the encryption, and the encrypted content in the device is deleted when the transfer is completed normally. As a result, the content is not copied but moved (moved) from its own device to another device, and can be moved while preventing the content from being copied.

  However, in this example, when the encryption content is transferred, the decryption key is sent together with the encryption content. Therefore, when the transfer data is stolen by a third party, However, there is concern that decryption content can be decrypted and played. Alternatively, a plurality of copies can be made by intentionally transferring the encryption content and the decryption key to a plurality of devices at the same time. Furthermore, it is also possible to create an unauthorized copy by a method such as canceling deletion of the encryption content of the own device, assuming that the transfer has failed after completion of the transfer to another device.

In addition, rather than a copy-once method that is extremely restrictive with respect to duplication, it is also a way of thinking from the user's point of view that it is possible to make multiple copies within the range of personal use.
JP 2005-63068 A

  Since conventional content storage / playback devices send encryption content and a decryption key together, even if the data being transferred is exploited, the encryption content can be normally decrypted, and the content is illegally copied. There was a problem that could be made. In addition, there is also a problem in that it can be used only within the range of personal use but limited to copy once.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems. A content storage and reproduction apparatus and method, a content storage apparatus, and a content reproduction that can prevent unauthorized copying and can be freely copied within the range of personal use. An object is to provide an apparatus.

  The content storage / playback apparatus according to the present invention includes a receiving means for receiving a stream including content from the outside, a playback means for playing back the content received by the receiving means, a storage means for storing the received content, and a predetermined authentication. An authentication unit that holds information in advance and performs comparison and verification with authentication information from another device; and a communication unit that communicates with the other device, wherein the authentication unit is connected to another device using the communication unit. The authentication information from another device and the authentication information held in advance are compared and collated at the time of connection, and the contents can be transmitted and received using the communication means when the collation results match. .

  In addition, a content storage / playback device according to another invention stores authentication information that holds predetermined authentication information and performs verification with authentication information from another device, and content encrypted by communicating with the other device. A communication means for receiving; storage means for storing the encrypted content; decryption means for decrypting the encrypted content; and playback means for playing back the decrypted content, The authentication unit compares and collates authentication information from another device with authentication information held in advance when connecting to another device using the communication unit, and when the matching result matches, the communication unit It is possible to receive the used content.

  The content storage / playback method according to the present invention includes a step of connecting to another device using communication means, a step of comparing and verifying authentication information from the other device and authentication information held in advance, and authentication. And a step of enabling transmission / reception of content using the communication means when the information collation results in a match.

  Further, the content storage device according to the present invention includes an authentication unit that holds predetermined authentication information and collates with authentication information from another device, and a communication unit that communicates with the other device to send and receive encryption content. An encryption / decryption means for encrypting / decrypting the content, and a storage means for storing the encrypted content, wherein the authentication means is connected to another device using the communication means. In some cases, authentication information from another device and authentication information held in advance are compared and collated, and when the collation results match, content can be transmitted and received using the communication means.

  Furthermore, the content reproduction apparatus according to the present invention receives predetermined content that has been stored in the authentication unit for verifying the authentication information from another device and the encrypted content by communicating with the other device. A communication means; a decryption means for decrypting the encrypted content; and a reproduction means for playing back the decrypted content. The authentication means is connected to another device using the communication means. At the time of connection, authentication information from another device and authentication information held in advance are compared and collated, and when the collation result is matched, content can be received using the communication means.

  According to the present invention, unauthorized copying can be prevented and copying can be freely performed within the range of personal use.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the content storage / playback apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. A content storage / playback apparatus 1a shown in FIG. 1 includes a reception unit 2 that extracts content from a stream transmitted by broadcasting or communication using an appropriate communication protocol, a playback unit 3 that plays back content, and content storage. And a communication unit 5 that communicates with another content storage / playback device 1b and transmits / receives content based on verification of authentication information held in an authentication unit 6 described later. And an authentication unit 6 that holds authentication information for identifying the owner or user of the device and enables transmission / reception of content based on verification with authentication information from another content storage / playback device 1b. .

  Next, the operation will be described. First, the content storage / playback apparatus 1a receives a stream including content using broadcast, communication, or the like. The receiving unit 2 that receives the stream extracts the content from the transmission stream by performing digital modulation / demodulation and error correction operations for broadcasting in the case of broadcasting, and performing processing according to the communication protocol in the case of communication. Can do. Here, examples of the content include an MPEG-2 transport stream (TS). The content extracted is played back by the playback unit 3 having the function of a decoder or playback player, and the user can view the content in the received stream.

