Systems and methods for internet video delivery

• US 10,575,064 B1
• Filed: 12/05/2017
• Issued: 02/25/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Oath Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Kocks, Peter F., El Mawas, Rami, Wu, Ping-Hao
• Primary Examiner(s): Dailey, Thomas J
• Application Number:
  US15/832,579
• Time in Patent Office: 812 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/262 Content or additional data distribution scheduling, e.g. sending additional data at off-peak times, updating software modules, calculating the carousel transmission frequency, delaying a video stream transmission, generating play-lists scheduling strategies for dispatcher in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/4881; arrangements for scheduling broadcast services or broadcast-related services H04H60/06; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; establishing a time schedule or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/62
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/637 Control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/658 Transmission by the client directed to the server
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/845 Structuring of content, e.g. decomposing content into time segments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/147 Scene change detection

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for delivering video content over a network, such as the Internet. Videos are identified and pre-processed by a web service and then separated into a plurality of segments. Based on user interests, video segments may be pre-fetched and stored by a client associated with a user. Upon receiving a selection from a user to play a video, the first video segment may begin playing instantaneously from a local cache. While the first video segment plays, subsequent video segments are transmitted from the web service to the client, so that the subsequent video segments will be ready for viewing at the client when playback of the first video segment has finished.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for transmitting a video over an electronic network, comprising:

receiving a video including a first frame and a second frame;

computing a distance measure indicating a degree of change between the first frame and the second frame;

determining whether a scene change has occurred in the video based on the distance measure;

in response to determining that the scene change has occurred in the video, dividing the video into segments, each segment comprising a plurality of frames;

determining a number of one or more segments to transmit to a client device, the number of the one or more segments being determined based on at least one of an amount of available memory storage or usage data associated with the client device; and

transmitting, over the electronic network, the one or more segments to a client device without receiving an explicit request from the client device for the one or more segments.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the segments are equal in size.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

analyzing visual and audio components of the video; and

dividing the video into the segments based on the analysis of visual and audio components of the video.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein computing the distance measure comprises computing the distance measure indicating a degree of change between color histograms of the first and second frames.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a notification that the client device has started playing the one or more video segments.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein transmitting a second one or more video segments to the client device is completed prior to receiving the notification that the client device has started playing the first one or more video segments.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving usage data from the client device;

identifying the video to send to the client device based on the received usage data;

dividing the identified video into the first one or more segments; and

transmitting the first one or more segments to the client device without receiving an explicit request from the client device for the identified video.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, transmitting an additional video segment to the client device using hypertext transfer protocol.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, streaming an additional video segment to the client device.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the memory storage of the client device is a cached-storage.

11. A system for transmitting a video over an electronic network, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory and configured to execute instructions to;

receive a video including a first frame and a second frame;

compute a distance measure indicating a degree of change between the first frame and the second frame;

determine whether a scene change has occurred in the video based on the distance measure;

in response to determining that the scene change has occurred in the video, dividing the video into segments, each segment comprising a plurality of frames;

determining a number of one or more segments to transmit to a client device, the number of the one or more segments being determined based on at least one of an amount of available memory storage or usage data associated with the client device; and

transmitting, over the electronic network, the one or more segments to a client device without receiving an explicit request from the client device for the one or more segments.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the segments are equal in size.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to:

analyze visual and audio components of the video; and

divide the video into the one or more segments based on the analysis of visual and audio components of the video.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to compute the distance measure based on a degree of change between color histograms of the first and second frames.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to receive a notification that the client device has started playing the one or more video segments.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to transmit a second one or more video segments to the client device prior to receiving the notification that the client device has started playing the first one or more video segments.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to:

receive usage data from the client device;

identify the video to send to the client device based on the received usage data;

divide the identified video into the first one or more segments; and

transmit the first one or more segments from the identified video to the client device without receiving an explicit request from the client device for the identified video.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to transmit an additional video segment to the client device using hypertext transfer protocol.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to stream an additional video segment to the client device.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein the memory storage of the client device is a cached-storage.

21. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including instructions for transmitting a video over an electronic network, which, when executed, perform steps comprising:

receiving a video including a first frame and a second frame;

computing a distance measure indicating a degree of change between the first frame and the second frame;

determining whether a scene change has occurred in the video based on the distance measure;

in response to determining that the scene change has occurred in the video, dividing the video into segments, each segment comprising a plurality of frames;

determining a number of one or more segments to transmit to a client device, the number of the one or more segments being determined based on at least one of an amount of available memory storage or usage data associated with the client device; and

transmitting, over the electronic network, the one or more segments to a client device without receiving an explicit request from the client device for the one or more segments.