Activating licensable component of consumer electronic device at point of sale

Abstract

A purchaser of a CE device informs a retail clerk at the point of sale (POS) of features of the CE device the purchaser wishes to employ, some of which require a license. The CE device is vended without the licenses but the clerk can upload the desired features to a server, which correlates the features to licensable components and which returns to the POS the license codes needed to enable the components. The codes can be provided to the CE device using RFID at the POS, or storing the codes on a removable storage at the POS and giving the storage to the purchaser, or by printing the codes as bar codes in the sales receipt at the POS and giving the receipt to the purchaser, who later scans the codes past a camera of the CE device to enable the associated licensable components.

1 . Consumer electronics (CE) device comprising:
 processor configured for controlling one or more licensable components, at least one of which requires a license code to enable, the license code not being available to the processor at a point of sale (POS) until a transaction for the CE device has been satisfied; and   computer readable storage medium bearing instructions which when executed by the processor cause the processor to:
 pursuant to executing the transaction, receive at least one license code associated with at least one licensable component, the license code not having to be typed in to the CE device by a person to make the license code available to the processor; and 
 use the license code to enable operation of the licensable component, the licensed component not being enabled for operation without the license code. 
   
     
     
         2 . The CE device of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to receive the license code from a server. 
     
     
         3 . The CE device of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to receive the license code from a removable storage medium removably engageable with the CE device, the removable storage medium configured for storing the license code written to it by the POS. 
     
     
         4 . The CE device of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to receive the license code from an imaging device reading the license code from a substrate printed by a printer associated with the POS. 
     
     
         5 . Point of sale terminal (POST), comprising:
 processor;   computer readable storage medium accessible by the processor and bearing instructions which when executed by the processor cause the processor to:
 receive at least one feature of a consumer electronics (CE) device, the feature implicating a license for a licensable component of the CE device; 
 transmit data representing the purchaser-desired features to a server; 
 such that the CE device can receive from the server in response to the data representing the feature at least one license code such that 
 the license code is provided to the CE device and/or to a purchaser thereof. 
   
     
     
         6 . The POST of  claim 5 , wherein the processor when executing the instruction is configured to receive the feature by means of a user interface (UI) presented on a display of the POST. 
     
     
         7 . The POST of  claim 6 , wherein the UI is configured to indicate plural sources of content to be displayed on the CE device and the purchaser decides which of the sources of content the purchaser wishes to enable. 
     
     
         8 . The POST of  claim 6 , wherein the UI is configured to indicate plural licensable components and the purchaser decides which of the licensable component the purchaser wishes to enable. 
     
     
         9 . The POST of  claim 5 , wherein the POST is configured to cause a bar code representing the license code to be printed by a printer onto a substrate which can be provided to the purchaser. 
     
     
         10 . The POST of  claim 5 , wherein the POST is configured to send the license code to the CE device using RFID. 
     
     
         11 . The POST of  claim 5 , wherein the POST is configured to store the license code on a removable memory medium that can be provided to the purchaser of the CE device for insertion thereof into the CE device. 
     
     
         12 . Method comprising:
 receiving, from a point of sale (POS), desired features of a consumer electronics (CE) device; and   using information from a terminal at the POS to provide to the CE device and/or the purchaser thereof at least one license code required to enable the feature to function on the CE device.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , comprising correlating the desired features to one or more respective licensable components disabled in the CE device absent input of respective license codes associated with the respective licensable features to a processor of the CE device. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , comprising providing the license code to the CE device from a server. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12 , comprising providing the license code to the CE device using a removable storage medium. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12 , comprising providing the license code to the CE device using at least one bar code printed onto a substrate readable by the CE device. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein a purchaser-desired feature of terrestrial antenna input is correlated to an ATSC demodulator in the CE device requiring a respective license code to enable. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein a purchaser-desired feature of video disk input is correlated to a high definition content protect (HDCP) license event. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein a purchaser-desired feature of Internet use is correlated to a licensable component established by a Web browser. 
     
     
         20 . The CE device of  claim 1 , wherein the license code is established by critical piece of the code which is related to the licensable component and is omitted from the CE device prior to executing the transaction, wherein prior to provision of the critical piece of code, the licensable component in effect is not merely locked out, but rather is effectively missing altogether, even though other parts of software code needed to execute the licensable component are vended with the CE device.