METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DISTRIBUTING MEDIA CONTENT

• US 20100071014A1
• Filed: 09/12/2008
• Published: 03/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LYFT Incorporated
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: HILL, NICHOLAS Peter, BROWN, WILLIAM A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,255,964 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/110
• 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: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2353 specifically adapted to content descriptors, e.g. coding, compressing or processing of metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• 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 21/4622 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 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47217 for controlling playback functions for recorded or on-demand content, e.g. using progress bars, mode or play-point indicators or bookmarks specific graphical features in visual interfaces H04N21/4312
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• 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 21/4826 using recommendation lists, e.g. of programs or channels sorted out according to their score
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/173 : with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal

Abstract

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a set-top box operating from an interactive television (iTV) communication system having a controller to receive from the iTV communication system media content with metadata, record the media content, detect in the metadata a description of the media content correlating with one or more preferences in a preference profile, present at a media presentation device a first prompt requesting an acceptance or rejection of the media content, present at the media presentation device a second prompt requesting a selection of one or more communication devices to direct in whole or in part the media content thereto, detect the selection of at least one of the one or more communication devices, and transmit in whole or in part the media content to the at least one communication device. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A set-top box (STB) operating from an interactive television (iTV) communication system, comprising a controller to:

receive from the iTV communication system media content with metadata;

record the media content;

detect in the metadata a description of the media content correlating with one or more preferences in a preference profile;

present at a media presentation device a first prompt requesting an acceptance or rejection of the media content;

present at the media presentation device a second prompt requesting a selection of one or more communication devices to direct in whole or in part the media content thereto;

detect the selection of at least one of the one or more communication devices; and

transmit in whole or in part the media content to the at least one communication device.

2. The STB of claim 1, wherein the media content comprises at least one of audio content, still image content, moving image content, and combinations thereof, and wherein the media presentation device comprises a television unit.

3. The STB of claim 1, wherein the iTV communication system comprises one of an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) communication network, a cable TV communication network, and a satellite TV communication network.

4. The STB of claim 1, wherein the preference profile comprises at least one of user preferences and behavioral data.

5. The STB of claim 4, wherein the controller is adapted to monitor consumption of media content to generate the behavioral data from behavioral patterns detected in said consumption.

6. The STB of claim 1, wherein the preference profile comprises a communication identifier for each the one or more communication devices, and wherein the controller is adapted to communicate with the at least one communication device according to its corresponding communication identifier.

7. The STB of claim 6, wherein the communication identifier comprises at least one of an E.164 telephone number, a session initiation protocol uniform resource identifier (SIP URI), an Internet Protocol (IP) address, an email address, a short messaging service (SMS) identifier, a multimedia messaging service (MMS) identifier, an instant messaging (IM) service identifier, an identifier assigned to a computer by an operating system of said computer, and a globally unique identifier.

8. The STB of claim 1, wherein the one or more communication devices comprise at least one of the STB, one or more other STBs, a long-range mobility communication device, a short-range mobility communication device, a media player, a gaming console, and a computer.

9. The STB of claim 1, wherein the controller is adapted to:

detect one or more digital rights management (DRM) rules in the metadata supplied with the media content; and

present the first prompt responsive to determining that distribution of a copy of the media content in whole or in part does not violate the one or more DRM rules.

10. The STB of claim 1, wherein the controller is adapted to record the media content according to a start and end delimiter supplied in the metadata.

11. The STB of claim 10, wherein the controller is adapted to present at least a portion of the recorded media content responsive to receiving a request for playback.

12. The STB of claim 11, wherein the controller is adapted to receive the playback request from a response to the first prompt.

13. The STB of claim 11, wherein the controller is adapted to:

receive one or more editing commands; and

edit the recorded media content according to said one or more editing commands, thereby generating a portion of the media content to be transmitted to the at least one communication device.

14. A set-top box (STB) operating from an interactive television (iTV) communication system, comprising a controller to:

receive from the iTV communication system media content with metadata;

record the media content while presented at a media presentation device;

detect a request to redirect the media content;

present at the media presentation device a prompt requesting a selection of one or more communication devices to direct in whole or in part the media content thereto, wherein the one or more communication devices exclude the STB, a digital media recorder integrated in the STB, and the digital media recorder operably coupled to the STB;

detect the selection of at least one of the one or more communication devices; and

transmit in whole or in part the media content to the at least one communication device.

15. The STB of claim 14, wherein the media content comprises at least one of audio content, still image content, moving image content, and combinations thereof, and wherein the media presentation device comprises a television unit.

16. The STB of claim 14, wherein the iTV communication system comprises one of an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) communication network, a cable TV communication network, and a satellite TV communication network.

17. The STB of claim 14, wherein the controller is adapted to communicate with the at least one communication device according to its corresponding communication identifier.

18. The STB of claim 17, wherein the communication identifier corresponds to at least one of an E.164 telephone number, a session initiation protocol uniform resource identifier (SIP URI), an Internet Protocol (IP) address, an email address, a short messaging service (SMS) identifier, a multimedia messaging service (MMS) identifier, an instant messaging (IM) service identifier, an identifier assigned to a computer by an operating system of said computer, and a globally unique identifier.

19. The STB of claim 14, wherein the one or more communication devices comprise at least one of one or more other STBs, a long-range mobility communication device, a short-range mobility communication device, a media player, a gaming console, and a computer.

20. The STB of claim 14, wherein the controller is adapted to:

detect one or more digital rights management (DRM) rules in the metadata supplied with the media content;

present the prompt responsive to determining that distribution of a copy of the media content in whole or in part does not violate the one or more DRM rules; and

present a notice in place of the prompt indicating that distribution of the copy of the media content in whole or in part violates the one or more DRM rules.

21. The STB of claim 14, wherein the controller is adapted to:

record the media content according to a start and end delimiter supplied in the metadata;

present at least a portion of the recorded media content responsive to receiving a request for playback;

receive one or more editing commands; and

edit the recorded media content according to said one or more editing commands, thereby generating a portion of the media content to be transmitted to the at least one communication device.

22. A method, comprising selectively redirecting from a set-top box (STB) media content supplied with metadata by an interactive television (iTV) system responsive to detecting a correlation between the metadata and a preference profile.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the media content comprises at least one of audio content, still image content, moving image content, and combinations thereof, wherein the iTV system comprises one of an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) communication network, a cable TV communication network, and a satellite TV communication network, wherein the preference profile comprises at least one among user preferences and behavioral data, and wherein the method comprises monitoring at the STB media content consumption to generate the behavioral data from behavioral patterns detected in said consumption.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the preference profile includes a communication identifier for each of one or more communication devices, and wherein the method comprises redirecting in whole or in part the media content received by the STB to at least one of the one or more communication devices according to its corresponding communication identifiers.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the communication identifier comprises at least one of an E.164 telephone number, a session initiation protocol uniform resource identifier (SIP URI), an Internet Protocol (IP) address, an email address, a short messaging service (SMS) identifier, a multimedia messaging service (MMS) identifier, an instant messaging (IM) service identifier, an identifier assigned to a computer by an operating system of said computer, and a globally unique identifier.