  On the other hand, the content taken out by the receiving unit 2 is simultaneously transferred to the storage unit 4 if necessary, and the content is stored in the storage unit 4. The accumulated content is read from the accumulation unit 4 according to a user instruction and reproduced by the reproduction unit 3. In this way, the user can view the accumulated content.

  The authentication unit 6 holds authentication information as information on the administrator of the content storage / playback apparatus 1a in advance. The authentication information may be a random number or any information that can distinguish the administrator. The authentication information may be set by a user input or read by a reading device or the like. In any case, the authentication information of devices owned by different managers should not be the same.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart when the user copies content between the two content storage / playback apparatuses 1a and 1b. When copying the content stored by the user to another device, the content storage / playback device 1a first connects to the other content storage / playback device 1b using the communication unit 5 (ST1). At this time, the communication unit 5 compares the authentication information held by the authentication unit 6 with the authentication information held by the partner content storage / playback device 1b and collates them (ST2). Enable (ST3). The user can browse the content on a different device by copying the desired content from or to another device (ST4).

  In this way, content can be copied only between devices that have the same authentication information, so content copying to third parties with different authentication information is suppressed, and content can be freely copied within the scope of individuals. It becomes possible to do.

  As described above, since the content can be copied only between devices having the same authentication information, the content can be freely copied only within an individual range, and the content can be browsed even on different devices.

  By using personal information such as the owner's name and date of birth as the authentication information, the administrator can be easily identified and the probability of accidental coincidence of the authentication information can be kept low. Further, by using the owner's fingerprint or other biometric information as authentication information, the administrator can be easily identified and the probability of accidental matching of the authentication information can be reduced. In order to cause the device to read the biometric information as the recognition information, a reader or the like is additionally provided and the information is transferred to the authentication unit 6 in the device.

  As described above, since personal information such as the owner's name, date of birth, and biometric information is used as authentication information, the administrator can be easily identified, and personal copying can be restricted.

  In addition, by defining a group to which a plurality of owners belong and using the group information as authentication information, content can be transmitted and received between devices owned by a family, for example. Further, at that time, it is possible to restrict the transmission / reception of content by an unauthorized means by giving an upper limit to the number of owner information that can be registered in the group.

  When it is difficult for the user to input the authentication information, for example, each device uses a random value as the authentication information, so that it is not possible to copy with other devices, and the content can be protected. However, since it becomes impossible for the administrator to copy content between the same two devices, a method for matching the authentication information in this case will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart for making the authentication information of a content storage / playback device a user have the same authentication information as other content storage / playback devices. For example, if you want to share a content with a newly purchased content storage / playback device that is the same as the owner of the content storage / playback device that has already been purchased and used, you must first replace the newly purchased content storage / playback device with the existing content storage / playback device. Connect to the playback device (ST11). At this time, the authentication information held by the authentication unit 6 of the existing content storage / playback apparatus is obtained via the communication unit 5 (ST12). The obtained authentication information is overwritten on the authentication information held by the authentication unit 6 in the own content storage / playback apparatus (ST13).

  This makes it possible to unify authentication information of devices owned by individuals. As described above, copying between devices having the same authentication information is possible, and content can be copied between personally owned devices.

  Even if a random value is not used as authentication information, personal information can be easily copied between apparatuses by this method.

  As described above, since the authentication information can be made the same between apparatuses, it is possible to determine a personally owned apparatus and to copy within the range of an individual.

  Considering that the authentication information is copied by unauthorized means, the number of times the authentication information is overwritten is counted, and the count information is handled in the authentication information or as supplementary information of the authentication information. If the value is much larger than the value of the number of devices to be used, it can be recognized that an illegal copy is made, and the authentication information can be prevented from being overwritten.

  In this way, unauthorized copying can be prevented, and use of content other than personal use can be prevented.

  As described above, since the authentication information can be made the same between apparatuses, it is possible to determine a personally owned apparatus and to copy within the range of an individual.

  If the authentication information is constantly rewritten, the contents can be copied from various devices by temporarily setting the same value as the authentication information of various devices. In order to avoid this, when the authentication information is rewritten, the contents accumulated up to that point cannot be used. As a method for making the content unusable, there are methods such as content deletion, directory information deletion, or initialization of the device itself.

