SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PRESENTING CONTENT WITH TIME BASED METADATA

• US 20130014155A1
• Filed: 06/14/2012
• Published: 01/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Dalrymple, Michael, Johnson, Mark, Lepke, Darren, Clarke, Douglas, Elliott, Edward Lee, Fox, John, Purnell-Fisher, Thomas, Utheza, Herve
• Granted Patent: US 9,762,967 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/32
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/433 using audio data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10537 Audio or video recording
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2541 Blu-ray discs; Blue laser DVR discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/11 by using information not detectable on the record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/854 Content authoring

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a system and method for rendering media related content and web services. According to one or more embodiments, media content is rendered from a source. In one or more segments of the media source, at least one of an object, person or location is identified and additional information, relevant content or services about the person, object or location are displayed or made accessible while or after the media content is being rendered, on one or more devices and/or on one or more paired devices.

Claims

1. A method for rendering media content, the method being implemented by one or more processors and comprising:

(a) rendering a media content from a media source;

(b) programmatically identifying, in one or more segments of the media content, at least one of (i) a person (ii) an object that is not a person, or (iii) a location; and

(c) displaying additional information about the person or object or the location while rendering the media content from the media source.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying metadata associated with the media content, and wherein (b) includes using the metadata to identify the person or object or the location.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising generating the metadata by programmatically scanning the media content and displaying a time based stamp that is associated with metadata about the object or the location when the object or the location appear in the rendering of the media content.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein programmatically scanning the media content includes using words spoken as part of the media content in identifying the object or the location.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein programmatically scanning the media content includes using at least one of (i) a script associated with the media content, or (ii) a closed-captioned text associated with the media content.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein identifying the metadata includes receiving metadata from the media source.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein identifying the metadata includes receiving metadata from an alternate source to the media source.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein (a)-(c) are performed on a set-top box.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein (a)-(c) are performed on a Blu-ray player.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein (a)-(c) are performed on a streaming media player.

11. A method for supplementing media content, the method being implemented by one or more processors and comprising:

transmitting a media content to a media player over a transmission channel; and

transmitting, with the media content, metadata that identifies to the media player, in one or more segments of the media content, at least one of (i) an object that is not a person, (ii) a person, or (iii) a location;

wherein transmitting the metadata includes synchronizing the metadata with the media content, so that the media player is operable to display additional information corresponding to the metadata when rendering the one or more segments of the media content on the media player.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising receiving the metadata from a remote metadata source.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising storing the metadata from the remote metadata source, then transmitting the metadata with the media content.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising retrieving the metadata in response to a request from the media player to playback the media content, and then synchronizing the metadata with the media content.

15. A method for supplementing media content, the method being implemented by one or more processors and comprising:

receiving a request over a network to supplement a media content that is to be rendered by a media player;

in response to receiving the request, sending a request to a source of the media content or web service in order to receive timing information;

transmitting metadata to supplement the media content to a location of the media player, in order to supplement playback of the media content;

wherein the metadata identifies, in one or more segments of the media content, at least one of (i) an object that is not a person, (ii) a person, or (iii) a location; and

wherein transmitting the metadata includes transmitting the timing information, so as to enable additional information corresponding to the metadata to be rendered when the one or more segments of the media content are rendered on the media player.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein transmitting the metadata includes transmitting the metadata to the media player.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein transmitting the metadata includes transmitting the metadata to a second device that does not include the media player.

18. A method for creating metadata to supplement playback of a media content, the method being implemented by one or more processors and comprising:

programmatically scanning the media content to identify a plurality of events that occur in the media content, the plurality of events including (i) an event that corresponds to an appearance of a person, and (ii) an event that corresponds to an appearance of an object or a location;

generating a metadata file that includes a plurality of time stamps, each time stamp coinciding with the occurrence of each of the plurality of events in the playback of the media content;

associating each time stamp with information about each of the plurality of events; and

associating a metadata file that includes the plurality of time stamps, and the information associated with each of the time stamps, with the media content.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein programmatically scanning the media content includes processing individual frames of the media content in order to enable a manual input to identify the person, the object, or the location of one or more of the multiple events.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein programmatically scanning the media content includes processing individual frames of the media content in order to automatically identify the person, the object, or the location of one or more of the multiple events.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein programmatically scanning the media content includes using image recognition, in order to identify the person, the object, or the location of one or more of the multiple events.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein programmatically scanning the media content includes using at least one of a script or a closed-captioned content associated with the media content in order to identify the person, the object, or the location of one or more of the multiple events.

23. The method of claim 18, wherein the object corresponds to a commercial product.

24. A method for mapping media content, the method being implemented by one or more processors and comprising:

integrating one or more playback devices to a system;

integrating one or more web services to the system;

creating one or more time stamps based on the media content;

mapping the time stamps to relevant services or content to be provided to an end user when media playback occurs; and

providing the services or content to the end user while media playback occurs.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the presentation of the content or services occurs either (i) concurrently or (ii) asynchronously with the playback of the media.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein an efficiency of the provided content or service is programmatically enhanced.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein providing the services or content to the end user occurs either (i) on a same first playback device as used for media playback or (ii) a different second playback device used for the media playback.