JP2002123801A - Reproducing system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a contents data offering configuration allowing reproduction on the conditions of apparatus, time, or region. SOLUTION: Whether to permit or restrict reproduction is judged on the conditions of reproducing apparatus, date and time or period, or region. These conditions are indicated according to contents. At reproduction, whether the conditions for contents reproduction are satisfied or not is judged, and whether to permit or restrict reproduction is determined in this reproducing system. Even when reproduction is restricted, data reproduction can be permitted up to a prescribed number of times or in a prescribed time.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a reproducing apparatus for reproducing data recorded on a recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various data such as music, voice, video, text, etc. (for the sake of description, these data are collectively referred to as content data) are recorded on a medium (recording medium) such as a disk or a memory card for sale or sales. 2. Description of the Related Art It is widely used to provide content data to a user by distributing or distributing content data to a device owned by the user and recording the content data on a user-side medium. Further, the content obtained by the user is further recorded on another recording medium and used.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Sale and distribution with package media such as discs,
The contents can be easily and widely spread by distribution via a communication line, or even by private duplication, so that the user can enjoy unlimited benefits and enjoyment of the contents. However, there is a demand to restrict the reproduction of content data to some extent depending on the viewpoint of copyright protection, the intention of the creator / provider of the content data, the content of the content data, and the like. For example, for the purpose of copyright protection, it has been practiced to encrypt content data or to use a user ID or password so that only authorized users can execute content data playback. Although the above value has been found, there is a need for a more flexible and restricted playback method according to a specific implementation situation, which cannot be realized by these methods.

[0004] In addition, in the conventional method, the reproduction restriction usually means that the reproduction of the content data is prohibited. However, the reproduction permission condition is set depending on various circumstances such as an effect of advertisement and improvement of customer service. In some cases, it may be desirable to allow some playback even if not satisfied.

[0005]

According to the present invention, in accordance with such circumstances, it is possible to set reproduction permission / reproduction restriction according to conditions such as a reproduction device, date and time, a period, or a region. An object is to realize optimal reproduction control according to a provision mode. In addition, the content of the playback restriction will be diversified.

Therefore, according to the present invention, in a reproducing apparatus for reproducing a recording medium on which an identifier indicating a device permitted to reproduce data is recorded, reproducing means for reproducing data and the identifier from the mounted recording medium, Storage means for storing an identifier unique to the device; comparison means for comparing the identifier reproduced by the reproduction means with the identifier stored in the storage means; and matching of the identifiers by the comparison means. If detected, the reproduction of data from the mounted recording medium is permitted.On the other hand, if the comparison means does not detect a match between the identifiers, the data is read from the mounted recording medium. Control means for controlling the reproduction of the data.

Further, according to the present invention, in a reproducing apparatus for reproducing a recording medium on which date / time information indicating a date / time or a period in which data reproduction is permitted is recorded, the data and the date / time / period information are read from the mounted recording medium. Reproducing means, a clock means for counting the current date and time, a comparing means for comparing the date / time information reproduced by the reproducing means with a current date and time by the clock means, When it is detected that the date and time correspond to the date and time or the period indicated in the date and time information, the reproduction of the data from the attached recording medium is permitted. When it is detected that the data does not correspond to the date and time or the period indicated in the date and time / period information, control means for controlling reproduction of data from the attached recording medium is provided. Obtain.

Further, according to the present invention, in a reproducing apparatus for reproducing a recording medium on which area specifying information for specifying an area where data reproduction is permitted is reproduced from the mounted recording medium. Reproducing means, position detecting means for detecting a current position, comparing means for comparing the area identification information reproduced by the reproducing means with the current position detected by the position detecting means, When it is detected that the current position falls within the area indicated by the area identification information, reproduction of data from the attached recording medium is permitted, and the current position is determined by the comparing means. And control means for controlling the reproduction of data from the attached recording medium when it is detected that the data does not fall within the area indicated by the area specifying information.

That is, according to the present invention, reproduction permission / reproduction restriction can be controlled based on conditions such as a reproduction device, a reproduction date / time or period, and a reproduction region. As the reproduction restriction, for example, data reproduction up to a predetermined number of times can be performed to prohibit reproduction of data exceeding a predetermined number of times, data reproduction can be performed for a predetermined time, and reproduction of data exceeding a predetermined time can be prohibited, or simply data can be reproduced. Prohibit reproduction of. As a method of prohibiting reproduction by the reproduction restriction, the operation of reading data from the recording medium is stopped, the reproduction output of data read from the recording medium is muted, or the power of the reproduction apparatus is turned off. Or by controlling not to execute the decryption processing of the encrypted data at the time of reproduction.

In the case where reproduction permission / reproduction restriction is controlled depending on the reproduction region, discrimination between inside and outside of the region based on latitude / longitude information,
Determination of the inside and outside of a region by receiving a transmission signal of a specific frequency, determination of inside and outside of a region based on reception of information from a wireless base station, determination of inside and outside of a region based on reception of information from a specific transmitter,
It performs discrimination inside and outside the area based on reception of a broadcast by a specific broadcast station, and the like.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Various embodiments of the present invention will be described below in the following order. 1. 1. Basic configuration common to embodiments 1-1 Configuration 1-2 Processing example at the time of reproduction 2. Embodiment in which authentication of specific device is performed (first embodiment) 3. Embodiment in which authentication is performed for a specific date and time or period (second embodiment) Embodiment for Authenticating Specific Area 4-1 GPS Data Authentication (Third Embodiment) 4-2 Specific Frequency Authentication (Fourth Embodiment) 4-3 Cellular Phone Base Station Authentication (Fifth Embodiment) 4-4 ETC Data Authentication (Sixth Embodiment) 4-5 Broadcast Station Radio Authentication (Seventh Embodiment) 4-6 Cable Broadcast Station Authentication (Eighth Embodiment)

1. Basic Configuration Common to Embodiments 1-1 Configuration The playback device of the present invention determines whether or not it is a specific device (playback device) permitted to play back, or plays back, when playing back content data from a recording medium. The authentication is performed to determine whether or not it is a specific permitted date and time or period, or whether or not it is in a specific area where the reproduction is permitted. ). Also, when the reproduction is not permitted, the reproduction is simply prohibited, and the reproduction is permitted to a certain extent by limiting the number or time. A specific example of the above-described reproduction authentication will be described later as each embodiment, but a basic configuration common to each embodiment and control during reproduction will be described here.

FIG. 1 shows a basic configuration. In the playback device of the present example, a control unit 1 that performs playback operation control and playback authentication,
A reading section 2 for reading content data from a recording medium (media) 90, a reproduction signal processing section 3 for decoding read data, and the like; an output processing section 4 for performing processing for outputting a decoded reproduction signal; A reproduction authentication data source 5 for outputting comparison information for reproduction authentication, a power supply unit 6 for supplying operating power VDD to each unit, an operation unit 7 operated by a user, a display unit 8 for performing various displays to the user, reproduction A management memory 9 for holding information for managing for restriction,
Is provided.

Media 90 reproduced by the reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment
Various types are conceivable. For example, there are various conceivable media such as an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a magnetic disk, a magnetic tape, and a memory card equipped with a flash memory. Also, it may be a read-only medium or a recordable medium. Further, the recording medium may be a portable medium that can be attached to and detached from the playback apparatus, or a medium that is irremovably arranged in the playback apparatus. More specifically, CD-DA (Compact Disc)
Digital Audio), CD-ROM, CD-R (Compact
Disc Recordable), CD-RW (Compact Disc Rewita)
ble) and so-called CD format discs,
MD format discs such as MD (Mini Disc) and MD-DATA, DVD (Digital Versatile Disc)
-ROM, DVD-RAM, DVD + RW, DVD-R
DVD-type discs such as W are conceivable. HDD (Hard Disc Drive), Floppy (registered trademark)
Discs are also conceivable. Further, in recent years, various types of memory cards have been developed, and any of them can be applied.

The media 90 to be reproduced includes music,
It is assumed that content data including data such as audio, video (moving image / still image), and text is recorded. A content ID for identifying the content and reproduction permission information are recorded together with the content data. The reproduction permission information is data used for reproduction authentication processing described in each embodiment described later. It should be noted that the content ID and the reproduction permission information may comprehensively correspond to all the recorded content data, or the same number of content data as the individual content data may be recorded. You may. Of course, the content data may be recorded in correspondence with the content data that is grouped in the recorded content data. However, the content ID may not be required depending on the embodiment and the adopted reproduction restriction processing.

The content data recorded on the medium 90 may be data previously recorded by a creator / provider of an optical disk or the like, or may be data arbitrarily recorded by a user. Further, for example, a user may receive a distribution from a specific server via a network such as the Internet, a dedicated communication line, or the like, and may download and record the distribution on a medium 90 owned by the user. The reproduction permission information corresponding to the content data may be set in advance by the creator or the provider of the content data in view of the usage form and contents of the content data, the copyright status, and the like. In some cases, the setting may be performed automatically or in response to a user operation.

The reading section 2 is configured as a portion from which data can be read from the medium 90 in accordance with the medium 90 to which the reproducing apparatus is to correspond. For example, if the medium 90 is an optical disk, an optical head, a spindle mechanism, a servo mechanism, and the like are provided. If the medium 90 is a magneto-optical disk, an optical head, a magnetic head, a spindle mechanism,
A servo mechanism and the like are provided. If the medium 90 is a memory card, a connector for connecting to a terminal of the memory card and an interface circuit system for performing data communication with the memory card are provided.

