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WO2001001225A1 - Systeme, procede, et article fabrication permettant de generer automatiquement un droit d'utilisation personnalise - Google Patents

Systeme, procede, et article fabrication permettant de generer automatiquement un droit d'utilisation personnalise Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2001001225A1
WO2001001225A1 PCT/US2000/018049 US0018049W WO0101225A1 WO 2001001225 A1 WO2001001225 A1 WO 2001001225A1 US 0018049 W US0018049 W US 0018049W WO 0101225 A1 WO0101225 A1 WO 0101225A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
software
user
network
customer
license agreement
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US2000/018049
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Damian P. Evans
Pekka T. Huttunen
Ali Piyarali
Original Assignee
Accenture Llp
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Accenture Llp filed Critical Accenture Llp
Priority to AU57812/00A priority Critical patent/AU5781200A/en
Publication of WO2001001225A1 publication Critical patent/WO2001001225A1/fr

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
    • G06F21/00—Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
    • G06F21/10—Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material ; Digital rights management [DRM]
    • G06F21/105—Arrangements for software license management or administration, e.g. for managing licenses at corporate level
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
    • G06F21/00—Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
    • G06F21/10—Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material ; Digital rights management [DRM]
    • G06F21/106—Enforcing content protection by specific content processing
    • G06F21/1063—Personalisation