  If the authentication information is rewritten in this way, the stored content cannot be used, so that it is possible to suppress acts that unnecessarily illegally use the authentication information of another person's device.

  As described above, since all the stored contents cannot be used when the authentication information is changed, it is possible to prevent an attempt to forcibly copy another person's contents.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment described above, only the protection of content between devices is considered. However, in the second embodiment, an example in which the content can be protected inside the device is shown.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the content storage / playback apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The content storage / playback apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4 has the same configuration as the content storage / playback apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. Has been added.

  The encryption / decryption unit 7 encrypts the content from the receiving unit 2 and passes it to the storage unit 4, and also decrypts the encrypted content from the storage unit 4 and passes it to the playback unit 3. Has been made.

  Next, the operation will be described. Since the basic operation of each part is the same as in the first embodiment, the overall flow will be described. First, the content storage / playback apparatus 1 receives a stream including content by the reception unit 2 and plays back the content by the playback unit 3. On the other hand, if necessary, the content is encrypted by the encryption / decryption unit 7 and stored in the storage unit 4. The stored encryption content is read from the storage unit 4 as necessary, decrypted by the encryption / decryption unit 7, passed to the playback unit 3, and played back.

  FIG. 5 is an operation flowchart of reception, storage, and reproduction in the second embodiment. First, reproduction of the received stream will be described. The content storage / playback apparatus 1 receives a stream including content using the broadcast, communication, or the like at the receiving unit 2 (ST101). The receiving unit 2 performs transmission protocol processing, extracts only the content from the received stream, and transfers it to the reproducing unit 3. The playback unit 3 plays back the content (ST102).

  Next, accumulation of received streams will be described. Similarly to the above, the receiving unit 2 receives the stream (ST111). The receiving unit 2 transfers the content in the stream to the encryption / decryption unit 7. The encryption / decryption unit 7 encrypts the content with the device-specific encryption key (ST112). The encrypted content is stored in the storage unit 4 (ST113).

  Furthermore, the reproduction of the accumulated content will be described. The content stored in the storage unit 4 is read and transferred to the encryption / decryption unit 7 (ST121). The encryption / decryption unit 7 decrypts the encrypted content with the device-specific decryption key and transfers it to the playback unit 3 (ST122). The playback unit 3 plays back the content (ST123).

  In this way, by encrypting the content using the device-specific encryption key, even if the content stored in the storage unit 4 is taken out to the outside, the content encrypted by other devices Cannot be played. Thereby, the content can be protected.

  As described above, since the content is encrypted with the device-specific encryption key, it is possible to prevent the content from being played back on another device and to protect the content.

  When a recording medium such as a hard disk is used for many years, a part of the accumulated data may not be read normally. Therefore, as a backup unit, the encrypted content stored in the storage unit 4 can be copied to another storage medium. In this way, if the storage unit 4 is broken, the substitute content is attached to the storage unit 4 and the previously backed up encrypted content is copied to the new storage unit 4 so that the content is the same as before. Can be watched.

  Even if the content stored in the storage unit 4 is copied to another storage medium, the content is encrypted, so that it cannot be viewed except by the present apparatus, and the content is not lost due to copying.

  As described above, since the stored encrypted content can be freely copied, the content can be backed up while suppressing an illegal outflow of the content.

  As described above, when the backup (copy) of the encrypted content is permitted, the decryption key for decrypting the encryption must not be lost. Therefore, in the present invention, the key for decryption is concealed inside the apparatus so that it cannot be seen from the outside. Further, the encryption key is changed as a simple means for making the content unusable when the authentication information is rewritten.

  As a result, the content encrypted with the previous encryption key cannot be reproduced. For example, the backed-up content can be reproduced indefinitely by backing up the content already stored, and then returning the backed-up content after changing the authentication information and receiving the content from another device. When the authentication information is changed, it is necessary to change the encryption key so that past contents including backup cannot be reproduced.

  As described above, the encryption key is concealed and the encryption key is changed when the authentication information is changed, so that the distribution of the encryption key can be prevented and the acquisition of content due to an unauthorized change of authentication information can also be prevented. it can.