The reproduction signal processing section 3 performs decoding processing, error correction processing, and the like of the data read by the reading section 2. The decoding process and the error correction process are, of course, processes based on the data format of the corresponding medium 90. For example, if the medium 90 is a CD disk, EFM decoding and CIRC error correction will be performed. If the content data is video data, for example, MPEG decoding is performed.
If the content data is data that has been subjected to data compression processing, data expansion processing corresponding to the compression method is performed. In the case where the content data is encrypted and recorded on the medium 90, the reproduction signal processing unit 3 is provided with the decryption unit 3a to perform decryption processing.

The output processing section 4 is a section for performing necessary processing for reproducing and outputting the data processed by the reproduction signal processing section 3. For example, when audio data is output as an analog audio signal, D / A conversion processing, filtering, sound / volume adjustment processing, power amplifier processing, and the like are performed and output to a speaker or the like. When outputting video data, a predetermined process corresponding to the monitor device to which the signal is output is performed.

The reproduction authentication data source 5 is a part for supplying information for reproduction authentication to the control unit 1. Specifically, since the configuration of the reproduction authentication data source 5 can be considered in various ways, a large number of An example will be described. In any case, the information to be authenticated is output in comparison with the reproduction permission information recorded on the medium 90.

The power supply section 6 rectifies and smoothes, for example, a commercial AC power supply, obtains a required operating power supply voltage VDD by a DC / DC converter, and supplies it to each block. Of course, the power supply may be configured to obtain the operating power supply voltage VDD using a dry battery or a rechargeable battery as a power supply. In particular, when the playback device is configured as a portable device, a dry battery or a rechargeable battery is used as an operation power supply. Further, when the playback apparatus is an in-vehicle device, for example, a DC power supply from a car battery is used as an operation power supply. ON / OFF of power supply by the power supply unit 6 is controlled by the control unit 1.

The operation section 7 is a section provided with operation keys, a jog dial, and other controls for use by a user. Operation information of each operation element is supplied to the control unit 1. The display unit 8 is formed of a display device such as a liquid crystal panel, for example, and presents various characters, numerals, symbols, and the like to the user based on display control of the control unit 1. For example, the track number, time information,
Display date and time information, operation mode, message, etc.

The management memory 9 is a memory for storing information for managing the content data when the test reproduction is performed only a predetermined number of times or only for a predetermined time as a mode of restricting the reproduction of the content data. For example, it is configured by a nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory. In this example, if the reproduction authentication is determined to be NG, the normal reproduction operation of the content data (media 90) is prohibited. In this case, a trial reproduction (so-called preview, etc.) is performed only a predetermined number of times. ) May be permitted. Alternatively, the reproduction may be permitted only for a predetermined time. In this case, data for managing the number of times of reproduction and the reproduction time is held in the management memory 9. As an example, as shown in FIG. 2, the reproduction permission information recorded on the medium 90 and the number of reproductions or the reproduction time up to that point are stored in association with the content ID specifying the content data. For example, until the number of times of reproduction stored in the management memory 9 reaches the upper limit, reproduction of the content data is enabled.

The control unit 1 is formed of, for example, a microcomputer, and controls the entire reproducing apparatus by performing necessary control processing based on an operation program stored in an internal memory. That is, the reading operation of the content data and the reproduction permission information by the reading unit 2, the decoding and decryption processing of the reproduction signal processing unit 3, the operation of the output processing unit 4, the incorporation of the reproduction authentication data from the reproduction authentication data source 5, and the like. Authentication processing using the control unit, taking in operation information from the operation unit 7 and controlling reproduction operation and the like according to the operation information, display control of the display unit 8,
Writing / reading of the management memory 9 and power on / off control of the power supply unit 6 are performed.

1-2 Processing Example at the Time of Reproduction The processing at the time of the reproduction operation in the reproduction apparatus having the configuration of FIG. 1 will be described. The first to eighth embodiments to be described later are examples in which the mode of the reproduction authentication processing in the processing at the time of reproduction is variously different, and the processing examples described here are commonly applied to the respective embodiments. This is a process that can be performed.

The reproduction process of the control unit 1 when the reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is instructed is shown in FIG.
Three examples will be described with reference to FIGS.

First, the processing example of FIG. 3 will be described. For example, when the user instructs to reproduce the content data from the loaded medium 90, the process of the control unit 1 proceeds from step F101 to F102, and performs the reproduction authentication process. Although described in detail in each embodiment, here, the reproduction permission information read from the medium 90 is compared with the reproduction authentication data from the reproduction authentication data source 5 to determine whether or not the content reproduction is permitted. Processing.

If the reproduction authentication is OK, step F1
From 03, the processing shifts to the normal reproduction processing. That is, the reproducing operation is executed based on the operation of the user. In this case, there is no particular limitation on the reproduction. On the other hand, if the authentication is unsuccessful, the process proceeds to step F104, where a message indicating that the playback is unsuccessful because the authentication is unsuccessful is displayed on the display unit 8, and playback inhibition control is performed in step F105.
This controls the content data (or the medium 90) so that the content data (or the medium 90) cannot be reproduced (the user cannot see and hear the reproduced sound, images, characters, and the like).
A specific prohibition control method will be described later.

That is, in the processing example of FIG.
In the case of G, any reproduction of the content data is prohibited.

The processing example of FIG. 4 is an example in which even if the reproduction authentication is NG, some reproduction of the content data is permitted. Steps F101 and F10 in FIG.
2, F103 is the same as FIG. If the reproduction authentication is determined to be NG in step F103, the control unit 1 proceeds to step F1.
At 10, a message for the user is displayed on the display unit 8. For example, a message such as “Normal playback cannot be permitted due to playback authentication failure. Do you want to perform trial playback?” Asks the user's intention. If, on the other hand, the user performs an action that requires a trial playback,
The process proceeds to step F113 to refer to the data in the management memory as shown in FIG. 2 and determine whether test reproduction is possible.

In this process, one content ID is permitted to be reproduced up to N times. Then, as described with reference to FIG.
The number of reproductions up to that point is stored corresponding to D. If the number of times of reproduction corresponding to the content ID in the management memory has reached N times, it means that the trial reproduction has already been performed the specified number of times. , Indicating that trial reproduction can be permitted. If the content ID of the content data to be reproduced this time is not registered in the management memory 9, the reproduction of the content data is instructed for the first time this time. In the remaining N times, test reproduction can be permitted.

If it is determined that the test reproduction has not been executed N times with respect to the content data whose reproduction has been instructed this time and the test reproduction can be permitted, the process proceeds to step F11.
From 4 the process proceeds to F115 to execute the reproduction. If it is determined in step F116 that the reproduction of the content data has been completed or the reproduction has ended due to a user's stop operation, the data in the management memory 9 is updated in step F117, and the process ends. That is, when a content ID has already been registered in the management memory 9 for the content data, 1 is added to the value of the number of times of reproduction corresponding to the content ID. If this is the first trial playback, the content ID is registered, the playback permission information is stored correspondingly, and the number of playbacks is set to “1”.

On the other hand, when the user has performed an operation that does not desire test reproduction in step F111, or when it is determined in step F114 that test reproduction cannot be permitted this time since N times of test reproduction have already been performed in the past. Is Step F
At 112, the reproduction prohibition control is performed, and the process ends.

The processing example of FIG. 5 is an example in which, even if the reproduction authentication is NG, some reproduction of the content data is permitted, as in FIG. It limits playback. Steps F101, F102, F103, F110, F in FIG.
111 is the same as FIG. In step F111, if the test reproduction is desired after the reproduction authentication is determined to be NG, the control unit 1 proceeds to step F120, refers to the data in the management memory as shown in FIG. 2, and determines whether the test reproduction is possible. Judge.

In this process, one content ID is permitted to be reproduced for M hours. When this processing example is adopted, the reproduction time up to that point is stored in the management memory in correspondence with the content ID. If the playback time corresponding to the content ID in the management memory has reached M hours, it means that the trial playback has already been performed for the specified time. , Indicating that trial reproduction can be permitted. If the content ID of the content data to be reproduced this time is not registered in the management memory 9, the reproduction of the content data is instructed for the first time this time. , Remaining M
At the time, test reproduction can be permitted.

At this time, if it is determined that the test reproduction for M hours has not yet been performed on the content data for which reproduction has been instructed, and that the test reproduction can be permitted, the process proceeds to step F1.
From 21, the process proceeds to F <b> 122, and the control unit 1 sets the variable TC to a remaining time that can be permitted, and causes the reproduction to be executed in step F <b> 123. At this time, the control unit 1 starts time counting by the internal timer. Note that the remaining time set in the variable TC is a value obtained by subtracting the reproduction time stored in the management memory 9 from the M time. Then, in a step F124, it is determined whether or not the count value of the timer reaches the variable TC, and in a step F125, the end of the reproduction is monitored.

If it is determined in step F125 that the reproduction of the content data has been completed or the reproduction has been terminated by a user's stop operation, the data in the management memory 9 is updated in step F126, and the process is terminated. That is, if the content ID has already been registered in the management memory 9 for the content data, the count time until the end of the current playback of the timer is added to the value of the playback time corresponding to the content ID. If this is the first trial reproduction, the content ID is registered, the reproduction permission information is stored correspondingly, and the count time until the reproduction of the current timer is stored as the reproduction time.

