Client-side caching of streaming media content

• US 20060059223A1
• Filed: 11/04/2005
• Published: 03/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Klemets, Anders E., Oliveira, Eduardo P., Batterberry, Troy D.
• Granted Patent: US 7,548,948 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/200
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23106 involving caching operations prefetching while addressing of a memory level in which the access to the desired data or data block requires associative addressing means within memory systems or architectures G06F12/0862; caching at an intermediate stage in a data network H04L67/568
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440281 by altering the temporal resolution, e.g. by frame skipping television signal recording using magnetic recording on tape for reproducing at a rate different from the recording rate H04N5/783
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6373 for rate control , e.g. request to the server to modify its transmission rate flow control in packet networks H04L47/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

Various functionality with respect to streaming media content is made available to users. Such functionality includes one or more of: streaming media content at a rate independent of the encoded bit rate of the content, allowing streaming of content to continue even when the user has selected various shuttle control options (e.g., pause, stop, fast forward, seek, rewind, etc.), allowing streaming content to be recorded for playback at a later time, and allowing streaming content to be time-shifted.

Claims

1. A computer readable media having stored thereon a data structure, comprising:

a first portion containing data identifying a data structure type;

a second portion containing data identifying a cache control directive to indicate whether a client device is allowed to cache streaming media content associated with the cache control directive; and

a third portion containing data identifying an end of the second portion in the data structure.

2. A computer readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein the cache control directive further indicates whether a proxy device is allowed to cache the streaming media content.

3. A computer readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein the cache control directive further indicates whether a caching device that does not support caching of streaming media content is allowed to cache the streaming media content.

4. A computer readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein no cache control directive is used to indicate that the client device is allowed to cache the streaming media content.

5. A computer readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein a cache control directive to indicate a streaming media player of the client device is allowed to cache the streaming media content comprises:

no-cache, user-public.

6. A computer readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein a cache control directive to indicate a streaming media player of the client device is not allowed to cache the streaming media content comprises:

no-user-cache.

7. A computer readable media having stored thereon a data structure, comprising:

a first portion containing data identifying a data structure type;

a second portion containing data identifying one or more headers, the one or more headers including a streaming speed header to indicate a speed at which streaming media content is to be streamed, wherein the speed at which the streaming media content is to be streamed is independent of an encoded bit rate of the streaming media content; and

a third portion containing data identifying an end of the second portion in the data structure.

8. A computer readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the speed at which the streaming media content is to be streamed is represented by a value x, and wherein the streaming speed header comprises:

Pragma;

Speed=x.

9. A computer readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the speed at which the streaming media content is to be streamed is represented by a value x, and wherein the streaming speed header comprises:

Speed=x.

10. A computer readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the speed at which the streaming media content is to be streamed is a speed requested by a client device that is to receive the streaming media content.

11. A computer readable media having stored thereon a data structure, comprising:

a first portion containing data identifying a data structure type;

a second portion containing data identifying one or more headers, the one or more headers including a logging information header to indicate that a message body portion of the data structure includes logging information regarding playback of streaming media content from a client device cache; and

a third portion containing data identifying an end of the second portion in the data structure.

12. A computer readable media as recited in claim 11, wherein the logging information header comprises:

Content-Type;

application/x-wms-sendevent.