Dynamic Application Insertion for MPEG Stream Switching

• US 20100299715A1
• Filed: 11/19/2009
• Published: 11/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fourthwall Media Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Fourthwall Media Incorporated
• Inventors: Kotmel, Allan V. JR., Brown, Marco J., Ye, Aaron, Slothouber, Louis P.
• Granted Patent: US 8,549,576 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/118
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4349 by extracting from data carousels, e.g. extraction of software modules from a DVB carousel
• 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 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44016 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for substituting a video clip
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4438 Window management, e.g. event handling following interaction with the user interface
• 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 21/6582 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 21/818 OS software

Abstract

Disclosed herein are methods and systems for dynamically creating and inserting an application into an MPEG program transport stream. The application may be subsequently run on a customer premises equipment (CPE) device to effect switching between content streams for presentation to viewers based on other available data, such as targeting information.

Claims

1. A method for generating a stream-switching application, comprising:

identifying a first content stream and a second content stream;

creating packet identifier mapping data including information to identify the first content stream and the second content stream;

creating timing data to switch from the first content stream to the second content stream at a first time and to switch from the second content stream to the first content stream at a second time;

generating a stream-switching application including at least the packet identifier mapping data and the timing data;

transmitting the first content stream;

transmitting the stream-switching application; and

transmitting the second content stream.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting one or more additional content streams with the first content stream and the second content stream.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the stream-switching application further includes a pre-compiled template application binary, and the packet identifier mapping data and the timing data are inserted into the template application binary to generate the stream-switching application.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the template application binary is encoded using OpenCable Content Definition Format (CoDF).

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the transport stream is an MPEG stream, and MPEG Packet Identifiers (PIDs) comprise the information to identify the first content stream and the second content stream.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first content stream comprises programming content.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the second content stream comprises alternative advertisement content.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the stream-switching application is an Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) application.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving data from a consumer device, the data including information regarding the first content stream and the second content stream.

10. An apparatus for generating a stream-switching application, comprising:

an electronic module operable to identify a first content stream and a second content stream;

an electronic module operable to create packet identifier mapping data including information to identify the first content stream and the second content stream;

an electronic module operable to create timing data to switch from the first content stream to the second content stream at a first time and to switch from the second content stream to the first content stream at a second time;

an electronic module operable to generate a stream-switching application using the packet identifier mapping data and the timing data;

an electronic module operable to transmit the first content stream;

an electronic module operable to transmit the stream-switching application; and

an electronic module operable to transmit the second content stream.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising transmitting one or more additional content streams with the first content stream and the second content stream.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the stream-switching application further includes a pre-compiled template application binary, and the packet identifier mapping data and the timing data are inserted into the template application binary to generate the stream-switching application.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the template application binary is encoded using OpenCable Content Definition Format (CoDF).

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the transport stream is an MPEG stream, and MPEG Packet Identifiers (PIDs) comprise the information to identify the first content stream and the second content stream.

15. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first content stream comprises programming content.

16. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the second content stream comprises alternative advertisement content.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the stream-switching application is an Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) application.

18. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising receiving data from a consumer device, the data including information regarding the first content stream and the second content stream.

19. A method for switching content streams, comprising:

receiving, at an electronic customer device, a stream-switching application, the stream-switching application comprising at least timing data and packet identifier mapping data;

executing the stream-switching application, comprising;

extracting timing data from the stream-switching application, including a first time and a second time, the first time occurring before the second time; and

extracting packet identifier mapping data from the stream-switching application, the packet identifier mapping data including information to identify a first content stream and one or more second content streams;

receiving the first content stream;

receiving the one or more second content streams;

switching, at the first time, from processing the first content stream to processing one or more of the second content streams; and

switching, at the second time, from processing the one or more of the second content streams to processing the first content stream.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the first content stream and the at least one second content stream comprise video and audio.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the processing of the first content stream and the one or more second content stream includes displaying the content.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein after the stream-switching application has completed executing, it is deleted from the customer device.

23. The method of claim 19, further comprising transmitting data, the data including information regarding the first content stream and the second content stream.