If the timer count value has reached the value of the variable TC in step F124 during reproduction, even if the reproduction has not been completed, the process proceeds to step F127 at that point to forcibly stop reproduction, and in step F126. The data in the management memory 9 is updated, and the process ends. That is, if a content ID has already been registered in the management memory 9 for the content data, M hours are stored as the value of the reproduction time corresponding to the content ID. If this is the first trial playback, the content ID is registered, the playback permission information is stored corresponding to the content ID, and M time is stored as the playback time. In this case, since the content data has already consumed M hours, the content data is managed so that the test reproduction cannot be performed thereafter.

On the other hand, when the user has performed an operation that does not desire test reproduction in step F111, or when it is determined that test reproduction for M hours has already been performed in the past and test reproduction cannot be permitted this time in step F121. Performs the reproduction inhibition control in step F112 and ends the process.

As in the examples shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, even in the case of the reproduction authentication NG, the trial reproduction can be performed a small number of times or a certain time. By letting the user see and listen to the contents of the contents, it is possible to introduce and promote the contents data, or to improve the service to the users. Note that the number of times of reproduction and the reproduction time in the case of test reproduction may be fixed values, but it is preferable that the content data provider can arbitrarily set the values. In this case, information on the number of times of trial playback permitted and the time allowed is recorded together with the content data on the medium 90, and the control unit 1 reads the predetermined number of times of reproduction (N times) and the reproduction time (M hours) read from the medium 90. By comparing this with the information in the management memory 9, the permission / non-permission of the trial reproduction may be determined.

As the reproduction prohibition control in step F105 of FIG. 3 and step F112 of FIGS. 4 and 5, the following control examples are conceivable.

The operation of reading data from the medium 90 by the reading unit 2 is stopped. This is, for example, the media 90
Is an optical disk medium, the read unit 2 is formed with a servo circuit system and a servo mechanism such as a focus servo, a tracking servo, a thread servo, and a spindle servo for a read operation by an optical pickup, as is known. . At the time of data reading, data cannot be read unless this servo system operates properly.
In other words, when the control unit 1 stops the operation of the servo system, data reading from the medium 90 becomes impossible. Therefore, the reproduction inhibition control can be realized as operation stop control for the servo circuit.

The mute control of the reproduction output of the data read from the medium 90 is performed. The data decoded by the reproduction signal processing unit 3 is processed by the output processing unit 4 and output. If the output processing unit 4 performs a mute process, the user cannot see and hear the contents of the content data. Therefore, the reproduction inhibition control can be realized by so-called output mute. The mute process is realized by, for example, replacing audio data with silent data or replacing video data with blue-back image data.

The power of the reproducing apparatus is turned off. Control unit 1
If the power supply unit stops supplying the power supply voltage VDD to the power supply unit 6, the reproduction cannot be executed naturally. Therefore, the reproduction prohibition control can also be realized as power-off control.

The decryption processing of the encrypted data is not executed. If the content data is encrypted data, the original playback data cannot be obtained unless the decryption processing is performed by the playback signal processing unit 3. Therefore, the reproduction prohibition control can be realized as control for preventing the decryption unit 3a from executing the decryption operation.

By the way, in the processing of FIGS. 3, 4 and 5,
It has been described that when the reproduction of the content data is started, the reproduction authentication processing is performed to determine whether or not the normal reproduction can be permitted. Further, in each embodiment described later, a case where the condition of the reproduction authentication is a specific device, a specific date and time, or a specific region is described. Here, when the condition of the reproduction authentication is a specific date and time or a period or a specific area, even if the reproduction authentication is OK at the time of starting the reproduction, the condition of the reproduction authentication is not changed during the reproduction. Is not satisfied, and the reproduction authentication N
Sometimes it has to be G. For example, the reproduction condition may not be satisfied due to elapse of time or movement. For this reason, even when the reproduction authentication is OK and normal reproduction is being performed, for example, the processing shown in FIG. 6 needs to be performed.

FIG. 6 shows processing executed by the control unit 1 during normal reproduction in parallel with the processing for the reproduction control (or as an interruption processing). During normal reproduction, the control unit 1 monitors the reproduction authentication timing in step F150. When the reproduction authentication timing comes, the control unit 1 proceeds to step F151 and performs reproduction authentication processing. The reproduction authentication timing may be, for example, periodically generated at regular time intervals, or may be irregularly set according to some situation. For example, a time when a change occurs in the reproduction authentication data from the reproduction authentication data source 5 may be set as the reproduction authentication timing. Step F15
The reproduction authentication process of Step 1 is performed in Step F10 shown in FIGS.
This is the same as the reproduction authentication processing of No. 2, and a specific processing example will be described in each embodiment.

If the result of the reproduction authentication processing is OK, the flow returns from step F152 to step F150. That is, as long as the reproduction condition is satisfied, this step F15
The state where the loop processing of 0 to F152 is performed in parallel with the reproduction operation continues. If the result of the reproduction authentication is NG, in step F153, a message that the reproduction is stopped is displayed on the display unit 8 because the reproduction authentication is NG.
The following prohibition control is performed. Then, the process ends.

Since such processing is performed during playback, even if the playback conditions are not satisfied due to the passage of time or movement during playback, normal playback can be limited accordingly.

2. Embodiment for Authenticating Specific Device (First Embodiment) Various embodiments will be described below for an embodiment based on the above basic configuration and processing example. Each embodiment shows various examples of the processing method of the reproduction authentication processing (F102, F151) shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5 or FIG. As described above, various types of media 90 are conceivable. However, for simplification of description, in each embodiment, all media 90 are CD-type optical disks and examples of corresponding playback devices are described. . Of course, the configuration and processing of each embodiment can also be realized in a playback device that supports other types of media 90.

The first embodiment is an example in which the condition of the authentication OK is that reproduction is performed by a specific device. Only normal reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is permitted. Therefore, in the case of the first embodiment, for example, CD-R,
A recording / reproducing device that can execute recording / reproducing on a recordable medium 90 such as a CD-RW will be described.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the recording and reproducing apparatus according to the first embodiment. Parts corresponding to the respective parts of the basic configuration of FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals. The medium (disk) 90 to be recorded / reproduced is a CD-R, CD-RW
It is. The CD-R is a write-once medium using an organic dye for a recording layer, and the CD-RW is a data rewritable medium using a phase change technique.
In addition, CD-DA which is a disk medium for reproduction only
(CD-Digital Audio), CD-ROM, etc. can also be reproduced by this recording / reproducing apparatus.

The disk 90 is mounted on a turntable, and has a constant linear velocity (CLV) or a constant angular velocity (CA) by the spindle motor 21 during a recording / reproducing operation.
V). Then, the pit data (phase change pit,
Alternatively, readout of pits due to organic dye change (reflectance change) is performed. In the case of a CD-DA or a CD-ROM, the pits are embossed pits.

In a pickup (recording / reproducing head) 22, a laser diode serving as a laser light source, a photodetector for detecting reflected light, an objective lens serving as an output end of laser light, and a laser An optical system for irradiating the recording surface and guiding the reflected light to the photodetector, a biaxial mechanism for indicating the objective lens, and the like are formed. The objective lens is held movably in a tracking direction and a focus direction by a biaxial mechanism. The entire pickup 22 can be moved in the disk radial direction by a thread mechanism (not shown). The laser diode in the pickup 22 is driven to emit laser light by a drive signal (drive current) from a laser driver 24.

The information on the reflected light from the disk 90 is detected by a photodetector, converted into an electric signal corresponding to the amount of received light, and supplied to the RF processing unit 23. Note that the amount of light reflected from the disc 90 before and after recording data on the disc 90, during recording, and the like fluctuates more greatly than in the case of a CD-ROM.
An AGC circuit is generally mounted on the RF processing unit 23 because of the fact that it is greatly different from a D-ROM or a CD-R.

The RF processing unit 23 includes a current-voltage conversion circuit, a matrix operation / amplification circuit, etc. corresponding to output currents from a plurality of light receiving elements as photodetectors in the pickup 22, and a signal required by the matrix operation processing. Generate For example, it generates an RF signal as reproduction data, a focus error signal for servo control, a tracking error signal, and the like. The reproduction RF signal output from the RF processing unit 23 is supplied to the reproduction signal processing unit 3, and the focus error signal and the tracking error signal are supplied to the servo processor 25.

A groove (groove) serving as a guide for a recording track is previously formed on the disk 90 as a CD-R or CD-RW, and the groove has time information indicating an absolute address on the disk. It is wobbled (meandering) by an FM-modulated signal. Therefore, during the recording operation, tracking servo can be applied from the information on the groove, and the absolute address can be obtained from the wobble information on the groove. For this reason, in the case of a recording / reproducing apparatus corresponding to CD-R and CD-RW, the RF processing section 23 is provided with a portion for extracting wobble information by matrix arithmetic processing and further demodulating the wobble information. And supplies it to the control unit 1. Further, by injecting groove information into the PLL circuit, rotation speed information of the spindle motor 21 is obtained, and by comparing the rotation speed information with reference speed information, a spindle error signal is generated and output.

The reproduced RF signal obtained by the RF processing unit 23 is binarized by the reproduced signal processing unit 3 to obtain a so-called EFM signal.
Signal (8-14 modulated signal). Further, as decoding processing, processing such as EFM demodulation, CIRC error correction, deinterleaving, and CD-ROM decoding are performed. The reproduction signal processing unit 3 also performs a subcode extraction process on the data read from the disk 90, and supplies the control unit 1 with the TOC and address information as subcodes (Q data). In particular, in the case of this example, the content ID and the reproduction permission information corresponding to the content data are recorded on the disc 90 as described above, but these information are also extracted and supplied to the control unit 1. Further, the reproduction signal processing unit 3 generates a reproduction clock synchronized with the EFM signal by the PLL processing, and executes the decoding processing based on the reproduction clock. , And comparing with the reference speed information, a spindle error signal can be generated and output.

