REMOTELY CONFIGURED MEDIA DEVICE

• US 20080155129A1
• Filed: 03/11/2008
• Published: 06/26/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: SanDisk Technologies LLC (Western Digital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: MusicGremlin, Inc. (Western Digital Corporation)
• Inventors: Price, Harold E., Axelrod, Jonathan N., KHEDOURI, Robert K.
• Application Number:
  US12/045,897
• Publication Number:
  US 20080155129A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 710/8
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4387 by the use of playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/635 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/639 using playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/64 Browsing; Visualisation therefor generation of a list or set of audio data G06F16/638
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/686 using information manually generated, e.g. tags, keywords, comments, title or artist information, time, location or usage information, user ratings
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2223 being a public access point, e.g. for downloading to or uploading from clients arrangements specially adapted to plural spots in a confined site in broadcast systems H04H20/63
• 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 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A portable wireless communications subscriber audio and/or video player apparatus and system and method for selecting, requesting, downloading, and playing audio and/or video data content files from an Internet-based database server. The wireless link is preferably implemented in accordance with the WiFi protocol, which allows connectivity to the Internet by being in proximity with a local base station or WiFi hotspot (i.e., publicly available local wireless access hub connected to the Internet). The portable wireless communications subscriber audio and/or video player apparatus and system preferably include a security means for monitoring and blocking unauthorized use of the player apparatus and system. The player apparatus further preferably has the capability to communicate with other neighboring player apparatus for the purpose of exchanging content data files, playlists and personal messages.

Claims

1. A method for remotely providing operational settings from a host electronic device to a client electronic device, the host electronic device having a display, said method comprising:

presenting a user interface on the display of the host electronic device, the user interface permitting a user of the host electronic device to select operational settings for use with the client electronic device;

receiving a user selection of at least one operational setting for the client electronic device, the user selection being received from the user via a user interface on the host electronic device; and

transferring the at least one operational setting from the host electronic device to the client electronic device, whereby the client electronic device stores the at least one operational setting and thereafter operates in accordance with the stored at least one operational setting.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

determining whether the client electronic device is connected to the host electronic device;

permitting the user of the host electronic device to select operational settings for use with the client electronic device whether or not the client electronic device is connected to the host electronic device.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein said determining determines whether the client electronic device is wirelessly connected to the host electronic device.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the host electronic device is a personal computer, and wherein the client electronic device is a portable media player.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the host electronic device is a server on the Internet, and wherein the client electronic device is a portable wireless device capable of rendering media.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the at least one operational setting of the portable media player is one of content service plan, content category preferences, content subscription, user profile or account information.

7. The method as recited in claim 4, wherein the client electronic device displays electronic books.

8. A method for operating a portable media player in accordance with operational settings, said method comprising:

receiving operational settings data from a host computer over a data link between the portable media player and the host computer;

storing the operational settings data at the portable media player; and

operating a media management application on the portable media player in accordance with the stored operational settings data.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein said receiving comprises:

establishing a data link between the portable media player and the host computer;

informing the host computer of at an identifier and at least one attribute of the portable media player; and

receiving from the host computer the operational settings data that is associated with the identifier and the at least one attribute of the portable media player.

10. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the data link is a wireless data link.

11. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein a server executes a media management application, and wherein the user interface pertains to the media management application.

12. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the at least one operational setting of the portable media player is one of content service plan, content category preferences, content subscription, user profile or account information.

13. A computer readable medium including at least computer program code for remotely providing operational settings from a host device to a client device, said computer readable medium comprising:

computer program code for presenting a user interface on a display of the host device, the user interface permitting a user of the host device to select operational settings for use with the client device;

computer program code receiving a user selection of at least one operational setting for the client device, the user selection being from the user while interacting with the user interface on the host device; and

computer program code for transferring the at least one operational setting from the host device to the client device, whereby the client device stores the at least one operational setting and thereafter operates in accordance with the stored at least one operational setting.

14. A computer readable medium including at least computer program code for operating a portable media player in accordance with operational settings, said computer readable medium comprising:

computer program code for receiving operational settings data from a host computer over a data link between the portable media player and the host computer;

computer program code for storing the operational settings data at the portable media player; and

computer program code for operating a media management application on the portable media player in accordance with the stored operational settings data.

15. A portable media player for storing and presenting media assets, said portable media player comprising:

an input/output interface that provides a data connection with a remote computing device;

at least one data storage device that stores the media assets and operational settings data, the media assets and the operational settings data being provided over the data connection from the remote computing device; and

a media management application that presents one or more of the media assets in accordance with the operational settings data.

16. The player as recited in claim 15, wherein the media the portable media player is capable of presenting includes songs, images and/or videos.

17. The player as recited in claim 16, wherein the operational settings data includes a content service plan, content category preferences, content subscription, user profile or account information

18. The player as recited in claim 15, wherein the at least one data store includes at least a first data store that stores the media assets, and a second data store that stores the operational settings.

19. The player as recited in claim 15, wherein said portable media player utilizes Wi-Fi.

20. A media system, comprising:

a host computer for storing and presenting host media assets; and

a client media player for storing and presenting client media assets, wherein said host computer includes at least;

a host input/output interface that provides connection with said client media player;

a host media management application that (i) enables a user of said host computer to set user preferences to be used on said client media player, and (ii) transfers one or more of the host media assets from the host computer to become the client media assets at the client media player; and

at least one host data storage device that stores the host media assets and the user preferences for said client media player, the user preferences being set by a user of said host computer using the media management application; and

wherein said client media player includes at least;

a client input/output interface that provides connection with said host computer;

at least one client data storage device that stores the client media assets and the user preferences, the user preferences being provided over the connection from said host computer; and

a client media management application that presents one or more of the client media assets at said client media player in accordance with the user preferences.