METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING INTERACTIVE LOOK-AND-FEEL IN A DIGITAL BROADCAST VIA AN X Y PROTOCOL

• US 20110055885A1
• Filed: 08/23/2010
• Published: 03/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1996
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Musicqubed Innovations LLC (Ascend Innovation Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Corporate Media Partners
• Inventors: Sequeira, William J., Klappert, Walter R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,650,607 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/113
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23614 Multiplexing of additional data and video streams arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information H04H20/28
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4725 using interactive regions of the image, e.g. hot spots details of information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8547 involving timestamps for synchronizing content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8583 by creating hot-spots
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309

Abstract

A system for providing an interactive look-and-feel in a digital video broadcast via an X-Y protocol is provided. At a head-end, video information is digitized and associated with private data, such as event identifications, X-Y coordinates, link event identification and synchronization data. This information is then transmitted to a receiving end and is input into a set-top box. The set-top box receives the broadcast digital signal and includes a member for receiving the broadcast digital signal and generating a playable signal including indicia of the link data. The playable signal is then played on a playing device. The user is provided with a remote control or similar input device for selecting from the indicia. Upon selection of a desired indicia, the user may exercise the predetermined link associated with the selected indicia in order to obtain the desired playable signal.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

generating private data including event identification associated with source content, an indication of a number of hot-spots, and link data, a particular hot-spot being linked to target content by at least a portion of the link data, the target content being different content than the source content, the link data including a display location of a display, and link event identification indicating the target content associated with the display location;

processing the private data and source content to generate the digital signal;

transmitting a first portion of the target content during a first time interval;

transmitting a second portion of the target content during a second time interval, the second portion being a different portion that the first portion, the second time interval being a different time interval than the first time interval; and

transmitting the digital signal from a server during the first time interval and the second time interval.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the server is a head end server.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the source content includes audio data, video data, binary data, or combinations thereof.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the digital signal includes interleaved bits of at least one of the audio or video data and the binary data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the display location is defined by a set of coordinates.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first portion and the second portion of the target content are transmitted from the server.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the link data further includes a synchronization time indicating temporal position of the source content.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the link data further includes a synchronization time indicating temporal position of the source content.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first display is generated in synchronization with the second display based on the synchronization time.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the source content includes audio data, video data, binary data, or combinations thereof.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the digital signal includes interleaved bits of at least one of the audio or video data and the binary data.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the display location is defined by a set of coordinates.

8. A method comprising:

receiving a digital signal from a server during a first time interval and a second time interval, the digital signal being based on private data and source content, the private data including event identification associated with the source content, an indication of a number of hot-spots, and link data, a particular hot-spot being linked to target content by at least a portion of the link data, the target content being different content than the source content, the link data including a display location of a display, and link event identification indicating the target content associated with the display location;

receiving a first portion of the target content during a first time interval;

receiving a second portion of the target content during a second time interval, the second portion being a different portion that the first portion, the second time interval being a different time interval than the first time interval;

selectively exercising upon on the particular hot-spot by reading the link data and generating a first display of the first portion of the target content during the first time interval and the second interval of the target content during the second time interval in the display portion; and

generating a second display based on the digital signal during the first time interval and the second time interval.

14. A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising instructions, which when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the following operations:

generate private data including event identification associated with source content, an indication of a number of hot-spots, and link data, a particular hot-spot being linked to target content by at least a portion of the link data, the target content being different content than the source content, the link data including a display location of a display, and link event identification indicating the target content associated with the display location;

process the private data and source content to generate the digital signal;

transmit a first portion of the target content during a first time interval;

transmit a second portion of the target content during a second time interval, the second portion being a different portion that the first portion, the second time interval being a different time interval than the first time interval; and

transmit the digital signal from a server during the first time interval and the second time interval.

15. A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising instructions, which when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the following operations:

receive a digital signal from a server during a first time interval and a second time interval, the digital signal being based on private data and source content, the private data including event identification associated with the source content, an indication of a number of hot-spots, and link data, a particular hot-spot being linked to target content by at least a portion of the link data, the target content being different content than the source content, the link data including a display location of a display, and link event identification indicating the target content associated with the display location;

receive a first portion of the target content during a first time interval;

receive a second portion of the target content during a second time interval, the second portion being a different portion that the first portion, the second time interval being a different time interval than the first time interval;

selectively exercise upon on the particular hot-spot by reading the link data and generating a first display of the first portion of the target content during the first time interval and the second interval of the target content during the second time interval in the display portion; and

generate a second display based on the digital signal during the first time interval and the second time interval.