  Next, a case where content is transferred from another content storage / playback apparatus or received is described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the content transmission / reception operation between such devices. First, when content is transferred (transmitted) to another device, it is connected to the other device via the communication unit 5 (ST131). Then, an encryption key is received from the apparatus (ST132). If the key for encryption and the key for decryption are different, the key for encryption is received. When the encryption key and the decryption key are the same, the key is transmitted by a secure method (for example, encrypted) so that the key is not seen during communication. Thereafter, the designated content is read out from the storage unit 4 (ST133), and the encryption / decryption unit 7 once decrypts the content using the device-specific key (ST134). Further, the encryption / decryption unit 7 performs content encryption using the encryption key of the other apparatus received earlier (ST135). Communication unit 5 transmits the encrypted content to the partner device (ST136).

  On the other hand, when receiving content, first, it connects with another apparatus via the communication part 5 (ST141). Then, a device-specific encryption key is transmitted to the partner device via communication unit 5 (ST142). Thereafter, the encrypted content is received from the partner terminal (ST143). The encrypted content passes through the encryption / decryption unit 7 via the communication unit 5 and is accumulated in the accumulation unit 4 (ST144). Note that the content stored here is encrypted with the device-specific encryption key, so the same encryption as other content received and stored by the device itself is made, and the same method as other content can be used at any time. It is reproducible.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing in detail the inside of the encryption / decryption unit 7. In FIG. 7, the encryption / decryption unit 7 includes an encryption unit 11 that performs encryption and a decryption unit 12 that performs decryption. The usage method of the encryption unit 11 and the decryption unit 12 in the encryption / decryption unit 7 differs depending on the application.

  First, when content is stored in the storage unit 4 from the received stream, only the encryption unit 11 is used for encryption with a key unique to the own apparatus and transferred to the storage unit 4. Next, when reproducing the stored content, only the decryption unit 12 is used, the decryption content read from the storage unit 4 is decrypted using a device-specific key, and transferred to the playback unit 3. .

  When transferring the content to another device, both the encryption unit 11 and the decryption unit 12 are used, the encrypted content is read from the storage unit 4 and the decryption unit 12 uses the key of the own device. After the encryption, the encryption unit 11 performs the encryption using the key of the other device, and then transfers it to the communication unit 5. On the other hand, in another apparatus, the transferred encryption content is passed to the storage unit 4 without passing through the encryption unit 11 or the decryption unit 12 in the encryption / decryption unit 7.

  As described above, even when content is transmitted / received to / from another device, since the content is encrypted, the content cannot be reproduced even if the data being transmitted is exploited. In particular, by changing the encryption and decryption keys, even if the encryption key is decrypted during transmission, the content encrypted with that key cannot be decrypted, so highly secure content. Can be transferred. In the conventional example, since the key for decryption is transmitted, there is a risk that the decryption content can be decrypted if it is stolen.

  As described above, when content is transferred to another device, the content is encrypted using the encryption key of the partner device, so the content can be decrypted even if the data being transmitted is stolen. Therefore, secure content can be transferred.

  In order to prevent unauthorized copying of content by an unauthorized user, information on the state of unencrypted content, that is, the content of the original content is not seen from the device of the present invention.

  Since the content passed to the storage unit 4 and the communication unit 5 is already encrypted content, it cannot be decrypted even if it is stolen and is safe. However, since the contents transferred between the receiving unit 2, the reproducing unit 3, and the encryption / decryption unit 7 are not encrypted, it is necessary to hide the information from the outside. As a method, for example, if these three parts are put in one LSI so that signal lines are not output to the outside, or if these three parts are pushed into a certain package and the package is opened, this part will be normal. By hiding the contents, by physically hiding the contents delivery path, it is possible to prevent unauthorized contents from being seen from the apparatus of the present invention, and to suppress the flooding of unauthorized copies.

  As described above, since the contents in the apparatus are prevented from being seen, unauthorized copying can be prevented.

  As described above, various methods are used to prevent unauthorized copying, but in the unlikely event that the method is broken, the communication unit 5 determines the number of times the content has been transferred to another device. Count every time, and when the transfer count exceeds a certain value, transfer is disabled. As a result, even when unauthorized copying is performed, the number of copies can be suppressed. Note that the count of the number of times may be, for example, a count number within a certain period of time, such as a time of 12 hours or less.