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to product dissemination, and particularly to providing an automatically tailored license agreement du ⁇ ng the distribution and sale of digital content products
  • Figure I illustrates- a traditional software dist ⁇ bution model
  • Software publishers 100 dist ⁇ bute a majo ⁇ ty of their products to a tier 1 dist ⁇ butor 102
  • the dist ⁇ butor 102 then distributes the products to tier 2 Resellers 104, including retail/direct response resellers 106 and value added resellers (VARs) 108
  • the tier 2 resellers 110 then sell directly to consumers 110
  • the retail/direct response resellers 106 also sell the products, unchanged, directly to the consumers 110
  • the VARs 108 typically repackage the products for added value Such repackagu ⁇ g.rr ⁇ a.y include bundling with other products or services. Examples of this include where software is bundled with a computer m a computer system purchase, or where user traimng or customer support is bundled with the software purchase
  • the software publishers may bypass the dist ⁇ butor 102 and sell direct to tier 2 resellers 104
  • the software publishers may also bypass the dist ⁇ butor 102 and the tier 2 resellers 104 and sell direct to consumers 110
  • software publisher 100 functions include Designing and developing software products, designing and developing product updates, enhancements and bug fixes, building and maintaining channel and customer relationships, producing and dist ⁇ butmg media and manuals, and creating product awareness and generating demand
  • Software dist ⁇ butor 102 functions typically include forecasting demand, orde ⁇ ng products from manufacturers, managing inventory, generating demand from resellers, fulfilling orders from resellers, managing reseller credit ⁇ sk, providing customer service to resellers, and reporting sales and returns to software publishers
  • Retail/direct response reseller 106 functions typically include: Forecasting demand: ordering products from distributors: managing inventory: generating demand from end users; selling products to end users; initiating and completing financial transactions; managing end user credit risk; providing value-added services to end users, such as configuration and installation; providing post-sales customer service; and reporting sales and returns to distributors.
  • Value added reseller (VAR) 108 functions typically include: Generating demand from end users; receiving and validating orders; ordering products from distributors; initiating and completing financial transactions; managing end user credit risk; providing value-added services to end users, such as customization, integration and training; and providing post-sales customer service.
  • a consumer 110 goes to a tier 2 reseller's 104 retail outlet, selects a product for purchase, and interacts with a sales clerk to purchase the product.
  • the consumer purchases the product by a variety of methods, e.g., cash, check, credit card or debit card.
  • the consumer must, however, physically visit the retail outlet during its business hours.
  • Figure 2 illustrates a typical price increase as a product moves from publisher to distributor.
  • the software publisher 100 sells the products to the distributor 102 at a wholesale p ⁇ ce of $81.84. This amount represents the cost of development, manufacturing, packaging and publisher's 100 profit.
  • the dist ⁇ butor 102 then increases the price to a distribution price of $86.60 and sells the product to a tier 2 reseller 104.
  • the tier 2 reseller 104 in turn, further increase the price to a retail price of $100.00 and sells the product to the consumer 110.
  • This multitiered method causes the price to be higher than is necessary if distribution were more direct, from the software publishers 100 to consumers 110.
  • Figure 3 illustrates an alternative software distribution scheme.
  • the consumer 300 establishes a connection between the consumer's computer 302 and a host computer 304 via a telephone connection 306.
  • the consumer 300 selects and downloads the product.
  • the consumer 300 uses the product and, if willing, sends payment by U.S. Postal Service, or similar courier, and a ⁇ anges a payment by credit card or debit card to the product source 308, e.g. the software publisher, tier 2 reseller, etc.
  • ESD electronic software distribution
  • ESD provides benefits to all participants m the software distribution chain.
  • Software publishers can eliminate investments in manufactu ⁇ ng capacity, and the cost of producing and dist ⁇ buting physical software packages, along with the ⁇ sk of holding obsolete inventory Dist ⁇ butors and Resellers can eliminate the costs of forecasting demand; orde ⁇ ng, holding, and fulfilling orders for physical packages of software; and can eliminate the ⁇ sk of holding obsolete inventory Consumers can acquire software immediately, without the current waiting time for delivery, and can begin to take advantage of new services such as software subsc ⁇ ptions, t ⁇ al-before-purchase, and automatic upgrades
  • Censumers are hesitant to provide sensitive, personal financial data (e.g credit and debit account) over the Internet to a software dist ⁇ butor. Consumers' concerns are based upon many factors Misuse or misapprop ⁇ ation of the consumers' financial data, inability to physically visit the software dist ⁇ butor, which may be physically located in a distant city or even a different country; and limited customer service and product support offe ⁇ ngs.
  • sensitive, personal financial data e.g credit and debit account
  • Software dist ⁇ butors are p ⁇ ma ⁇ ly concerned about receiving a valid payment If a consumer provides the software dist ⁇ butor with fraudulent personal financial data (e.g. credit and debit account) then the software dist ⁇ butor likely will not receive payment for the product
  • the present invention creates a tailored license agreement between a source of software and an end user of the software More particularly, a system, method and article of manufacture are provided for generating a license for software electronically dist ⁇ ubbed over a network First, a user is prompted to enter user input relating to the user This information is used p ⁇ ma ⁇ ly for identification purposes Next, the user input is received over the network, after which the user is allowed to select software over the network The selected software is then downloaded over the network and a license agreement is generated utilizing the user input Thereafter, the license agreement is downloaded over the network Upon the receipt of an acceptance of the license agreement - ⁇ -veF the network, the acceptance is stored and reported to a source of the software
  • the license agreement is sent to the user and/or the source of the software via electronic mail
  • Alternatives include sending the license agreement via facsimile or through the mail
  • entitlements of the user granted under the license agreement may also be tracked This could be accomplished through a policing routine found in the software itself The policing routine would monitor use of the software and pe ⁇ odically send updates to the source of the software when the user is connected to the Internet
  • the user may be precluded from utilizing at least a portion of the software until the acceptance of the license agreement is received, or alternatively, that the software will become disfunctional after a certain pe ⁇ od of time has expired This would permit the user to preview the software to ensure that the software meets the user's needs This would also help to ensure that the user will accept the license agreement
  • the network may include a LAN, a WAN, and an IP-based network
  • the network may include a dedicated one-to-one telephonic hard-line
  • the network may include a cellular, digital wireless, or satellite-based network
  • Figure 1 is an illustration of a software dist ⁇ bution scheme of the p ⁇ or art
  • FIG 2 is an illustration of the exchange of money in the p ⁇ or art software dist ⁇ bution scheme of Figure 1,
  • Figure 3 is an illustration of yet another software dist ⁇ bution scheme of the p ⁇ or art
  • Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a hardware implementation of one embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of an electronic software dist ⁇ bution scheme according to one embodiment- o-f the present invention
  • Figure 5A is a schematic diagram of an electronic software dist ⁇ bution scheme according to one embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figure 6 is a flowchart illustrating the va ⁇ ous operations associated with the embodiment of Figure 5
  • Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating a tracking process associated with the embodiment of Figure
  • Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating a process associated with the embodiment of Figure 5, wherein payment is received after the downloading of software
  • Figure 9 is a flowchart illustrating a process corresponding with the embodiment of Figure 5 which generates a license agreement associated with a sale of software
  • Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process for software source authentication associated with the embodiment of Figure 5
  • FIG 11 is a flowchart illustrating a customer support process associated with the embodiment of Figure 5
  • Figure 12 is a schematic diagram illustrating a framework of a support interface associated with the process shown in Figure 11 ,
  • Figure 13 is an illustration of a graphical user interface associated with the framework shown in
  • Figure 14 is a flowchart illustrating a plurality of operations associated with the implementation of the support interface of Figures 12 and 13,
  • Figure 15 is another flowchart illustrating a plurality of operations associated with the implementation of the support interface of Figures 12 and 13,
  • Figure 16 is a schematic diagram illustrating a combination of the features of the present invention that may be used to establish one type of electronic software dist ⁇ bution framework
  • Figure 17 is a schematic diagram illustrating a combination of the features of the present invention that may be used m addition to the framework of Figure 16,
  • Figure 18 is a schematic diagram illustrating a combination of the features of the present invention that may be used in addition to the framework of Figure 17,
  • Figure 19 is a flowchart illustrating a process of establishing a user profile database for use with the va ⁇ ous features of the present invention
  • Figure 20 is a flowchart illustrating an optional method of selling products, I e software, which employs a user profile database similar to that generated by the process of Figure 19,
  • Figure 21 illustrates manufacture of a packaged digital product according to one form of the present invention
  • Figure 22 illustrates by flow chart execution of the packaged digital product illustrated in Figure 21 on a user-consumer's personal computer
  • Figure 23 illustrates by flow chart point of sale programming executing on a user-consumer's personal computer allowing the user-consumer to purchase and obtain a usable form of a digital product selected for purchase, and
  • Figure 24 illustrates by flow chart credit card processor server programming interactive with the point of sale programming illustrated in Figure 23
  • the present invention is provided for the dist ⁇ bution and sale of digital content products
  • one embodiment of the present invention is practiced on a network such as the
  • the network may include a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), or any IP-based network
  • the network may include a dedicated one-to-one telephonic hard-line
  • the client computers may include a personal computer such as an IBM compatible personal computer, Apple Macintosh computer or UNIX based workstation
  • FIG. 4 which illustrates a typical hardware configuration of a workstation in accordance with a preferred embodiment having a central processing unit 410, such as a microprocessor, and a number of other units interconnected via a system bus 412
  • the workstation shown in Figure 4 includes a Random Access Memory (RAM) 414, Read Only Memory (ROM) 416, an I/O adapter 418 for connecting pe ⁇ pheral devices such as disk storage units 420 to the bus 412, a user interface adapter 422 for connecting a keyboard 424, a mouse 426, a speaker 428, a microphone 432, and/or other user interface devices such as a touch screen (not shown) to the bus 412, communication adapter 434 for connecting the workstation to a communication network (e g , a data processing network) and a display adapter 436 for connecting the bus 412 to a display device 438
  • a communication network e g , a data processing network
  • display adapter 436 for connecting the bus 412 to a
  • the workstation typically has resident thereon an operating system such as the Microsoft Windows NT or Wmdows/95 Operating System (OS), the JBM OS/2 operating system, the MAC
  • OOP Object o ⁇ ented programming
  • OOP is a process of developing computer software using objects, including the steps of analyzing the problem, designing the system, and constructing the program
  • An object is a software package that contains both data and a collection of related structures and procedures Since it contains both data and a collection of structures and procedures, it can be visualized as a self- sufficient component that does not require other additional structures, procedures or data to perform its specific task OOP, therefore, views a computer program as a collection of largely autonomous components, called objects, each of which is responsible for a specific task
  • This concept of packaging data, structures, and procedures together m one component or module is called encapsulation
  • OOP components are reusable software modules which present an interface that conforms to an object model and which are accessed at run-time through a component integration architecture
  • a component integration architecture is a set of architecture mechanisms which allow software modules in different process spaces to utilize each others capabilities or functions This is generally done by assuming a common component object model on which to build the architecture It is worthwhile to differentiate between an object and a class of objects at this point
  • An object is a single instance of the class of objects, which is oftenjust called a class A class of objects can be viewed as a bluep ⁇ nt, from which many objects can be formed
  • OOP allows the programmer to create an object that is a part of another object
  • the object representing a piston engine is said to have a composition-relationship with the object representing a piston
  • a piston engine comp ⁇ ses a piston, valves and many other components, the fact that a piston is an element of a piston engine can be logically and semantically represented m OOP by two objects
  • OOP also allows creation of an object that "depends from" another object If there are two objects, one representing a piston engine and the other representing a piston engine wherein the piston is made of ceramic, then the relationship between the two objects is not that of composition
  • a ceramic piston engine does not make up a piston engine Rather it is merely one kind of piston engine that has one more limitation than the piston engine, its piston is made of ceramic.
  • the object representing the ceramic piston engine is called a derived object, and it inherits all of the aspects of the object representing the piston engine and adds further limitation or detail to it.
  • the object representing the ceramic piston engine "depends from” the object representing the piston engine.
  • inheritance The relationship between these objects is called inheritance.
  • the object or class representing the ceramic piston engine inherits all of the aspects of the objects representing the piston engine, it inherits the thermal characteristics of a standard piston defined in the piston engine class.
  • the ceramic piston engine object overrides these ceramic specific thermal characteristics, which are typically different from those associated with a metal piston. It skips over the original and uses new functions related to ceramic pistons.
  • Different kinds of piston engines have different characteristics, but may have the same underlying functions associated with it (e.g., how many pistons in the engine, ignition sequences, lubrication, etc.).
  • a programmer would call the same functions with the same names, but each type of piston engine may have different/overriding implementations of functions behind the same name. This ability to hide different implementations of a function behind the same name is called polymorphism and it greatly simplifies communication among objects.
  • composition-relationship With the concepts of composition-relationship, encapsulation, inheritance and polymorphism, an object can represent just about anything in the real world. In fact, our logical perception of the reality is the only limit on determining the kinds of things that can become objects in object- oriented software. Some typical categories are as follows:
  • Objects can represent physical objects, such as automobiles in a traffic-flow simulation, electrical components in a circuit-design program, countries in an economics model, or aircraft in an air-traffic-control system.
  • Objects can represent elements of the computer-user environment such as windows, menus or graphics objects.
  • An object can represent an inventory, such as a personnel file or a table of the latitudes and longitudes of cities.
  • An object can represent user-defined data types such as time, angles, and complex numbers, or points on the plane.
  • OOP allows the software developer to design and implement a computer program that is a model of some aspects of reality, whether that reality is a physical entity, a process, a system, or a composition of matter. Since the object can represent anything, the software developer can create an object which can be used as a component in a larger software project in the future.
  • OOP enables software developers to build objects out of other, previously built objects.
  • C++ is an OOP language that offers a fast, machine-executable code.
  • C++ is suitable for both commercial-application and systems-programming projects.
  • C++ appears to be the most popular choice among many OOP programmers, but there is a host of other OOP languages, such as Smalltalk, Common Lisp Object System (CLOS), and Eiffel. Additionally, OOP capabilities are being added to more traditional popular computer programming languages such as Pascal.
  • Encapsulation enforces data abstraction through the organization of data into small, independent objects that can communicate with each other. Encapsulation protects the data in an object from accidental damage, but allows other objects to interact with that data by calling the object's member functions and structures. • Sub-classing and mhentance make it possible to extend and modify objects through de ⁇ vmg new kinds of objects from the standard classes available in the system Thus, new capabilities are created without having to start from scratch
  • Class hierarchies and containment hierarchies provide a flexible mechanism for modeling real-world objects and the relationships among them
  • Class libra ⁇ es are very flexible As programs grow more complex, more programmers are forced to adopt basic solutions to basic problems over and over again A relatively new extension of the class library concept is to have a framework of class libra ⁇ es This framework is more complex and consists of significant collections of collaborating classes that capture both the small scale patterns and major mechanisms that implement the common requirements and design in a specific application domain They were first developed to free application programmers from the chores involved m displaying menus, windows, dialog boxes, and other standard user interface elements for personal computers
  • Frameworks also represent a change in the way programmers think about the interaction between the code they w ⁇ te and code w ⁇ tten by others
  • the programmer called libra ⁇ es provided by the operating system to perform certain tasks, but basically the program executed down the page from start to finish, and the programmer was solely responsible for the flow of control This was approp ⁇ ate for pnntmg out paychecks, calculating a mathematical table, or solving other problems with a program that executed in just one way
