REAL-TIME OR NEAR REAL-TIME STREAMING

• US 20110252118A1
• Filed: 04/07/2011
• Published: 10/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Batson, James David, Tseng, Alan, May, William JR., Pantos, Roger
• Granted Patent: US 8,892,691 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/182 Distributed file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4387 by the use of playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/61 for supporting one-way streaming services, e.g. Internet radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/752 adapting media to network capabilities

Abstract

Methods and apparatuses provide real-time or near real-time streaming of content, specified in one or more playlists, using transfer protocols such as an HTTP compliant protocol. In one embodiment, a method can execute a user application on a client device to present media files and to control presentation of the media files. The method can further run a media serving process on the client device to retrieve a playlist specifying the media files and a media source at which the media files are available, to retrieve the media files from the media source, and to decode the media files retrieved. The media serving process can call the user application to process a custom URL in order to obtain an object referred to by the custom URL.

Claims

1. A machine readable non-transitory storage medium storing executable instructions that when executed by a data processing system cause the system to perform a method comprising:

executing a user application on a client device to present media files and to control presentation of the media files; and

running a media serving process on the client device, separate from the user application, to retrieve a playlist specifying the media files and a media source at which the media files are available, to retrieve the media files from the media source, and to decode the media files retrieved and to provide decoded content from the media files to the user application.

2. The medium as in claim 1, wherein the media serving process and the user application share the same privileges with respect to memory control, memory space, memory allocation, filesystem control, and network control.

3. The medium as in claim 2 wherein the user application provides a user interface to control the presentation and communicates with the media serving process through an Application Programming Interface (API) and wherein the user application and the media serving process are different software processes.

4. The medium as in claim 2 wherein the media serving process retrieves media files which are decoded using a key processed by or retrieved and processed by the user application.

5. The medium as in claim 2 wherein the user application installs a client certificate which is used to answer a server challenge when a connection is made to download a decryption key.

6. The medium as in claim 2 wherein the playlist contains URLs for decryption keys that use a custom URL scheme.

7. The medium as in claim 3 wherein the media serving process calls, through the API, the user application when the media serving process fails to load or decode a media file so that the user application retrieves one or more keys which are returned to the media serving process.

8. The medium as in claim 3 wherein the media serving process retrieves media files which are decoded using a key processed by or retrieved and processed by the user application.

9. The medium as in claim 8 wherein the user application installs a client certificate which is used to answer a server challenge when a connection is made to download a decryption key.

10. The medium as in claim 9 wherein the playlist contains URLs for decryption keys that use a custom URL scheme.

11. A machine implemented method performed by a data processing system, the method comprising:

executing a user application on a client device to present media files and to control presentation of the media files; and

running a media serving process on the client device, separate from the user application, to retrieve a playlist specifying the media files and a media source at which the media files are available, to retrieve the media files from the media source, and to decode the media files retrieved and to provide decoded content from the media files to the user application.

12. The method as in claim 11, wherein the media serving process and the user application share the same privileges with respect to memory control, memory space, memory allocation, filesystem control, and network control.

13. The method as in claim 12 wherein the user application and the media serving process communicate through an API and wherein the user application and the media serving process are different software processes.

14. The method as in claim 12 wherein the media serving process retrieves media files which are decoded using a key processed by or retrieved and processed by the user application.

15. The method as in claim 12 wherein the user application installs a client certificate which is used to answer a server challenge when a connection is made to download a decryption key.

16. The method as in claim 12 wherein the playlist contains URLs for decryption keys that use a custom URL scheme.

17. The method as in claim 13 wherein the media serving process retrieves media files which are decoded using a key processed by or retrieved and processed by the user application, and wherein the user application installs a client certificate which is used to answer a server challenge when a connection is made to download a decryption key and wherein the playlist contains URLs for decryption keys that are retrieved through a custom URL scheme.

18. A data processing system comprising:

means for executing a user application on a client device to present media files and to control presentation of the media files; and

means for running a media serving process on the client device, separate from the user application, to retrieve a playlist specifying the media files and a media source at which the media files are available, to retrieve the media files from the media source, and to decode the media files retrieved and to provide decoded content from the media files to the user application.

19. The system as in claim 18, wherein the media serving process and the user application share the same privileges with respect to memory control, memory space, memory allocation, filesystem control, and network control.

