Multimedia scheduling for airplay with carry forward constant order

• US 10,614,060 B2
• Filed: 02/15/2018
• Issued: 04/07/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: iHeartMedia Management Services, Inc. (iHeartMedia, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: iHeartMedia Management Services, Inc. (iHeartMedia, Inc.)
• Inventors: Attwell, Nigel, Webber, Jr., William Wallace
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Adam
• Application Number:
  US15/898,049
• Publication Number:
  US 20180285410A1
• Time in Patent Office: 782 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2365 Ensuring data consistency and integrity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4387 by the use of playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/639 using playlists
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/06 Arrangements for scheduling broadcast services or broadcast-related services
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/47 for recognising genres
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637

Abstract

A device and method for using carry forward conflict resolution in a constant order schema for multimedia airplay scheduling. A reusable multimedia content set (e.g., music, news, other audio, advertising, etc.) can be combined with a secondary multimedia content set for playback of multimedia content to create a scheduling order. Conflicts in the scheduling order resulting from the combination can be resolved by exchanging slot positions in the reusable multimedia content set, which can then be reused for combination with subsequent secondary multimedia content sets while maintaining the previous conflict resolved scheduling order, thereby adhering to a substantially constant order for the multimedia content.

Claims

1. A method for use in an automated scheduling system including a processing module of a computing device, the method comprises:

retrieving, at the automated scheduling system, a first set of multimedia content identifiers having a first sequential order, wherein the first set of multimedia content identifiers is used to create a plurality of airplay schedules for media airplay, and further wherein each of the first set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter;

retrieving, at the automated scheduling system, a second set of multimedia content identifiers having a second sequential order, wherein the second sequential order is different than the first sequential order, wherein each of the second set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter;

creating a first airplay schedule by combining, at the automated scheduling system, the first set and the second set of the multimedia content identifiers to produce at least a portion of a chronological scheduling order having a plurality of slot positions;

determining, by the automated scheduling system, that one or more conflicts exist in the at least a portion of a chronological scheduling order;

modifying, at the automated scheduling system, the first sequential order of the first set of multimedia content identifiers to have a third sequential order, wherein the third sequential order is different than the first sequential order and the second sequential order, wherein the third sequential order resolves at least one of the one or more conflicts in the chronological scheduling order to produce a modified portion of the chronological scheduling order;

retrieving, at the automated scheduling system, a third set of multimedia content identifiers having a fourth sequential order, wherein the fourth sequential order is different than the first sequential order, the second sequential order and the third sequential order, wherein each of the third set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter; and

reusing the first set of multimedia identifiers to create a second airplay schedule by combining the first set of multimedia identifiers having the third sequential order and the third set of the multimedia content identifiers having the fourth sequential order to produce another at least a portion of the chronological scheduling order having a plurality of slot positions.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more conflicts include at least one multimedia parameter of the first set and the second set having equivalent data values within a predetermined number of slot values of the at least the portion of the chronological scheduling order.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one multimedia parameter comprises at least one of multimedia genre data;

multimedia artist data;

multimedia author data; and

multimedia album data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the modifying the first sequential order to produce a first set of multimedia content identifiers having a third sequential order includes exchanging a position of at least one multimedia content identifier in one slot position of the plurality of slot positions with another slot position of the plurality of slot positions.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the combining the first set and the second set of the multimedia content identifiers includes interlacing the first set and the second set of the multimedia content identifiers.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the interlacing is random.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the interlacing is determined based upon an algorithm relating at least partially to subscriber feedback.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the second set of multimedia content identifiers is related to at least one of power current multimedia content, or top song multimedia content.

9. A computer-based device for multimedia-content airplay scheduling, the computer-based device comprising:

a processor;

a data bus coupled to the processor; and

a non-transitory computer-usable medium embodying computer code, the computer code including a program of instructions executable by the processor and configured for;

retrieving a first set of multimedia content identifiers having a first sequential order, wherein the first set of multimedia content identifiers is used to create a plurality of airplay schedules for media airplay, and further wherein each of the first set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter;

retrieving a second set of multimedia content identifiers having a second sequential order, wherein the second sequential order is different than the first sequential order, wherein each of the second set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter;

creating a first airplay schedule by combining the first set and the second set of the multimedia content identifiers to produce at least a portion of a chronological scheduling order having a plurality of slot positions;

