SYSTEM FOR HANDLING DIGITAL RIGHTS AND KEYS IN BUSINESS-TO-BUSINESS APPLICATIONS, COMPUTER-SOFTWARE PROGRAM, COMPUTER SOFTWARE MODULES AND SOFTWARE PRODUCTS THEREFORE

There is provided a conditional access system for the distribution and management of digital rights and keys in business-to-business applications o f a plurality of actors including rights owners and rights consumers. The logical path between the rights owner and the rights consumer is decomposed into a succession of point-to-point communications between actors or groups of actors and by sharing information that allows identifying actors or groups o f actors and establishing secure communications between these actors or groups of actors. Keys communication channels and digital rights communication channels are matched with a network of business relations defining a network of trust between the different actors. The conditional access system of the invention for the distribution and management of digital rights and keys is adapted to be used in a digital cinema network comprising keys communication channels and digital rights communication channels. A computer program for running the system and software or hardware modules and products for this purpose are also provided.