Scripted Access to Hidden Multimedia Assets

• US 20110298981A1
• Filed: 03/02/2011
• Published: 12/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Eyer, Mark Kenneth
• Application Number:
  US13/038,984
• Publication Number:
  US 20110298981A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/563
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/433 Content storage operation, e.g. storage operation in response to a pause request, caching operations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4424 Monitoring of the internal components or processes of the client device, e.g. CPU or memory load, processing speed, timer, counter or percentage of the hard disk space used error monitoring in general G06F11/30; arrangements for monitoring conditions of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/32; diagnosis, testing or measuring for television receivers H04N17/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• 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 21/4758 for providing answers, e.g. voting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot

Abstract

A method according to certain embodiments involves at a digital television receiver device, receiving a triggered declarative object (TDO) that carries a script that when executed provides the digital television receiver device with access to hidden television content, where upon execution of the script, the digital television receiver device is given a location of the hidden television content. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

at a digital television receiver device, receiving a triggered declarative object (TDO) that carries an ECMAScript-based script that when executed provides the digital television receiver device with access to hidden television content;

where upon execution of the script by a viewer action, the digital television receiver device is given access to the hidden television content;

where the hidden television content is hidden by virtue of at least one of having a virtual channel “

hidden”

attribute set, having an ATSC standard service_type value that is not recognized by legacy television receiver devices, having a service_type value of 0x07 or where access to the hidden content is provided by directly referencing an MPEG program by a program_number or by explicit reference to the packet identifiers (PIDs) of the packets in a transport stream; and

where the TDO utilizes an Application Program Interface (API) that allows the script to effect a channel change away from a current selection to the hidden content.

2. A method, comprising:

at a digital television receiver device, receiving a triggered declarative object (TDO) that carries a script that when executed provides the digital television receiver device with access to hidden television content;

the digital television receiver executing the script; and

where upon execution of the script, the digital television receiver device is given a location of the hidden television content.

3. The method according to claim 2, where access to the hidden television content is provided by referencing a virtual channel that is designated as hidden by having a “

hidden”

attribute set.

4. The method according to claim 2, where access to the hidden television content is provided by referencing a virtual channel with an ATSC standard service_type value that is not recognized by legacy television receiver devices.

5. The method according to claim 4, where the service_type value is 0x07.

6. The method according to claim 2, where access to the hidden content is provided by referencing an MPEG program by a program_number value.

7. The method according to claim 2, where access to the hidden content is provided by explicit reference to the packet identifiers (PIDs) of the packets in an MPEG compliant Transport Stream.

8. The method according to claim 2, where access to the hidden content is provided by a reference to a content identifier associated with NRT content.

9. The method according to claim 2, where the TDO is implemented using an extension to standardized TDO scripting to implement a function call to allow the script to request access to hidden content.

10. The method according to claim 2, where the script is executed conditionally based upon a user response to a survey question.

11. The method according to claim 2, where the script is executed by a viewer action.

12. The method according to claim 11, where the script is executed conditionally based upon a user entry of a registration code.

13. The method according to claim 2, where the hidden content comprises non-real-time (NRT) content.

14. The method according to claim 13, where the NRT content is pre-delivered prior to the viewer action.

15. The method according to claim 2, where the script is executed conditionally based upon a user'"'"'s Internet access.

16. The method according to claim 2, where the hidden content comprises non-real-time (NRT) content.

17. The method according to claim 2, where the TDO defines an Application Program Interface (API) that allows the script to effect a channel change away from a currently selected program to the hidden program.

18. The method according to claim 2, where the script comprises an ECMAScript or ECMAScript extension.

19. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed on one or more programmed processors, carry out a method according to claim 2.

20. A device, comprising:

a digital television receiver device adapted to receive a triggered declarative object (TDO) that carries a script that when executed provides the digital television receiver device with access to hidden television content;

the digital television receiver device having a programmed processor;

the programmed processor programmed to execute the script that gives the digital television receiver device access to the hidden television content.

21. The device according to claim 20, where access to the hidden television content is provided by referencing a virtual channel that is designated as hidden by having a hidden attribute set.

22. The device according to claim 20, where the hidden content comprises an alternate audio track.

23. The device according to claim 20, where access to the hidden television content is provided by referencing a virtual channel with an ATSC standard service_type value that is not recognized by legacy television receiver devices.

24. The device according to claim 23, where the service_type value is 0x07.

25. The device according to claim 20, where access to the hidden content is provided by referencing an MPEG program by a program_number value.

26. The device according to claim 20, where access to the hidden content is provided by explicit reference to the packet identifiers (PIDs) of the packets in an MPEG compliant Transport Stream.

27. The device according to claim 20, where access to the hidden content is provided by a reference to a content identifier associated with NRT content.

28. The device according to claim 20, where the TDO is implemented using an extension to standardized TDO scripting to implement a function call to allow the script to request access to hidden content.

29. The device according to claim 20, where the script is executed conditionally based upon a user response to a survey question.

30. The device according to claim 20, where the script is executed by a viewer action.

31. The device according to claim 30, where the script is executed conditionally based upon a user entry of a registration code.

32. The device according to claim 20, where the hidden content comprises non-real-time (NRT) content.

33. The device according to claim 32, where the NRT content is pre-delivered prior to the viewer action.

34. The device according to claim 20, where the script is executed conditionally based upon a user'"'"'s Internet access.

35. The device according to claim 20, where the hidden content comprises non-real-time (NRT) content.

36. The device according to claim 20, where the TDO defines an Application Program Interface (API) that allows the script to effect a channel change away from a currently selected program to the hidden program.

37. The device according to claim 20, where the script comprises an ECMAScript or ECMAScript extension.