20. A machine readable non-transitory storage medium storing executable instructions that when executed by a data processing system cause the system to perform a method comprising:

executing a user application on a client device to present media files and to control presentation of the media files; and

running a media server process on the client device, separate from the user application, to retrieve a playlist specifying the media files and a media source at which the media files are available, to retrieve the media files from the media source, and to decode the media files retrieved;

receiving, by the media server, a URL in the playlist, which URL refers to data to be used by the media server to decode at least one of the media files;

calling, by the media server, the user application to process the URL to obtain the data to be used by the media server;

receiving the data in response to the user application processing the URL to obtain the data;

decoding at least one of the media files using the data.

21. The medium as in claim 20 wherein the data is a decryption key.

22. A user application stored on a machine readable non-transitory medium that performs those portions of claim 20 performed by the user application.

23. A media server stored on a machine readable non-transitory medium that performs those portions of claim 20 performed by the media server process.

24. The medium as in claim 21 wherein the user application uses a custom URL that is used to protect content provided through the user application.

25. The medium as in claim 24 wherein a registry stores a relationship between the custom URL and the user application, and wherein the media server checks the registry to call the user application when the media server is unable to decode a media file.

26. The medium as in claim 25 wherein the custom URL is specified by an EXT-X-KEY tag.

27. The medium as in claim 25 wherein the user application is authorized by a provider of the media files.

28. The medium as in claim 24 wherein the user application installs, into a registry, a relationship between a custom URL, which is used to retrieve one or more decryption keys for the media files, and the user application, and wherein the user application installs the relationship into the registry when the user application is first installed or first launched.

29. The medium as in claim 28 wherein the relationship points the media server to the user application which uses the custom URL.

30. The medium as in claim 24 wherein the custom URL is not supported by the media server.

31. The medium as in claim 24 wherein the custom URL is used to retrieve the decryption key which is provided to the media server to decode the media files in the playlist.

32. The medium as in claim 31 wherein a resolution of the custom URL by the user application depends upon at least one of (a) the user application'"'"'s level of privilege relative to the content in the media files;

(b) the content in the media files; and

(c) a date or time or both of the request to present the content in the media files.

33. The medium as in claim 32 wherein the decryption key is returned to the media server through the user application.

34. A machine readable non-transitory storage medium storing executable instructions that when executed by a data processing system cause the system to perform a method comprising:

executing a user application on a client device, the user application being configured to control presentation of the media files; and

running a media server process on the client device, separate from the user application, to retrieve a playlist specifying the media files and a media source at which the media files are available, to retrieve the media files from the media source, and to decode the media files retrieved;

receiving, by the media server, a URL in or for the playlist, which URL refers to data to be used to process at least one of the media files;

calling, by the media server, the user application to process the URL to obtain the data to be used by a remote media server;

receiving the data in response to the user application processing the URL to obtain the data; and

transmitting the data to the remote media server.

35. The medium as in claim 34 wherein the URL is a custom URL for one of the playlist or a decryption key for at least one media file in the playlist and wherein the user application uses the custom URL to protect content provided through the user application.

36. The medium as in claim 34 wherein a registry stores a relationship between the custom URL and the user application, and wherein the media server examines the registry to call the user application when the media server is unable to process the URL.

37. The medium as in claim 36 wherein the remote media server is part of a set top box and is configured to retrieve and process a playlist and is configured to produce a message, which is transmitted back to the media server, to request a resolution of the custom URL and wherein the transmitting of the data to the remote media server provides the resolution of the custom URL.

38. A device for providing an output to a presentation device, the device comprising:

a remote playback component configured to allow the device to be set up for control by another device;

a media server component, the media server component being configured to retrieve and process a playlist specifying media files and to retrieve and decode media files specified in the playlist, and the media server component being configured to produce a message to resolve a custom URL which either represents the playlist or data within the playlist, and the remote playback component being configured to pass the message to the another device;

an output to provide video data or audio data or both video data and audio data to the presentation device, the output being coupled to the media server component which provides the video data or audio data or both;

an input/output (I/O) interface coupled to the remote playback component, the I/O interface being configured to pass the message, from the media server component, to resolve a custom URL and the I/O interface being configured to pass a resolution of the custom URL to the media server component to allow the output to provide the video data or audio data or both and wherein an application on the another device resolves the custom URL and provides the resolution of the URL through the I/O interface.