Dynamic Content Packaging

• US 20150120961A1
• Filed: 01/07/2015
• Published: 04/30/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Mao, Weidong, Kotay, Sree
• Granted Patent: US 9,609,364 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/240
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/44 for identifying broadcast stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2433 Allocation of priorities to traffic types
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1014 based on the content of a request
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1021 based on client or server locations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/21 Server components or server architectures
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2343 involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements video transcoding H04N19/40; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2365 Multiplexing of several video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2368 Multiplexing of audio and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2389 Multiplex stream processing, e.g. multiplex stream encrypting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/24 Monitoring of processes or resources, e.g. monitoring of server load, available bandwidth, upstream requests monitoring of server performance or load G06F11/34; arrangements for observation, testing or troubleshooting for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25841 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; arrangements for identifying locations of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/51; location of the user terminal in data switching networks H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/266 Channel or content management, e.g. generation and management of keys and entitlement messages in a conditional access system, merging a VOD unicast channel into a multicast channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4353 involving decryption of additional data arrangements using cryptography for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/23
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4524 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; systems specially adapted for using geographical information in broadcast systems H04H60/70; protocols in which the network application is adapted for the location of the user terminal in communication control or processing H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• 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 21/6405 Multicasting data broadcast and multicast in packet switching networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6408 Unicasting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/643 Communication protocols network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP], H04L65/65
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64723 : Monitoring of network processes or resources, e.g. monitoring of network load traffic related reporting in data switching networks H04L43/062
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

To be accessed on different media players, requested content must be delivered in a format that is supported by the requesting device. A dynamic content packager for encrypting and packaging requested content for different requesting devices at the time of consumption is disclosed.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining, by a processor, a content item stored at one or more content packagers;

determining a location of each of the one or more content packagers;

receiving a request for the content item from a device at a requesting location; and

causing delivery of the content item from at least one of the one or more content packagers based at least in part on a proximity between the device and the one of the one or more content packagers.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a content delivery route for the content item; and

selecting a content streamer along the content delivery route for delivery of the content item from the at least one content packager.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a device profile indicating capabilities of the device, wherein the causing of the delivery of the content item from the at least one of the one or more content packagers is further based on the device profile.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

reformatting the content based on the device profile.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the causing of the delivery of the content item from the at least one of the one or more content packagers further comprises ranking the one or more content packagers by their distance from the device and causing delivery of the content item from at least one of the one or more content packagers based on the ranking.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the causing of the delivery of the content item from the at least one of the one or more content packagers is further based on an availability status of the one or more content packagers.

7. A method, comprising:

determining, by a processor, a location of each of a plurality of content packagers;

receiving a request from a device for a content item;

determining a geographic location of the device;

determining one or more of the plurality of content packagers storing the content item;

selecting one of the one or more content packagers based on a proximity between the device and the content packager; and

causing delivery of the content item from the selected one content packager to the device.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining a content delivery route for the content item; and

selecting one or more content streamers along the delivery route for delivery of the content item.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the determining the content delivery route further comprises determining an availability of the one or more content streamers along the content delivery route.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the selecting the one or more content streamers further comprises selecting the one or more content streamers based on the availability of the one or more content streamers.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the determining the content delivery route further comprises determining a network status that comprises “

on”

or “

off”

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the determining the content delivery route further comprises determining the proximity of the one or more content streamers to the device.

13. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining a device profile indicating capabilities of the device, the selecting further based on the device profile.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

reformatting the content item based on the device profile.

15. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the one or more of the plurality of content packagers storing the content item further comprises ranking each of the plurality of content packagers by distance from the device and wherein the selecting further comprises selecting one of the one or more content packagers based on the ranking.

16. The method of claim 7, wherein the selecting is further based on an availability status of the one or more content packagers.

17. A method, comprising:

determining, by a processor, an index relating a content item to a plurality of content packagers storing the content item, each of the plurality of content packagers having a geographic location;

receiving a request for the content item from a device at a requesting location;

selecting, from the index, one of the one or more content packagers based at least in part on a proximity between the device and the content packager; and

causing delivery of the content item from the selected one content packager to the device.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the selecting is further based on an availability status of the one or more content packagers.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

determining a device profile indicating capabilities of the device, the selecting further based on the device profile.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

reformatting the content item based on the device profile.