Interactive television receiver unit browser that waits to send requests

• US 6,330,719 B1
• Filed: 06/30/1999
• Issued: 12/11/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: WebTV Networks Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Blackketter, Dean J., Zigmond, Daniel J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Faile, Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Hai V.
• Application Number:
  US09/345,251
• Time in Patent Office: 895 Days
• Field of Search: 348/1-3, 348/7, 348/10, 348/12-13, 709/217-219, 709/232, 709/233, 709/235, 709/227-229, 709/207, 340/825.08, 455/5.1, 725/96, 725/97, 725/60, 725/121
• US Class Current: 725/121
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26275 for distributing content or additional data in a staggered manner, e.g. repeating movies on different channels in a time-staggered manner in a near video on demand system
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• 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 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47815 Electronic shopping payment schemes, payment architectures or payment protocols for electronic shopping systems G06Q20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17327 with deferred transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

In interactive television, a broadcaster may broadcast triggers to a great many receiver units prompting the receiver units to attempt to send requests to a single destination on the Internet at roughly the same time. Such a large number of simultaneous requests can give rise to throughput problems and server overload. A receiver unit in accordance with the invention, rather than immediately attempting to send a request, waits a period of time (for example, a random period) before sending the request so as not to overload the server. In one embodiment, a trigger is received on an interactive television receiver unit prompting the viewer to select an icon. If the viewer selects the icon, then a browser in the receiver unit retrieves a web page on the Internet identified by a URL in the trigger. The web page includes an indication of a destination, scheduling information, and a form area. The viewer enters user information in association with the form area. The browser captures that user information, incorporates it into a request, and then stores the request in a queue along with the scheduling information. The browser periodically checks the scheduling information in the queue and determines from the scheduling information if it is time to send the request. When the browser determines the time has come to send a request in the queue, the browser retrieves the request and sends it to the destination. The browser may then receive a return response and display it.

Claims

1. In a computer network, which includes a plurality of servers and a plurality of interactive television receiver units, the servers and interactive television receiver units being interconnected, and wherein the interactive television receiver units can be controlled by a user in order to be coupled to any of the servers for purposes of processing return requests, a method of controlling and scheduling initial transmission of such return requests in order to reduce bottlenecking and overloading of a server with such return requests, comprising:

a. receiving essentially simultaneously at a plurality of the interactive television receiver units a first communication in the form of a script that is either part of a broadcast trigger, a web page or an attachment to a web page, the script including (i) scheduling information for initiating a return request, the scheduling information being under the control of an author of the first communication and the scheduling information differing as between at least some of the interactive television receiver units at which the first communication is received, and (ii) an indication of a destination with respect to one of the servers which is intended to receive the return request;

b. at least some of the plurality of interactive television receiver units where the first communication is received, executing the script with the result of preparing a second communication that represents the desired return request to be processed and that is to be sent to the indicated destination and storing the second communication at each of the interactive television receiver units executing the script;

c. at each of the plurality of interactive television receiver units where the script has been executed, waiting a period of time determined by the scheduling information before attempting to initiate the return request; and

d. after the period of time, each interactive television receiver unit that executed the script, automatically sending the second communication over the network to the indicated destination.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first communication is a broadcast trigger, the broadcast trigger being received by the plurality of interactive television receiver units from a one-way broadcast communication channel.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein during the period of time at least one of the interactive television receiver units that executed the script is not connect to the network.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling information includes an indication that the second communication can be sent at a later time.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling information includes a time.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the time is a time after which the second communication will not be sent to the destination by the interactive television receiver units that executed the script.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling information includes a date.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the date is an expiration date after which the second communication will not be sent to the destination by the interactive television receiver units that executed the script.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the destination is identified by a Uniform Resource Locator (URL).

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the second communication is a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) that is sent via the network to the destination.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the interactive television receiver units include a browser, the browser including a deferrer object and a queue, the method further comprising the script calling a method on the deferrer object such that an indication of the second communication is placed in the queue.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the browser uses information stored in the queue to determine when to send the second communication to the destination in step (d).

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

(e) receiving on the interactive television receiver units that executed the script a third communication via the network from the destination; and

(f) removing the indication of the second communication from the queue in response to the third communication.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

(c) receiving on the interactive television receiver units that executed the script, a third communication via the network from the destination, the third communication including an indication that the destination received the second communication; and

(f) displaying on the interactive television receiver units that received the third communication, the indication that the destination received the second communication.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the indication that the destination received the second communication is a confirmation number.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein step (b) includes:

a user entering information into the interactive television receiver units executing the script, the information being incorporated into the second communication.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the first communication is received onto the receiver unit in step (a) from the packet-switched network.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the interactive television receiver units executing the script is not connected to the network during the period of time, and wherein the at least one of the interactive television receiver units automatically establishes a connection to the network during step (d) and sends the second communication to the destination via the network without human input after the second communication is stored in step (b).

19. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of interactive television receiver units is coupled by a cable modem to the network, the second communication being sent in step (d) from the receiver unit to the destination via the cable.