The data decoded by the reproduction signal processing unit 3 is supplied to the output processing unit 4 and output. For example, the decoded digital audio signal is supplied to the D / A converter 4
The signal is converted into an analog audio signal at 1, subjected to required processing such as acoustic processing, volume processing, amplification and the like at an output signal processing section 42, and reproduced and output from a terminal 11 to devices such as a speaker section and headphones. Alternatively, the decoded digital data is supplied to the digital interface unit 43, where the decoded digital data is subjected to format processing for digital data transmission, and
Is output to the connected device.

On the other hand, at the time of recording, recording data (audio data or CD-R) is supplied from an external device connected to the terminal 12.
OM data) is transferred, and the recording data is input from the digital interface unit 43 and supplied to the recording signal processing unit 10. Alternatively, the signal is input from an external device as an analog signal from the terminal 13, converted into digital data by the A / D converter 44, and supplied to the recording signal processing unit 10.

The recording signal processing unit 10 performs processing for encoding supplied recording data, such as encoding to CD format data, CIRC encoding and interleaving, subcode addition, and EFM modulation. The E obtained by these encoding processes
After the waveform adjustment processing is performed, the FM signal is sent to the laser driver 24 as a laser drive pulse. The laser driver 24 supplies a laser drive pulse supplied as write data to a laser diode in the pickup 22 to perform laser emission driving. As a result, pits (phase change pits and dye change pits) corresponding to the EFM signal are formed on the disk 90.

The servo processor 25 includes an RF processor 23
Based on the focus error signal, tracking error signal, and spindle error signal described above, various servo drive signals for focus, tracking, sled, and spindle are generated and the servo operation is executed. That is, a focus drive signal and a tracking drive signal are generated according to the focus error signal and the tracking error signal, and the focus coil and the tracking coil of the two-axis mechanism in the pickup 22 are driven. As a result, the objective lens in the pickup 22
The disc is driven in the direction of approaching and separating from 0 and in the radial direction of the disc to perform format control and tracking control.

The servo processor 25 turns off the tracking servo loop in response to a track jump command from the control unit 1 and outputs a jump drive signal to the two-axis mechanism to execute a track jump operation.

The servo processor 25 further supplies the spindle motor driver 21 with a spindle drive signal generated according to the spindle error signal. The spindle motor 21 executes the CLV rotation or the CAV rotation of the disk 90 by, for example, a three-phase drive signal according to the spindle drive signal. Servo processor 2
5 generates a spindle drive signal in response to a spindle kick / brake control signal from the control unit 1, and also executes operations such as starting, stopping, acceleration, and deceleration of the spindle motor 21.

The servo processor 25 generates a thread error signal obtained as, for example, a low-frequency component of a tracking error signal, a thread drive signal based on access execution control from the control unit 1, and drives a thread mechanism (not shown). I do. Thereby, the required sliding movement of the pickup 1 is performed.

Various operations of the servo system and the recording / reproducing system as described above are controlled by a control unit 1 formed by a microcomputer. The operation unit 7, the display unit 8, the management memory 9, and the power supply unit 6 are as described in the basic configuration of FIG.

In the case of FIG. 7, a personal ID memory 5A is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 of FIG. The personal ID memory 5A is a memory in which a user who owns the recording / reproducing apparatus sets and registers a personal ID, and is formed as, for example, a nonvolatile memory.

In the recording / reproducing apparatus having the above structure, the content data recorded on the disk 90 by the recording / reproducing apparatus is permitted to be reproduced without limitation by the recording / reproducing apparatus. Will be done. For this, the personal ID memory 5A
The reproduction authentication is performed using the personal ID registered in the. For this reason, the user of the recording / reproducing apparatus first needs to register a personal ID, for example, when purchasing the recording / reproducing apparatus. FIG. 8 shows the processing of the control unit 1 for this registration. When the control unit 1 powers on the recording / reproducing apparatus in step F201 in response to a user operation from the operation unit 7, in step F202, it is determined whether or not the personal ID has already been registered in the personal ID memory 5A. Confirm. If the personal ID has been registered, the process directly exits the process in FIG. 8 and performs a control operation according to the operation of the user. If the personal ID has not been registered, the process proceeds to step F20.
3 and display unit 8 displays the personal ID for the user.
Display a message requesting the input of In response to this, the user inputs a personal ID from the operation unit 7 using arbitrary numbers, characters, and the like. The control unit 1 waits for completion of the input of the personal ID by the user in step F204. When the personal ID is input, the control unit 1 registers the input personal ID in the personal ID memory 5A in step F205. After the above processing is completed, the processing shifts to a normal processing. Once registered, when the power is turned on, steps F203 to F203 are executed.
Since the process of step 205 is not performed, the user only needs to input the personal ID once at first.

When content data is recorded on the disc 90 by the recording / reproducing apparatus, not only the content data but also a registered personal ID is recorded. That is, the processing of the control unit 1 at the time of recording includes:
As shown in FIG. 9, when the recording of the content data is performed, the process proceeds from step F211 to F212, and the personal ID is recorded.
The personal ID is read from the memory 5A and transferred to the recording signal processing unit 10 as data to be recorded on the disk 90. Then, control is performed to encode the personal ID together with the content data input in step F213 and to record the encoded data on the disk 90. The personal ID may be embedded in the content data in a form such as a subcode, or may be recorded separately from the content data as TOC or other management information.

By performing such processing at the time of recording, the personal ID is recorded on the disc 90 corresponding to the content data. When the recorded content data is reproduced, the personal ID is used as the reproduction permission information described with reference to FIGS. That is, at the time of reproduction, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 5.

First, as step F301, the disk 90
Reads out the personal ID recorded corresponding to the content data. Subsequently, in step F302, the individual I
With reference to the personal ID registered in the D memory 5A, the personal ID read from the disk 90 is compared with the personal ID registered in the personal ID memory 5A. These two
As a result of the comparison of the two personal IDs, if a match is detected, the process proceeds from step F303 to F304 to determine that the reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, when a mismatch between the two personal IDs is detected, the process proceeds from step F303 to F305 to determine that the reproduction authentication is NG.

As described with reference to FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
If the result of the reproduction authentication processing in step F102 is OK, the processing normally proceeds to the processing of reproducing the content data according to the operation of the user. On the other hand, when the result of the reproduction authentication processing is NG, the reproduction of the content data is restricted. For example, when the processing of FIG. 3 is adopted,
Reproduction of content data is prohibited. When the processing in FIG. 4 is employed, only trial reproduction of a predetermined number of times is possible. Further, when the processing of FIG. 5 is employed, test reproduction for a predetermined time can be performed.

That is, when the content data recorded on the disk 90 is to be reproduced, if the content data is recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus, the personal IDs match, so that the normal reproduction is performed. However, when played back on another playback device, for example, when a friend borrows and borrows the disc 90, a match between the personal IDs is not detected. Therefore, the reproduction of the content data is restricted as described above. By performing such a reproduction authentication process, the content data is prevented from being unlimitedly spread, which is useful in terms of copyright protection. On the other hand, on the other hand, if test reproduction is possible even if the reproduction authentication is NG, effects such as introduction of content data, advertisement, and improvement of service to the user can be obtained. Conversely, when test reproduction is not allowed as in the processing of FIG. 3, there is an advantage that copyright protection can be further enhanced.

Note that, in this example, the reproducible device is specified by using a personal ID arbitrarily set by the user. An example in which the personal ID is used in the same manner as the personal ID is also conceivable. Further, for example, when the distribution of the content data is considered, the server side may distribute the content data including the personal ID in advance. For example, a user who makes a contract with the distribution server sets a personal ID (personal ID registered in the personal ID memory 5A) at the time of the contract.
D) is registered on the server side. When receiving a distribution request from a user, the server transmits the user's personal ID together with the content data. The distributed content data and personal ID are recorded on the disk 90 by a recording / reproducing apparatus as shown in FIG. In this way, at the time of reproduction, only the authorized user who has received the distribution can normally reproduce the content data by the reproduction authentication processing of FIG.

3. Embodiment for Authenticating at Specific Date and Time or Period (Second Embodiment) Next, as a second embodiment, an example will be described in which a specific date and time or period is set as a condition for authentication OK. Specifically, the media 90 records the date and time or the period as the reproduction permission information together with the content data. When the content data is reproduced, whether the present time is within the date and time or the period indicated in the reproduction permission information And normal reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is permitted only in the corresponding case. The media 90 may be, for example, a playback-only disc or the like, in which content data and playback permission information are recorded in advance and sold or distributed to a user, or the user records content data using a predetermined recording device. At the same time, the reproduction permission information (reproducible date and time) may be arbitrarily set and recorded.

Although the second and subsequent embodiments will be described as a reproducing apparatus corresponding to, for example, an optical disk of a CD system, it is needless to say that a CD-R, a CD-R
It goes without saying that the present invention can also be realized as a recording / reproducing apparatus capable of recording on a recordable disc such as W.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a reproducing apparatus according to the second embodiment. The same parts as those in FIG. 1 or FIG. The reproducing apparatus of FIG. 11 is obtained by removing the recording system blocks from the configuration of the recording / reproducing apparatus of FIG. 7, and the configuration and operation for reproduction are the same as those described with reference to FIG. However, a clock unit 5B is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 shown in FIG. The clock unit 5B is a unit that constantly counts the date, month, day, hour, minute, and second. That is, the control unit 1 can confirm the current year, month, day, hour, minute, and second by referring to the clock unit 5B.

