Streaming media quality assessment system
First Claim
1. A method for streaming media assessment, the method comprising the steps of:
- collocating a media-player wrapper application with a streaming-media player at a client machine, wherein said streaming-media player can be controlled by said media-player wrapper application, and can provide quality metrics related to streaming media programs it receives over a network connection from a streaming media server;
remotely controlling said media-player wrapper application to gather and report said quality metrics in a reply message to an assessment server; and
assessing the quality of said network connection between said streaming media server and said streaming-media player from data included in said reply message.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A streaming media assessment system comprises assessment servers, media clients, data collection points, helper agents, and report servers. An assessment tool is downloaded or otherwise installed on an end-user client machine and associated with its media player. An assessment server is in communication with the assessment tool over the network and can send control messages to conduct tests and gather information from the assessment tool. The client machine media player is controlled to stop and start by the assessment tool and it will provide measurements that can be forwarded to the assessment servers. Analyses are then produced by the assessment servers of the actual media streams that were received by many such client machine media players. The report servers issue various formatted reports for the system'"'"'s sponsors and subscribers.
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Citations
16 Claims
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1. A method for streaming media assessment, the method comprising the steps of:
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collocating a media-player wrapper application with a streaming-media player at a client machine, wherein said streaming-media player can be controlled by said media-player wrapper application, and can provide quality metrics related to streaming media programs it receives over a network connection from a streaming media server;
remotely controlling said media-player wrapper application to gather and report said quality metrics in a reply message to an assessment server; and
assessing the quality of said network connection between said streaming media server and said streaming-media player from data included in said reply message. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A method for streaming media assessment, the method comprising the steps of:
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collocating a plurality of media-player wrapper applications with a plurality of corresponding streaming-media players at client machines, wherein said each streaming-media player can be independently controlled by each said media-player wrapper application, and all can provide quality metrics related to streaming media programs they individually receive over network connections from streaming media servers;
remotely controlling individual said media-player wrapper applications to gather and report corresponding said quality metrics in reply messages to an assessment server; and
assessing the quality of respective said network connections between said streaming media servers and said streaming-media players from data reported in said reply messages.
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6. A streaming media assessment tool, comprising:
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a client-side wrapper application software application for collocation within a remote client and providing for the control and reading of a remote-client software-media player;
a server-side controller software application for collocation within an assessment server and providing for the generation of remote-client test control messages to said client-side wrapper application software application; and
a client-side listener software application for collocation within said remote client and for responding to said remote-client test control messages, and further providing for on/off control of and the gathering of quality data from said remote-client software-media player;
wherein, said assessment server is able to gather information on the quality of streaming media data received by said remote-client software-media player - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A streaming media assessment system, comprising:
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a plurality of media-player wrapper applications collocated with a plurality of corresponding streaming-media players at client machines, wherein said each streaming-media player can be independently controlled by each said media-player wrapper application, and all can provide quality metrics related to streaming media programs they individually receive over network connections from streaming media servers;
a server-side controller for remotely controlling individual said media-player wrapper applications to gather and report corresponding said quality metrics in reply messages to an assessment server; and
an assessment server analyzing the quality of respective said network connections between said streaming media servers and said streaming-media players from data reported in said reply messages.
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Specification