Systems and methods for matching, selecting, narrowcasting, and/or classifying based on rights management and/or other information

Abstract

Rights management information is used at least in part in a matching, narrowcasting, classifying and/or selecting process. A matching and classification utility system comprising a kind of Commerce Utility System is used to perform the matching, narrowcasting, classifying and/or selecting. The matching and classification utility system may match, narrowcast, classify and/or select people and/or things, non-limiting examples of which include software objects. The Matching and Classification Utility system may use any pre-existing classification schemes, including at least some rights management information and/or other qualitative and/or parameter data indicating and/or defining classes, classification systems, class hierarchies, category schemes, class assignments, category assignments, and/or class membership. The Matching and Classification Utility may also use at least some rights management information together with any artificial intelligence, expert system, statistical, computational, manual, or any other means to define new classes, class hierarchies, classification systems, category schemes, and/or assign persons, things, and/or groups of persons and/or things to at least one class.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method comprising:
 identifying a category of authoritative sources, the category being identified using, at least in part, rights management related information reflecting a user's preferences;   determining, based at least in part on information relating to the authoritative sources, at least one class of content applicable to a user of a first electronic appliance; and   sending, to the first electronic appliance, one or more content objects or references to one or more content objects, the one or more content objects being members of the at least one class of content determined to be applicable to the user of the first electronic appliance.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , in which the step of sending the one or more content objects or references to one or more content objects comprises sending one or more content objects in one or more secure electronic containers. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , in which the one or more content objects have at least one control set associated therewith, the at least one control set being configured for use in governing access to or other use of the one or more content objects by a user of the first electronic appliance. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , in which the one or more references to one or more content objects include a pointer to a service that offers at least one of the one or more content objects. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 using the one or more content objects.