Also in the case of this reproducing apparatus, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
The reproduction authentication processing shown as Step F102 in each figure is
This is performed as shown in FIG.

First, as step F311, the disk 90
In step 2, the reproduction permission information recorded corresponding to the content data, that is, the information indicating the date and time or the period is read.
Subsequently, in step F312, the current date, month, day, hour, minute, second is counted by the clock unit 5B, and compared with the date, time, or period value read from the disk 90. And now,
If it is within the date and time or period as the reproduction permission information, the process proceeds from step F313 to F314, and it is determined that the reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, if the current time does not fall within the date and time or the period as the reproduction permission information, step F31
The process proceeds from step 3 to F315, where it is determined that the reproduction authentication is NG.

As described with reference to FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
If the result of the reproduction authentication processing in step F102 is OK, the process normally proceeds to the processing of reproducing the content data according to the operation of the user. On the other hand, if the result of the reproduction authentication processing is NG, the content data Is restricted (reproduction is prohibited or only trial reproduction is permitted).

Note that the control unit 1 also performs the processing described with reference to FIG. 6 because the time may elapse during the reproduction and the time is out of the permitted time.

In this way, by using the date and time or the period as the condition of the reproduction permission, in the case of the present example, a content providing form that enables the reproduction of the content only on a specific day, period or time can be realized. For example, it is possible to provide Christmas-limited content that can be reproduced only during the Christmas period, with the reproduction permission information being “December 24 to December 25”. Further, the reproduction permission information is changed from "5:00 to 1
"0:00" means that reproduction can be performed only in the morning, reproduction permission information is "January 1, 2001", reproduction can be performed only on that day, and reproduction permission information is "August".
There are various methods of temporal reproduction restriction, such as that the reproduction can be performed only in that month, and that the reproduction permission information can be set to "March to May" so that only the spring can be reproduced. Therefore, depending on the content and product strategy,
It is also possible to realize a new content provision form by specifying the date and time or period during which the content can be reproduced, or to provide the content in accordance with the event period. Furthermore, by setting a time limit such as "until December 2000" as the reproduction permission information, content data with a use permission time limit can be provided, or a date such as "after August 2001" can be set. By doing so, it is possible to provide content data that is not reproduced until a specific date.

Further, since the user can arbitrarily set the date and time or the period, the usage form on the user side can be expanded. For example, it is also possible to set a birthday of a friend as reproduction permission information and present a medium 90 in which content data is recorded.

4. Embodiment for Authenticating Specific Area 4-1 GPS Data Authentication (Third Embodiment) In the third to eighth embodiments, it is authenticated that the current position is in a specific area. It is an example in which the condition is satisfied.
For example, this is a suitable example in the case where the reproducing apparatus itself is moved as a portable reproducing apparatus or an in-vehicle reproducing apparatus. However, it is needless to say that a stationary reproducing apparatus can be applied. Also,
In each of the embodiments, the medium 90 may be, for example, a playback-only disc or the like, in which content data and playback permission information are recorded in advance and sold or distributed to the user. May be used to record content data and to set and allow reproduction permission information (information indicating a region) to be set arbitrarily.

In the third embodiment, a GPS (Global Pos
This is an example of authenticating a region using a mitigation system. More specifically, a specific area range is recorded on the medium 90 along with the content data by using the latitude / longitude position information as reproduction permission information. When the content data is reproduced, the current position is indicated in the reproduction permission information. It is determined whether or not the content data is within the designated area, and only when it is applicable, normal reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is permitted.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a reproducing apparatus according to the third embodiment. The basic configuration is the same as that of FIG. 11, but a GPS unit 5C is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 shown in FIG. GPS
The unit 5C includes a GPS antenna 5C1, a GPS decoder 5C
2 Radio waves from GPS satellites are received by the GPS antenna 5C1, and received data is decoded by the GPS decoder 5C2. That is, the values of the latitude and longitude as the current position are obtained. The control unit 1 can always grasp the current position based on the latitude / longitude information from the GPS decoder 5C2.

In the case of this reproducing apparatus as well, at the time of reproduction, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
The reproduction authentication processing shown as Step F102 in each figure is
This is performed as shown in FIG.

First, as step F321, the disk 90
In step (1), the reproduction permission information recorded corresponding to the content data, that is, the area information based on the latitude / longitude is read. For example, "North latitude x degrees x minutes-y degrees y minutes, east longitude z degrees z minutes ~
This is information for specifying an area range such as “w degrees w minutes”. Subsequently, in step F322, the GPS decoder 5C
2 is compared with the latitude / longitude as the current position obtained from Step 2 and the area range based on the latitude / longitude read from the disk 90. Then, if the present time falls within the area range as the reproduction permission information, steps F323 to F3
Proceeding to 24, it is determined that the reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, if the current time does not fall within the area range as the reproduction permission information, the process advances from step F323 to F325 to determine that the reproduction authentication is NG. As described with reference to FIG. 3 or FIG. 4 or FIG. 5, when the result of the reproduction authentication processing is OK, the process normally proceeds to the processing of reproducing the content data in accordance with the operation of the user. When the result of the authentication processing is NG, the reproduction of the content data is restricted (reproduction is prohibited or only test reproduction is permitted). It should be noted that the control unit 1 may be moved out of the permitted area due to movement during the reproduction, and if the normal reproduction is being performed, the control unit 1 shown in FIG.
The processing described in (1) is also performed.

As described above, by using the GPS as a condition for permitting reproduction in a specific area, a content providing mode in which only a user in a specific area can reproduce the content can be realized. .

4-2 Specific Frequency Authentication (Fourth Embodiment) In the fourth embodiment, a transmission signal (radio wave) of a specific frequency is used.
This is an example of authenticating a region by using a password. Specifically, a specific frequency value is recorded on the medium 90 together with the content data as reproduction permission information. When the content data is reproduced, the current position is determined by whether or not the radio wave of the frequency indicated in the reproduction permission information can be received.
It is determined whether or not the content data is within a predetermined area, and only when it is determined that the data is within the predetermined area, normal reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is permitted.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing a reproducing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. The basic configuration is the same as that of FIG. 11, but a receiving unit 5D is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 shown in FIG. Receiver 5
D has an antenna 5D1 and a beacon receiving unit 5D2. In this example, the beacon transmitter 100
, And constantly transmits radio waves at the carrier frequency = f1. The antenna 5D1 receives a radio wave from the beacon transmitter 100, the beacon receiving unit 5D2 determines a carrier frequency from the received radio wave, and supplies the frequency value to the control unit 1.

In the case of this reproducing apparatus as well, at the time of reproduction, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
The reproduction authentication processing shown as Step F102 in each figure is
This is performed as shown in FIG.

First, as step F331, the disk 90
In step (2), reproduction permission information recorded corresponding to the content data, that is, information indicating a specific frequency value is read. Subsequently, in step F332, the beacon receiving unit 5D2
Is compared with the frequency value read from the disk 90. If the respective frequency values match, it is determined that the current position is within the area range where reproduction is permitted, and the process proceeds from step F333 to F334 to determine that reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, if the respective frequency values do not match, or if nothing is particularly received by the receiving unit 5D, it is determined that the current position is out of the area range in which reproduction is permitted, and steps F333 to F335 are performed. To judge that the reproduction authentication is NG. When the result of the reproduction authentication process is OK, the process proceeds to the process of reproducing the content data according to the user's operation. On the other hand, when the result of the reproduction authentication process is NG, the reproduction of the content data is performed. Is restricted (reproduction is prohibited or only test reproduction is permitted). Note that the control unit 1 also performs the processing described with reference to FIG. 6 when the normal reproduction is being performed, because the movement may occur during the reproduction and may be outside the permitted area.

Thus, for example, using a beacon or the like,
It can be determined whether or not the vehicle is within a specific area based on whether or not a specific frequency radio wave can be received. This makes it possible to realize a content providing mode that allows only a user in a specific area to reproduce content. For example, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, assuming that there is a certain event venue or a specific facility, the beacon transmitter 10
0 is placed. In this case, for example, it is assumed that a range indicated by a broken line AR is a range in which radio waves from beacon transmitter 100 can be received. Then, the user can reproduce the content data in the event hall or the like. For example, when recording content that needs to be played back in the venue in association with the content of the event, as the media 90 distributed when entering the event venue,
It becomes suitable.

4-3 Cell Phone Base Station Authentication (Fifth Embodiment) The fifth embodiment is an example of authenticating a region using transmission information from a cell phone base station. Each mobile phone base station provided in each place has a unique ID (base station I
D), and by transmitting a base station ID to mobile phones in each base station area, it is possible to specify a base station with which the mobile phone should currently communicate. Therefore, if the base station ID is detected, it can be determined that the base station is in the corresponding area. Therefore, in the case of this example, one or more base station IDs are recorded on the medium 90 as the reproduction permission information together with the content data,
At the time of content data reproduction, it is determined whether the current position is within a predetermined area based on whether the base station ID indicated in the reproduction permission information can be received, and only when it is determined that the current position is within the predetermined area. The normal reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is permitted.

FIG. 18 is a block diagram showing a reproducing apparatus according to the fifth embodiment. The basic configuration is the same as that of FIG. 11, but a receiving unit 5E is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 shown in FIG. Receiver 5
E has an antenna 5E1 and a mobile phone receiver 5E2. The receiving unit 5E is formed as a receiving unit similar to a mobile phone, and the antenna 5E1 receives a radio wave from a base station. In addition, the mobile phone receiving unit 5E2 transmits at least the base station ID of the received signal fetched from the antenna 5E1.
Are configured to be decodable. Therefore, for example, when the user is in the area of the base station 101, the mobile phone receiving unit 5E2 captures “BID1” as the base station ID of the base station 101. When the user is in the area of the base station 102, the mobile phone receiving unit 5E2 outputs
“BID2” is acquired as the base station ID of the base station 102.

