Dynamic streaming media management

• US 6,990,497 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2001
• Issued: 01/24/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: O'Rourke, Bret P., Dean, Dawson F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Metjahic, Safet
• Assistant Examiner(s): GODDARD, BRIAN D
• Application Number:
  US09/892,923
• Publication Number:
  US 20030009452A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,673 Days
• Field of Search: 707/101, 707/100, 707/4, 707/3, 707/1, 709/231, 709/230
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4387 by the use of playlists
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

The described subject matter provides for managing and streaming media content. A server/client component accesses a first playlist that is in a native data format. A translator component translates the first playlist into a canonical data format, forming a second playlist in the canonical format. The content referenced by the second playlist is streamed.

Claims

1. A method for managing streaming media content, the method comprising:

accessing, by a computing device, a first playlist that has a non-canonical data format;

providing, by a computing device, a plurality of translators that translate playlists from a plurality of different non-canonical formats to a canonical playlist format;

calling, by a computing device, one of the translators to translate the first playlist into the canonical playlist format, forming a second playlist in the canonical playlist format; and

retrieving, by a computing device, media content referenced by the second playlist.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein retrieving, the computing device is a server that is coupled to a client computing device, and wherein retrieving further comprises:

streaming, by the server, content referenced by the second playlist to the client computing device.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein accessing, providing, calling, and retrieving are performed by a single computing device, and wherein the method further comprises rendering/playing, by the single computing device, content referenced by the second playlist in a manner that the single computing device is a client for the content.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein forming a second playlist in the canonical format comprises dynamically generating, by a computing device, a data structure comprising the second playlist, the data structure being used to manage streaming content referenced by the second playlist.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising dynamically interrupting, by a computing device, a particular media item as it is being streamed from the second playlist.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising dynamically streaming, by a server computing device, a different set of media content to a client computing device coupled to the server computing device across a network, the different media content not being represented in the second playlist.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the translators are COM objects.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the canonical playlist format is a Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL) data format.

9. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising creating, by a computing device, the second playlist via a SMIL interface.

10. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

providing, by a computing device, one or more transformers that impose respective policies on content referenced by the first playlist; and

,

notifying, by a computing device, at least one transformer of the one or more transformers to impose a policy on content referenced, by the second playlist.

11. A method as recited in claim 10, wherein responsive to notifying, the method further comprises, imposing, by the at least one transformer, the policy results in a modification to the second playlist, the modification removing a reference from the second playlist, adding a reference to the second playlist, changing the order of references in the second playlist;

or modifying a reference to content in the second playlist.

12. A method as recited in claim 10, wherein the one or more transformers are one or more corresponding COM objects.

13. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

modifying, by a supervisory component the second playlist to insert a new reference into the second playlist, delete a reference from the second playlist, change an order of associated media content references, or modify a reference in the second playlist; and

wherein the modifying is performed while streaming media referenced by the second playlist to a client computing device.

14. A method as recited in claim 13, wherein the modifying comprises dynamically interrupting, by the supervisory component, a particular media item as it is being streamed to insert another media item.

15. A method as recited in claim 13, further comprising:

dynamically interrupting, by the supervisory component, a particular media item as it is being streamed;

streaming, by the supervisory component, another media item; and

resuming, by the supervisory component, a set of operations specified by the second playlist.

16. A method as recited in claim 13, wherein the supervisory component is a COM object.

17. A method for managing streaming media content, the method comprising:

accessing, by a computing device, a playlist;

imposing, by the computing device, a policy on the content referenced by the playlist in a manner that is independent of a modification to the playlist, wherein imposing the policy results in a particular set of media references in a second playlist; and

retrieving, by a computing device, media content referenced by the particular media references.

18. A method as recited in claim 17, wherein imposing the policy further comprises removing, by the computing device, a media content reference, adding a media content reference, changing an order of media content references, or modifying a media content reference.

19. One or more computer-readable media comprising computer-executable instructions for implementing the method of claim 17.

