BROADCAST RECEPTION APPARATUS AND OPERATING METHOD THEREOF

• US 20090325523A1
• Filed: 03/31/2009
• Published: 12/31/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: CHOI, Jung-hwa
• Application Number:
  US12/414,735
• Publication Number:
  US 20090325523A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/185.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/38 Arrangements for distribution where lower stations, e.g. receivers, interact with the broadcast
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/40 Arrangements for broadcast specially adapted for accumulation-type receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/46 for recognising users' preferences
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/66 for using the result on distributors' side
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/258 Client or end-user data management, e.g. managing client capabilities, user preferences or demographics, processing of multiple end-users preferences to derive collaborative data arrangements for services using the result on the distributing side of broadcast systems H04H60/66; profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6547 comprising parameters, e.g. for client setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8126 involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts

Abstract

A broadcast reception apparatus and an operating method thereof are provided. In order to prevent preference information which a viewer does not expose from being transmitted to a broadcasting station, the broadcast reception apparatus transmits limited preference information regarding broadcast programs or additional information to the broadcasting station. Accordingly, the viewer privacy can be protected, and the viewer can receive only desired information from the broadcasting station. The preference information may not be sent at all in another embodiment.

Claims

1. A broadcast reception apparatus, comprising:

a storage unit which stores preference information regarding a broadcast service provided by a broadcasting station;

an interface unit which transmits limited preference information regarding the broadcast service to the broadcasting station; and

a control unit which controls a menu, which is generated by the broadcasting station based on the limited preference information, to be displayed on a screen if the menu is received from the broadcasting station.

2. The broadcast reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein information included in the broadcast service is classified according to a plurality of layers and a plurality of categories, and

the control unit controls the interface unit to transmit the preference information stored in the storage unit to the broadcasting station by excluding at least one of preset limited layers and limited categories in the preference information.

3. The broadcast reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores a category list of broadcast programs included in the broadcast service provided by the broadcasting station and a list of additional information included in the broadcast service in the order of preference.

4. The broadcast reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores the preference information regarding the broadcast service in a tree-structure database format.

5. The broadcast reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit analyzes view preferences regarding the broadcast programs included in the broadcast service, and usage preference of the additional information included in the broadcast service, and stores the analysis result in the storage unit.

6. The broadcast reception apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit generates a limit menu for setting the limited layers and the limited categories.

7. The broadcast reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit updates the preference information stored in the storage unit.

8. A method for operating a broadcast reception apparatus, the method comprising:

storing preference information regarding a broadcast service provided by a broadcasting station;

transmitting limited preference information regarding the broadcast service to the broadcasting station; and

displaying a menu, which is generated by the broadcasting station based on the limited preference information, on a screen if the menu is received from the broadcasting station.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein information included in the broadcast service is classified according to a plurality of layers and a plurality of categories, and

in the transmitting operation, the stored preference information is transmitted to the broadcasting station by excluding at least one of preset limited layers and limited categories in the preference information.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein in the storing operation, a category list of broadcast programs included in the broadcast service provided by the broadcasting station and a list of additional information included in the broadcast service are stored in the order of preference.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein in the storing operation, the preference information regarding the broadcast service is stored in a tree-structure database format.

12. The method according to claim 8, before the storing operation, further comprising:

analyzing view preferences regarding the broadcast programs included in the broadcast service; and

analyzing usage preference of the additional information included in the broadcast service.

13. The method according to claim 9, before the transmitting operation, further comprising:

generating a limit menu for setting the limited layers and the limited categories.

14. The method according to claim 8, after the storing operation, further comprising:

updating the stored preference information.

15. A method for selectively accessing broadcast service comprising:

receiving a broadcast service from a broadcasting station;

determining preference information of a user based upon the viewing and/or use preference of the user;

limiting the preference information by excluding certain categories of broadcast service;

generating a menu offering selection of broadcast service based upon the limited preference information; and

displaying the menu on a screen for allowing the user to make a selection of the broadcast service.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein information included in the broadcast service is classified according to a plurality of layers and a plurality of categories, and

in the limiting step, the stored preference information is transmitted to the broadcasting station by excluding at least one of preset limited layers and limited categories in the preference information.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein the preference information regarding the broadcast service is stored in a tree-structure database format.

18. The method according to claim 15, wherein the determining step comprises of:

analyzing viewing preferences regarding a broadcast programs included in the broadcast service and/or usage preference of an additional information included in the broadcast service.

19. The method according to claim 15, wherein the limiting step comprises of:

generating a limit menu for limiting certain layers and/or the categories.

20. The method according to claim 15, further comprising the steps of:

storing the preference information; and

updating the stored preference information upon further viewing and/or usage of the broadcast service.