In the case of this reproducing apparatus as well, at the time of reproduction, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
The reproduction authentication processing shown as Step F102 in each figure is
This is performed as shown in FIG.

First, as step F341, the disk 90
, The reproduction permission information recorded corresponding to the content data, that is, one or a plurality of specific base station IDs is read. Subsequently, in step F342, the mobile phone receiving unit 5E
2 is compared with the base station ID read from the disk 90. When the base station ID detected by the mobile phone receiving unit 5E2 matches one of the base station IDs read from the disk 90, the current position is determined to be within the area range where reproduction is permitted. The process proceeds from step F343 to F344 to determine that the reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, the base station ID detected by the mobile phone receiver 5E2 is
If the current position does not exist as the base station ID read out from, the current position is determined to be out of the area range in which reproduction is permitted, and the process proceeds from step F343 to F345 to determine reproduction authentication NG. When the result of the reproduction authentication process is OK, the process proceeds to the process of reproducing the content data according to the user's operation. On the other hand, when the result of the reproduction authentication process is NG, the reproduction of the content data is performed. Is restricted (reproduction is prohibited or only test reproduction is permitted). In addition, since the movement may occur during the reproduction and the area may be out of the permitted area, when the normal reproduction is performed, the control unit 1
Also performs the processing described in FIG.

In this example, the transmission information from the mobile phone base station can be used to determine whether or not the mobile phone is in a specific area, so that only users in the specific area can reproduce the content. Such a content providing form can be realized. For example, if the base station ID of each base station located in a specific city is recorded as the reproduction permission information, the content data can be reproduced only when the user is in that city.

By the way, in the case of the method of taking in the base station ID as the information of the current position as described above, for example, the processing as shown in FIG. 20 is also possible. In the case of this example, the reproducing apparatus is provided with a map database 15 as shown in FIG. This map database has, for example, a base station ID.
And a database that stores the information in association with the region.
The reproduction permission information recorded on the disc 90 is not a base station ID but information representing one or a plurality of specific areas. The information indicating the specific area may be, for example, information based on latitude / longitude, or information such as a place name or an area code. However, the information is information stored in the map database 15 in association with the base station ID.

The reproduction authentication processing is performed as shown in FIG. First, as step F351, the reproduction permission information recorded on the disc 90 in correspondence with the content data, that is, information indicating a specific area is read. Subsequently, in step F352, the base station ID detected from the mobile phone receiving unit 5E2 is fetched. And step F253
Then, the map database 15 is searched based on the detected base station ID, and information corresponding to the base station ID is read. Then, the information indicating the area is compared with the information indicating the area read from the disk 90.

If the information representing the area retrieved from the map database 15 matches one of the information representing the areas read from the disk 90, the current position is determined to be the area permitted to be reproduced. Judging that it is within the range,
The process proceeds from step F354 to F355, and the reproduction authentication is OK.
Judge. On the other hand, if the information representing the area retrieved from the map database 15 does not match any of the information representing the areas read from the disk 90,
It is determined that the current position is outside the area range where the reproduction is permitted, and the process proceeds from step F354 to F356 to determine that the reproduction authentication is NG. When the result of the reproduction authentication process is OK, the process proceeds to the process of reproducing the content data according to the user's operation. On the other hand, when the result of the reproduction authentication process is NG, the reproduction of the content data is performed. Is restricted (reproduction is prohibited or only test reproduction is permitted).
Also in this case, the control unit 1 also performs the processing described with reference to FIG. 6 because during the normal reproduction, the movement may occur outside the permitted area due to movement during the reproduction. Even in such a processing method, it is possible to perform authentication in a specific area using the base station ID.

4-4 ETC Data Authentication (Sixth Embodiment) In the sixth embodiment, an ETC (Electronic Toll Collec
This is an example in which communication data of a ting system is used to authenticate whether or not the vehicle is on a toll road such as an expressway, and the reproduction of content data is permitted on the expressway. Alternatively, it is also possible to perform authentication as to whether the vehicle is on a highway and in a specific area.

FIG. 21 is a block diagram showing a reproducing apparatus according to the sixth embodiment. The basic configuration is the same as that of FIG. 11, but a receiving unit 5F is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 shown in FIG. Receiver 5
F has an antenna 5F1 and an ETC receiving unit 5F2.
The receiving unit 5F receives data from the ETC communication device 103 provided at a tollgate on a toll road such as an expressway. Then, the ETC receiving unit 5F2 converts at least the ETC of the received signal captured from the antenna 5F1.
The arrangement position information of the communication device 103, for example, the place name code and other information of the entrance / exit can be decoded.

In the case of this example, the control unit 1 controls the ETC receiving unit 5
Each time the information decoded by F2 is supplied (that is, each time the vehicle carrying the playback device passes through the location of the ETC communication device), the processing in FIG. 23 is performed. FIG.
Fig. 4 shows the vicinity of the toll road interchange.
An ETC communication device 103i is arranged at the entrance tollgate, and when a car passes through the entrance tollgate, the receiving unit 5F of the playback device
Can receive data from the ETC communication device 103i. Similarly, an ETC communication device 103o is arranged at the exit tollgate, and when the vehicle passes through the exit tollgate, the receiving unit 5F
Can receive data from the ETC communication device 103o. Further, as shown in the figure, an ETC communication device 1 is provided to cope with a vehicle passing through the interchange without entering or leaving the interchange.
03p may be arranged. In this case, when passing through the toll road, the receiving unit 5F transmits the ETC communication device 10
Data from 3p can be received.

The ETC communication device 103i transmits at least “entrance” information and an interchange name code. The ETC communication device 103o transmits at least “exit” information and an interchange name code.
The ETC communication device 103p transmits at least the name code of the interchange.

For example, since the ETC communication device 103 is provided near each interchange on a toll road as shown in FIG. 24, when a vehicle carrying the playback device passes through or enters or exits the vicinity of the interchange, the reception is performed. The unit 5F receives data from the ETC communication device 103. As shown in FIG. 23, when the decoded reception information is fetched from the ETC reception unit 5F2, the control unit 1 executes step F
The process proceeds from 401 to F402, and it is determined whether or not “entrance” information is included. If "entrance" information is included,
In step F405, the internal flag indicating that the vehicle carrying the playback device is on the highway is turned on in step F405. Step F40
At 6, save the interchange name code received with the "entrance" information. That is, it is stored as place name data of a point where the user enters the expressway.

[0108] If the "exit" information is included when the decoded reception information is fetched from the ETC receiver 5F2, it means that the car carrying the playback device has left the expressway. Then, the process proceeds from step F403 to F408, and the internal flag indicating that the vehicle is on the expressway is turned off. In step F409, the stored name code (place name data) is cleared.

When the received information decoded from the ETC receiving unit 5F2 is fetched, the “entrance” information does not include the “exit” information or the “pass” information is included. If the data is transmitted from the ETC communication device 103p of 24, it means that the car carrying the playback device has passed through the interchange in which the ETC communication device 103p is deployed without entering or leaving the interchange.
Proceeding from step F404 to F407, the decoded name code is stored. That is, it is stored as the passed place name data.

In the case of receiving data from the ETC communication device 103, by performing the above-described processing, the authentication processing shown in FIG. 22 can be performed at the time of reproduction. Also in the case of this reproducing apparatus, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 5 at the time of reproduction.
As shown in FIG. 22, in the reproduction authentication process indicated as 02, first, as step F361, the reproduction permission information recorded on the disc 90 in correspondence with the content data is read. In this case, the reproduction permission information may be, for example, the content “inside the expressway” or the content in which the area is limited such as “section from xx interchange to yy interchange in expressway”. Is also good.

Subsequently, in step F362, the current position is determined from the information stored by the processing in FIG.
This is compared with the reproduction permission information. For example, according to the processing of FIG. 23, if the vehicle is traveling on the highway, the highway flag in the control unit 1 is turned on. Therefore, it can be determined that the vehicle is traveling on the highway by turning on the highway flag. In addition, which zone on the expressway is running can be determined from the storage status of the entrance place name data and the passing place name data. For example, in the case of the Tomei Expressway, if the code indicating "Kawasaki" is stored as the entrance place name data and the codes "Yokohama Aoba" and "Yokohama" are stored as the passage place name data, the Yokohama Interchange It can be determined that the vehicle is traveling in a section between the Atsugi interchange and the Atsugi interchange.

In this way, the current position is determined. If it is determined that the current position is on the expressway and within the area where the reproduction is permitted, the process proceeds to steps F363 → F364 → F365 to determine that the reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, if the vehicle is not currently on the expressway, that is, if the flag on the expressway is turned off, or if it is determined that the vehicle is on the expressway but not in the area where the reproduction is permitted, step F363 or step F363 is executed.
Proceeding from F. 364 to F366, it is determined that the reproduction authentication is NG. And if the result of the playback authentication process is OK,
Normally, the process proceeds to the process of reproducing the content data according to the operation of the user, while the result of the reproduction authentication process is NG.
If, the reproduction of the content data is restricted (reproduction is prohibited or only trial reproduction is permitted). Of course, during reproduction, the vehicle may fall outside the permitted area or get off the expressway. Therefore, when normal reproduction is being performed, the control unit 1 also performs the processing described with reference to FIG.