  As described above, since the number of times of content transfer is limited, inexhaustible illegal copying can be prevented even if illegal copying is performed.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
In the first and second embodiments described above, reception functions such as broadcasting and communication are provided. However, in the third embodiment, an example is shown in which only transferred content is reproduced without having this function. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the content storage / playback apparatus according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. In FIG. 8, the content storage / playback device 10 holds predetermined authentication information and communicates with the authentication unit 6 that performs verification with the authentication information from the other content storage / playback device 1 and the other content storage / playback device 1. The communication unit 5 that receives the encrypted content, the storage unit 4 that stores the encrypted content, the decryption unit 12 that decrypts the encrypted content, and plays the decrypted content. The authentication unit 6 includes a reproduction unit 3, and the authentication unit 6, when connected to another content storage / playback device 1 using the communication unit 5, includes authentication information from the other content storage / playback device 1 and authentication information held in advance. When the collation results match, it is possible to receive content using the communication unit 5. That is, the content storage / playback apparatus 1 is connected, and after the content is received, the content is played back. Since each part in the figure is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the description thereof is omitted, but the flow of content is in the direction of the communication part 5, the storage part 4, the decryption part 12, and the playback part 3. It can only go.

  Next, the operation will be described. Since the basic operation of each part is the same as in the first embodiment, the overall flow will be described. First, the content storage / playback apparatus 10 is connected to another content storage / playback apparatus 1 and has the content transferred when the authentication information held by the authentication unit 6 matches. The communication unit 5 enables communication with the content storage / playback device 1 and passes the encryption key of the decryption unit 12 to the content storage / playback device 1. In the content storage / playback device 1, the content is encrypted using the passed encryption key and transferred to the content storage / playback device 10. The encrypted content transferred by the communication unit 5 in the content storage / playback apparatus 10 is received and transferred to the storage unit 4. The encryption content is stored in the storage unit 4.

  Thereafter, when the user views the content, the encrypted content is read from the storage unit 4, the content is decrypted with the decryption key of the decryption unit, and the content is passed to the playback unit 3. By playing the content in the playback unit 3, the user can view the content.

  Here, since the content transfer (transmission) function is not provided as a function of the communication unit 5, the content storage / playback apparatus 10 is prevented from copying the content as the copy source. Moreover, since the situation where communication is possible is also limited, the content that can be transferred to this apparatus is also limited. For example, when the content storage / playback device 10 is used as a portable playback device, by limiting the connectable devices to the content storage / playback device owned by the individual, only viewing the content owned by the individual, Since the content cannot be passed to another person, it is possible to prevent the illegal content from being lost.

  As described above, since only reception is possible in a limited situation, browsing of an unspecified number of contents can be suppressed, and the loss of contents to other devices can also be suppressed.

  In the case of a portable device, since the device can be taken anywhere, the risk of content leakage increases. In addition, since there is a high possibility that the device is simple, for the purpose of content protection, the encryption content of the storage unit 4 is physically concealed so that it cannot be taken out from the outside. Since this device is dedicated for reception, there is no need for a function for sending content to other devices from the beginning, so there is no problem in use even if such a restriction is imposed.

  As described above, since the accumulated content cannot be taken out to the outside, it is possible to suppress the flooding of copies.

  In addition, for example, when a content distribution source wants to set a restriction condition regarding content reproduction such as a content reproducible period or the number of reproducible times, it sends the reproduction restriction information together with the content to the content storage / reproduction device. The content storage / playback apparatus holds the information for each content in the form of playback constraint information. This reproduction restriction information is transferred together with the content when the content is transferred. The content storage / playback apparatus performs playback while observing the conditions of the playback constraint information. As described above, since the reproduction restriction information is provided, it is possible to restrict the content reproduction conditions.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
In the fourth embodiment, an example is shown in which only a storage function is provided without a playback device. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the content storage apparatus according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention. In FIG. 9, the content storage device 20 holds predetermined authentication information and communicates with the authentication unit 6 that performs verification with the authentication information from the other content storage / playback device 1 and the other content storage / playback device 1 to The authentication unit 6 includes a communication unit 5 that transmits / receives the subscription content, an encryption / decryption unit 7 that encrypts / decrypts the content, and a storage unit 4 that stores the encrypted content. When connecting to another content storage / playback device 1 using the authentication information, the authentication information from the other content storage / playback device 1 is collated with the authentication information held in advance. Allows sending and receiving of used content. That is, the content storage device 20 is connected to the content storage / playback device 1 to transmit / receive content, and has only a content storage function. Each part in the figure is the same as in the second embodiment.

  Next, the operation will be described. The basic operation is that having only a function for transmitting / receiving content to / from another apparatus in the second embodiment. Therefore, since the operation of each part is the same as that of the second embodiment, it will be omitted and the overall flow will be described briefly.

