Methods, systems and devices for packet watermarking and efficient provisioning of bandwidth

A system for transmitting a stream of data, comprising:

• a processor to receive a stream of data and to organize the stream of data into a plurality of packets;
• a generator to generate a packet watermark associated with the stream of data wherein the packet watermark enables identification of at least one of the plurality of packets;
• a packager to combine the packet watermark with each of the plurality of packets to form watermarked packets;
• and
• a transmitter to transmit at least one of the watermarked packets across a network.

A method for packaging data for transmission, comprising:

• receiving content data;
• organizing the content data into at least two packets;
• generating at least a portion of a packet watermark associated with at least one of the packets of data wherein the portion of the packet watermark enables identification of the at least one of the packets of data;
• generating a bandwidth rights certificate comprising:
• at least one cryptographic credential;
• and
• routing information selected from the group consisting of authorization data to authorize use of at least one particular router and priority data to prioritize use of at least one particular router;
• and
• combining the bandwidth rights certificate, the at least one portion of a packet watermark, and the at least one packet of data, for transmission across a network comprising a plurality of routers.

A computerized system for packaging data for transmission to a user, comprising:

• a receiver to receive content data;
• computer code to organize the data into at least two packets;
• computer code to generate a packet watermark associated with at least one of the packets of data wherein the packet watermark enables identification of the at least one of the packets of data;
• computer code to generate a bandwidth rights certificate comprising:
• at least one cryptographic credential;
• and
• routing information selected from the group consisting of authorization data to authorize use of at least one particular router and priority data to prioritize use of at least one particular router;
• and
• computer code to combine the bandwidth rights certificate, the packet watermark, and the at least one packet, for transmission across a network comprising a plurality of routers.

A system for the transmission of data, comprising:

• a receiver to receive content data;
• a processor to organize the content data into a plurality of packets;
• a watermark generator to generate at least a portion of a packet watermark associated with at least one packet of data wherein the portion of the packet watermark enable identification of at least one of the plurality of packets;
• a certificate generator to generate a bandwidth rights certificate associated with at least one packet of data, said certificate comprising:
• routing information selected from the group consisting of authorization data to authorize use of at least one particular router and priority data to prioritize use of at least one particular router;
• and
• a transmitter to transmit at least one of the plurality of data packets, its associated packet watermark, and its associated bandwidth rights certificate across a network.