By using the ETC transmission data in this manner, for example, it is possible to permit reproduction on a toll road or reproduction in a specific area on a toll road.
For example, in the case where the ETC communication device is arranged only at the tollgate and the ETC communication device 103p for the passing vehicle is not provided, whether to permit reproduction is determined by determining whether the vehicle is on an expressway or not. Alternatively, reproduction permission / non-permission may be determined based on only the place name data at the entrance.

The operation of the present embodiment does not necessarily use the ETC communication device, but a dedicated transmitter may be provided at an interchange or the like. For example, a beacon transmitter and other wireless transmitters may be provided at required locations to enable the playback device to execute the above-described processing. Further, although the example is applied to the toll road, the same method can be applied to a specific facility. For example, a transmitter for transmitting "entrance" information and "exit" information is provided at least at an entrance and an exit of a certain facility, and the playback device turns on / off a flag indicating inside and outside of the facility according to the reception thereof. Thus, the control unit 1 can determine whether or not the vehicle is currently located in the specific facility, so that the same reproduction authentication processing as described above can be performed.

4-5 Broadcasting Station Radio Authentication (Seventh Embodiment) A seventh embodiment is directed to an AM or FM radio broadcasting station, a UH
This is an example in which an area is authenticated using a transmission radio wave of a television broadcasting station such as F. Radio waves from these broadcasting stations can be received only in specific areas. Therefore, whether or not the current position is within a specific area can be determined based on whether or not the radio wave of a specific broadcast station can be received and the degree of the reception sensitivity. Therefore, in the case of this example, the frequency (or channel) of a specific broadcasting station and information for specifying the broadcasting station are recorded as reproduction permission information in the medium 90 together with the content data. The position is within a predetermined area depending on whether or not radio waves of the frequency of the broadcast station indicated in the reproduction permission information can be received, and further, whether or not reception has been performed at a predetermined reception sensitivity or higher. The normal reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is permitted only when it is determined that the content data is within the predetermined area.

FIG. 25 is a block diagram showing a reproducing apparatus according to the seventh embodiment. The basic configuration is the same as that of FIG. 11, but a receiving unit 5G is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 shown in FIG. Receiver 5
G has an antenna 5G1, a broadcast receiving unit 5G2, and a receiving sensitivity detecting unit 5G3. This receiving unit 5G is formed as a receiving unit for AM radio, FM radio, or UHF broadcast. The antenna 5G1 receives a radio wave from the broadcasting station 120. The broadcast receiving unit 5G2 receives / demodulates the broadcast of the broadcast station 120 whose channel selection is controlled (frequency designation) by the control unit 1 with respect to the received signal fetched from the antenna 5G1. That is, it is configured as a radio tuner or a television tuner. Then, at least information for specifying the broadcasting station (referred to as a broadcasting station ID for the sake of explanation) can be extracted. The broadcast station ID may be any information among the information transmitted by the broadcast station that can identify the broadcast station. The sensitivity detection unit 5G3 detects the reception level at the broadcast reception unit 5G2, and generates information indicating whether or not the reception level is equal to or higher than a predetermined level, for example, by comparing the reception level with a predetermined threshold level. Supply to unit 1.

In the case of this reproducing apparatus as well, at the time of reproduction, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
The reproduction authentication processing shown as Step F102 in each figure is
This is performed as shown in FIG.

First, as step F371, the disk 90
, The reproduction permission information recorded corresponding to the content data, that is, the broadcast station ID and the selected frequency information are read as information on a specific broadcast station. Subsequently, in step F372, the broadcast receiving unit 5G2 executes a tuning operation based on the tuning frequency information read from the disk 90, and receives a broadcast signal of the specific broadcast station. Then, in a step F373, it is determined whether or not the broadcast signal can be received based on the selected frequency. If the broadcast signal can be received, the process proceeds to step F374 and the broadcast receiving unit 5G2
As a result, information serving as a broadcast station ID is extracted and received from the received broadcast signal. In step F375, the broadcast station ID read from the disk 90 is compared with the received broadcast station ID. If the broadcast station IDs match, the process proceeds to step F377, where the reception sensitivity determination information detected by the reception sensitivity detection unit 5G3 is fetched. And step F
At 378, it is determined whether or not the level as the receiving sensitivity is equal to or more than a predetermined value Rth.

If the reception sensitivity is equal to or higher than the predetermined value Rth, that is, the broadcast can be received at the frequency read from the disk 90, the received broadcast station ID matches the broadcast station ID read from the disk 90, and Is satisfied, the current position is determined to be within the area where reproduction is permitted, and the process proceeds from step F378 to F379 to determine that reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, when the broadcast cannot be received due to the frequency read from the disk 90, or when the received broadcast station ID does not match the broadcast station ID read from the disk 90, or when the reception sensitivity is not at a satisfactory level. Determines that the reproduction is out of the range of the permitted area, and proceeds to step F373, F376, or F378.
Then, the process proceeds to F380, where it is determined that the reproduction authentication is NG. If the result of the playback authentication processing is OK,
The process proceeds to the process of reproducing the content data according to the user's operation. On the other hand, if the result of the reproduction authentication process is NG, the reproduction of the content data is restricted (prohibition of reproduction or permission of only trial reproduction). Note that the control unit 1 also performs the processing described with reference to FIG. 6 when the normal reproduction is performed, because the movement may occur outside the permitted area during the reproduction.

In this example, it is possible to determine whether or not a user is in a specific area, based on whether or not the broadcast is within the coverage area of a broadcasting station such as FM radio or UHF television. Only in this case, it is possible to realize a content providing mode that enables content reproduction. This is suitable, for example, when considering a content that provides various types of information only to listeners and viewers of a specific broadcasting station.

4-6 Cable Broadcasting Station Authentication (Eighth Embodiment) The eighth embodiment is an example in which an area is authenticated based on whether or not a cable television broadcasting station can receive a signal. In the cable television broadcasting network, for example, a broadcasting station is provided for each region such as a specific city, and a transmission cable is provided from the broadcasting station to each home. Therefore, it can be determined whether or not the location where the playback device is installed is within a specific area, based on whether or not a specific cable television broadcast station can be received. Therefore, in the case of this example, information specifying a specific cable television broadcasting station is recorded as reproduction permission information together with the content data in the medium 90, and when the content data is reproduced, the information is indicated in the reproduction permission information. Depending on whether or not cable TV stations can be received,
It is determined whether or not the content data is within a predetermined area, and only when it is determined that the data is within the predetermined area, normal reproduction of the content data from the medium 90 is permitted.

FIG. 27 is a block diagram showing a reproducing apparatus according to the eighth embodiment. The basic configuration is the same as that of FIG. 11, but a cable broadcast decoder 5H is provided as a part corresponding to the reproduction authentication data source 5 shown in FIG. The cable broadcast decoder receives / demodulates a broadcast program transmitted from the cable television broadcast station 121. However, the cable broadcast decoder 5H only needs to supply at least the broadcast station ID of the cable television broadcast station to the control unit 1, and does not need to output a broadcast program. Alternatively, the cable broadcast decoder 5H may not necessarily be provided in the playback device. For example, a cable broadcast decoder arranged near a television receiver or the like in a home or the like is connected to the playback device, and the received signal is not transmitted. It may be configured such that the control unit 1 can take in a part (broadcasting station ID).

In the case of this reproducing apparatus as well, at the time of reproduction, the control unit 1 performs the processing of FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG.
The reproduction authentication processing shown as Step F102 in each figure is
This is performed as shown in FIG.

First, as step F391, the disk 90
In step (1), the reproduction permission information recorded corresponding to the content data, that is, the broadcast station ID is read as information on a specific cable television broadcast station. Then step F
In 392, the receiving operation of the cable broadcasting decoder 5H is executed, and the broadcasting signal of the cable television broadcasting station 121 is received. Then, in a step F393, it is determined whether or not the cable broadcast can be received. If the cable broadcast has been successfully received, the process proceeds to step F394, where information serving as a broadcast station ID is extracted from the received information and taken in. In step F395, the broadcast station ID read from the disk 90 is compared with the received broadcast station ID. If the broadcast station IDs match, it is determined that the reproduction is within the permitted area range, and steps F396 to F3
Proceeding to 97, it is determined that the reproduction authentication is OK. On the other hand, if the cable broadcast cannot be received, or if the received broadcast station ID does not match the broadcast station ID read from the disk 90, it is determined that the reproduction is outside the permitted area. , Steps F393 or F396 to F3
Proceeding to 98, it is determined that the reproduction authentication is NG. If the result of the playback authentication process is OK, the process proceeds to the process of playing back the content data according to the user's operation. On the other hand, if the result of the playback authentication process is NG,
Reproduction of content data is restricted (reproduction is prohibited or only trial reproduction is permitted).

In this example, whether or not a particular cable broadcast is within a specific area can be determined on the basis of whether or not a specific cable broadcast can be received, so that only users in a specific area can reproduce content. It is possible to realize a simple content providing form. This is suitable, for example, when considering a content that provides various information to a user who has a viewing contract with a specific cable television broadcasting station.

Although various embodiments have been described above, various other examples are conceivable as the present invention.
That is, any mode may be used as long as the specific device, the specific date / time, the specific area, and the like can be authenticated. In addition, the conditions of the specific device, the specific date / time, and the specific region have been described. For example, in a specific area, it is possible to make the reproduction authentication OK only on a specific date and time.