  • Application frameworks reduce the total amount of code that a programmer has to w ⁇ te from scratch.
  • the framework is really a gene ⁇ c application that displays windows, supports copy and paste, and so on, the programmer can also relinquish control to a greater degree than event loop programs permit
  • the framework code takes care of almost all event handling and flow of control, and the programmer's code is called only when the framework needs it (e.g., to create or manipulate a propnetary data structure)
  • a programmer wntmg a framework program not only relinquishes control to the user (as is also true for event loop programs), but also relinquishes the detailed flow of control within the program to the framework
  • a framework basically is a collection of cooperating classes that make up a reusable design solution for a given problem domain It typically includes objects that provide default behavior (e g , for menus and windows), and programmers use it by lnhentmg some of that default behavior and overndmg other behavior so that the framework calls application code at the approp ⁇ ate times
  • Behavior versus protocol Class libra ⁇ es are essentially collections of behaviors that you can call when you want those individual behaviors in your program
  • a framework provides not only behavior but also the protocol or set of rules that govern the ways in which behaviors can be combined, including rules for what a programmer is supposed to provide versus what the framework provides
  • a preferred embodiment of the invention utilizes Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) to implement documents on the Internet together with a general-purpose secure communication protocol for a transport medium between the client and the Newco.
  • HTTP or other protocols could be readily substituted for HTML without undue experimentation, information on these products is available in T. Berners-Lee, D. Connoly, "RFC 1866: Hypertext Markup Language - 2.0" (Nov. 1995); and R. Fielding, H, Frystyk, T.
  • HTML is a simple data format used to create hypertext documents that are portable from one platform to another.
  • HTML documents are SGML documents with generic semantics that are appropriate for representing information from a wide range of domains. HTML has been in use by the World-Wide Web global information initiative since 1990. HTML is an application of ISO Standard 8879; 1986 information Processing Text and Office Systems; Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML).
  • HTML has been the dominant technology used in development of Web-based solutions.
  • HTML has proven to be inadequate in the following areas:
  • UI User interface
  • Custom "widgets” e.g., real-time stock tickers, animated icons, etc.
  • client-side performance is improved.
  • Java supports the notion of client-side validation, offloading appropriate processing onto the client for improved performance.
  • Dynamic, real-time Web pages can be created. Using the above-mentioned custom UI components, dynamic Web pages can also be created.
  • Sun's Java language has emerged as an industry-recognized language for "programming the internet.”
  • Sun defines Java as: "a simple, object-oriented, distributed, interpreted, robust, secure, architecture-neutral, portable, high-performance, multithreaded, dynamic, buzzword- compliant, general-purpose programming language.
  • Java supports programming for the Internet in the form of platform-independent Java applets.”
  • Java applets are small, specialized applications that comply with Sun's Java Application Programming Interface (API) allowing developers to add "interactive content" to Web documents (e.g., simple animations, page adornments, basic games, etc.). Applets execute within a Java-compatible browser (e.g., Netscape Navigator) by copying code from the server to client.
  • Java's core feature set is based on C++.
  • Sun's Java literature states that Java is basically, "C++ with extensions from Objective C for more dynamic method resolution.”
  • ActiveX includes tools for developing animation, 3-D virtual reality, video and other multimedia content.
  • the tools use Internet standards, work on multiple platforms, and are being supported by over 100 companies.
  • the group's building blocks are called ActiveX Controls, small, fast components that enable developers to embed parts of software in hypertext markup language (HTML) pages.
  • ActiveX Controls work with a variety of programming languages including Microsoft Visual C++, Borland Delphi, Microsoft Visual Basic programming system and, in the future, Microsoft's development tool for Java, code named "Jakarta.” ActiveX
  • FIG. 5 illustrates an electronic software distribution (ESD) system in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
  • the software publisher 500 produces the software for electronic distribution.
  • the ESD channel partners 502 include the distribution network of distributors retailers and value added resellers (VARs).
  • VARs value added resellers
  • the End User - Consumer 508 uses the software and provides payment for the software.
  • Software publishers publish much more than computer software products. Software publishers also publish digital information such as databases and image data. As used herein, software includes all digital information, content, image data and other digitally distributable data.
  • the ESD system eliminates several functions of the software publisher 500 including:
  • the ESD system eliminates several functions of the ESD channel partners 502 including:
  • the ESD system requires the software publisher 500 to continue to provide the following existing functions:
  • the ESD system does not require the software publisher 500 to provide any additional functions than previous dist ⁇ bution methods but does eliminate several previous functions
  • the ESD system requires the ESD channel partners 502 to continue to provide the following existing functions
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse 506 provides the vital element of trust in the ESD
  • the independent certifying agency provides a "level of compliance" opinion of the clea ⁇ nghouse
  • the certifying agency utilizes a se ⁇ es of standard tests, requirements and guidelines to check a channel partner's set of systems
  • receiving ESD system certification may be required to be a channel partner or a clea ⁇ nghouse for a software publisher's ESD
  • FIG. 5A is a general block diagram which illustrates the va ⁇ ous facets and an example of scope the clea ⁇ nghouse may encompass
  • the va ⁇ ous components of the clea ⁇ nghouse may include storefront front end 510, content creation and management 512, content support 514, user interface 516, user interface support 518, e-channel management 519, e-channel support 520, royalty management 522, royalties and usage settlement 524, commerce support 526, fulfillment back end 528, marketing intelligence management 530, and marketing intelligence 532
  • Figure 6 illustrates, in most general terms, the vanous services afforded by the cleannghouse du ⁇ ng the electronic dist ⁇ bution software over the network
  • a user interface is provided for facilitating sale of the software in operation 602
  • the software for sale is advertised on the user interface See operation 603.
  • the software may also be downloaded and further sold by receiving payment in exchange for the software via the user interface m operations 604 and 606, respectively
  • the downloaded software may be encrypted and further decrypted upon the receipt of the payment
  • a proof-of-purchase may be sent to the user upon the receipt of the payment
  • An electronic proof of purchase may be sent such as via e-mail, or a proof of purchase on paper may be prepared for sending to the user via ground mail, for example Additionally, the proof of purchase may be sent to the user via facsimile Further, an end user license agreement may be transmitted to the user upon the receipt of the payment
  • Royalties are allocated based on the sale of the software in operation 610 It should be noted that such royalty allocation may be based on a predetermined contract or agreement between the clea ⁇ nghouse 506, publisher 500, and ESD channel partners 502 Payment may be administered automatically or manually by a separate party or one of the above parties 506, 500, and/or 502
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse 506 may be adapted to downloaded software in an encrypted form and further decrypt such encrypted software upon the receipt of the payment
  • the present invention is capable of tracking the dist ⁇ bution and sale of digital content products for reporting revenues to a publisher
  • FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the va ⁇ ous operations involved with such tracking feature
  • encrypted software and a plurality of decryption keys are provided which each allow use of corresponding encrypted software
  • each decryption key is adapted to allow use of only a single piece of corresponding software, or a single sale This renders duplication of the decryption key useless, thereby lessening the chance of unauthonzed use of the software.
  • a request is received for a decryption key from a requestor. Thereafter, a transaction represented by the request for the decryption key is logged. Note operations 702 and 704.
  • the decryption key is then outputted to the requestor in operation 706. Thereafter, the transaction is reported to a source of the software for allowing the tracking of revenue generated by the sale of the software, as indicated in operation 708.
  • a plurality of requests may be received from such multiple requestors and the requests may be logged separately for each requestor.
  • the present invention provides the publisher 500 with an independent, objective reporting of sales by the channel partners 502, by receiving requests for decryption keys from channel partners 502 when they are fulfilling orders, recording the number of orders, or keys distributed and reporting the number of orders to the publisher 500 to enable accurate revenue recognition.
  • FIG. & illustrates yet another feature of the present invention.
  • the present invention enables a change in traditional order of downloading and payment during distribution and sale of digital content products over a network.
  • software is first provided which is encrypted at least in part.
  • a plurality of decryption keys are provided which are capable of decrypting the encrypted software.
  • a user is allowed to select from the encrypted software after which such selected encrypted software is downloaded. See operations 804 and 806, respectively.
  • unencrypted software can be downloaded with the encrypted software. Examples of such software include demonstration programs or a partially operable version of the software. These can be used to allow the user to preview the software before purchasing it. The demonstration programs may also be used for marketing purposes.
  • the channel partner then accepts payment from the user in operation 808. Payment is accepted after both the selection and the downloading of the encrypted software. Furthermore, the amount of the payment may be determined by a profile of the user. To ensure payment, in operation 810, the decryption key is transfe ⁇ ed to the user only after the receipt and verification of the payment. As an option, a copy of the decryption key may be stored with an identifier of the transaction. By this scheme, a user is confident that software is in his or her possession p ⁇ or to dehve ⁇ ng payment Further, the reseller is confident of payment p ⁇ or to completion of the transaction
  • Figure 9 illustrates yet another aspect of the present invention wherein a tailored license agreement is automatically provided du ⁇ ng the dist ⁇ bution and sale of digital content products
  • a user is prompted to enter user input relating to the user in operation 900
  • the user input is received over the network after which the user is allowed to select software over the network
  • the selected software is then downloaded over the network and a license agreement is generated utilizing the user input Note operations 906 and 908, respectively
  • the license agreement may be sent via electronic mail
  • the h-certse- agreement is downloaded over the network in operation 910 Upon the receipt of an acceptance of the license agreement over the network, the acceptance is stored and reported to a source of the software, l e publisher Note operation 912. As an option, entitlements of the user granted under the license agreement may also be tracked This may be accomplished through a policing routine found in the software itself, for example The policing routine would monitor use of the software and penodically send updates to the source of the software when the user is connected to the internet Further, the user may be precluded from utilizing at least a portion of the software until the acceptance of the license agreement is received
  • Figure 10 illustrates an ability of the present invention to securely process a return of digital content products that were dist ⁇ aded electronically This is afforded by providing a means of software source authentication over a network
  • software is first electronically transfe ⁇ ed to a user over a network in exchange for payment dunng a transaction, as indicated in operation 1000
  • a proof-of-purchase is then downloaded over the network after the transaction
  • Such proof-of-purchase identifies the transaction
  • the proof-of-purchase may also include an identifier of a source of the software for ve ⁇ fication
  • a notice of return including the proof-of-purchase may be received from the user over the network See operation 1004
  • the authenticity of the proof-of-purchase is ve ⁇ fied after which a value of a refund for the return is determined, as indicated in operations 1006 and 1008, respectively.
  • the refund is then processed in operation 1010
  • information relating to the proof-of-purchase and the refund may be stored in a record
  • the record may be transfe ⁇ ed to a source of the software
  • the identification of the user as shown on the proof of purchase could be compared to the record to ensure that the proof-of-purchase is not bogus or that the user is trying to obtain multiple refunds for the same purchase
  • the present aspect relates to supporting electronically dist ⁇ aded digital content products via a profile-d ⁇ ven user interface
  • a user is first prompted to enter user input relating to the user after which the user input is received over a network, as indicated in operations 1100 and 1102, respectively
  • a request may be received from the user for customer support in operation 1104
  • a customer support-related content is then determined based on the user input Such, customer support-related content is then transmitted to the user in operation 1108
  • the customer support-related content may be adapted for supporting the user with respect to software
  • the software that is being supported may also be sold over the network
  • the user input may include a product or service purchased by the user
  • the customer support-related content may include answers to FAQ's, announcements, access to a knowledge base, product support, access to a chat room, access to newsgroups, and or content-specific browsing Particular content relating to each of these may be selected based on the user profile Further, the particular content selected may be grouped with other content to provide a package of interest to the user
  • Such enabling information relates to receiving software from manufacture, receiving an order for the software, encrypting the software, downloading the software, providing an end user license agreement (EULA), processing a payment for the software, decrypting the software, generating a receipt for the sale, installing the software, reporting the sale, processing any returns of the software, generating a demand for the clea ⁇ nghouse services, executing a recall of software, and providing customer support for the sold software
  • EULA end user license agreement
  • the clearinghouse receives Email notification from a publisher (notice that a new version or new product has been developed), and requests a master copy of the software.
  • the clearinghouse receives, encrypts, and stores a master copy of the software.
  • the clearinghouse records receipt of the master copy of software (including product #, version, etc.).
  • the clearinghouse also supports storage of a hierarchical product structure. Also, if software ordered by a customer does not exist in the clearinghouse, the clearinghouse may obtain the master code from the publisher.
  • the clearinghouse must provide the most cu ⁇ ent product version unless requested otherwise by an end-user. All products including cu ⁇ ent and prior versions are supported and distributed by the clearinghouse.
  • the clearinghouse receives notice of a software sale to a customer (from reseller).
  • the clearinghouse must validate the order - including product SKU, reseller, and distributor (resellers and distributors must be approved by the publisher). All valid orders are stored within the clearinghouse. Orders can be reported upon when necessary (as requested by the publisher).
  • the order may be received in various ways, i.e. web page or any other type of customer interface.
  • several companies have developed computer architectures for online electronic catalog sales using, for example, the Internet as a transport mechanism to transmit data representing purchase requests between a proprietary browser and server product pair.
  • Netscape Communications uses its Navigator/Netsite World Wide Web (WWW) browser/server pair.
  • a buyer uses Navigator to select a seller's Netsite server (sort of an electronic storefront), which is in turn coupled to standard application servers (back-end subsystems), e.g., a credit server or a member server for collecting demographic information on customers.
  • These servers contain the business rules defined by the seller, e.g., what credit cards are accepted and what customer information is tracked during each sale.
  • Some of these servers are connected to external, third-party services, e.g., the credit server to an external credit card processing network or the member server to an external demographics processing module.
  • the actual applications e.g., on-line publishing or catalog sales, are represented as extensions of the application servers.
  • the application servers are said to be instantiated in the applications.
  • the net result of this approach is that the business rules (from the application servers) are embedded into the applications along with the application logic or presentation.
  • Another company, Open Market, is developing a similar electronic catalog system consisting of a Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) authoring tool (called Storebuilder), and a server (called Webserver) connected to an integrated back-end commerce system (called TransactionLink).
  • HTTP Hyper Text Markup Language
  • Webserver Webserver
  • TransactionLink integrated back-end commerce system
  • Any of the foregoing types of browsers may employed to access various databases via the Internet in order to conduct electronic commerce-related business.
  • Typical database or file-based shopping cart systems require that the user be uniquely identified in order to associate particular data stored on the server with a particular user. This requires the user to log-in or create an account, which is then stored in the server. Each subsequent request from the user must reference the unique identifier, either in the uniform resource locator (URL) or as hidden data passed back through a- form- submission.
  • URL uniform resource locator
  • Either of these approaches require that the account or ID information of the user be stored on the remote server in the network for some definite period of time. Usually, the user must keep track of the account identifier in order that the prior session information can be retrieved.
  • NCR a self-service terminal system identified as model NCR 5682, incorporates the data gathering and transaction processing capabilities of conventional automated teller machines with video, graphics, audio and printer operations. Interactivity with the customer is governed by a software system through the use, for example, of a keyboard or an infrared touch screen using prompts. Transactions may be completed through the use of a credit card reader and a PIN number entering means.
