Method and system for customized television viewing using a peer-to-peer network

• US 7,027,460 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2001
• Issued: 04/11/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tahoe Research Limited (f/k/a Learndale Limited) (Vector Capital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Kant, Krishna, Tewari, Vijay, Iyer, Ravishankar R., Garg, Ajay
• Primary Examiner(s): Pezzlo, John
• Application Number:
  US10/024,042
• Publication Number:
  US 20030118014A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,572 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352, 370/328, 370/428, 370/429, 370/486, 705/27, 707/1, 725/37, 725/74, 725/105, 725/135, 709/204, 345/600, 345/745, 455/414.1
• US Class Current: 370/429
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• 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 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 on tape
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a network of peer-to-peer communication devices controlled by a central controller. Using respective peer-to-peer communication devices, users can submit customized program schedules to the central controller, for media broadcasts that the users wish to record and view at a later time. The central controller maintains a global schedule of individual user-entered program schedules, and directs the peer-to-peer communication devices to record and re-play the content as requested in the schedules. The requested content may be recorded locally by any peer-to-peer communication device and transmitted upon request to a different peer-to-peer communication device of the network.

Claims

1. A peer-to-peer communication device, comprising:

a network I/O port connectable to a network;

a receive/display I/O port connectable to a receive/display device; and

a component configurable to locally record at least a portion of a media broadcast in accordance with a request, and to transmit said locally recorded portion to another peer-to-peer communication device of said network upon request.

2. The peer-to-peer communication device of claim 1, wherein said component is further configurable to receive a transmission from another peer-to-peer communication device of said network.

3. The peer-to-peer communication device of claim 2, wherein said component is further configurable to locally store said transmission.

4. The peer-to-peer communication device of claim 2, wherein said component is further configurable to play said transmission on said receive/display device after said transmission is stored locally in its entirety or as said transmission is being received.

5. The peer-to-peer communication device of claim 1, wherein said component is further configurable to receive a request to record said portion of a media broadcast as input from a central controller of said network.

6. The peer-to-peer communication device of claim 1, wherein said component is further configurable to locally record a plurality of portions of a media broadcast, and to locate a selected pre-recorded portion for transmission to another peer-to-peer communication device of said network upon request.

7. The peer-to-peer communication device of claim 1, wherein said component is configurable to receive user input specifying a program schedule comprising at least a portion of a media broadcast, and transmit said program schedule to a central controller of said network.

8. A controller comprising:

an I/O port connectable to a network that includes a plurality of peer-to-peer communication devices; and

a storage device and a processing unit coupled to said storage device;

wherein said storage device and processing unit are configurable to;

receive user input on said I/O port entered on a first peer-to-peer communication device of said network, said user input specifying at least a portion of a media broadcast to be viewed on a receive/display device coupled to said peer-to-peer communication device; and

issue a request to a second peer-to-peer communication device to locally record said portion of a media broadcast.

9. The controller of claim 8, wherein said storage device and processing unit are further configurable to cause said second peer-to-peer communication device to transmit said locally recorded portion of a media broadcast to said first peer-to-peer communication device at a time specified by said user input.

10. A controller, comprising:

an I/O port connectable to a network that includes a plurality of peer-to-peer communication devices;

a storage device and a processing unit coupled to said storage device;

wherein said storage device and processing unit are configurable to implement a plurality of user-input program schedules received from a plurality of said peer-to-peer communication devices, each of said program schedules specifying at least a portion of a media broadcast to be viewed on respective receive/display devices coupled to respective peer-to-peer communication devices.

11. The controller of claim 10, wherein to implement said program schedules, said controller issues a request to a first peer-to-peer communication device to record at least a portion of a media broadcast specified in a program schedule entered by a user of a second peer-to-peer communication device different from said first peer-to-peer communication device.

12. The controller of claim 10, wherein said controller is configurable to:

receive a request from a first peer-to-peer communication device for content specified in a program schedule specified by a user of said first peer-to-peer communication device;

determine whether a second peer-to-peer communication device has locally recorded said requested content; and

if so, cause said second peer-to-peer device to transmit said requested content to said first peer-to-peer communication device.

13. A computer-usable medium tangibly embodying computer-executable instructions, said instructions when executed implementing a process comprising:

causing a first peer-to-peer communication device to locally record at least a portion of a media broadcast in accordance with user input, and to transmit said locally recorded portion to a second peer-to-peer communication device of said network upon request.

14. The computer-usable medium of claim 13, wherein said process further comprises causing said first peer-to-peer communication device to receive a transmission from said second peer-to-peer communication device.

15. The computer-usable medium of claim 14, wherein said process further comprises causing said first peer-to-peer communication device to locally store said transmission.

16. The computer-usable medium of claim 14, wherein said process further comprises causing said first peer-to-peer communication device to play said transmission on a receive/display device connected thereto, after storing said transmission in its entirety or as said transmission is being received.

17. A computer-usable medium tangibly embodying computer-executable instructions, said instructions when executed causing a controller of a network that includes a plurality of peer-to-peer communication devices to implement a plurality of user-input program schedules received from a plurality of said peer-to-peer communication devices, each of said program schedules specifying at least a portion of a media broadcast to be viewed on respective receive/display devices coupled to respective peer-to-peer communication devices.

18. The computer-usable medium of claim 17, wherein to implement said plurality of user-input program schedules, said controller causes a first peer-to-peer communication device to record at least a portion of a media broadcast specified in a program schedule entered by a user of a second peer-to-peer communication device different from said first peer-to-peer communication device.

19. The computer-usable medium of claim 17, wherein to implement said plurality of user-input program schedules, said instructions cause said controller to:

receive a request from a first peer-to-peer device for content specified in a program schedule specified by a user of said first peer-to-peer device;

determine whether a second peer-to-peer device has locally recorded said requested content; and

if so, cause said second peer-to-peer device to transmit said request content to said first peer-to-peer communication device.

20. A system comprising:

a plurality of peer-to-peer communication devices interconnected via a network, and each peer-to-peer communication device further connected to a receive/display device;

a controller connected to said network, to control said plurality of peer-to-peer communication devices in accordance with user-input program schedules, said program schedules respectively specifying at least a portion of a media broadcast to be viewed on respective receive/display devices coupled to respective peer-to-peer communication devices;

wherein said controller is configurable to cause a first peer-to-peer communication device to record at least a portion of a media broadcast specified in a program schedule entered by a user of a second peer-to-peer communication device different from said first peer-to-peer communication device.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein said network controller is further configurable to:

receive a request from a first peer-to-peer device for content specified in a program schedule specified by a user of said first peer-to-peer device;

determine whether a second peer-to-peer device has locally recorded said requested content; and

if so, cause said second peer-to-peer device to transmit said request content to said first peer-to-peer communication device.

22. In a network including interconnected peer-to-peer communication devices and a controller of said peer-to-peer communication devices, a method comprising:

receiving, at said controller, user input entered on a first peer-to-peer communication device specifying at least a portion of a media broadcast to be viewed on a receive/display device coupled to said first peer-to-peer communication device;

causing a second peer-to-peer communication device different from said first peer-to-peer communication device to locally record said portion of a media broadcast; and

causing said second peer-to-peer communication device to transmit said locally recorded portion of a media broadcast to said first peer-to-peer communication device upon request.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein said controller maintains a plurality of user-input program schedules received from a plurality of said peer-to-peer communication devices, each of said program schedules specifying at least a portion of a media broadcast to be viewed on respective receive/display devices coupled to respective peer-to-peer communication devices.