Interactive television program guide with remote access

• US 10,271,088 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2015
• Issued: 04/23/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Ellis, Michael D., Thomas, William L., Hassell, Joel G., Lemmons, Thomas R., Berezowski, David M., Knee, Robert A., McCoy, Robert H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Huynh, An Son P
• Application Number:
  US14/716,273
• Publication Number:
  US 20150256871A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,435 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26283 for associating distribution time parameters to content, e.g. to generate electronic program guide data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4227 Providing Remote input by a user located remotely from the client device, e.g. at work
• 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 21/44224 Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4751 for defining user accounts, e.g. accounts for children
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4753 for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47815 Electronic shopping payment schemes, payment architectures or payment protocols for electronic shopping systems G06Q20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4786 e-mailing message switching systems, e.g. electronic mail systems H04L51/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4826 using recommendation lists, e.g. of programs or channels sorted out according to their score
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/485 End-user interface for client configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 : for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 : IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8126 : involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/106 : for domestic distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 : by receiver means only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/173 : with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

An interactive television program guide with remote access is provided. The interactive television program guide is implemented on interactive television program guide equipment. A remote program guide access device is connected to the interactive television program guide equipment by a remote access link to provide a user with remote access to program guide functions. An interactive television program guide system based on multiple user television equipment devices in a single household is provided. The system provides a user with an opportunity to adjust program guide settings with a given one of the interactive television program guides. Program guide setting include features related to setting program reminders, profiles, program recording features, messaging features, favorites features, parental control features, program guide set up features (e.g., audio and video and language settings), etc.

Claims

1. A system for providing a video program to a remote access device over an Internet link, the system comprising:

a user equipment device, including processing circuitry, that outputs an interactive program guide display to a first electronic display device, wherein the processing circuitry is coupled to communications circuitry, and wherein the user equipment device, the communications circuitry, and the first electronic display device are located at a same location at a user site, wherein;

a remote access application is implemented on the remote access device that is remote from the communications circuitry, wherein the remote access device outputs to a second electronic display device which is different from the first electronic display device;

the remote access application communicates with the communications circuitry over the Internet link; and

the communications circuitry transmits, to the remote access application over the Internet link, an interactive video guide screen including a plurality of interactive video program listings generated by the user equipment device, wherein the interactive video guide screen generated by the user equipment device is different from the interactive program guide display, and the interactive video guide screen is generated by the user equipment device based on a user profile being stored at the user equipment device, the user profile being stored at the user equipment can be updated using the remote access device;

the remote access application;

generates a display, on the second electronic display device, that includes the interactive video guide screen received from the communications circuitry;

receives a user input selecting an interactive video program listing of the plurality of interactive video program listings based on the display that includes the interactive video guide screen; and

transmits data associated with the selected interactive video program listing corresponding to the user input to the communications circuitry over the Internet link; and

the communications circuitry further;

receives, over the Internet link, the data corresponding to the user input from the remote access application;

directs the user equipment device to access the video program of the selected interactive video program listing based on the received data corresponding to the user input; and

transmits, over the Internet link, the video program from the user equipment device to the remote access application for display on the second electronic display device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote access application is a remote access interactive program guide.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the video program is a recorded video program.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications circuitry directs the user equipment device to access the video program by directing the user equipment device to tune to a channel of the video program.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the user input is a first user input and the communications circuitry further:

receives, over the Internet link, data corresponding to a second user input from the remote access application;

directs the user equipment device to access a different video program based on the data corresponding to the second user input; and

transmits, over the Internet link, the different video program from the user equipment device to the remote access application.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications circuitry transmits the video program to the remote access application over the Internet link by:

converting the video program to a format suitable for transmission over the Internet link; and

transmitting the converted video program to the remote access application over the Internet link.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the interactive video guide screen comprises at least one selectable channel option.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the at least one selectable channel option is a channel icon.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the at least one selectable channel option comprises at least one of changing a channel, controlling volume, and recorded video program playback options.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote access application and the second electronic display device are in a different geographical location than the user equipment device and the first electronic display device.

11. A method for providing a video program to a remote access device over an Internet link, the method comprising:

outputting an interactive program guide display to a first electronic display device using a user equipment device, wherein the user equipment device includes processing circuitry, wherein the processing circuitry is coupled to communications circuitry, and wherein the communications circuitry, the first electronic display device, and the user equipment device are located at a same location at a user site, wherein;

a remote access application is implemented on the remote access device that is remote from the communications circuitry, wherein the remote access device outputs to a second electronic display device which is different from the first electronic display device;

the remote access application communicates with the communications circuitry over the Internet link; and

the communications circuitry transmits, to the remote access application over the Internet link, an interactive video guide screen including a plurality of video program listings generated by the user equipment device, wherein the interactive video guide screen is different from the interactive program guide display, and the interactive video guide screen is generated by the user equipment device based on a user profile being stored at the user equipment device, wherein the user profile can be updated using the remote access device;

the remote access application;

generates a display, on the second electronic display device, that includes the interactive video guide screen received from the communications circuitry;

receives a user input selecting an interactive video program listing of the plurality of interactive video program listings based on the display that includes the interactive video guide screen; and

transmits data associated with the interactive video program listing corresponding to the user input to the communications circuitry over the Internet link; and

the communications circuitry further;

receives, over the Internet link, the data corresponding to the user input from the remote access application;

directs the user equipment device to access the video program of the selected interactive video program listing based on the received data corresponding to the user input; and

transmits, over the Internet link, the video program from the user equipment device to the remote access application for display on the second electronic display device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the remote access application is a remote access interactive program guide.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the video program is a recorded video program.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the communications circuitry directs the user equipment device to access the video program by directing the user equipment device to tune to a channel of the video program.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the user input is a first user input and the communications circuitry further:

receives, over the Internet link, data corresponding to a second user input from the remote access application;

directs the user equipment device to access a different video program based on the data corresponding to the second user input; and

transmits, over the Internet link, the different video program from the user equipment device to the remote access application.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the communications circuitry transmits the video program to the remote access application over the Internet link by:

converting the video program to a format suitable for transmission over the Internet link; and

transmitting the converted video program to the remote access application over the Internet link.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the interactive video guide screen comprises at least one selectable channel option.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the at least one selectable channel option is a channel icon.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the at least one selectable channel option comprises at least one of changing a channel, controlling volume, and recorded video program playback options.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein the remote access application and the second electronic display device are in a different geographical location than the user equipment device and the first electronic display device.