  • insurance agents at remote office on-line terminals communicate with a central processor which includes a data bank, storing data as to risks to be insured, client information, insurance premium information and predetermined text data for incorporation into insurance contracts.
  • An agent at a terminal keys in information regarding a risk and other data needed to write insurance for that risk.
  • a "form" is displayed on his terminal by the central processor, and he merely enters the pertinent information in the blanks provided.
  • the information is co ⁇ elated in the central processor, from which a premium quotation is transmitted back and displayed at the agent's terminal and in which a client data base is established with the information from the form. E ⁇ ors or omissions are detected and the agent or client is notified.
  • a formal contract is printed under the control of the central processor and electronically stored and displayed to underwnter personnel Concu ⁇ ently the insurance contract is mailed to the client
  • the underwnter can decide to cancel or alter the contract
  • the underw ⁇ ting function is earned out before the contract is p ⁇ nted and mailed
  • the terminals operate on-lme, underw ⁇ ting is performed by a human underwnter, and the insurance contract is pnnted remotely from the client and mailed to him
  • the on-line terminals are not automatic self-service vending machines, the client must deal with the company through agents
  • a terminal in another example, includes a CPU and is coupled to a memory unit which has data bases sto ⁇ ng information Certam elements are assigned weights The system is used by underwriters to assist them in performing their underwnting functions
  • Still- yet- another system is adapted for automatically dispensing information, goods and services to a customer on a self-servrce basis including a central data processing center in which information on services offered is stored
  • Self-service information sales terminals are remotely linked on-line to the central data processing center and are programmed to gather information from prospective customers on goods and services desired, to transmit to customers information on the desired goods or services from the central data processing center, to take orders for goods or services from customers and transmit them for processing to the central data processing center, to accept payment, and to deliver goods or services in the form of documents to the customer when orders are completed
  • the central data processing center is also remotely linked to institutions, such as insurance companies, serviced by the system to keep the institution updated on completed sales of services offered by that institution
  • the terminals in this system are on-line with the central data processing center
  • the self-service terminals include a processor, p ⁇ nter, dispenser, data sources including a mass storage unit, a card reader, a coin box, and a communication device for communicating with a remote service center
  • the mass storage unit stores transitory information, such as flight schedules, ticket p ⁇ ces, weather information and other lnformatron useful in the planning of a business t ⁇ p or vacation which is penodicallv updated via a communication link with the remote control center
  • the self-service terminal normally operates off-line
  • a quantity and a p ⁇ ce of each of the items that is selected is displayed du ⁇ ng use of the present invention
  • a total p ⁇ ce of the items that are selected along with shipping information Du ⁇ ng use the user is allowed to modify the predetermined set of items that are selected. Further, several sets of items may be separately stored for later review and modification. Retrieval of the set or sets of items should be easily accessible throughout the display catalog, such as through links.
  • multiple languages may be incorporated into the present invention and payment for the predetermined set of items may be accepted in any one of a plurality of currencies such as electronic and foreign.
  • an online shopping system which allows examination, selection and order of items through a computer may be used.
  • an online shopping system in order to supplement a disadvantage by a gap from ordinary shopping caused by the use of electronic means such as not capable of directly touching the item and not capable of getting assistance of a real salesman, various devices for a user interface have been made.
  • One of such devices is a shopping basket function which has some analogy with shopping basket used in a shop such as supe ⁇ narket.
  • items on the online shopping system are temporarily added to a purchase list and a process of order and purchase is conducted when all items to be purchased arc registered on the list, as items to be purchased in the supe ⁇ narket are once put into a shopping basket and lastly the account is settled at a counter.
  • a time required to purchase may be substantially saved.
  • the consumer may prevent the failure of shopping and stop the purchase of unnecessary items by checking the list once before the purchase.
  • there should be no feeling of easiness since the items once added on the purchase list may be finally changed in any way before the purchase, resulting in a psychological effect that the consumer may proceed shopping readily.
  • the elements which constitute the shopping basket are a shopping basket main body (purchase list) and a function for taking items in and out of the shopping basket.
  • functions associated with the shopping basket there is a function to take the items into the shopping basket (add to the purchase list), a function to check the contents of the shopping basket (display the purchase list), a function to return the item in the shopping basket (change the purchase list) and a function to purchase the items in the shopping basket.
  • the function to purchase the items only the order is accepted because the delivery of the items is made later, except a portion of items which can be downloaded as digital data and the shopping is not completed until the items are received and the account is settled.
  • the methods for providing the shopping basket to the consumer there is a method of displaying a button for the shopping basket on the same display page as a catalog which the consumer watches as it is realized in the oniine shopping system, such as on the Internet.
  • a method for separately displaying an item catalog area and a shopping basket area there is a method for separately displaying an item catalog area and a shopping basket area.
  • Such a function is used in the shopping system provided by a computer readable medium such as a CD-ROM.
  • a main stage of the online shopping is an item catalog screen on which information about the items is provided.
  • the consumer examines the item on the screen and if he or she likes it. he or she takes it into the shopping basket, such as by placing a mouse pointer over a "purchase" button or link and clicking on the button or link.
  • he or she examines the content of the shopping basket as desired to check the item scheduled to purchase and the pay amount of the items, such as by clicking on a link that brings up a screen listing all of the items selected. Accordingly, it is not necessary to always display the purchase list on the screen, but the functions to access to the shopping basket for taking in the items and to display the contents should be available to the consumer any time during the shopping.
  • the button for the shopping basket when the button for the shopping basket is on the same page as the item catalog, the entire length of the page may change depending on the amount of item data described on the catalog.
  • the page may not be accommodated on the display screen, hi such a case, it is necessary for the consumer to scroll the page to display the button for the shopping basket.
  • the button is located at the top end of the page, and when the item of interest is at a lower portion of the page, the screen must be scrolled upward in order to take the item into the shopping basket after the confi ⁇ nation.
  • the information provider devises the amount of information and the layout described on the page to accommodate it in the screen, though the intended effect is not always achieved depending on the environment of the user In the method of placing the button for the shopping basket on the same page as the catalog, some degree of scrolling may be unavoidable
  • the method of dividing the screen and sha ⁇ ng the roles by the respective sub-areas restncts the method for prepa ⁇ ng the contents It may be good that the user interface is uniform in one online shop but when it is applied across a plurality of online shops of va ⁇ ous items and scales, free design cannot be conducted This forces on the user a specific environment such as to watch the window of the browser at a specified size
  • an interface for providing the shopping basket function is provided as a separate shopping basket window from a catalog window on which- online shop tem- data is displayed
  • the shopping basket window is displayed on the catalog window and a display position is moved in linkage with the movement of a mouse pointer
  • the shopping basket includes a list of items to be purchased which is a main body of the shopping basket, a function to add the item data to the list, and a function to change the item data registered in the list
  • the shopping basket main body is not always displayed Instead, an interface function to display the shopping basket contents on the screen is provided on the shopping basket window
  • a secure wrapper is a secure method to deliver software electronically
  • software merchants can encase and encrypt digital content to build customizable cyber-packages without making changes to the source code Du ⁇ ng the build process
  • software merchants can include bitmaps, advertisements, registration mate ⁇ al as well as other marketing mate ⁇ al as part of a cyber-package
  • the vendor places it on the Web site where it is made available to the online consumer Secure wrapper software securely wraps, encrypts and validates the purchase of the digital information for electronic transport from start to finish
  • Secure wrapper software does not require the end usei to have any decryption devices residing on their system
  • the end user is connected to a credit card validation system via modem If validated, the package is unlocked online
  • One exemplary method for download of the software includes the following steps
  • Any digital transportation vehicle may be used including the Internet, CD ROM, prop ⁇ etary networks, On-line services, television broadcast, and cable modems
  • the software will be virus-free
  • EULA End User License Agreement
  • An- EULA is sent to the end-user ' s computer
  • the EULA displays terms and conditions of use of the software
  • the 'signed' EULA is received from the end-user and logged in an EULA database
  • the end-user name (as obtained from the EULA) is displayed du ⁇ ng the software unpacking/unencryptmg process Agreement/licensing information on software customers may be maintained as well as sent to a source of the software
  • a record for each copy of software sold to an end-user may also be maintained
  • the EULA is a license between the end user and the software copy ⁇ ght holder, which is typically the software publisher
  • the EULA reinforces the relationship between the end user and the software copy ⁇ ght holder as well as increases the end user's confidence that the software is legitimate and an approved dist ⁇ bution from the software copy ⁇ ght holder
  • An EULA is "signed" when any legally recognized form of customer signature, including physical and authenticated digital indicia, is affixed or recorded on the EULA.
  • notation in a database of customer acceptance through an "ok” button on a screen of EULA text is an acceptable "signature" if that customer has been authenticated as having a valid credit card, expiration, and bill-to address.
  • the customer must receive a copy of the EULA terms which they accept as part of the purchase process.
  • the channel partner should deliver this to the customer in an un-alterable format. Examples include facsimile, standard mail hard copy, or a digitally signed file sent over an electronic delivery method.
  • the customer should not be able to alter (without detection) this digital copy of the EULA.
  • One method may be to send the signed file along with the software to the customer and tell the customer in an e-mail where that file is located.
  • Licensing software provides the vendor with a certain amount of control over the distributed software which may be used to the vendor's advantage. For example, licensing software allows the vendor to prohibit unauthorized usage of the software that might facilitate unauthorized copying. In addition, licensing provides an advantageous method of providing and billing for software. Through licensing, the vendor may sell several identical copies of the same software and charge the buyer for each copy. Licensing schemes have adapted to the network environment as well as the individual personal computer. In a network environment, such as a client-server network, multiple users may access the same copy of a particular application. Consequently, the vendor can charge the network owner not for the number of copies installed on the network, but for the number of users having access to the software.
  • Software is conventionally licensed using an agreement between the vendor and the user or administrator.
  • the agreement is typically either a conventionally signed contract or a "shrink wrap" agreement attached to the packaging for the software, to which the licensee acknowledges agreement by opening the package.
  • Electronic licensing typically comprises providing a set of criteria under which a request for an application from the server should be granted.
  • One licensing system uses a fixed set of licenses controlled by a license server.
  • the license information is maintained in a license database, along with information regarding which applications are in use and how many units are still available.
  • the information in the database may be encrypted to prevent forgeries.
  • the application commences running. Code embedded in the application initially requests a license from the server to facilitate the execution of the application.
  • the server checks the database of licenses, and if the appropriate licenses are available, grants the request. As requests are received and licenses granted, the relevant information is logged into a file to track usage of the various applications.
  • the client contacts another server to find the appropriate license.
  • the client in the conventional system has the responsibility to obtain licenses from the various servers, and the individual servers provide resources at the client's request.
  • the application typically includes a library of programs designed to contact the server, request a license, and track the resulting license. When a call is made to a server, all of the execution occurs on each individual server for any particular call. Similarly, if a license is located on a particular machine, all execution necessary to operate on that license occurs on that machine. Consequently, a central server containing most of the licenses available on a particular network is mainly responsible for maintaining the licenses.
  • license fees may be based on the power of the processor or the number of processors in the system, or the number of individual nodes in a network, since these factors provide measures of the number of users which may use the software at any give time.
  • licenses and license fees may also be desirable, for example, to have licenses and license fees more closely relate to the actual numbers of users which can use the program at any given time or on the actual use to which a program may be put. Furthermore, it may be desirable to limit the use of the program to specified time periods.
  • a network environment for computers permits several computers or terminals to use or have access to one or more programs.
  • an end user would have to obtain a license from a software vendor to authorize use of the vendor's software on terminals or workstations within the network.
  • One method for providing access to software is known as the single-CPU or single processor hcense, wherein a software program is locked to a specific CPU and access to that software is only permitted from the particular licensed computer
  • a single-CPU license may create instances where software is unavailable to all users because the computer is not functioning or because several users want to use the software at the same time To assure wide access, end users frequently must obtain unneeded
  • CPU-locked software to assure availability and convenience Companies with but a few users of a particular software program generally choose a CPU-locked system because it is, in effect, p ⁇ ced proportionately to the number of users
  • the second general method to provide access to software is known as site-licensing.
  • site-licensing a software program is available for all the computers at an installation.
  • the number of users who m y run- a software package concu ⁇ ently under a site license is theoretically limited only by the number of users in the computing environment.
  • site-licensing may ease administrative and operational problems for an end user, it normally does so at a premium p ⁇ ce which takes into account the lack of accountability that such flexible licensing provides.
  • a site license imposes unneeded costs where only a few users of a company actually need the software.
  • a software vendor offers a choice between CPU-locked and site licensed software
  • the trade-off point is determined by the relative p ⁇ cmg between the two distnbution systems
  • licenses are for indefinite penods of time
  • a license may also be for a limited duration and extendable, so that the entity marketing the product can charge a pe ⁇ odic fee (for example, annually) for use of the software product Or use may be absolutely time-limited (for example, one-day), so that the user may evaluate the software product for possible purchase of a regular license Since software can be copied and moved easily from one like machine to another, companies have invented methods to prevent unautho ⁇ zed use of their software products
  • Some licensors require passwords to activate software on a particular machine The password may be keyed to the hardware's identification number as a condition for operation of the software Such systems can effectively lock software to a particular machine, but do not address software that is licensed for concu ⁇ ent or simultaneous use
  • Some licensors use hardware locks that attach to a parallel p ⁇ nter port or a senal port on a machine, each time the software is activated, it looks for a specified code, in the hardware lock, as a condition for operation of the software Using hardware locks resolves the problem of unautho ⁇ zed moving of software among machines, however, hardware locks do not handle multiple software products on a single machine, and they require time and expense to deliver to the end user
  • a network may permit a user at one node (which may be a terminal or workstation, for instance) to utilize a software product running at another node (which may be the network server or even another workstation) Consequently, the terms of the single-computer type of software license might not cover the usage of the software product on the network, or worse still (from the point of view of the licensor) might actually permit such a usage without additional compensation to the licensor
  • One approach to network licensing is to grant permission to use the program based on all of the nodes on the network, and to require a license for each node Then typically the license fee may be increased as the number of nodes on the network increases
  • Another approach bases the license fee for a software product running on a network on the total number of individual users who might actually run the software, regardless of the number of nodes either on the network or running the software product at a given time
  • These approaches have usually required the cooperation of the licensee, because additional nodes may be added to the network, or additional users may utilize the software, without the knowledge of the licensor, who is typically not present on the premises of the licensee