  The content storage device 20 is connected to the content storage / playback device 1 and receives content. At this time, content can be received only when the authentication information held by the authentication unit 6 is the same. The content storage device 30 passes a content encryption key to the content storage / playback device 1 and receives the content encrypted using the key from the content storage / playback device 1. The encrypted content is received by the communication unit 5, passes through the encryption / decryption unit 7, and is stored in the storage unit 4.

  Conversely, when transferring content from the content storage device 30 to the content storage / playback device 1, similarly, content transfer can be performed only when the authentication information held by the authentication unit 6 is the same. The content storage / playback apparatus 1 is connected via the communication unit 5 to obtain an encryption key unique to the content storage / playback apparatus 1. Thereafter, the encrypted content read from the storage unit 4 is decrypted by the encryption / decryption unit 7 using a device-specific key, and further using the encryption key obtained from the content storage / playback device 1. Encrypted. Thereafter, the encrypted content is transferred to the content storage / playback apparatus 1 via the communication unit 5.

  Thus, since the content storage device 20 has only a function of storing content, it can serve as a server that can be accessed from a plurality of content storage / playback devices 1.

  As described above, since only the storage function is provided, a usage method as a content server capable of copyright protection can be realized at low cost.

Embodiment 5 FIG.
In the fifth embodiment, an example in which only a reproduction function is provided without an accumulation function is shown. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a content reproduction apparatus according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention. In FIG. 10, the content reproduction device 30 is encrypted by holding the predetermined authentication information and communicating with the authentication unit 6 that collates with authentication information from another device and the other content storage / reproduction device 1. A communication unit 5 that receives the content; a decryption unit 12 that decrypts the encrypted content; and a playback unit 3 that plays back the decrypted content. The authentication unit 6 uses the communication unit 5 When connecting to another content storage / playback device 1, the authentication information from the other content storage / playback device 1 is collated with the authentication information held in advance, and the content using the communication unit 5 when the collation result matches Enables reception. That is, the content reproduction apparatus 30 has only a content reproduction function without having an accumulation function. Each part in the figure is the same as in the third embodiment.

  Next, the operation will be described. The basic operation is the apparatus in Embodiment 3 that does not have a storage function. Therefore, playback is performed as it is when the content is received. Since the operation of each part is the same as in the third embodiment, it will be omitted and the overall flow will be described briefly.

  Since the basic operation of each part is the same as in the first embodiment, the overall flow will be described. First, the content reproduction device 30 is connected to the content storage / reproduction device 1 or the content storage device 20 and has the content transferred when the authentication information held by the authentication unit 6 matches. The communication unit 5 communicates with the content storage / playback device 1 and passes the encryption key of the decryption unit 12 to the content storage / playback device 1. The content storage / playback apparatus 1 encrypts the content using the passed encryption key and transfers it to the content storage / playback apparatus 10. The encrypted content received by the communication unit 5 in the content reproduction device 30 is transferred to the decryption unit 12, and the decryption unit 12 decrypts the encrypted content using a device-specific key. Then, the content is transferred to the playback unit 3 and played back.

  In this way, the content reproduction device 30 performs reproduction as soon as content is received. Since it is difficult for the reception timing and the reproduction timing to completely coincide with each other, some buffers may be provided in each unit.

  Furthermore, the playback unit 3 may have a printing or display function such as a printer, a projector, or a display instead of a normal content playback function.

  As described above, since only the reproduction function is provided, a reproduction apparatus capable of protecting the copyright can be realized at low cost.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the content storage / reproduction apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart when a user copies content between two content storage / playback apparatuses 1a and 1b. It is a flowchart for making the authentication information of a certain content storage / playback apparatus the same authentication information as another content storage / playback apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the content storage / reproducing apparatus based on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is an operation | movement flowchart of reception, accumulation | storage, and reproduction | regeneration in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a flowchart of the operation | movement of transmission / reception of the content between apparatuses in the case of transferring a content from another content storage / reproducing apparatus, or having it be transferred. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing in detail the inside of the encryption / decryption unit 7. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the content storage / reproducing apparatus based on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the content storage apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the content reproduction apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 5 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  1a, 1b, 10 Content storage / playback device, 2 reception unit, 3 playback unit, 4 storage unit, 5 communication unit, 6 authentication unit, 7 encryption / decryption unit, 11 encryption unit, 12 decryption unit, 20 content Storage device, 30 content playback device.

