METHOD, COMPUTER PROGRAM, RECEPTION APPARATUS, AND INFORMATION PROVIDING APPARATUS FOR ACCESSING CONTENT FROM A PLURALITY OF CONTENT SOURCES

• US 20130055313A1
• Filed: 07/31/2012
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: EYER, Mark
• Application Number:
  US13/562,946
• Publication Number:
  US 20130055313A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/49
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/431 Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/472 End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content end-user interfaces for retrieving video data from a database G06F16/739; network services for supporting unicast streaming H04L65/612
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• 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 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• 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, computer program, reception apparatus, and information providing apparatus for providing one or more virtual channel tables corresponding to one or more content sources. The reception apparatus includes an input unit and a processor. The input unit receives a channel selection from a user. The processor determines a source of content associated with the channel selection based on at least one virtual channel table stored in a memory. Based on the determined source of content, the processor controls a first communication interface to receive first content or a second communication interface to receive second content. The processor controls the first communication interface to receive the first content when the selected channel is determined to be associated with a first source, and controls the second communication interface to receive the second content when the selected channel is determined to be associated with a second source.

Claims

1. A method of a reception apparatus for accessing content from a plurality of content sources, comprising:

receiving a channel selection from a user;

determining, by the reception apparatus, a source of content associated with the selected channel based on at least one virtual channel table stored in a memory of the reception apparatus;

receiving first content via a first communication interface when the selected channel is determined to be associated with a first source; and

receiving second content via a second communication interface when the selected channel is determined to be associated with a second source.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the first communication interface is a tuner interface configured receive content from at least one of a terrestrial, cable, and satellite broadcaster;

and

the second communication interface is a network interface configured to access a data communication network.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein

the data communication network is the Internet.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of receiving the first content comprises:

receiving the first content broadcast on a digital television broadcast channel.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of receiving the second content comprises:

receiving the second content via the Internet.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the step of receiving the first content includes receiving the first content based on a first virtual channel table stored in the memory;

and

the step of receiving the second content includes receiving the second content based on a second virtual channel table stored in the memory.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a triggered declarative object (TDO) that identifies a location of the second content; and

storing the location of the second content in the at least one virtual channel table in response to receiving a request from a user.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein

the step of storing includes storing the location of the second content in association with a channel number identified by the TDO.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

accessing a website of available content on a data communication network; and

storing the location of the available content on the data communication network in the at least one virtual channel table, the location being received from the website.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein

the step of storing includes storing the location of the available content in association with a channel number received from the website.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the channel selection includes a channel number with a major and minor number;

and

when the at least one virtual channel table stores information associated with the first source and the second source are associated with the same content provider, the first source and the second source are assigned the same major channel number.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having embedded therein instructions which when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method comprising:

receiving a channel selection from a user;

determining a content source associated with the selected channel based on at least one virtual channel table stored in a memory of the reception apparatus;

tuning to a broadcast channel when the selected channel is determined to be associated with broadcast content; and

accessing content via a data communication network when the selected channel is determined to be associated with content located on the data communication network.

13. A reception apparatus, comprising:

an input unit configured to receive a channel selection from a user;

a processor configured to

determine a source of content associated with the selected channel based on at least one virtual channel table stored in a memory of the reception apparatus;

control a first communication interface to receive first content when the selected channel is determined to be associated with a first source; and

control a second communication interface to receive second content when the selected channel is determined to be associated with a second source.

14. The reception apparatus according to claim 13, wherein

the first communication interface is a tuner interface configured receive content from at least one of a terrestrial, cable, and satellite broadcaster;

and

the second communication interface is a network interface configured to access a data communication network.

15. The reception apparatus according to claim 14, wherein

the data communication network is the Internet.

16. The reception apparatus according to claim 13, wherein

the first content is broadcast on a digital television broadcast channel.

17. The reception apparatus according to claim 13, wherein

the second content is received via the Internet.

18. The reception apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the processor is configured to:

control the first communication interface to receive the first content based on a first virtual channel table stored in the memory; and

control the second communication interface to receive the second content based on a second virtual channel table stored in the memory.

19. The reception apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the processor is configured to:

receive a triggered declarative object (TDO) that identifies a location of the second content; and

store the location of the second content in the at least one virtual channel table in response to receiving a request from a user.

20. The reception apparatus according to claim 19, wherein

the processor stores the location of the second content in association with a channel number identified by the TDO.

21. The reception apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the processor is configured to:

access a website of available content on a data communication network; and

store the location of the available content on the data communication network in the at least one virtual channel table, the location being received from the website.

22. The reception apparatus according to claim 21, wherein

the processor is configured to store the location of the available content in association with a channel number received from the website.

23. The reception apparatus according to claim 13, wherein

the channel selection includes a channel number with a major and minor number;

and

when the at least one virtual channel table stores information associated with the first source and the second source are associated with the same content provider, the first source and the second source are assigned the same major channel number.

24. An information providing apparatus, comprising:

a memory configured to store a triggered declarative object (TDO) that identifies a location of first content to be received by a reception apparatus via a first communication interface, the TDO being associated with second content to be received by the reception apparatus via a second communication interface; and

a communication unit configured to provide the TDO to the reception apparatus.

25. The information providing apparatus according to claim 24, wherein

the TDO defines a channel number to be associated with the first content in a virtual channel table stored in the reception apparatus.