  • the licensor may reserve the nght to audit the licensee's site, but such an audit is intrusive, expensive, and may alienate potential or actual customers for licenses
  • a computer program acting as “hbra ⁇ an” and running on a computer node designated as a license server, is typically used to distnbute license keys (sometimes called “tokens") over the network to nodes requesting access to run a software product, the number of keys is tracked by the hbra ⁇ an, and if at a given time, the permitted maximum number of keys would be exceeded by usage of the software product on a requesting node, the node can be denied, at such time, access to invoke the software product
  • the piesent invention can securely manage the integration of contiol information provided b> tw o or more parties
  • an electronic agreement can be constructed betw een participants that represent a "negotiation" betw een, the contiol requuements of, two or more patties and enacts terms and conditions of a resulting agreement Further the l ights of each partv to an electronic agieement legaiding a w ide range of electronic activities related to electiomc mfo ⁇ nation and or appliance usage is assured
  • An important feature of the present invention is that it can be used to assure the administration of, and adequacy of secunty and nghts protection for, electronic agreements implemented through the use of the present invention
  • Such agreements may involve one or more of
  • users of (other than financial service providers) information a ⁇ smg from content usage such as content specific demographic information and user specific desc ⁇ ptive information
  • Such users may include market analysts, marketing list compilers for direct and directed marketing, and- overnment agencies,
  • infrastructure service and device providers such as telecommunication companies and hardware manufacturers (semiconductor and electronic appliance and/or other computer system manufacturers) who receive compensation based upon the use of their services and/or devices, and
  • the present invention supports commercially secure "extended" value chain electronic agreements
  • the present invention can be configured to support the vanous underlying agreements between parties that comp ⁇ se this extended agreement
  • These agreements can define important electronic commerce considerations including
  • the present invention may define the electronic commerce relationship of two or more parties of a value chain, but such agreements may, at times, not directly obligate or otherwise directly involve other value chain participants
  • an electronic agreement between a content creator and a dist ⁇ butor may establish both the p ⁇ ce to the distnbutor for a creator's content (such as for a property dist ⁇ ubbed in a container object) and the number of copies of this object that this dist ⁇ butor may dist ⁇ bute to end-users over a given penod of time
  • a value chain end-user may be involved in a three party agreement in which the end-user agrees to certain requirements for using the dist ⁇ ubbed product such as accepting dist ⁇ butor charges for content use and agreeing to observe the copynght ⁇ ghts of the creator
  • a third agreement might exist between the dist ⁇ butor and a financial clea ⁇ nghouse that allows the dist ⁇ butor to employ the cleannghouse's credit for payment for the product if the end-user has a separate (fourth) agreement directly with the clea ⁇ nghouse extending credit to the end-user
  • a fifth, evolving agreement may develop between all value chain participants as content control information passes along its chain of handling
  • This evolving agreement can establish the ⁇ ghts of all parties to content usage information, including, for example, the nature of information to be received by each party and the pathway of handling of content usage information and related procedures
  • a sixth agreement in this example may involve all parties to the agreement and establishes certain general assumptions, such as secunty techniques and degree of trustedness (for example, commercial mteg ⁇ ty of the system may require each installation secure subsystem to electronically warrant that their node meets certain interoperability requirements)
  • these six agreements could compnse agreements of an extended agreement for this commercial value chain instance
  • a given model may be asynchronously and progressively modified over time in accordance with existing senior rules and such modification may be applied to all, to classes of, and/or to specific content, and/or to classes and or specific users and/or user nodes
  • a given piece of content may be subject to different control information at different times or places of handling, depending on the evolution of its content control information (and/or on diffenng, applicable installation content control information)
  • control information can occur dunng the passing along of one or more control information containing objects, that is control information may be modified at one or more points along a chain of control information handling, so long as such modification is allowed
  • managed content may have different control information applied at both different "locations" in a chain of content handling and at similar locations in diffenng chains of the handling of such content
  • control information may also result from content control mformation specifying that a certain party or group of parties shall be subject to content control information that differs from another party or group of parties
  • content control information for a given piece of content may be stipulated as senior information and therefore not changeable, might be put in place by a content creator and might stipulate that national dist ⁇ butors of a given piece of their content may be permrtted to make 100,000 copies per calendar quarter, so long as such copies are provided to bonafide end-users, but may pass only a single copy of such content to a local retailers and the control information limits such a retailer to making no more than 1,000 copies per month for retail sales to end-users
  • an end-user of such content might be limited by the same content control information to making three copies of such content, one for each of three different computers he or she uses (one desktop computer at work, one for a desktop computer at home, and one for a portable computer)
  • Electronic agreements supported by the prefe ⁇ ed embodiment of the present invention can vary from very simple to very elaborate They can support widely diverse information management models that provide for electronic information secunty, usage administration, and communication and may support
  • pathways for: the handling of content, content and/or appliance control information, reporting of content and/or appliance usage related information, and/or payment
  • the customer may be provided with means to enter billing information.
  • An example would include providing an on-line form which accepts user indicia relating to a billing address.
  • Payment for the software purchased over the Internet is one aspect of the present invention.
  • the extensive use of coin and cu ⁇ ency transactions has limited the automation of individual transactions such as purchases, fares, and bank account deposits and withdrawals.
  • Individual cash transactions are burdened by the need to have the co ⁇ ect amount of cash or providing change therefor.
  • the handling and managing of paper cash and coins is inconvenient, costly and time consuming for both individuals and financial institutions.
  • checks may be w ⁇ tten for any specific amount up to the amount available in the account, checks have very limited transferability and must be supplied from a physical inventory. Paper-based checking systems do not offer sufficient relief from the limitations of cash transactions, shanng many of the inconveniences of handling cu ⁇ ency while adding the inherent delays associated with processing checks. To this end, economic exchange has st ⁇ ven for greater convenience at a lower cost, while also seeking improved secunty
  • EFT electronic funds transfer
  • ACH Automated Clea ⁇ ng House
  • POS Point Of Sale
  • Home Banking bill payment services are examples of an EFT system used by individuals to make payments from a home computer. Cu ⁇ ently, home banking initiatives have found few customers. Of the banks that have offered services for payments, account transfers and information over the telephone lines using personal computers, less than one percent of the bank's customers are using the service. One reason that Home Banking has not been a successful product is because the customer cannot deposit and withdraw money as needed in this type of system
  • Cu ⁇ ent EFT systems credit cards, or debit cards, which are used m conjunction with an on-lme system to transfer money between accounts, such as between the account of a merchant and that of a customer, cannot satisfy the need for an automated transaction system providing an ergonomic interface.
  • the more well known techniques include magnetic st ⁇ pe cards purchased for a given amount and from which a prepaid value can be deducted for specific purposes Upon exhaustion of the economic value, the cards are thrown away.
  • Other examples include memory cards or so called smart cards which are capable of repetitively storing information representing value that is likewise deducted for specific purposes.
  • a computer operated under the control of a merchant it is desirable for a computer operated under the control of a merchant to obtain information offered by a customer and transmitted by a computer operating under the control of the customer over a publicly accessible packet-switched network (e.g., the internet) to the computer operating under the control of the merchant, without risking the exposure of the information to interception by third parties that have access to the network, and to assure that the information is from an authentic source. It is further desirable for the merchant to transmit information, including a subset of the information provided by the customer, over such a network to a payment gateway computer system that is designated, by a bank or other financial institution that has the responsibility of providing payment on behalf of the customer, to authorize a commercial transaction on behalf of such a financial institution, without the risk of exposing that information to interception by third parties.
  • Such institutions include, for example, financial institutions offering credit or debit card services.
  • Such secure payment technologies include the industry' standard Secure Electronic Transactions (SET) protocol recently announced by Visa, MasterCard and their technology partners, including Microsoft.
  • Other secure payment technologies include Secure Transaction Technology (“STT”),
  • SEPP Secure Electronic Payments Protocol
  • IKP internet Keyed Payments
  • Net Trust Net Trust
  • Cybercash Credit Payment Protocol a secure payment technology that can be substituted for the SET protocol without undue experimentation.
  • Such secure payment technologies require the customer to operate software that is compliant with the secure payment technology, interacting with third-party certification authorities, thereby allowing the customer to transmit encoded information to a merchant, some of which may be decoded by the merchant, and some which can be decoded only by a payment gateway specified by the customer.
  • SSL Secure Sockets Layer
  • SSL has the advantage that it does not require special- purpose software to be installed on the customer's computer because it is already incorporated into widely available software that many people utilize as their standard internet access medium, and does not require that the customer interact with any third-party certification autho ⁇ ty Instead, the support for SSL may be incorporated into software already m use by the customer, e g , the Netscape Navigator World Wide Web browsing tool
  • a computer on an SSL connection may initiate a second SSL connection to another computer, a drawback to the
  • SSL secure Sockets Layer
  • PCT Peripheral Component Interconnect
  • SSL Secure Hyper-Text Transport Protocol
  • PTP Pretty Good Pnvacy
  • Point of Sale (POS) terminal que ⁇ es a user for data and subsequently displays the data
  • vanous vertical market segments such as hotels, car rental agencies, restaurants, retail sales, mail sales/telephone sales require interfaces for different types of data to be entered, and provide different discount rates to merchants for complying with vanous data types
  • report generation mechanisms and formats are utilized by merchants that banking organizations work with
  • Banks are unwilling to converge on "standards" since convergence would facilitate switching from one acqumng bank to another by merchants
  • banks desire to increase the cost that a merchant incurs in switching from one acqui ⁇ ng bank to another acqumng bank This is accomplished by supplying a merchant with a terminal that only communicates utilizing the bank's prop ⁇ etary protocol, and by providing other value-added services that a merchant may not be able to obtain at another bank.
  • the cu ⁇ ent state-of-the-art in Internet based payment processing is a protocol refe ⁇ ed to as SET. Since the SET messages are uniform across all implementations, banks cannot differentiate themselves in any reasonable way. Also, since SET is not a proper superset of all protocols utilized today, there are bank protocols which cannot be mapped or translated into SET because they require data elements for which SET has no placeholder. Further, SET only handles the message types directly related to authorizing and captu ⁇ ng credit card transactions and adjustments to these authonzations or captures. In a typical POS terminal in the physical world, these messages comp ⁇ se almost the entire volume of the total number of messages between the merchant and the authonzmg bank, but only half of the total number of different message types. These message types, which are used infrequently, but which are cntical to the operation of the POS terminal must be suppo ⁇ ed for proper transaction processing
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse may either send a software decryptron key (or provide some other mechanism to allow customer to decrypt) to a customer or decrypt the software before upload to the customer.
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse should maintain a secure list of valid software decryption key capable of unlocking all encrypted software and include the customers to which keys are sent.
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse may wait for a request for the decryption key from a customer or from a reseller who sold the encrypted software. Before or after sending the key, the clea ⁇ nghouse reports the transaction to the publisher
  • MIME multipurpose internet mail extensions
  • MIME is a set of specifications that provides a way to interchange text with different character sets.
  • MIME also allows the sending of multi-media e-mail.
  • MIME allows e- mail messages to contain images, sounds, character sets other than US-ASCII, enriched text, other messages (reliably encapsulated), tar files. PostScript, and pointers to FTPable files, among other things.
  • the key to unlock that archive must not be sent during the same session. It should be sent over a different communication method to the customer. For example e-mail, fax, or telephone.
  • the basic concept here is to prevent a casual hacker from being able to get both the lockbox and the key to that box without a lot of effort.
  • any of the digital transport methods may be used or any other communication device including e-mail, telephone, fax, or pager.
  • a proof of purchase receipt is downloaded to the customer's computer.
  • the customer may be provided a means by which to save receipt on their computer.
  • a software publishers certificate may be provided to customer to verify authenticity of downloaded software (if deemed necessary by the publisher).
  • the channel must provide the customer an unalterable proof of purchase document. This may be in the form of a digitally signed receipt document which is sent by e-mail to the customer.
  • the general requirement is that the customer must receive something from the channel which proves they purchased the product, but cannot be altered by them (without detection) so other channel partners have confidence m its authenticity
  • a replacement mechanism may be provided m order to handle the situation where a back-up copy is required
  • the decryption key may be used for this purpose
  • the software must be unpacked or decompressed
  • One example would be to seamlessly run a software's 'set-up' process to complete a software installation.
  • a daily transaction report reflecting all product orders and returns is produced, as are audit trail reports. Other pubhsher-defined reports may also be produced.
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse would receive notice of the return from reseller and validate that the product has been or is being returned.
  • One way to validate that the product has been returned is to require the user to provide both a proof-of-purchase and signed letter of software destruction before the cleannghouse can process the return.
  • the proof of purchase can be easily ve ⁇ fied as authentic if it was of the unalterable type set forth above
  • a senal number on the proof of purchase and name of the user can be compared to sales records
  • Signed means a document authenticated by its author m a non-repudiatable manner For example, a wet ink manual signature on a piece of paper is a signed document
  • Another example is a digital message signed by a public key certificate issued by a recognized certificate autho ⁇ ty Another way to validate that the product has been returned would be to actually connect with the customer's computer and remove a vital portion of the program making it unusable, or deleting the entire program altogether
  • a value is placed on the return For example, if the software is returned before a decryption key is sent to the customer, a full refund may be given If the customer has used the software for more than a predetermined penod, only a partial refund may be given or no refund at all
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse will have full ESD customer level transaction data and will report this by channel partner to the publisher on a pe ⁇ odic basis such as hourly, daily, weekly or monthly basis This pe ⁇ odic report will be checked against the channel purchase orders to ensure that the channel is reporting all transactions properly
  • the clea ⁇ nghouse may also report customer information, such as the customer's profile, that was collected as part of the transaction, to the software publisher
  • the publisher 500 can perform any or all ESD channel partner 502 functions. Since there is no longer a one-to-one relationship between the number of units shipped by the publisher and the number of units sold or returned, or in channel consignment inventory in an ESD system, then the publishers face a risk of under-reporting of sales.
  • ProdigyTM a company must have a large mainframe computer and customized software. Developing the customized software requires a competent programming staff and a good deal of time. Most companies do not have the resources required to develop such systems, and thus cannot easily develop and maintain an online presence.
  • the global Internet is a network of computer networks that links together millions of computer systems using the well defined TCP/IP protocol.
  • a browser program retrieves the formatted info ⁇ nation and provides the info ⁇ uation in an appropriate manner to the user. For example, the client browser program displays graphical image information as images on the user's graphical display screen; plays video information as video animation on the user's graphical display screen; displays text information as text on the user's screen; and plays sound samples using the speakers on the user's computer system.
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer one popular client browser program, is widely available to the users of the global Internet.
  • An internet site can display images, text, animation, and sounds that provide information about the compan;.. Furthermore, internet sites can be implemented on relatively simple computer systems, including personal computers.
