Blockchain-based shadow images to facilitate copyright protection of digital content

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10592639-B2
Application number	US-201615256964-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 6, 2016
Priority date	Sep 6, 2016
Publication date	Mar 17, 2020
Grant date	Mar 17, 2020

Abstract

A client platform supports digital rights management. The client platform comprises a digital rights management (DRM) engine which, when executed, enables the client platform to monitor download operations performed by the client platform and to obtain a shadow image for a digital content item from a DRM blockchain, in response to an operation to download the digital content item from a remote source. The shadow image comprises a hash of the digital content item and copyright policy settings to indicate security constraints for the digital content item. The client platform may automatically determine whether the copyright policy settings for the digital content item allow modification of the digital content item. A user may be allowed to create a modified version of the digital content item only if the copyright policy settings allow modification of the digital content item. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A client platform to support digital rights management, the client platform comprising:
a processor;
at least one machine-accessible storage medium responsive to the processor; and
a digital rights management (DRM) engine in the machine-accessible storage medium, wherein the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, enables the client platform to:
monitor download operations performed by the client platform;
in response to an operation to download a digital content item from a remote source, obtain a shadow image for the digital content item from a DRM blockchain, wherein the shadow image comprises (a) a hash of the digital content item and (b) copyright policy settings to indicate security constraints for the digital content item;
after obtaining the shadow image for the digital content item, automatically determine whether the copyright policy settings for the digital content item allow modification of the digital content item; and
enable a user of the client platform to create a modified version of the digital content item only if the copyright policy settings allow modification of the digital content item.

2. A client platform according to claim 1 , wherein the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to:
after the user creates the modified version of the digital content item, create a new shadow image for the modified version of the digital content item, wherein the new shadow image comprises a hash of the modified version of the digital content item;
generate a blockchain transaction for the DRM blockchain, wherein the blockchain transaction includes the new shadow image; and
in response to detecting an upload operation to upload the modified version of the digital content item from the client platform to a remote destination, automatically transmit the blockchain transaction to at least one node associated with the DRM blockchain, to enable the new shadow image be included in a new block for the DRM blockchain by a digital rights miner.

3. A client platform according to claim 2 , wherein the new shadow image further comprises:
change history data describing changes in the modified version of the digital content item, relative to a previous version of the digital content item;
a timestamp to indicate when the modified version of the digital content item was last modified; and
an author identifier to identify the user who created the modified version of the digital content item.

4. A client platform according to claim 2 , wherein the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to automatically add a secret watermark to the modified version of the digital content item, the secret watermark being suitable to serve as evidence of authorship for the modified version of the digital content item.

5. A client platform according to claim 4 , wherein:
the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to prompt the user to enter a secret phrase in response to detecting an upload request; and
the secret watermark is based at least in part on the secret phrase.

6. A client platform according to claim 1 , wherein:
the digital content item comprises content from a first author and content from a second author; and
the digital content item comprises a first secret watermark based on authentication information provided by the first author and a second secret watermark based on authentication information provided by the second author.

7. A client platform according to claim 1 , wherein the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to automatically add a perceptible watermark to the digital content item in response to download of the digital content item from the remote source.

8. An apparatus to support digital rights management, the apparatus comprising:
at least one non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium; and
a digital rights management (DRM) engine in the machine-accessible storage medium, wherein the DRM engine, when executed by a processor of a client platform, enables the client platform to:
monitor download operations performed by the client platform;
in response to an operation to download a digital content item from a remote source, obtain a shadow image for the digital content item from a DRM blockchain, wherein the shadow image comprises (a) a hash of the digital content item and (b) copyright policy settings to indicate security constraints for the digital content item;
after obtaining the shadow image for the digital content item, automatically determine whether the copyright policy settings for the digital content item allow modification of the digital content item; and
enable a user of the client platform to create a modified version of the digital content item only if the copyright policy settings allow modification of the digital content item.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to:
after the user creates the modified version of the digital content item, create a new shadow image for the modified version of the digital content item, wherein the new shadow image comprises a hash of the modified version of the digital content item;
generate a blockchain transaction for the DRM blockchain, wherein the blockchain transaction includes the new shadow image; and
in response to detecting an upload operation to upload the modified version of the digital content item from the client platform to a remote destination, automatically transmit the blockchain transaction to at least one node associated with the DRM blockchain, to enable the new shadow image be included in a new block for the DRM blockchain by a digital rights miner.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the new shadow image further comprises:
change history data describing changes in the modified version of the digital content item, relative to a previous version of the digital content item;
a timestamp to indicate when the modified version of the digital content item was last modified; and
an author identifier to identify the user who created the modified version of the digital content item.

11. An apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to automatically add a secret watermark to the modified version of the digital content item, the secret watermark being suitable to serve as evidence of authorship for the modified version of the digital content item.

12. An apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein:
the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to prompt the user to enter a secret phrase in response to detecting an upload request; and
the secret watermark is based at least in part on the secret phrase.

13. An apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein:
the digital content item comprises content from a first author and content from a second author; and
the digital content item comprises a first secret watermark based on authentication information provided by the first author and a second secret watermark based on authentication information provided by the second author.

14. An apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the DRM engine, when executed by the processor, further enables the client platform to automatically add a perceptible watermark to the digital content item in response to download of the digital content item from the remote source.

15. A method to support digital rights management, the method comprisi

Assignees

• Intel Corp

Inventors

• Gaidar Tamara
• Birk Eran
• Levy Nava
• Anderson Glen J
• Smith Ned M

Classifications

• G06F21/64 Primary

  Protecting data integrity, e.g. using checksums, certificates or signatures · CPC title

• G06F21/16 Primary

  Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking · CPC title

• G06F21/10 Primary

  Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material (protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16) {; Digital rights management [DRM]} · CPC title

• G06F2221/0733

  Physics · mapped topic

• G06F21/1063

  Personalisation · CPC title