Organization-based content rights management and systems, structures, and methods therefor

A method for an enabled recipient to handle a received rights-managed document with protected content from an author, the method comprising:

• receiving the document comprising a storage portion having a message that the document is rights management protected and a custom data portion having a section including the protected content and a section including rights data relating to the protected content, the rights data setting forth each entity that has rights with respect to the protected content, and for each such entity a description of such rights;
• recognizing based on the storage portion that the document has the protected content in the custom data portion thereof, the protected content being encrypted and decryptable according to a decryption key, the decryption key being encrypted according to a public key of a rights management server to result in an encrypted decryption key that is stored in the custom data portion;
• retrieving the rights data in the custom data portion of the document;
• forwarding the retrieved rights data to the rights management server, such rights management server for determining that the recipient is an entity listed in the rights data and issuing to the recipient a license corresponding to the protected content to the recipient based on the rights data, such license specifying rights the recipient has with respect to the protected content as determined from the rights data and also including the decryption key from the rights data;
• reviewing the issued license to determine that the recipient has a right to render the protected content in the custom data portion of the document;
• retrieving the decryption key from the license;
• and
• rendering the decrypted content.

A tangible computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a data structure comprising a rights-managed document having protected content from an author thereof, whereby a recipient of the document can render the protected content with a corresponding license if the recipient satisfies terms set forth in the license, the document comprising:

• a storage portion having a message that the document is rights management protected;
• and
• a custom data portion having a section including the protected content and a section including rights data relating to the protected content, the rights data setting forth each entity that has rights with respect to the protected content, and for each such entity a description of such rights,
• wherein the rights data is forwarded to a rights management server, and the recipient if enabled by the rights data can render the protected content in the custom data portion and if not enabled by the rights data can only review the storage portion having the message,
• wherein the protected content in the custom data portion is encrypted according to a cryptographic key, the rights data including a decryption key for decrypting the encrypted content, the decryption key being encrypted according to a public key of the rights management server to result in an encrypted decryption key, the rights management server accessing the decryption key from the encrypted decryption key with a corresponding private key if the recipient is enabled by the rights data.

A tangible computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions for performing a method for an enabled recipient to handle a received rights-managed document with protected content from an author, the method comprising:

• receiving the document comprising a storage portion having a message that the document is rights management protected and a custom data portion having a section including the protected content and a section including rights data relating to the protected content, the rights data setting forth each entity that has rights with respect to the protected content, and for each such entity a description of such rights;
• recognizing based on the storage portion that the document has the protected content in the custom data portion thereof, the protected content being encrypted and decryptable according to a decryption key, the decryption key being encrypted according to a public key of a rights management server to result in an encrypted decryption key that is stored in the custom data portion;
• retrieving the rights data in the custom data portion of the document;
• forwarding the retrieved rights data to the rights management server, such rights management server for determining that the recipient is an entity listed in the rights data and issuing to the recipient a license corresponding to the protected content to the recipient based on the rights data, such license specifying rights the recipient has with respect to the protected content as determined from the rights data and also including the decryption key from the rights data;
• reviewing the issued license to determine that the recipient has a right to render the protected content in the custom data portion of the document;
• retrieving the decryption key from the license;
• and
• rendering the decrypted content.