Crowd based content delivery

• US 20130103556A1
• Filed: 01/07/2010
• Published: 04/25/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Fortinet Inc.
• Original Assignee: 3Crowd Technologies, Inc. (Fortinet Inc.)
• Inventors: Lyon, Barrett Gibson
• Application Number:
  US12/655,900
• Publication Number:
  US 20130103556A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1235 with control of digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation

Abstract

Crowd based content delivery is disclosed. In some embodiments, managing content delivery includes receiving a specification from a resource provider of an availability of a content delivery service at the resource provider, selecting the resource provider to service requests for a content item, facilitating caching of the content item at the resource provider, and redirecting a request for the content item to the resource provider for servicing.

Claims

1-14. -14. (canceled)

15. A method for managing content delivery, comprising:

receiving at a resource manager from a resource consumer desiring content delivery services a specification of a plurality of contracted content delivery networks (CDNs) and contract terms associated with each of the plurality of CDNs;

receiving a request for a content item published by the resource consumer;

selecting a CDN from the plurality of contracted CDNs based on contract terms associated with the CDN and an availability of the requested content item at the CDN; and

redirecting the request for the content item to the selected CDN for servicing.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein selecting a CDN comprises interrogating the CDN using a HEAD request for the content item to determine availability of the content item at the CDN.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the selected CDN comprises a caching proxy CDN.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising facilitating pre-fetching of the requested content item at the selected CDN in the event that the requested content item is determined to not be available at the selected CDN.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the requested content item is cached at the selected CDN in response to receiving the redirected request.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising monitoring an ability of the selected CDN to service requests for the content item.

21. The method of claim 15, wherein the selected CDN is selected from the plurality of contracted CDNs because the selected CDN is able to service the request for the content item at a least cost to the resource consumer.

22. (canceled)

23. A system for managing content delivery, comprising:

a processor configured to;

receive from a resource consumer desiring content delivery services a specification of a plurality of contracted content delivery networks (CDNs) and contract terms associated with each of the plurality of CDNs;

receive a request for a content item published by the resource consumer;

select a CDN from the plurality of contracted CDNs based on contract terms associated with the CDN and an availability of the requested content item at the CDN; and

redirect the request for the content item to the selected CDN for servicing; and

a memory coupled to the processor and configured to provide the processor with instructions.

26. The system of claim 23, wherein to select a CDN comprises to interrogate the CDN using a HEAD request for the content item to determine availability of the content item at the CDN.

27. The system of claim 23, wherein the selected CDN comprises a caching proxy CDN.

28. The system of claim 23, wherein the processor is further configured to facilitate pre-fetching of the requested content item at the selected CDN in the event that the requested content item is determined to not be available at the selected CDN.

29. The system of claim 23, wherein the requested content item is cached at the selected CDN in response to receiving the redirected request.

30. The system of claim 23, wherein the processor is further configured to monitor an ability of the selected CDN to service requests for the content item.

31. The system of claim 23, wherein the selected CDN is selected from the plurality of contracted CDNs because the selected CDN is able to service the request for the content item at a least cost to the resource consumer.

24. (canceled)

25. A computer program product for managing content delivery, the computer program product being embodied in a computer readable storage medium and comprising computer instructions for:

receiving from a resource consumer desiring content delivery services a specification of a plurality of contracted content delivery networks (CDNs) and CDN contract terms associated with each of the plurality of CDNs;

receiving a request for a content item published by the resource consumer;

selecting a CDN from the plurality of contracted CDNs based on contract terms associated with the CDN and an availability of the requested content item at the CDN; and

redirecting the request for the content item to the selected CDN for servicing.

32. The computer program product of claim 25, wherein selecting a CDN comprises interrogating the CDN using a HEAD request for the content item to determine availability of the content item at the CDN.

33. The computer program product of claim 25, wherein the selected CDN comprises a caching proxy CDN.

34. The computer program product of claim 25, further comprising computer instructions for facilitating pre-fetching of the requested content item at the selected CDN in the event that the requested content item is determined to not be available at the selected CDN.

35. The computer program product of claim 25, wherein the requested content item is cached at the selected CDN in response to receiving the redirected request.

36. The computer program product of claim 25, further comprising computer instructions for monitoring an ability of the selected CDN to service requests for the content item.

37. The computer program product of claim 25, wherein the selected CDN is selected from the plurality of contracted CDNs because the selected CDN is able to service the request for the content item at a least cost to the resource consumer.