Media streaming of web content data

• US 7,415,529 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2006
• Issued: 08/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Mercer, Ian Cameron, Wilson, Mei L., Alkove, James Morris, Saunders, Richard William, Crites, Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): Etienne; Ario
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nano; Sargon N
• Application Number:
  US11/464,439
• Publication Number:
  US 20060294145A1
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/219, 709/231
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234318 by decomposing into objects, e.g. MPEG-4 objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43074 of additional data with content streams on the same device, e.g. of EPG data or interactive icon with a TV program
• 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 21/8543 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 21/8547 involving timestamps for synchronizing content

Abstract

Methods for streaming web content data via a computer-readable medium. The web content data comprises one or more media samples. The media samples are encoded in a streaming media format as a web component stream. The web component stream is combined with other component streams comprising additional data other than web content data into a presentation stream. The presentation stream is transmitted via a media server to a client. Rendering commands, which are included in one or more rendering samples encoded in the web component stream along with the media samples, coordinate synchronization between the media samples and the additional data when the client renders the presentation stream.

Claims

1. A method for serving a web component stream, comprising:

receiving the web component stream having at least two different media samples wherein each sample has a different time distribution of clean points due to varying component or media sample size;

receiving a playback request from a client for said web component stream, said playback request including a requested bandwidth from the client; and

delivering said web component stream to said client according to the different time distribution of clean points, said web component stream having the requested bandwidth in either a single stream implementation or a single file implementation and wherein said media samples have the requested bandwidth and are contiguous to each other such that the single stream implementation has a constant aggregate bandwidth and such that the single file implementation has a constant aggregate bandwidth.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein when the web component stream is a single stream, said web component stream is received and delivered as part of a presentation stream or wherein when the web component stream is a single file, said web component stream is received and delivered as part of a presentation file.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving a requested language from the client and delivering the web component stream having the requested language to the client.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising applying digital rights management encryption to the content of the web component stream for secure delivery and rights management.

5. The method of claim 2 further comprising archiving the presentation stream or the presentation file.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein one or more computer-readable storage media have computer-executable instructions for performing the method of claim 1.

17. The method of claim 1 further comprising maintaining an individual web component stream in a single archive or maintaining a component stream comprising additional data other than web content data in a single archive.

7. A method for streaming web content data from a first computer to a second computer connected to the first computer via a media server, comprising:

encoding, on the first computer, web content data comprising a media sample into a web component stream, and either combining said web component stream, along with any other component stream comprising additional data other than web content data, into a presentation stream or grouping said web component stream, along with any other component stream comprising additional data other than web content data into a presentation file;

delivering said presentation stream or said presentation file from the first computer to the media server;

requesting, from the second computer to the media server, a playback request including a requested bandwidth for said presentation stream or said presentation file;

delivering, from the media server to the second computer, the presentation stream or the presentation file based on said playback request at the requested bandwidth wherein media samples with the presentation stream or the presentation file are contiguous to each other and wherein the presentation stream or the presentation file has a constant aggregate bandwidth;

retrieving, on the second computer, the media sample from the web component stream included in the presentation stream or the presentation file; and

rendering the media sample on the second computer.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said encoding further comprises including clean points in the web component stream to represent key frames for the web content data.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein said encoding further comprises issuing a rendering command for the media sample, said rendering command comprising a rendering time for the media sample.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising including said rendering command in a rendering sample, wherein said rendering sample is further encoded in the web component stream following the media sample in a time line.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein said delivering of the presentation stream or the presentation file from the first computer to the media server is conducted redundantly.

12. The method of claim 7 further comprising receiving a requested language from the second computer and delivering from the media server to the second computer the web component stream having the requested language in the presentation stream or the presentation file.

13. The method of claim 7 further comprising storing the retrieved media sample in a cache located on the second computer.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein said rendering comprises receiving a rendering time for the media sample, retrieving the media sample from the cache, and rendering the retrieved media sample as a function of the received rendering time of the media sample.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein said retrieving of the media sample from the cache comprises referencing the media sample to be retrieved by appending a custom protocol to a uniform resource locator of the media sample, said custom protocol restricting a renderer to search for the media sample only in the cache.

16. The method of claim 7 wherein one or more computer-readable storage media have computer-executable instructions for performing the method of claim 7.