Method and apparatus for content distribution for multi-screen viewing

• US 10,212,474 B2
• Filed: 06/05/2013
• Issued: 02/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Madison Patent Holdings (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Inventors: Xu, Yan, Du, Lin, Zhou, Wei
• Primary Examiner(s): Gee, Alexander
• Application Number:
  US14/895,870
• Publication Number:
  US 20160127767A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,085 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2385 Channel allocation H04N21/266 takes precedence; Bandwidth allocation H04N21/24 takes precedence ; allocation of channels according to the instantaneous demands of the users in time-division multiplex systems H04J3/1682; admission control, resource allocation in open networks H04L12/5692; arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896; negotiating bandwidth in wireless networks H04W28/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2393 involving handling client requests scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2402 Monitoring of the downstream path of the transmission network, e.g. bandwidth available traffic monitoring in data switching networks H04L43/00; monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25841 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; arrangements for identifying locations of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/51; location of the user terminal in data switching networks H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4223 Cameras H04N23/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43079 of additional data with content streams on multiple devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4367 Establishing a secure communication between the client and a peripheral device or smart card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44218 Detecting physical presence or behaviour of the user, e.g. using sensors to detect if the user is leaving the room or changes his face expression during a TV program methods or arrangements for recognising human body or animal bodies or body parts G06V40/10; methods or arrangements for acquiring or recognising human faces, facial parts, facial sketches, facial expressions G06V40/16; methods or arrangements for recognising movements or behaviour G06V40/20; arrangements for identifying users in broadcast systems H04H60/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds

Abstract

A method of receiving a video program and information related to the video program by a first device registered in a user account of a user as a standalone device at a server is disclosed. The method comprises sending location information of the first device to the server; sending a request to the server for the video program; receiving the video program; and receiving information related to the video program according the location information.

Claims

1. A method of processing, by a first device, a video program and information related to the video program from a server, comprising:

sending, by the first device, location information of the first device to the server, wherein the first device is registered in a user account of a user as a standalone device at the server;

sending, by the first device, a request to the server for the video program;

receiving, by the first device, the video program and no information related to the video program, if a distance between the first device and a second device registered as a handheld device in the user account is determined by the server to be less than a predefined threshold according to the sent location information;

receiving, by the first device, information related to the video program and no video program, if the distance between the first device and the second device is determined by the server to be not less than the predefined threshold according to the sent location information;

detecting first view change information of the user and sending the first view change information to the server, wherein the first view change information indicates that the user view is switched to the first device; and

providing the received video program or the received information related to the video program for viewing on a display, wherein the distance is less than the predefined threshold when the first view change information indicates that the user view is switched away from the first device and wherein the received video program has a first quality and after sending the first view change information, the received video program has a second quality worse than the first quality.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting a first view change by detecting from images taken by at least one camera of the first device and generating the first view change information.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting a first view change by detecting from images taken by at least one camera of the first device generating the first view change information.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second device ends second view change information to the server after the first view change information has been sent by the first device, and after the server receives the second view change information, the received video program has the first quality.

5. A first device for processing a video program and information related to the video program from a server, comprising:

a memory;

a processor for executing software stored in the memory;

wherein the processor is configured to send location information of the first device to the server, wherein the first device is registered in a user account of a user as a standalone device at the server;

send a request to the server for the video program;

receive the video program and no information related to the video program, if a distance between the first device and a second device registered as a handheld device in the user account is determined by the server to be less than a predefined threshold according to the sent location information;

receive information related to the video program and no video program, if the distance between the first device and the second device is determined by the server to be not less than the predefined threshold according to the sent location information;

detect a first view change of the user and send first view change information to the server, wherein the first view change information indicates that the user view is switched to the first device; and

provide the received video program or the received information related to the video program for viewing on a display, wherein the distance is less than the predefined threshold when the first view change information indicates the user view is switched away from the first device and wherein the received video program has a first quality and after sending the first view change information, the received video program has a second quality worse than the first quality.

6. The first device of claim 5, wherein the processor is configured to detect a first view change by detecting from images taken by at least one camera of the first device and generates the first view change information.

7. The first device of claim 5, wherein the processor is configured to detect a first view change by detecting from images taken by at least one camera of the first device and generates the first view change information.

8. The first device of claim 5, wherein the second device sends second view change information to the server after the first view change information has been sent by the first device, and after the server has received the second view change information, the received video program has the first quality.