  • a company can deploy a HTTP server that is available to customers through dial-up phone service.
  • a dial-up HTTP server would be accessible to customers and clients that do not have Internet access.
  • any organization or corporation can create an online presence.
  • HTTP server software without any additional programming, is very limited.
  • an HTTP server cannot accommodate complex transactions between a user and the HTTP server or integrate a database system into an online service.
  • custom extensions are difficult to write except by experienced programmers.
  • the Information Exchange Facility (IEF) general development tool which is available from Texas Instruments, is used by professional programmers to develop application programs.
  • IEEE Information Exchange Facility
  • IEF provides a facility that allows a programmer to write "pseudo code” and IEF generates an intermediate source code program in a high level programming language (such as COBOL or C code) based on the "pseudo code".
  • IEF is an example of what will be refe ⁇ ed to herein as a "general potpose development tool" because it allows development of programs for essentially any memepose or application dependent on the input provided by the programmer.
  • Access I M database program available from Microsoft.
  • the Access 1 M database allows end users to develop sophisticated database applications which would have been developed by professional programmers a few years ago.
  • the Access I NI database is but one example of a special purpose development tool.
  • the Application Development Environment of Lotus Notes provides features which are said to allow for rapid development of w orkgroup applications such as sharing of documents between users over a network.
  • Lotus Notes and. thus, its Application Development Environment is directed at sharing of documents among persons in an authorized work group.
  • the Lotus Notes Application Development Environment provides for such features as (i) application design templates which are said to allow sophisticated applications to be built by customizing pre-built applications such as document libraries, fo ⁇ n-based approval systems, project tracking applications and status reporting systems; (ii) security; (iii) database access; and (iv) discussion groups.
  • a company may issue a recall on some code which has been distributed in the channel. Or as part of an upgrade process, may offer to take back a prior version inventory in the channel. This is a complicated and expensive process when dealing with boxes, but quite simple in the ESD model.
  • the channel does not pre-purchase inventory for ESD.
  • the software masters are not useable until the rights are sold with them.
  • To make an ESD software master obsolete in the ESD channel can be done by simply setting a flag in the rights database at the authorized clearinghouse to obsolete. When someone tries to unlock or purchase the rights for an obsolete version, they should be directed to the current one. The channel will not have anything to return to the company.
  • Customer support may be provided to customers via phone, email and fax, for example.
  • Customer support should include (but not limited to) helping customers with: problems with software download; problems with decryption/unpacking processes; problems with software setup; procedural questions (including instructions for downloading and/or returning software). Feedback should be provided to the customer on any potential delays with a software purchase. Customer support may also manage customer relationships Managing customer relationships includes receiving customer feedback Software publishers and channel partners can use customer feedback to improve the products and services over time
  • the customer support features are supported by an internet/intranet application to assist in solving many of the problems encountered by both customers and the customer support organization itself
  • the customer support application provides a mechanism with which companies can utilize servers to establish an internal or external Web-based customer support function
  • the customer interface is based on the premise of self-navigation Customers can visit the site and find answers to their support problems through searches of the knowledge base and
  • FAQs Frequently Asked Questions
  • This application reduces the time and expenses associated with direct contact with a call center phone representative As more organizations enable their employees to access the Internet and their own corporate Intranets, the benefits of a Web based support application increases
  • the support application can be used for both internal and external customer support, alleviating much of the strain on both internal and external support/helpdesk organizations.
  • the customer support application features include
  • Administrative support to set access p ⁇ vileges • Administrative ability to create and modify products and related links, que ⁇ es, etc
  • the customer support application aids customers m answe ⁇ ng their support questions by providing answers immediately online or by allowing the customer to submit comments or incidents directly to the product support database. This is accomplished by providing personalized access and navigation to different data sources, including, chat, news, mail, and a search engine.
  • the customer support application is focused on three main entities: the customer, the support representative and the site administrator. Key features to be provided for each of these entities are described below.
  • Personalization allows customers to set up their own support profile containing product and service information.
  • the personalization will allow the customer to access the customer support content without having to search through all of the products or services offered by the company.
  • a customer When a customer first visits the customer support site, the customer will be presented a choice of products and services to help build the customer's personal profile Subsequent visits to the customer support site will be granted based on the identity of the customer
  • the personalized customer support page is dynamically built based on the previously entered personal profile
  • the personalization component is used to further aid the navigation of the other data sources mail, chat, news, context-specific browsing and a full text search
  • the personalized "Home" support page contains announcements pertaining to the products the customer has identified in his personal profile
  • the announcement section also contains general information from the support organization intended for all customers When a customer selects an individual product for support, the announcement section will be updated to include announcements specific to that product
  • Context searching through the FAQ data source provides the customer additional navigational assistance in finding an answer to their problem Rather than presenting the customer with a blank prompt box and hoping they enter the co ⁇ ect search cntena, navigational assistance guides the customer to the co ⁇ ect answer by allowing the customer to select from predefined search que ⁇ es
  • a customer may have set Microsoft Excel as a product of interest within their personalization profile
  • a list of Excel topics (P ⁇ ntmg, Formatting, Saving) may appear that are only applicable to the cu ⁇ ent product
  • the relationship between the product and the available sub-topics and que ⁇ es for that product is built as a site administrator function
  • the relationship is available withm the context of a certain product
  • the site administrator places a link to the approp ⁇ ate FAQ data source Not all support sites will have FAQs
  • a customer may utilize his web browser to browse FAQs
  • a full text search function is provided as an aid to more advanced customers who are familiar with the terminology and the exact content they are seeking Upon ente ⁇ ng the desired search text, this information is passed to a search engine and links are returned to the approp ⁇ ate documents This is accessible from the home, or top level of the site Search tips will also be provided to assist with building the search query statement
  • the site administrator places a link to the approp ⁇ ate knowledge base (database, HTML, or documents) Not all support sites will have a knowledge base search function
  • the product support function will allow the customer to submit an incident (e g : issue, bug, comment, or request) to the product support database.
  • incident e g : issue, bug, comment, or request
  • an incident form is automatically provided for submitting comments or issues.
  • the information collected on this form is captured in the incident database for review by a support representative as well as for archival purposes.
  • Customers are presented with instructions for accessing the other options and solutions available for answe ⁇ ng their questions before the incident form s- displayed
  • the incident form contams customer information (name, address, e-mail address) defaulted from the customer's profile and with the specific product selected before amving at the support page
  • the view is generated from the incident database. Customers will see the incident number, descnption, status, resolution type and whether e-mail was sent to the customer by a support representative The oldest incident to be displayed will be determined by the site administrator. Default time values may be selected by the site administrator.
  • Chats The customers may be provided access to chat forums Chat forums may be open peer-to-peer interactions, or be hosted by a particular product group, allowing focused discussions at particular times, such as du ⁇ ng "office hours". Chats provide an interactive forum to enable customers to help themselves, creating a self-help community of knowledgeable customers. When the chat area is accessed from the top level of the site, general support chats are available When accessed from within the context of a product, forums approp ⁇ ate for that product are available.
  • the customer support application provides instructions for accessing the chat using the customer's own browser. This information also includes the chat server and chat channel names The application also displays available chat desc ⁇ ptions, names, and active customers participating in the chat The site administrator creates the chats and chat links Not all support sites will have a chat function
  • Newsgroups Customers can access newsgroups available for the product profile they have chosen For example, if a customer has selected Microsoft Excel m their profile, accessing the Newsgroups area generates a list of newsgroups approp ⁇ ate for Excel When the Newsgroup area is accessed from the top level of the site, all available general newsgroups will be listed
  • the customer interface for the customer area is based on a frame format 1200 shown m Figure 12 A specific implementation of a customer interface 1300 is shown in Figure 13 A plurality of frame desc ⁇ ptions will now be set forth
  • a navigation frame 1202 contains the general site navigation controls, links and any products selected in the customer profile General links include
  • a mam result frame 1204 may contain the results from knowledge base or FAQ searches, chat, online forms, site announcements, and generally the result of any function selected from the navigation or function frames
  • the functions frame 1206 contains links to different functions depending on the cu ⁇ ent context chosen in the navigation frame If 'Home' is selected in the navigation frame, the approp ⁇ ate functions are available in the functions frame, such as News and Chat If a specific product is chosen from the navigation frame, function links for Browse FAQ, News Chat, and Product Support (email) are available Several pages may be provided to assist the customer's use of the customer support features Exemplary pages include
  • a form appears asking them to enter profile information This includes name, address, city, state, zip, country, company, phone, email, products, etc This form appears in a mam result frame The customer clicks a button to submit the profile information and proceeds to the now customized Home page
  • first time customers are presented with first time customer announcements 1302
  • Return customers are presented with general site announcements and links to customized content for their chosen products
  • Site announcements appear in the main results frame, and the product links are appended to the list in the navigation frame Selecting a product link generates product specific announcements and updates the functions frame with any new available functions
  • search Knowledge Base A search prompt box appears in navigation frame, in addition to any appropnate links including
  • search Tips After entenng search cntena, search results are displayed in the main result frame The customer can click on a document link to view the knowledge base article
  • the profile function allows the customer to change their previously defined profile This would allow the customers to change their name, address, city, state, zip, country, company, phone, e- mail and products selected The customer would then click on a button to submit the profile information and proceed back to the Home page
  • Previously submitted incidents can be viewed by the customer under this function It contains a list of incidents along with the cu ⁇ ent status, resolution and whether an email has been sent
  • General News Available newsgroups appear in the main result frame Selecting a newsgroup link launches the customers default newsreader to access the selected newsgroup.
  • Newsgroups may be moderated or general and there are no secunty restnctions on accessing newsgroups.
  • a link is provided to access a download area where a newsreader can be obtained if necessary.
  • a customer may join or create a chat forum appeanng in the main results frame
  • the chat name, descnption and cu ⁇ ent number of customers is displayed for all cu ⁇ ent chats. Chats may be unmoderated for discussion among anyone who joins, or hosted for a specific reason, where a moderated discussion takes place. A list of upcoming featured or sponsored chats is available
  • Hot topics appear m the mam frame when a product is chosen. It can contain late breaking product news and information. The functions frame at the bottom of the screen also changes to display product specific choices.
  • the browse FAQs function is only available after a customer has selected one of their products from the navigation frame on the Home page.
  • a sub frame is created containing sub topics approp ⁇ ate for the selected product.
  • These sub-topics are stored m the database, and the relationship between these topics and the selected product are entered as a site administrator function. Selecting one of these sub topics que ⁇ es the FAQ index of the search engine and returns a list of applicable documents. The customer can click on a document link to view the FAQ
  • These documents can be in text, HTML or any computer format.
  • Selecting a newsgroup link launches the customer's default newsreader to access the selected product newsgroups Newsgroups may be moderated or general and there are no secunty restnctions on accessing newsgroups. A link is provided to access a download area where a newsreader can be obtained if necessary.
  • a customer may join or create a product chat forum appeanng in the main results frame
  • the chat name, desc ⁇ ption and cu ⁇ ent number of customers is displayed for all cu ⁇ ent product related chats Chats may be unmoderated for discussion among anyone who joins, or hosted for a specific reason, where a moderated discussion takes place
  • a list of upcoming featured or sponsored chats is available
  • the customer can access the Product Support area from the link m the functions frame The customer can access a form to send in an incident report The data on this form will be captured in a database
  • the support representative can view all submitted incidents sorted by status Another view shows all incidents sorted by status assigned to the support representative
  • the incident will contain the descnption, the support representative assigned to the incident, status, resolution type (bug fix, can't duplicate, etc ), and a field stating whether email was sent to the customer
  • Update Incident Status and Resolution Support representatives will be able to update the status, resolution type, or email sent fields of incidents assigned to them. Updates made from the Web site will be reflected in the incident database. Text resolutions may also be sent to the customer in e-mail and not maintained in the incident database. All incident changes will be customer viewable.
  • the support representative will be able to send an e-mail response to a customer's incident.
  • the support representative will be able to participate in product support chats through the Customer URL
  • Incidents for the current support representative can be viewed, or all incidents can be viewed, by current order status.
  • the list box controls to select the co ⁇ ect view are in the function controls frame and the results appear in the main results frame.
  • the incident name, brief description, status and email address of the customer who submitted the incident are displayed.
  • Each incident in the view incidents result list displays the cu ⁇ ent status in a list box.
  • the support representative can select a new status from this box and save the changes. Saving will update the view list.
  • a resolution can be chosen from a predefined list for a specific incident. This resolution is saved to the database and the list is refreshed to reflect this new resolution.
  • the main results frame contains a list of cu ⁇ ent site products and controls to modify or delete existing products
  • a link is provided to add new products
  • the function controls frame contains controls to access product maintenance, if necessary
  • the site administrator can select a limited number of general site features from this page This includes site colors, fonts, images, headers, footers, links and other features of the general site Secunty Access
  • the site administrator and support representative access secunty can be maintained using the built-in secunty features of an operating system such as Microsoft Windows NT (NT)
  • an operating system such as Microsoft Windows NT (NT)
  • Another option is to use the MCIS Membership System A link to HTML pages descnbing how to administer access levels and groups in the is also provided
  • the browse FAQs feature requires a relationship to be built between each available product and the sub topics for this product.
  • a web form will allow the site administrator to create new sub- topics and associate these sub-topics with the approp ⁇ ate product List boxes will contain available products and sub-topics from which the administrator can select to create and delete associations
  • va ⁇ ous service documents 1407 are afforded including search, newsgroup, and chatroom service documents 1408, 1410, and 1412, respectively Also included is a change personal setting document 1414 and a view incident status document 1416.
  • a product may be selected via document 1418 By this feature, a product specific topic page 1420", browse topic page 1422, product specific newsgroup page 1424, product specific chat page 1426, and product incident submission page 1428 is available
  • Figure 15 illustrates support representative and site administrator operations
  • a support representative may view incidents via a document 1500 and further issue details (change status) via document 1502.
  • resolution mail may be sent via page 1504 and issue details (res lu i n ⁇ may be issued via document 1506
  • issue details res lu i n ⁇ may be issued via document 1506
  • capabilities of a site administrator As shown, products may be added and deleted via document 1508 Products may also be modified via document 1510
