Koninklijke Philips Corporation N.v.

Toine A M Staring

Michael A Epstein

Martin C Rosner

Methods and apparatus for secure distribution of music and other types of content. The invention allows content to be registered with a centralized trusted registration authority (TRA) in such a way that it can be distributed anonymously, such that the identity of the content provider need not be disclosed until a dispute arises. A first illustrative embodiment of the invention provides unbound rights management, i.e., secure registration of content such that usage rights for the content are not bound to the content itself. In this embodiment, distributed content is not protected by encryption, i.e., confidentiality of content is not provided. However, the content is protected against piracy, due to the fact that the content provider is certified by the TRA, and thus can be traced or otherwise identified in the event that irregularities are detected. Since the usage rights are not bound to the content, the content provider can change the usage rights after the content has been registered with the TRA. Content distribution in second and third illustrative embodiments of the invention provides unbound and bound rights management, respectively, with encryption-based content confidentiality.

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Eindhoven, Netherlands

Toine A M Staring