Program guide system with combination category search

• US 7,603,685 B2
• Filed: 10/19/2005
• Issued: 10/13/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: UV Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: United Video Properties Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Knudson, Edward B, Ellis, Michael D, Hassell, Joel G, Thomas, William L
• Primary Examiner(s): Lonsberry; Hunter B.
• Application Number:
  US11/254,554
• Publication Number:
  US 20060095937A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,455 Days
• Field of Search: 725/39, 725/46
• US Class Current: 725/46
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739

Abstract

An interactive television program guide system is provided in which the program guide may provide the user with a selectable list of combination categories. Combination categories are composed of multiple simple categories such as sports, news, comedy, movies, children, etc. Program listings are supplied to the program guide. At least some of the program listings are associated with combination categories. A combination category build process may be used to assign combination categories to program listings. The user is able to use the selectable categories list to quickly identify programming of interest.

Claims

1. An interactive television program guide system in which an interactive television program guide is at least partially implemented on user equipment of a user, comprising:

means for supplying program listings to the interactive television program guide;

means for supplying information on certain simple categories of programming and certain combination categories of programming that are associated with the program listings;

means for providing an option to simultaneously display the simple categories and the combination categories;

means for simultaneously displaying, in response to a user selection of the option, both the simple categories and the combination categories in a selectable list on the user equipment with the interactive television program guide, wherein the combination categories comprise more than one simple category and are selectable using a single selection; and

means for searching for program listings with the interactive television program guide that match a category selected from the selectable list by the user and displaying the matching program listings with the interactive television program guide on the user equipment.

2. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising:

a main facility at which the program listings are assigned certain ones of the combination categories each of which is composed of certain ones of the simple categories using a combination category build process in which a number of simple categories associated with each program listing are compared to a list of supported combination categories and a given combination category is assigned to each program listing when the simple categories associated with that program listing match the simple categories from which the given combination category is composed.

3. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1, further comprising:

means for supplying a list of supported combination categories, wherein the means for simultaneously displaying both the simple categories and the combination categories comprises means for displaying the combination categories based on the list of supported combination categories.

4. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 wherein the means for searching for program listings and displaying the matching program listings further comprises means for displaying the matching program listings in a display that only contains matching program listings.

5. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 wherein the means for searching for program listings and displaying the matching program listings further comprises means for distinctively displaying the matching program listings in a display that contains matching and nonmatching program listings.

6. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 5 wherein the means for distinctively displaying further comprises means for displaying the matching program listings in a distinctive color.

7. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 5 wherein the means for distinctively displaying further comprises means for displaying the matching program listings with distinctive labels.

8. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising means for allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list.

9. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising means for allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to select a given programming category and to designate an order of placement on the selectable list for that given programming category and by displaying in the selectable list the selected given programming category in the designated order.

10. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising means for allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to delete a given programming category and by removing from the selectable list the given programming category.

11. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising means for allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to select a given programming category and by displaying in the selectable list the given programming category reordered to the top of the selectable list.

12. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising means for automatically rearranging the selectable list with the program guide based on how frequently the user selects certain categories from the selectable list.

13. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising means for allowing the user to designate certain categories as favorites.

14. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 13 further comprising means for displaying, in the selectable list, the simple categories and the combination categories based on the designated favorite categories.

15. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 wherein the user equipment is personal computer equipment.

16. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 wherein the user equipment is user television equipment.

17. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 further comprising:

a television distribution facility connected to the user equipment for providing the program listings and television programming to the user equipment.

18. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 wherein the program listings are provided to the user equipment over the Internet.

19. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 wherein at least one of the simple categories is selected from the group consisting of sports, comedy, news, children'"'"'s programming, movies, and adult programming.

20. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1 wherein at least one of the combination categories is selected from the group consisting of sports-comedy, sports-baseball, comedy-movies, comedy-series, and horror-movies.

21. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 1, wherein each one of the simple categories and each one of the combination categories in the selectable list has at least one associated program listing.

22. An interactive television program guide system comprising:

an interactive television program guide at least partially implemented on user television equipment of a user configured to;

provide an option to simultaneously display simple categories of programming and combination categories of programming that are associated with program listings on the user equipment;

simultaneously display, in response to a user selection of the option, both the simple categories and the combination categories in a selectable list on the user equipment;

search for program listings that match a category selected from the selectable list by the user; and

display the matching program listings with the interactive television program guide on the user equipment, wherein the combination categories comprise more than one simple category and are selectable using a single selection; and

distribution equipment configured to supply the program listings to the interactive television program guide and to supply the information on the simple categories and the combination categories of programming.

23. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 further comprising:

a main facility at which the program listings are assigned certain ones of the combination categories each of which is composed of certain ones of the simple categories using a combination category build process in which a number of simple categories associated with each program listing are compared to a list of supported combination categories and a given combination category is assigned to each program listing when the simple categories associated with that program listing match the simple categories from which the given combination category is composed.

24. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22, further comprising:

a main facility that supplies a list of supported combination categories, wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to display the combination categories based on the list of supported combination categories.

25. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to display the matching program listings in a display that only contains matching program listings.

26. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to distinctively display the matching program listings in a display that contains matching and nonmatching program listings.

27. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 26 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to display the matching program listings in a distinctive color.

28. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 26 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to display the matching program listings with distinctive labels.

29. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to allow the user to rearrange the selectable list.

30. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to allow the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to select a given programming category and to designate an order of placement on the selectable list for that given programming category and by displaying in the selectable list the selected given programming category in the designated order.

31. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to allow the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to delete a given programming category and by removing from the selectable list the given programming category.

32. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to allow the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to select a given programming category and by displaying in the selectable list the given programming category reordered to the top of the selectable list.

33. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to automatically rearrange the selectable list with the program guide based on how frequently the user selects certain categories from the selectable list.

34. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein interactive television program guide is configured to allow the user to designate certain categories as favorites.

35. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 34 wherein the interactive television program guide is configured to display in the selectable list the simple categories and the combination categories based on the designated favorite categories.

36. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the user equipment is personal computer equipment.

37. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the user equipment is user television equipment.

38. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 further comprising:

a television distribution facility connected to the user equipment for providing the program listings and television programming to the user equipment.

39. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein the program listings are provided to the user equipment over the Internet.

40. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein at least one of the simple categories is selected from the group consisting of sports, comedy, news, children'"'"'s programming, movies, and adult programming.

41. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22 wherein at least one of the combination categories is selected from the group consisting of sports-comedy, sports-baseball, comedy-movies, comedy-series, and horror-movies.

42. The interactive television program guide system defined in claim 22, wherein each one of the simple categories and each one of the combination categories in the selectable list has at least one associated program listing.

43. A method for using an interactive television program guide system in which an interactive television program guide is at least partially implemented on user equipment of a user, comprising:

supplying program listings to the interactive television program guide;

supplying information on simple categories of programming and combination categories of programming that are associated with the program listings;

providing an option to simultaneously display the simple categories and the combination categories;

simultaneously displaying, in response to a user selection of the option, both the simple categories and the combination categories in a selectable list on the user equipment with the interactive television program guide, wherein the combination categories comprise more than one simple category and are selectable using a single selection; and

searching for program listings with the interactive television program guide that match a category selected from the selectable list by the user and displaying the matching program listings with the interactive television program guide on the user equipment.

44. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

assigning to the program listings certain ones of the combination categories each of which is composed of certain ones of the simple categories using a combination category build process in which a number of simple categories associated with each program listing are compared to a list of supported combination categories and a given combination category is assigned to each program listing when the simple categories associated with that program listing match the simple categories from which the given combination category i composed.

45. The method defined in claim 43, further comprising:

supplying a list of supported combination categories, wherein simultaneously displaying both the simple categories and the combination categories comprises displaying the combination categories based on the list of supported combination categories.

46. The method defined in claim 43 wherein searching for program listings and displaying the matching program listings further comprises displaying the matching program listings in a display that only contains matching program listings.

47. The method defined in claim 43 wherein searching for program listings and displaying the matching program listings further comprises distinctively displaying the matching program listings in a display that contains matching and nonmatching program listings.

48. The method defined in claim 47 wherein distinctively displaying further comprises displaying the matching program listings in a distinctive color.

49. The method defined in claim 47 wherein distinctively displaying further comprises displaying the matching program listings with distinctive labels.

50. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list.

51. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to select a given programming category and to designate an order of placement on the selectable list for that given programming category and by displaying in the selectable list the selected given programming category in the designated order.

52. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to delete a given programming category and by removing from the selectable list the given programming category.

53. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

allowing the user to rearrange the selectable list by providing an option for the user to select a given programming category and by displaying in the selectable list the given programming category reordered to the top of the selectable list.

54. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

automatically rearranging the selectable list with the program guide based on how frequently the user selects certain categories from the selectable list.

55. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

allowing the user to designate certain categories as favorites.

56. The method defined in claim 55 further comprising:

displaying in the selectable list the simple categories and the combination categories based on the designated favorite categories.

57. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

providing a television distribution facility connected to the user equipment for providing the program listings and television programming to the user equipment.

58. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

providing the program listings to the user equipment over the Internet.

59. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

selecting at least one of the simple categories from the group consisting of sports, comedy, news, children'"'"'s programming, movies, and adult programming.

60. The method defined in claim 43 further comprising:

selecting at least one of the combination categories is selected from the group consisting of sports-comedy, sports-baseball, comedy-movies, comedy-series, and horror-movies.

61. The method defined in claim 43, wherein simultaneously displaying the simple categories and combination categories comprises displaying each of one of the simple categories and each one of the combination categories having at least one associated program listing.