Authoring system and method for supplying tagged media content to portable devices receiving from plural disparate sources

• US 20050246758A1
• Filed: 03/31/2003
• Published: 11/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ma, Yue, Kaplan, Alan, Braun, David Alan, Khandelwal, Rajesh Bhagwandas, Chang, Chieh-Chung
• Application Number:
  US10/509,962
• Publication Number:
  US 20050246758A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/138
• 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 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• 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 21/414 Specialised client platforms, e.g. receiver in car or embedded in a mobile appliance
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• 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 21/42209 for displaying non-command information, e.g. electronic program guide [EPG], e-mail, messages or a second television channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4222 Remote control device emulator integrated into a non-television apparatus, e.g. a PDA, media center or smart toy remote control device for a television receiver integrated into a mobile phone H04M1/72415
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43072 of multiple content streams on the same device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• 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: H04N 21/854 Content authoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/088 the inserted signal being digital
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A system and method for supplying media content from disparate sources includes tagging media content with an identifier tag useful in synchronization with additional media content, and useful in delivery of the media content. In other aspects, the media content is transmitted to a distribution mechanism adapted to distribute the media content to media delivery devices. In yet another aspect, the media delivery device is adapted to obtain additional media content from a disparate source, adapted to synchronize the media content with the additional media content according to the identifier tag, and adapted to deliver the media content to a consumer according to the identifier tag.

Claims

1. A media distribution system adapted to supply media content from disparate sources, comprising:

an encoder tagging media content with an identifier tag useful in synchronization with additional media content, and useful in delivery of the media content;

an output transmitting the media content to a distribution mechanism adapted to distribute the media content to media delivery devices; and

a distribution mechanism distributing the media content to a media delivery device adapted to record a channel upon which the identifier tag arrived, adapted to obtain additional media content from a disparate source, adapted to synchronize the media content with the additional media content according to the identifier tag and the channel, and adapted to deliver the additional media content to a consumer according to the identifier tag and a remote channel control function of the media delivery device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said distribution mechanism is adapted to broadcast the media content to media delivery devices.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said distribution mechanism is adapted to narrowcast the media content to a media delivery device in response to a request for the media content.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said encoder is adapted to insert an identifier tag into a vertical blanking interval of a sequence of video frames using a format that is compatible with a video data stream.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said wherein said encoder is adapted to insert a tag into a web page.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content corresponds to a textual description.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content corresponds to an image.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content corresponds information in a rich text format.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content corresponds to information in a binary language format.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content corresponds to a link to the additional media content via a communications system.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content corresponds to audio visual media content.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein said encoder is adapted to select the identifier tag based on material characteristics of the media content.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein said encoder is adapted to insert the identifier tag into a real-time distribution channel.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein said distribution mechanism is adapted to employ a real-time distribution channel to ensure delivery of the media content at a scheduled time without being affected by a distribution load.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein said encoder is adapted effectively to hide the identifier tag within a data stream to ensure that consumers not having suitably equipped media delivery devices are able to consume the media content without any awareness that the media content has been tagged, and to ensure that consumers having a suitably equipped media delivery device are able to enjoy an interactive experience facilitated by the identifier tag.

16. A method for supplying media content from disparate sources, comprising:

tagging media content with an identifier tag useful in synchronization with additional media content, and useful in delivery of the media content;

transmitting the media content to a distribution mechanism adapted to distribute the media content to media delivery devices; and

distributing the media content to a media delivery device adapted to obtain additional media content from a disparate source, adapted to synchronize the media content with the additional media content according to the identifier tag, and adapted to deliver the media content to a consumer according to the identifier tag.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said distributing includes broadcasting the media content to media delivery devices.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein said distributing includes narrowcasting the media content to a media delivery device in response to a request for the media content.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein said tagging includes inserting an identifier tag into a vertical blanking interval of a sequence of video frames using a format that is compatible with a video data stream.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein said tagging includes inserting a tag into a web page.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein the media content corresponds to a textual description.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the media content corresponds to an image.

23. The method of claim 16, wherein the media content corresponds information in a rich text format.

24. The method of claim 16, wherein the media content corresponds to information in a binary language format.

25. The method of claim 16, wherein the media content corresponds to a link to the additional media content via a communications system.

26. The method of claim 16, wherein the media content corresponds to audio visual media content.

27. The method of claim 16, comprising selecting the identifier tag based on material characteristics of the media content.

28. The method of claim 16, wherein said tagging includes inserting the identifier tag into a real-time distribution channel.

29. The method of claim 16, wherein said transmitting and distributing include employing a real-time distribution channel to ensure delivery of the media content at a scheduled time without being affected by a distribution load.

30. The method of claim 16, wherein said tagging includes effectively hiding the identifier tag within a data stream to ensure that consumers not having suitably equipped media delivery devices are able to consume the media content without any awareness that the media content has been tagged, and to ensure that consumers having a suitably equipped media delivery device are able to enjoy an interactive experience facilitated by the identifier tag.

31. A method of disseminating information for use in a portable device, comprising:

generating first content adapted for dissemination from a broadcast source;

generating second content adapted for dissemination from an information source;

using an authoring system to apply tags to said first and second content, the tags being configured to define an integrating relationship between the first content and the second content;

providing said first content to a broadcast source adapted to broadcast to a portable device;

providing said second content to an information source adapted to supply information upon demand to said portable device; and

providing the portable device, wherein the portable device has ability to synchronize and deliver said first content and said second content based on a channel upon which said first content was broadcast to the portable device, and based on a channel remote control function of the portable device.