[0127]

As will be understood from the above description, according to the present invention, since the reproduction permission / reproduction restriction can be set based on the conditions of the reproduction device, date and time, period, or region, the contents of the actual content data and There is an effect that flexible and optimal reproduction control can be realized according to the provision form, the intention of the content creator or the provider. Also, depending on the condition setting, a new service / business form of the content data can be realized, and the user side can also enjoy the benefits.

The reproduction restriction of the present invention may be, for example, data reproduction up to a predetermined number of times is allowed to prohibit reproduction of data exceeding a predetermined number of times, or data reproduction is possible for a predetermined time and reproduction of data exceeding a predetermined time is prohibited. By prohibiting, for example, users who do not meet the conditions of playback permission can preview content data, etc., introduce or promote songs and videos as content data, or improve services for users Can be done.

As a method of prohibiting reproduction by the reproduction restriction, the operation of reading data from the recording medium is stopped, the reproduction output of the data read from the recording medium is muted, the power of the reproducing apparatus is controlled, or the like. Can be easily realized by turning off or controlling not to execute the decryption processing of the encrypted data at the time of reproduction.
No complicated system for banning reproduction is required.

When the reproduction permission / restriction is controlled depending on the reproduction area, discrimination between inside and outside of the area based on the latitude / longitude information, discrimination between inside and outside the area by receiving a radio wave of a specific frequency, and reception of information from the wireless base station are performed. In-area / out-of-area discrimination, in-area / out-of-area discrimination based on receiving information from a particular transmitter,
It is possible to determine whether the area is inside or outside the area based on the reception of a broadcast by a specific broadcasting station. This makes it possible to perform various playback controls in accordance with the actual implementation status, the area, the facilities, the contents, and the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a basic configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a management memory according to the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a reproduction processing example according to the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a reproduction processing example according to the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an example of a reproduction process according to the embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a processing example during normal reproduction according to the embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the recording / reproducing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a personal ID registration process according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a recording process according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a playback device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a playback device according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a playback device according to a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram of a permitted area according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a block diagram of a playback device according to a fifth embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart of another reproduction authentication process according to the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a block diagram of a playback device according to a sixth embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the sixth embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart of a process at the time of ETC reception according to the sixth embodiment.

FIG. 24 is an explanatory diagram of an ETC communication device installation location according to the sixth embodiment.

FIG. 25 is a block diagram of a playback device according to a seventh embodiment.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the seventh embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a block diagram of a playback device according to an eighth embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart of a reproduction authentication process according to the eighth embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 control unit, 2 reading unit, 3 playback signal processing unit, 4 output processing unit, 5 playback authentication data source, 6 power supply unit, 7
Operation unit, 8 display unit, 9 management memory, 90 media (disk)

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Shunsuke Furukawa 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Inside Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Junichi Kudo 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Inside Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Kaoru Kijima 6-7-35 Kita Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Inside Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Shoga Utsumi 6-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Sony (72) Inventor Tomihiro Nakagawa 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Tatsuya Inokuchi 6-35, Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Kazuko Sakurai 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Akira Tange 6-35, Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Sony Corporation F-term (reference) 5B058 CA27 KA02 KA04 KA31 KA33 KA35 YA13 YA16 5C053 FA13 FA30 KA01 KA24 KA25 LA20 5D044 DE49 GK17 HL08

Claims (32)

[Claims] 1. A reproducing apparatus for reproducing a recording medium on which an identifier indicating a device permitted to reproduce data is recorded, comprising: reproducing means for reproducing data and the identifier from an attached recording medium; and an identifier unique to the device. A comparing unit that compares the identifier reproduced by the reproducing unit with the identifier stored in the storing unit; and a case in which the comparison unit detects a match between the identifiers. Allows the reproduction of data from the mounted recording medium. On the other hand, if the comparison means does not detect a match between the identifiers, the reproduction of data from the mounted recording medium is permitted. And a control means for performing control for restricting the reproduction. 2. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the restriction on data reproduction by the control means enables data reproduction up to a predetermined number of times and prohibits reproduction of data exceeding the predetermined number of times. 3. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the restriction of the data reproduction by the control means enables data reproduction for a predetermined time and prohibits reproduction of data exceeding the predetermined time. 4. The data reproduction restriction by the control means prohibits data reproduction.
A playback device according to claim 1. 5. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control means stops the data reading operation from the recording medium by the reproducing means as the process of prohibiting data reproduction. A playback device according to claim 1. 6. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said control means performs mute control of a reproduction output of the data read from the recording medium by said reproduction means, as a process of prohibiting data reproduction. The reproduction device according to claim 3 or 4. 7. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control means performs control of turning off the power of the reproducing apparatus as processing for prohibiting data reproduction. Playback device. 8. The data recorded on the recording medium is encrypted data, and the reproducing means is configured to decrypt the data read from the recording medium and reproduce and output the data. In this case, the control means performs processing for prohibiting data reproduction,
5. The reproducing device according to claim 2, wherein the reproducing device controls the reproducing device so as not to execute the decoding process. 9. A reproducing apparatus for reproducing a recording medium in which date / time information indicating a date / time or a period in which data reproduction is permitted is reproduced from the attached recording medium. Reproduction means; clock means for counting the current date and time; comparison means for comparing the date and time information reproduced by the reproduction means with the current date and time by the clock means; When it is detected that the date / time or the period indicated in the date / time / period information is applicable, the reproduction of the data from the attached recording medium is permitted. Control means for controlling the reproduction of data from the attached recording medium when it is detected that the data does not correspond to the date and time or the period indicated in the period information. Reproducing apparatus and butterflies. 10. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the restriction on data reproduction by the control means enables data reproduction up to a predetermined number of times and prohibits reproduction of data exceeding the predetermined number of times. 11. Restriction of data reproduction by the control means enables data reproduction for a predetermined time and prohibits reproduction of data exceeding a predetermined time.
A playback device according to claim 1. 12. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the restriction on data reproduction by the control means prohibits data reproduction. 13. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control means stops the data read operation from the recording medium by the reproduction means as the process of prohibiting data reproduction.
13. The playback device according to claim 11. 14. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said control means performs mute control of a reproduction output of data read from a recording medium by said reproduction means, as a process of prohibiting data reproduction. Claim 11 or Claim 12
A playback device according to claim 1. 15. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the control means performs control to turn off the power of the reproducing apparatus as processing for prohibiting data reproduction. Playback device. 16. The data recorded on a recording medium is encrypted data, and the reproducing means is configured to decrypt the data read from the recording medium and reproduce and output the data. In this case, the control means performs processing for prohibiting data reproduction,
13. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein control is performed so as not to execute the decoding processing of the reproducing unit. 17. A reproducing apparatus for reproducing a recording medium on which area specifying information for specifying an area in which data reproduction is permitted is recorded, comprising: reproducing means for reproducing data and the area specifying information from an attached recording medium. Position detecting means for detecting the current position; comparing means for comparing the area identification information reproduced by the reproducing means with the current position detected by the position detecting means; If it is detected that the data is within the area indicated by the area identification information, the reproduction of the data from the attached recording medium is permitted,
Control means for performing control to limit reproduction of data from the mounted recording medium, when it is detected that the current position does not fall within the area indicated by the area specifying information by the comparing means, A playback device comprising: 18. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the control of the data reproduction by the control means enables data reproduction up to a predetermined number of times and prohibits reproduction of data exceeding the predetermined number of times. 19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the control of the data reproduction by the control means enables data reproduction for a predetermined time and prohibits reproduction of data exceeding the predetermined time.
The playback device according to claim 7. 20. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the restriction on data reproduction by the control means prohibits data reproduction. 21. The method according to claim 1, wherein the control means stops the data reading operation from the recording medium by the reproducing means as the process of prohibiting data reproduction.
The playback device according to claim 8, 19 or 20. 22. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said control means performs mute control of a reproduction output of data read from a recording medium by said reproduction means, as a process of prohibiting data reproduction. Claim 19 or Claim 20
A playback device according to claim 1. 23. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the control means performs control to turn off the power of the reproducing apparatus as processing for prohibiting data reproduction. Playback device. 24. Data recorded on a recording medium is encrypted data, and the reproducing means is configured to decrypt the data read from the recording medium and reproduce and output the data. In this case, the control means performs processing for prohibiting data reproduction,
21. The playback device according to claim 18, wherein the playback device is controlled not to execute the decoding process. 25. The apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the area specifying information is latitude / longitude information indicating a specific area, and the position detecting means detects a current position by latitude / longitude. Playback device. 26. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the area specifying information is information indicating a specific frequency, and the position detecting means detects a transmission signal at a specific frequency. 27. The area specifying information is information indicating a specific wireless base station, and the position detecting means is constituted by a receiving unit capable of receiving information from the wireless base station. Claim 17
A playback device according to claim 1. 28. The area specifying information is information indicating a specific area, and the position detecting means includes: a receiving section capable of receiving information from a radio base station; 18. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 17, comprising an area determining unit for determining a current area. 29. The area specifying information is information indicating a specific area, a road, or a facility, and the position detecting means is configured by a receiving unit capable of receiving information from a specific transmitter. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein
The playback device according to claim 7. 30. The apparatus according to claim 30, wherein the area specifying information is information indicating a specific broadcasting station, and the position detecting means is constituted by a receiving unit capable of receiving a broadcast by the specific broadcasting station. Item 1
The playback device according to claim 7. 31. The reproducing apparatus according to claim 30, wherein said position detecting means further comprises a sensitivity detecting section for detecting a receiving sensitivity at said receiving section. 32. A portable playback device or a playback device mounted on a moving body.
A playback device according to claim 1.