20. A computer-readable media comprising computer-executable instructions to manage streaming media content, the computer-executable instructions comprising:

a playlist server component that uses a canonical playlist to represent playlists, each canonical playlist having a canonical format;

translator components for use by the playlist server component, the translator components accepting non-canonical playlists having non-canonical formats for translation to the canonical format;

wherein the playlist server performs operations comprising;

receiving a non-canonical playlist;

providing the non-canonical playlist to one of the translator components to translate the non-canonical playlist into the canonical format for addition to the canonical playlist; and

;

streaming media referenced by the canonical playlist.

21. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 20, wherein at least one subset of the translator components are provided for use by the playlist server component independent of any modification to the playlist server component.

22. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 20, wherein the playlist server performs operations further comprising dynamically interrupting a particular media item as it is being streamed from the canonical playlist.

23. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 20, wherein the playlist server performs operations further comprising dynamically streaming a different set of media content to a client, the different media content not being represented in the canonical playlist.

24. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 20, wherein the canonical data format is SMIL data format.

25. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 20, wherein the components comprise Component Object Model (COM) objects.

26. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 20, wherein the components further comprise:

a supervisory component that communicates with the playlist server component to dynamically modify the canonical playlist while the playlist server component streams the content referenced by the canonical playlist.

27. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 26, wherein the supervisory component uses a graphical user interface to visualize and manually manipulate elements and attributes of the canonical playlist.

28. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 20 the components further comprising:

a playlist transformation component that receives a playlist and imposes a content policy on the playlist; and

wherein the server performs a further operation of providing the canonical playlist to the playlist transformation component to impose the policy on the content referenced by the canonical playlist.

29. A computer-readable media as recited in claim 28, wherein providing the canonical playlist to the playlist transformation component results in a modification to the canonical playlist, the modification removing a reference from the second playlist, adding a reference to the second playlist, changing the order of the playlist references, or modifying a reference in the canonical playlist.

30. A computer comprising a processor coupled to the computer-readable media of claim 20, the processor being configured to execute the computer-executable instructions.

31. A computer for managing media content, comprising:

a processor coupled to a memory comprising computer-executable instructions, the processor being configured to fetch and execute the computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising instructions for;

accessing a first playlist that has a non-canonical format;

providing a plurality of translators to translate playlists from a plurality of different native data formats to a canonical data format; and

invoking one of the translators to translate the first playlist into the canonical data format, forming a second playlist that is based on the canonical data format.

32. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions for streaming content referenced by the second playlist to a client device that is operatively coupled to the computer.

33. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions for rendering/playing the content referenced by the second playlist in a manner that the computer itself is a client for the content.

34. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the plurality of translators are COM objects.

35. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions for dynamically interrupting a particular media item as it is being streamed.

36. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions for dynamically streaming a different set of media content, the different media content not being represented in the second playlist.

37. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions for:

interrupting a particular media item as it is being streamed;

streaming another media item; and

resuming a set of operations specified by the second playlist.

38. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the canonical playlist format is a SMIL data format.

39. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein a SMIL interface is used to form the second playlist.

40. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the processor is further configured to perform operations comprising:

providing a plurality of transformers that impose respective policies on content referenced by the first playlist; and

,

notifying one of the transformers to impose a policy on content referenced by the second playlist.

41. A computer as recited in claim 40, wherein imposing the policy results in a modification to the second playlist, the modification being selected from a group comprising (a) removing a reference from the second playlist, (b) adding a reference to the second playlist, (c) changing the order of references in the second playlist, and (d) modifying a reference in the second playlist.

42. A computer as recited in claim 40, wherein the server and the plurality of transformers are COM objects.

43. A computer as recited in claim 31, wherein the processor is further configured to perform an operation comprising dynamically modifying the second playlist while streaming the media referenced by the second playlist, the modification being selected from a group of modifications comprising (a) inserting a new reference into the second playlist, (b) deleting a reference from the second playlist, (c) changing the order of the references;

and (d) modifying a reference in the second playlist.

44. A computer as recited in claim 43, wherein the dynamically modifying further comprises interrupting a particular media item as it is being streamed to stream a different media item.