determining that one or more conflicts exist in the at least a portion of a chronological scheduling order;

modifying the first sequential order of the first set of multimedia content identifiers to have a third sequential order, wherein the third sequential order is different than the first sequential order and the second sequential order, wherein the third sequential order resolves at least one of the one or more conflicts in the chronological scheduling order to produce a modified portion of the chronological scheduling order;

retrieving a third set of multimedia content identifiers having a fourth sequential order, and wherein the fourth sequential order is different than the first sequential order, the second sequential order and the third sequential order, wherein each of the third set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter; and

reusing the first set of multimedia identifiers to create a second airplay schedule by combining the first set of multimedia identifiers having the third sequential order and the third set of the multimedia content identifiers having the fourth sequential order to produce another at least a portion of the chronological scheduling order having a plurality of slot positions.

10. The computer-based device of claim 9, wherein the one or more conflicts include at least one multimedia parameter of the first set and the second set having equivalent data values within a predetermined number of slot values of the at least the portion of the chronological scheduling order.

11. The computer-based device of claim 9, wherein the at least one multimedia parameter comprising at least one of:

a multimedia genre data;

a multimedia artist data;

a multimedia author data; and

a multimedia album data.

12. The computer-based device of claim 9, wherein the program of instructions further configured for:

modifying the first sequential order to produce a first set of multimedia content identifiers having a third sequential order based on exchanging a position of at least one multimedia content identifier in one slot position of the plurality of slot positions with another slot position of the plurality of slot positions.

13. The computer-based device of claim 9, wherein the combining the first set and the second set of the multimedia content identifiers includes interlacing the first set and the second set of the multimedia content identifiers.

14. The computer-based device of claim 13, wherein the interlacing is random.

15. The computer-based device of claim 13, wherein the interlacing is determined based upon an algorithm relating at least partially to subscriber feedback.

16. The computer-based device of claim 9, wherein the second set of multimedia content identifiers is related to at least one of power current multimedia content, or top song multimedia content.

17. A non-transitory computer-usable medium embodying computer program code, the computer program code comprising a computer-executable program of instructions configured for:

retrieving a first set of multimedia content identifiers having a first sequential order, wherein the first set of multimedia content identifiers is used to create a plurality of airplay schedules for media airplay, and further wherein each of the first set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter;

retrieving a second set of multimedia content identifiers having a second sequential order, wherein the second sequential order is different than the first sequential order, wherein each of the second set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter;

creating a first airplay schedule by combining the first set and the second set of the multimedia content identifiers to produce at least a portion of a chronological scheduling order having a plurality of slot positions;

determining that one or more conflicts exist in the at least a portion of a chronological scheduling order;

modifying the first sequential order of the first set of multimedia content identifiers to have a third sequential order, and wherein the third sequential order is different than the first sequential order and the second sequential order, wherein the third sequential order resolves at least one of the one or more conflicts in the chronological scheduling order to produce a modified portion of the chronological scheduling order;

retrieving a third set of multimedia content identifiers having a fourth sequential order, and wherein the fourth sequential order is different than the first sequential order, the second sequential order and the third sequential order, wherein each of the third set of multimedia content identifiers includes at least one multimedia parameter; and

reusing the first set of multimedia identifiers to create a second airplay schedule by combining the first set of multimedia identifiers having the third sequential order and the third set of the multimedia content identifiers having the fourth sequential order to produce another at least a portion of the chronological scheduling order having a plurality of slot positions.

18. The non-transitory computer-usable medium of claim 17, wherein the one or more conflicts include at least one multimedia parameter of the first set and the second set having equivalent data values within a predetermined number of slot value of the at least the portion of the chronological scheduling order.

19. The non-transitory computer-usable medium of claim 17, wherein the at least one multimedia parameter comprising at least one of:

7 multimedia genre data;

multimedia artist data;

multimedia author data; and

multimedia album data.

20. The non-transitory computer-usable medium of claim 17, wherein the computer-executable program of instructions further configured for:

modifying the first sequential order to produce a first set of multimedia content identifiers having a third sequential order based on exchanging a position of at least one multimedia content identifier in one slot position of the plurality of slot positions with another slot position of the plurality of slot positions.