SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MANAGING CONTENT

• US 20090119322A1
• Filed: 11/07/2007
• Published: 05/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Imagine Communications Limited (Gores Broadcast Holdings LLC)
• Original Assignee: RGB Networks, Inc. (Gores Broadcast Holdings LLC)
• Inventors: Mills, Brendon W., Hall, Clifford L. III, Jackson, Gregory J., Nguyen, Cuong T.
• Granted Patent: US 7,818,355 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/912 Applications of a database
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/913 Multimedia
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/916 Audio

Abstract

A system for managing media files having different format characteristics includes a transcoder, a content store, and a plurality of clients. The content store is capable of storing a media file in a first format. The clients are each associated with one or more media file formats and capable of playing media files to users. The transcoder is capable of receiving a request identifying a media file from a first client and, in response to receiving the request, retrieving the media file from the content store in a first format. The transcoder is also operable of modifying the media file from the first format to a second format associated with the first client and, while modifying the media file from the first format to the second format, transmitting a modified portion of the media file to the first client.

Claims

1. A method of managing media files having different format characteristics, comprising:

receiving a request identifying a media file;

in response to receiving the request, retrieving the media file in a first format;

modifying the media file from the first format to a second format associated with a remote client; and

while modifying the media file from the first format to the second format, transmitting a modified portion of the media file to the remote client.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the media file comprises a first media file;

modifying the media file from the first format to the second format comprises;

modifying a portion of the first media file from the first format to the second format; and

storing the modified portion in a second media file, and transmitting the modified portion to the remote client comprises;

reading the modified portion from the second media file while modified content from the first media file is being stored in the second media file;

transmitting the modified portion to the remote client.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

receiving the request comprises;

receiving the request; and

in response to receiving the request, selecting one of a plurality of transcoding elements to modify the media file identified by the request; and

modifying the media file from the first format to the second format comprises modifying the media file from the first format to the second format at the selected transcoding element.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

receiving the request comprises receiving a first request transmitted by a first client; and

further comprising;

receiving a second request associated with a second client

5. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving the media file comprises:

determining whether the media file is stored in a first content store in a target format; and

in response to determining that the media file is not stored in the first content store in the target format, retrieving the media file in the first format from a second content store.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising, after modifying the media file from the first format to the second format, storing the media file in the first content store in the second format.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the request specifies a target format; and

modifying the media file from the first format to the second format comprises modifying the media file from the first format to the target format.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving the media file comprises:

transmitting a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request identifying the media file to a remote content store; and

receiving the media file from the remote content store in the first format.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting a modified portion of the media file to a remote client comprises:

transmitting, to the remote client, a response indicating that at least a portion of the media file is available in the second format, wherein the response includes a transcode identifier;

receiving, at a transcoding element associated with the transcode identifier, a request from the remote client to begin transmitting the modified content to the remote client; and

in response to the request to begin transmitting, transmitting the modified portion of the media file to the remote client while modifying a remainder of the media file from the first format to the second format.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein:

the transcode identifier comprises a uniform resource locator (URL) address associated with the transcoding element; and

receiving the request from the remote client to begin transmitting the modified content comprises receiving the request at the URL address.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the remote client comprises a first remote client, and further comprising:

while transmitting modified portions of the media file to the first remote client, receiving a request from a second remote client associated with the second format to begin transmitting the modified content to the second remote client; and

while transmitting modified portions of the media file to the first remote client, initiating transmission of modified portions of the media file to the second remote client.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the modified portion of the media file to the remote client comprises streaming the media file to the remote client.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the modified portion of the media file to the remote client comprises initiating a progressive download of the media file to the remote client.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote client comprises a wireless remote client.

15. A system for managing media files having different format characteristics to one or more of a plurality of clients each associated with one or more media file formats, comprising:

one or more transcoders, each transcoder operable to;

receive a request identifying a media file;

in response to receiving the request, retrieving the media file from a first content store in a first format;

modifying the media file from the first format to a second format associated with the first client; and

while modifying the media file from the first format to the second format, transmitting a modified portion of the media file to the first client.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising:

a content management server operable to;

receive the request from a first client;

in response to receiving the request, determine whether the identified media file is stored in a second content store in the second format; and

in response to determining that the identified media file is stored in the second content store in the second format, transmit the media file from the second content source to the first client; and

in response to determining that the identified media file is not stored in the second content store in the second format, transmitting the request to the transcoder.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the transcoders are further operable to, after modifying the media file from the first format to the second format, store the media file in the second content store in the second format.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein:

the request specifies a target format; and

the transcoders are operable to modify the media file by modifying the media file from the first format to the target format.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the transcoders are operable to retrieve the media file by transmitting a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request identifying the media file to the first content store.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein at least one of the transcoders is operable to transmit the modified portion of the media file to the first client by:

transmitting, to the first client, a response indicating that at least a portion of the media file is available in the second format, wherein the response includes a transcode identifier associated with that transcoder;

receiving a request from the first client to begin transmitting the modified content to the first client; and

in response to the request to begin transmitting, transmitting the modified portion of the media file to the first client while modifying a remainder of the media file from the first format to the second format

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the at least one transcoder is further operable to:

while transmitting modified portions of the media file to the first remote client, receive a request from a second client associated with the second format to begin transmitting the modified content to the second client; and

while transmitting modified portions of the media file to the first client, initiating transmission of modified portions of the media file to the second client.

22. The system of claim 15, wherein the at least one transcoder is operable to send the modified portion of the media file to the first client by streaming the media file to the first client.

23. The system of claim 15, wherein the at least one transcoder is operable to send the modified portion of the media file to the first client by initiating a progressive download of the media file to the first client.

24. A system for managing media files having different format characteristics, comprising:

means for receiving, from a first client, a request identifying a media file;

means for retrieving the media file from the content store in a first format in response to receiving the request;

means for modifying the media file from the first format to a second format associated with the first client; and

means for transmitting a modified portion of the media file to the first client, while modifying the media file from the first format to the second format.

25. A system for providing realtime modification of digital video content for on-demand transmission to and display by wireless clients, comprising:

a plurality of wireless clients each associated with at least one of a plurality of different file formats;

a content management server operable to;

receive a content request from a first client identifying a media file;

in response to receiving the content request, determine whether the identified media file is stored in a first content store in a target format;

in response to determining that the identified media file is stored in the first content store in the target format, transmit the media file from the first content source to the first client; and

in response to determining that the identified media file is not stored in the second content store in the second format, transmit a transcode request identifying the identified media file;

a load balancing server, operable to;

receive the transcode request from the content management server,

in response to receiving the transcode request, select a transcoder to modify the identified media file; and

instruct the selected transcoder to modify the identified media file to the target format; and

a plurality of transcoders, each transcoder operable to;

retrieve the identified media file from a second content store in an original format;

modify a portion of the identified media file from the original format to the target format;

store the modified portion in a second media file;

in response to a transmission request, read the modified portion from the second media file while modified content from the first media file is being stored in the second media file; and

transmit the modified portion to the first client.