On Tuesdays the USPTO issues new patents.Today's Spotlight Patents concern aspects of digital rights management and copyright protection. Assigned to Samsung (KR), the first of today's patents concerns techniques for utilizing DVD content through a home network that address the concerns of copyright holders. Assigned to CFPH, LLC, the second patent concerns techniques for electronic file use and management without violating copyrights that copyright holders have in the files.
8,281,346, "Method and apparatus for utilizing DVD content through home network," assigned to Samsung (KR).
A method and apparatus for utilizing DVD content through a home network are provided. The method includes transmitting item information indicating DVD content in response to a request for a content list, and receiving a request for the DVD content in units of a sector from a client having acquired the item information, and extracting and transmitting data of the requested sector to the client. Various functions provided by the DVD video can be utilized similar to reproducing DVD content through a local DVD player while reproducing DVD content stored in a remote server through devices of a home network. Therefore, it is possible to reduce concerns of the DVD copyrighter about illegal copying of the content since encoded data is transmitted as it is, without being decoded.
8,280,815, "Methods and apparatus for electronic file use and management," assigned to CFPH, LLC.
Methods and apparatus are disclosed for facilitating online storage of files (e.g., audio tracks, video, etc.) for playback/access or sale/exchange by the owners of the files without violating copyrights that copyright holders have in the files. For example, by providing a playback service that does not store additional versions of an audio file when the file is transmitted to, and immediately played on, a user device without buffering, the present invention avoids violating copyright laws by not making copies of the file. Numerous other aspects are disclosed.