Claims (18)

Receiving means for receiving a stream including content from the outside;
Playback means for playing back the content received by the receiving means;
Storage means for storing the received content;
Authentication means for holding predetermined authentication information in advance and performing comparison and verification with authentication information from other devices;
Communication means for communicating with other devices,
The authentication unit collates authentication information from another device with authentication information held in advance when connecting to another device using the communication unit, and when the matching result matches, the communication unit A content storage / playback device characterized in that it enables transmission and reception of used content. The content storage / playback apparatus according to claim 1,
The content storage / playback device, wherein the authentication means uses personal information including an owner's name, date of birth, or biometric information as authentication information. The content storage / playback apparatus according to claim 1,
The content storage / playback apparatus, wherein the authentication unit uses group information that can identify a group to which a plurality of owners belong as authentication information. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The content storage / playback device, wherein the authentication unit acquires authentication information from another device and overwrites it as authentication information in the own device when connecting to another device using the communication unit. The content storage / playback apparatus according to claim 4,
The authentication unit counts the number of times the authentication information is overwritten (and includes the count information in the authentication information) and prevents the authentication information from being overwritten when the count information exceeds a predetermined value. Playback device. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The content storage / playback apparatus, wherein the authentication unit prevents all content stored in the storage unit from being used when authentication information is rewritten. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
Encrypt the received content with the encryption key, store the encrypted content in the storage means, decrypt the encrypted content with the decryption key, and transfer the decrypted content to the playback means A content storage / playback apparatus, further comprising an encryption / decryption means for playback. The content storage / playback apparatus according to claim 7,
The content storage / playback apparatus, wherein the encrypted content stored in the storage means can be copied. The content storage / playback apparatus according to claim 7 or 8,
The encryption / decryption means conceals a device-specific key to be used so that it cannot be seen from the outside, and changes the content of the key every time authentication information is changed. Storage and playback device. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 7 to 9,
The communication means receives an encryption key from another apparatus at the time of content transfer to another apparatus, and uses the encryption / decryption means to encrypt the content encrypted using the encryption key received from the other apparatus. A content storage / playback apparatus characterized by transferring. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 7 to 10,
A content storage / reproduction apparatus characterized in that a content delivery path is physically hidden so that content delivered between the receiving unit, the encryption / decryption unit, and the reproduction unit is not seen from outside. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11,
The content storage / playback apparatus, wherein the communication means counts the number of times content is transferred to another device for each content, and prevents the transfer when one content transfer count exceeds a predetermined value. Authentication means for holding predetermined authentication information and performing verification with authentication information from another device;
Means for communicating with other devices to receive the encrypted content;
Accumulating means for accumulating the encrypted content;
A decryption means for decrypting the encrypted content;
Replaying means for replaying the decrypted content,
The authentication unit compares and collates authentication information from another device with previously held authentication information when connecting to another device using the communication unit, and when the matching result matches, the communication unit A content storage / playback device characterized in that it enables reception of content using the. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 13,
Content storage / playback apparatus, wherein content stored in said storage means is physically concealed so that it cannot be taken out from the outside. The content storage / playback apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 14,
The communication means transfers reproduction restriction information with restrictions on reproduction of the content together with the content when transferring the content,
The content storage / playback device, wherein the playback means plays back content according to the playback constraint information. Connecting to other devices using communication means;
Comparing and collating authentication information from another device with authentication information held in advance;
A content storing / reproducing method comprising: a step of enabling transmission / reception of content using the communication means when the verification information matches. Authentication means for holding predetermined authentication information and performing verification with authentication information from another device;
A communication means for communicating with other devices and sending / receiving encrypted content;
An encryption / decryption means for encrypting / decrypting the content;
Storing means for storing the encrypted content,
The authentication unit compares and collates authentication information from another device with previously held authentication information when connecting to another device using the communication unit, and when the matching result matches, the communication unit A content storage device characterized by enabling transmission / reception of content using the. Authentication means for holding predetermined authentication information and performing verification with authentication information from another device;
Means for communicating with other devices to receive the encrypted content;
A decryption means for decrypting the encrypted content;
Replaying means for replaying the decrypted content,
The authentication unit compares and collates authentication information from another device with previously held authentication information when connecting to another device using the communication unit, and when the matching result matches, the communication unit A content playback apparatus that enables reception of content using the.

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