Subscriber's prepayment mechanism for use in subscription entertainment systems

Claim 1

A SUBSCRIPTION ENTERTAINMENT APPARATUS COMPRISING MEANS TO RECEIVE PRICING SIGNAL DENOTING PROGRAM PRICES, A PRICE REGISTERING MEMBER, MEANS TO MOVE SAID PRICE REGISTERING MEMBER FROM AN INITIAL POSITION TO A POSITION DETERMINED BY THE RECEIVED PRICING SIGNAL AND REGISTRATIVE OF A SPECIFIC PROGRAM PRICE, AN ACCOUNT STATE RECORDING MEMBER, A MANUALLY OPERATIVE ACCEPTANCE CONTROL DRIVINGLY COUPLED TO BOTH SAID MEMBERS, WHEREBY TO MOVE SAID PRICE REGISTERING MEMBER TO SAID PAID POSITION AND TO DEBIT THE ACCOUNT STATE RECORD BY THE PRICE OF THE PROGRAM ACCEPTED, SWITCH MEANS COUPLED TO SAID PRICE REGISTERING MEMBER TO CLOSE AN ELECTRICAL PATH WHEN AND ONLY WHEN SAID PRICE REGISTERING MEMBER IS IN ITS PAID POSITION, THUS ENABLING REPRODUCTION OF SAID PROGRAM, A COIN BOX COUPLED TO SAID ACCOUNT STATE RECORDING MEMBER, TO MOVE THIS MEMBER IN A CREDIT DIRECTION ON COIN DEPOSITIONS, AND MEANS TO INHIBIT THE DRIVING ACTION OF SAID ACCEPTANCE CONTROL ON THE ACCOUNT STATE RECORD STANDING AT INSUFFICIENT CREDIT.