  • Service to Resellers - Customer payments may be processed in the following manner provide a customer the ability to enter billing information, interface with a credit card clea ⁇ nghouse, allow the customer to proceed with the software download (if credit card is valid) Other services include designing, building and operating reseller storefronts A customer support center may be operated for resellers Also provided may be integration with back-end systems • Service to Distributors - The clea ⁇ nghouse may fulfill a reseller's order in the following manner send credit information for ve ⁇ fication, assume reseller credit nsk, prepare invoice, bill reseller, process payments, post payments to reseller accounts, prepare and dist ⁇ bute receipt a receipt to the customer and reseller Second tier channel support may also be provided Software fulfillment can be provided, as may integration with back-end systems
  • Figure 16 is an illustration of one embodiment of the present invention in which a selected number of the foregoing features are employed to establish the cleannghouse
  • the selection of such features is based on how the clea ⁇ nghouse is desired to be structured
  • Examples of frameworks mclude the selection of activities based on publisher requirements 1600, enterpnse requirements 1602, and value-added opportunities 1604
  • Such features are as follows
  • EULA End User License Agreement
  • EULA End User License Agreement
  • Figure 17 illustrates a modification to the previous embodiment of Figure 16
  • the features of the embodiment of Figure 16 are included in addition to the following capabilities
  • Figure 18 illustrates a modification to the previous embodiment of Figure 17.
  • the features of the embodiment of Figure 17 are included in addition to the following capabilities:
  • Such example involves a customer, a reseller' s virtual storefront, a credit card clearinghouse, and a ESD clearinghouse.
  • a customer logs onto the reseller ' s storefront and thereafter chooses software to purchase.
  • the reseller's storefront then responds by sending the customer a price quote.
  • the customer downloads the software from the ESD clearinghouse.
  • the customer interfaces the credit card clearinghouse by running the downloaded software and "wrapper". Payment information is then sent to the credit card clearinghouse.
  • the ESD clearinghouse then sends the customer a end user license agreement the terms of which must be accepted. If accepted, a proof-of-purchase is sent to the customer by the ESD clearinghouse.
  • the software is decrypted and decompressed after which standard setup procedures are run.
  • a consumer profile is created from input about the consumer.
  • the consumer profile is preferably created in a manner that predicts a consumer's buying tendencies.
  • the virtual shopping environment is tailored automatically based on the consumer profile.
  • This profile may be developed from many sources including consumer input, consumer search requests, consumer buying habits, consumer income level, consumer searching habits, consumer profession, consumer education level, consumer ' s purpose of the pending sale, consumer ' s shopping habits, products-purchased and returned, reasons for returning products, etc.
  • Such information may be taken from indicia input directly by the consumer, captured as a consumer uses the network, and may be downloaded periodically from a consumer's system.
  • Figure 19 illustrates one method for developing a consumer profile as set forth hereinabove. especially in reference to the customer support interface.
  • consumer info ⁇ nation such as search requests, shopping events, and browsing habits may be collected by the system or by the consumer's computer for periodic download to the system. All of the consumer information would be placed in a database in operation 1921 for retrieval when necessary.
  • a consumer's buying pattern for a particular type of item can be readily estimated with relative surety in operation 1922 each time a consumer uses the system.
  • the consumer ' s cu ⁇ ent activities can be logged and entered into the database in operation 1923. thereby ensuring up to the minute accuracy.
  • Figure 20 illustrates yet another embodiment of the present invention in which the profile information is used in a varied manner.
  • a consumer profile is developed in operation 2010.
  • the consumer profile may be created based on consumer indicia input by the consumer.
  • Such consumer indicia may include any of search requests, products purchased, products looked at but not purchased, products purchased and returned, reasons for returning products, consumer stated profile including income level, education level, stated profession, etc. as well as preferences and requirements of the consumer, hi operation 2011, of Figure 20, an item for purchase with a set of features is selected based on the consumer profile and is displayed.
  • the item may be selected from a group of items having characteristics that corresponds to a predicted buying pattern of the consumer.
  • the presentation of the set of features is customized based on the consumer profile in operation 2012.
  • the profile may also include additional information such as the billing address of the customer's credit card. This address could be utilized to identify the location of the customer for tax and shipping calculations. Other methods such as customer input and automatic identification, electronic signatures, electronic fingerprints, retinal scans and other similar identification methods could be collected in the customer profile and utilized to identify the customer and the customer's location.
  • Figure 21 illustrates the structure and manufacture of one embodiment of a packaged digital product 2110.
  • a "storefront" program 2110a is directly executable on a personal computer.
  • Program 2110a detailed by flow chart in Figures 21 and 22, allows a user-consumer opportunity to review information and demonstration programs relative to the actual digital product available for purchase.
  • a merchant/product data table 2110b contains information specific to the digital product available for purchase and the co ⁇ esponding merchant. As described more fully hereafter, table 2110b allows program 2110a to verify the content of the digital product available for purchase.
  • digital product 2110c contains an encrypted and compressed form of the actual digital product, i.e., a version unusable without a unlock key.
  • a packager 2108 application builds a packaged digital product 2110 from a variety of source material and uses compression function 2108b and encryption function 2108c to produce the final compressed and encrypted digital product 2110c.
  • Digital product 2110c originates as a collection of files 2160 executable and/or usable on the personal computer.
  • a merchant also provides files 2162 comprising digital logos, product information, and other forms of marketing materials for use in presentation to the user-consumer during execution of the storefront executable file 2110a.
  • Text files 2164 provide additional information to the user-consumer during execution of the storefront executable 2110a.
  • the storefront executable 2110a is taken by packager 2108 for incorporation into the packaged digital product 2110 Du ⁇ ng execution of packager 2108 application 2108a, an operator, merchant or vendor manually enters additional information concerning the particular digital product 2110c available for purchase, e g , general product information, SKUs, p ⁇ cmg, distnbution/reseller identifiers and information, merchant data, product platforms, types of credit cards accepted, and a vanety of other information characte ⁇ zmg the particular digital product 2110c available for purchase
  • packager 2108 application 2108a takes files 2160, 2162, 2164, and 2110a, and takes the operator input to produce as its output the final packaged digital product 2110
  • This packager 2108 output, l e , the packaged digital product 2110 is then mass produced by copying onto a vanety of dist ⁇ bution platforms, e g , CD ROMs, dist ⁇ bution diskettes, posting on bulletin boards, arrd-p ⁇ stmg on Internet sites
  • the user-consumers obtain copies of digital products 2110 and execute the packaged digital products 2110 on their personal computers for use thereon
  • the final packaged digital product 2110 may be distnubbed across a wide vanety of platforms, e g , dist ⁇ bution diskettes, CD ROM, bulletin board posting, and Internet availability.
  • Figure 22 illustrates by flow chart execution of a packaged digital product 2110 on the personal computer Beginning at block 2200 in Figure 22, portion 2110a of product 2110 is loaded and execution begins In block 2202, portion 2110b of product 2110 is read and compared to portion 2110c
  • the merchant/product data table 2110b must accurately desc ⁇ be the content of portion 2110c For example, the number of files, file sizes, check sum values, and a vanety of other aspects of portion 2110c must co ⁇ espond to the desc ⁇ ption provided in table 2110b This prevents delivery of a corrupted form of the digital product
  • decision block 2204 if the validity check shows corruption or viral infection, then processing branches through block 2206, where the user consumer receives a "corrupt file" message indicating inability to unpackage the product, and processing terminates Otherwise, a positive validity check advances processing from decision block 2204 to decision block 2208
  • the computer presents the user-consumer with a storefront screen display For example, the publishing merchant logo and associated information concerning the digital product available for purchase may be displayed Further, the user is given options at this point regarding the review and purchasing steps associated with the digital product available for purchase
  • the storefront display includes user input opportunities, e.g., mouse-activated buttons, to drive the program.
  • the computer scans for user input, e.g., scans for activation of one of the mouse-activated buttons.
  • Decision blocks 2212, 2214, 2216, and 2218 represent user selected options regarding presentation of demonstration programs, presentation of information screens, execution of purchase or point of sale programming, and a cancel option, respectively.
  • POS point of sale
  • FIG.23- illustrates in more detail the point of sale (POS) programming represented in block 2224 of Figure 22.
  • processing begins in block 2230 where the computer displays the credit cards accepted.
  • the computer prompts the user-consumer for a credit card number, expiration date, and holder name.
  • the computer reads the user input, i.e., reads the credit card information provided by the user-consumer.
  • the computer performs an LUHN check on the credit card number provided.
  • a valid credit card number will conform to this preliminary test, i.e., have an appropriate MOD 10 result when applied to the LUHN check. If the credit card number fails the LUHN check, then processing terminates at decision block 2238. Otherwise, processing advances to block 2240 where the computer obtains an "electronic signature" from the user-consumer. At this point, the computer prompts for purchase confirmation including the purchase price and a final opportunity to decline purchase. If the user does not agree to the purchase, then processing terminates following decision block 2242, otherwise processing advances to block 2244.
  • the computer dials out to the credit card processor server in the direct, private, one-to-one telephone connection.
  • the computer in block 2246 sends the merchant ED, product ED, purchase price, credit card number, expiration date, holder name, and any other required transaction data to the credit card processor server.
  • the credit card processor server interacts directly with the credit card bank network. If the transaction is not confirmed by the credit card processor server, then processing branches at decision block 2248 and terminates. Otherwise, processing advances to block 2250 where the computer receives from the credit card processor server the unlock key needed to "unpackage" the digital product stored in portion 2110c of digital product 2110.
  • the computer recalculates the unlock key to verify accuracy and also confirms to the credit card processor server delivery of the unlock key. Processing then advances to block 2254 where the computer delivers the digital product, i.e., decompresses and decrypts portion 2110c of packaged digital product 2110. A usable version of the digital product purchased is thereby copied onto the personal computer.
  • the user-consumer has successfully received a working version of the digital product purchased.
  • the merchant need not be involved in the purchase step, but has knowledge of the purchase by virtue of being credited the purchase price in the credit card bank network.
  • Figure 24 illustrates programming activity at the credit card processor server.
  • processing begins in block 2300 where the credit card processor server receives a call from a personal computer executing a packaged digital product 2110. This step co ⁇ esponds to block 2244 of Figure 23.
  • the server validates the call in block 2302 invalid, i.e., not originating from a packaged digital products 2110, then processing branches at decision block 2304 and terminates. Otherwise, in block 2306 the server receives transaction data. More particularly, the server receives the data sent in block 2246 of Figure 23.
  • the server accesses a merchant data base (not shown) and compares the received merchant ID with a list of merchants registered for activity on system.
  • processing branches at decision block 2310 and terminates. Otherwise, processing advances to block 2312 where the processor server validates the transaction type. An invalid transaction type causes termination at decision block 2314, otherwise the credit card processor server processes the credit card data in block 2316. More particularly, credit card processor server interacts with a bank network to accomplish a credit/debit transaction in the network debiting the user-consumer and crediting the identified publishing merchant. If, for some reason, the credit card transaction is not authorized, then processing branches at decision block 2318 and terminates. Otherwise, the server confirms to the personal computer the credit card transaction in block 2320. This step co ⁇ esponds to block 2248 in Figure 23.
  • the credit card processor server generates the unlock key required to make available the digital product selected for purchase
  • a server records the credit card transaction and delivers the unlock key to a personal computer, respectively If the computer confirms delivery of the unlock key, as indicated in block 2328 of Figure 23, then processing terminates Otherwise, the credit card processor server executes blocks 2340 and 2342 where the credit card transaction is deleted and a failed transaction is recorded, respectively
  • the computer and credit card processor server interact automatically and directly to accomplish a credit/debit transaction without providing sensitive credit card data to any entity other than the credit card bank network
  • the publishing merchant need not be involved in the purchase and delivery steps
  • User-consumer need only enter his or her credit card information, and- watt briefly, e , approximately one minute, while the automated transaction between the computer and server occurs Following this b ⁇ ef interaction, a useable form of the digital product is made available to the user-consumer
  • the time required to decrypt and decompress the purchased digital product depends on the size and compression technology used, but only several minutes are typically needed to deliver the digital product to the user-consumer Accordingly, once the user-consumer decides to purchase a digital product and initiates the purchase step, the digital product is available for use withm a very short time span Further, the user-consumer need not interact with any other person, e g , an operator, nor manipulate complex encryption keys to make use of the purchased digital product The user-consumer gets virtually instantaneous
  • the Autho ⁇ zed Cleannghouse provides trusted services to all the software publishers and channel partners which enable two key components of the ESD model, the secure electronic packaging and the End User License Agreement (EULA) management and authentication These functions may be managed by an impartial third party who is motivated and rewarded for accurate counting and enabling of the ESD market in general These functions are the "Federal Reserve Bank" functions of ESD similar to the ASCAP or BMI type functions from the music industry
  • the cleannghouses may perform trust functions that could create conflict of interest questions if they were managed by a software publisher or traditional dist ⁇ bution channel partner Financial institutions, as time-tested suppliers of trust in traditional commerce, are in a strong position to provide the trust missing on the Internet.
  • GTO Global Trust Organization
  • the GTO is expected to be operational in late 1999 or early 2000.
  • These financial Institutions are adopting a set of common ground rules to equalize digital signatures and certificates around the world to ensure that a certificate issued by Deutsche Bank has the same baseline meaning and function as a Chase Manhattan-issued certificate.
  • Digital certificates bind identities to digital signatures through cryptography.
  • Digital signatures, generated through cryptography are contractually binding in much of the world, and can certify that a communication originated with a particular individual, and that the transaction took place.
  • Digitally signed communications bind trading partners to their actions without them having to exchange physical objects, such as contracts with handwritten signatures.
  • the GTO's eight founding financial institutions will compose the root certificate authority (CA).
  • the GTO root CA will certify financial institutions around the world as GTO members. These certified financial institutions will, in turn, issue digital certificates around the world under the GTO name. GTO electronic identities, recognizable globally, will let customers authenticate and identify themselves to any trading partner.
  • the GTO is an interoperable system for global identity trust, based on common business practices, system rules, and technical interoperability specifications-guidelines that standardize GTO electronic identities. Regardless of the issuer, a GTO identity will work anywhere, on any standard computer. Businesses won't need to depend on a single technology vendor or single certificate issuer.
  • the organization is sponsored by a global network of financial institutions to provide an extensive network of e-commerce-ready businesses that use a common risk management framework. As more financial institutions and their corporate clients join the organization, its network of known identities will expand.
  • the organization provides a single, simple user identity solution to identify any participating user or compliant e-commerce application.
  • The- GTO will provide high trust to e-commercc by extending financial institutions' traditional role of identifying customers to the electronic world. Financial institutions in the organization will stand behind issued identities, provide recourse for any parties who incur losses because of a problematic identification, and provide a dispute resolution and claims processing process. This is similar to the process that makes credit cards work globally.
  • Consistent contracts among all members of the GTO bind users to the messages they digitally sign. Contractually binding digital signatures are essential for e-commerce to thrive, and policy makers- can support this environment by recognizing digital signatures to be as legally binding as a handwritten signature.
  • Governments should protect the rights of GTO participants by overseeing financial institutions in e- commerce as they do cu ⁇ ent bank regulatory environments. This oversight will occur through the existing international bank regulatory infrastructure.
  • Governments can enable financial institutions and their customers to enter freely into contracts, such as those that govern loss recovery stemming from system use. This freedom of contract preserves a trading partner's right to select the amount of risk they wish to incur just as they do in traditional business environments.
  • PKI public key infrastructure
  • va ⁇ ous embodiments have been desc ⁇ bed above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. Thus, the breadth and scope of a prefe ⁇ ed embodiment should not be limited by any of the above desc ⁇ bed exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents.