20. A method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

including random functionality in the script so that the scheduling information at each of the plurality of interactive television receiver units executing the script produces a random period of time to wait.

21. A method as recited in claim 1 wherein the second communication is an electronic order.

22. In a computer network, which includes a plurality of servers and a plurality of interactive television receiver units, the servers and interactive television receiver units being interconnected, and wherein the interactive television receiver units can be controlled by a user in order to be coupled to any of the servers for purposes of processing return requests, a method of controlling and scheduling initial transmission of such return requests in order to reduce bottlenecking and overloading of a server with such return requests, comprising:

a. identifying one or more destinations for receiving return requests from the plurality of interactive television receiver units;

b. generating scheduling information that indicates a destination for receiving return requests and that determines when the interactive television receiver units should initiate return requests, the scheduling information producing different results as between at least some of the interactive television receiver units receiving the scheduling information;

c. creating a first communication that associates the scheduling information with a particular return request, thereby allowing the author of the first communication to control the scheduling information that is associated with the particular return request and determine when the particular return request should be initiated; and

d. distributing the first communication to the plurality of the interactive television receiver units, the distribution occurring essentially simultaneously, so that the interactive television receiver units receiving the first communication may initiate return requests according to the scheduling information provided by the first communication.

23. A method as recited in claim 22 wherein the scheduling information is in the form of a script that is either part of a broadcast trigger, a web page or an attachment to a web page.

24. A method as recited in claim 23, wherein the scheduling information comprises a script to be executed by the interactive television receiver units, the method further comprising:

including random functionality in the script so that the scheduling information at each of the interactive television receiver units executing the script produces a random period of time to wait prior to initiating the particular electronic transaction.

25. A method as recited in claim 22 wherein the destination in the scheduling information is identified by a Uniform Resource Locator (URL).

26. In a computer network, which includes a plurality of servers and a plurality of interactive television receiver units, the servers and interactive television receiver units being interconnected, and wherein the interactive television receiver units can be controlled by a user in order to be coupled to any of the servers for purposes of processing return requests, a computer program product for carrying machine-executable instructions that implement at an interactive television receiver unit a method of controlling and scheduling initial transmission of such return requests in order to reduce bottlenecking and overloading of a server with such return requests, and wherein the method is comprised of:

a. receiving a first communication in the form of a script that is either part of a broadcast trigger, a web page or an attachment to a web page, the script including (i) scheduling information for initiating a return request, the scheduling information being under the control of an author of the first communication and the scheduling information differing as between at least some of the interactive television receiver units at which the first communication is received, and (ii) an indication of a destination with respect to one of the servers which is intended to receive the return request;

b. executing the script with the result of preparing a second communication that represents the desired return request to be processed and that is to be sent to the indicated destination and storing the second communication at each of the interactive television receiver units executing the script;

c. after the script has been executed, waiting a period of time determined by the scheduling information before attempting to initiate the return request; and

d. after the period of time, the interactive television receiver unit automatically sending the second communication over the network to the indicated destination.

27. A computer program product as recited in claim 26 wherein the method further comprises disconnecting the interactive television receiver unit form the network during the period of time.

28. A computer program product as recited in claim 26 wherein the method further comprises placing an indication of the second communication in a queue.

29. A computer program product as recited in claim 28 wherein the method further comprises:

receiving on the interactive television receiver unit, a third communication via the network; and

removing the indication of the second communication from the queue in response to the third communication.

30. A computer program product as recited in claim 26 wherein the method further comprises:

a user entering information into the interactive television receiver unit; and

incorporating the information into the second communication.

31. In a computer network, which includes a plurality of servers and a plurality of interactive television receiver units, the servers and interactive television receiver units being interconnected, and wherein the interactive television receiver units can be controlled by a user in order to be coupled to any of the servers for purposes of processing return requests, a computer program product for carrying machine-executable instructions that implement at an interactive television receiver unit a method of controlling and scheduling initial transmission of such return requests in order to reduce bottlenecking and overloading of a server with such return requests, and wherein the method is comprised of:

a. identifying one or more destinations for receiving return requests from the plurality of interactive television receiver units;

b. providing scheduling information that indicates a destination for receiving return requests and that determines when the interactive television receiver units should initiate return requests, the scheduling information producing different results as between at least some of the interactive television receiver units receiving the scheduling information;

c. creating a first communication that associates the scheduling information with a particular return request, thereby allowing the first communication to control the scheduling information that is associated with the particular return request and determine when the particular return request should be initiated; and

d. distributing the first communication to the plurality of the interactive television receiver units, the distribution occurring essentially simultaneously, so that the interactive television receiver units receiving the first communication may initiate return requests according to the scheduling information provided by the first communication.

32. A computer program product as recited in claim 31, wherein the method further comprises including random functionality in the scheduling information so that each of the interactive television receiver units using the scheduling information produces a random period of time to wait prior to initiating the particular electronic transaction.