LCP (Licensed Content Protection) is a right management solution for digital publications (DRM or Digital Rights Management). Here's how to use it in Cantook Hub, for selling to consumers, or making unitary consumer sales.

You need to use this protection scheme in accordance with some particularities of the Sale Declaration and the Publication Download APIs.

For more information, please refer to the Cantook Hub API documentation.

General information

  • First, booksellers must be authorized to provide LCP in Cantook Hub. This is done using an option in the organization's settings. Please check the availability of this option for your organization with your administrator.
  • LCP is readily available for most catalogues hosted in Cantook Hub, although some exceptions may apply (incompatible files, catalogue exclusions, etc.). The method for identifying compatible publications is described below (see Identifying LCP compliant publications).
  • EPUB, PDF and audio formats are compatible with LCP.
  • An LCP licence is created by adding and modifying certain parameters of the Sale Declaration and the Publication Download APIs. These parameters, along with the relevant error codes, are described below (see Using the APIs).
  • The passphrase (i.e. password), support URL and hint of a previously issued LCP licence can be changed by calling the Publication Download API again: the new licence file generated will use the latest information provided.
  • It is possible to switch a protected transaction from the Adobe lock to the LCP lock, and vice versa, by calling the Publication Download API with the settings for the desired lock. (The Adobe lock is not available on audiobooks.)

For more information about LCP, please visit EDRLab's website.

Identifying LCP compliant publications

ONIX 3.0 metadata files generated for booksellers contain the <EpubTechnicalProtection>06</EpubTechnicalProtection> tag when a publication can be delivered with the LCP lock (if the bookseller is authorized to used it). 

Using the APIs

The LCP licence is created as soon as either the Sale Declaration or the Publication Download API is successfully used, providing that they include the parameters described below. For further information, please see the main documentation about the Sale and Publication Download APIs.

API settings

Name

Mandatory or optional

Definition

protectionmandatory

Type of protection of the publication sold (open/watermark/drm/acs4/acs4_timelimited).

For the LCP lock, use protection=drm.

drm_typemandatory only if protection=drm

Type of lock of the publication sold: acs (Adobe lock) or lcp (LCP lock - EPUB, PDF or audio file).

passphrase

required on the first call to retrieve the LCP licence, either by drm_type=lcp

The passphrase is the password that will allow the user to open the content in a compatible reading application. This password must be provided by the librarian to the end user. The value provided in this parameter, a representation of the password, must undergo the following transformations, in this order:

  • password encoded in SHA256;
  • previous value encoded in base64;
  • previous value URL encoded. 
passphrase_hintoptional only if drm_type=lcpHint that will be displayed to the user as a reminder to retrieve their password. The parameter value must be URL encoded.
help_urloptional only if drm_type=lcpURL of a specific help page for opening LCP-protected content, provided by the bookseller. The user will be directed to this page as required. The parameter value must be URL encoded (255 characters maximum).

API response codes

Code

Interpretation

400 invalid_protectionThe protection is invalid.
400 invalid_drm_typeThe lock type is invalid.
400 unauthorized_drm_type_for_retailerThe librarian's settings do not allow it to provide files protected with this type of lock.
400 unauthorized_drm_type_by_publisherThe editor's settings do not allow this type of lock.
400 invalid_passphraseThe password is invalid.
400 invalid_passphrase_urlThe URL for the help page is too long.