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  • Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
  • Multimedia (AREA)
  • Technology Law (AREA)
  • Computer Hardware Design (AREA)
  • Computer Security & Cryptography (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
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Abstract

L'invention concerne un système, un procédé et un article de fabrication permettant de générer un droit d'utilisation d'un logiciel distribué électroniquement sur un réseau. Un utilisateur est d'abord invité à entrer une entrée utilisateur associée audit utilisateur. Puis l'entrée utilisateur est reçue sur le réseau, l'utilisateur étant ensuite autorisé à sélectionner un logiciel sur ledit réseau. Le logiciel sélectionné est téléchargé sur le réseau, et un droit d'utilisation est généré à l'aide de l'entrée utilisateur. Ce droit d'utilisation est ensuite téléchargé sur le réseau. Lors de la réception d'une acceptation du doit d'utilisation sur le réseau, cette acceptation est stockée et signalée à une source du logiciel.
PCT/US2000/018049 1999-06-30 2000-06-29 Systeme, procede, et article fabrication permettant de generer automatiquement un droit d'utilisation personnalise WO2001001225A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU57812/00A AU5781200A (en) 1999-06-30 2000-06-29 A system, method and article of manufacture for automatically generating a tailored license agreement

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

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US34348999A 1999-06-30 1999-06-30
US09/343,489 1999-06-30

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Cited By (4)

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2007116246A1 (fr) * 2006-04-07 2007-10-18 Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications Ab Activation de logiciel dans un terminal mobile
NL1032244C2 (nl) * 2006-07-28 2008-01-29 Sharewire B V Werkwijze, computerprogramma, computerprogrammaproduct en inrichting voor het vanaf ten minste één server via een datanetwerk laden van software.
EP1470728A4 (fr) * 2002-01-31 2010-10-27 Qualcomm Inc Systeme et procede pour fournir un ecran interactif sur un dispositif sans fil en interaction avec un serveur
DE102007027254B4 (de) 2006-06-27 2022-08-04 Intuit, Inc. Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Autorisieren eines Softwareproduktes und Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Deaktivieren eines Softwareproduktes

Families Citing this family (1)

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN109063427A (zh) * 2018-10-29 2018-12-21 北京京航计算通讯研究所 基于j2ee技术体系的应用软件许可认证方法

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US5764762A (en) * 1995-06-08 1998-06-09 Wave System Corp. Encrypted data package record for use in remote transaction metered data system
US5790664A (en) * 1996-02-26 1998-08-04 Network Engineering Software, Inc. Automated system for management of licensed software

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US5764762A (en) * 1995-06-08 1998-06-09 Wave System Corp. Encrypted data package record for use in remote transaction metered data system
US5790664A (en) * 1996-02-26 1998-08-04 Network Engineering Software, Inc. Automated system for management of licensed software

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1470728A4 (fr) * 2002-01-31 2010-10-27 Qualcomm Inc Systeme et procede pour fournir un ecran interactif sur un dispositif sans fil en interaction avec un serveur
EP2618548A1 (fr) * 2002-01-31 2013-07-24 Qualcomm Incorporated Système et procédé pour fournir un écran interactif sur un dispositif sans fil en interaction avec un serveur
WO2007116246A1 (fr) * 2006-04-07 2007-10-18 Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications Ab Activation de logiciel dans un terminal mobile
DE102007027254B4 (de) 2006-06-27 2022-08-04 Intuit, Inc. Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Autorisieren eines Softwareproduktes und Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Deaktivieren eines Softwareproduktes
NL1032244C2 (nl) * 2006-07-28 2008-01-29 Sharewire B V Werkwijze, computerprogramma, computerprogrammaproduct en inrichting voor het vanaf ten minste één server via een datanetwerk laden van software.

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