Enhanced custom content television

• US 7,631,327 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2001
• Issued: 12/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Accenture Global Services Limited (Accenture PLC)
• Original Assignee: Accenture Global Services GmbH (Accenture PLC)
• Inventors: Dempski, Kelly L., Horner, Ryan C., Fohl, Dax A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Miller; John W
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chowdhury; Sumaiya A
• Application Number:
  US09/924,669
• Publication Number:
  US 20030033157A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,044 Days
• Field of Search: 725/32, 725/34, 725/42, 725 45- 47, 725/49
• US Class Current: 725/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/106 Receiver-side switching
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• 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 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/466 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies services using the results of monitoring in broadcast systems H04H60/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4753 for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• 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 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4784 receiving rewards
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6543 for forcing some client operations, e.g. recording remote booting in general G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8126 involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8146 involving graphical data, e.g. 3D object, 2D graphics
• 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 5/445 for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/088 the inserted signal being digital

Abstract

The present invention includes a system and method for combining television broadcast programming content with customized or personalized information and educational or entertainment content. The system includes a set-top box capable of receiving data transmissions and locally rendering video animation for display with, instead of and/or synchronized with television broadcast programs in a way that the television viewer sees a coherent seamless merging of the television program content and supplemental content sources in an indistinguishable format. Preferably, the viewer may interact in real-time with the enhanced television programming to provide a higher level of engagement and customization potential.

Claims

1. A method for enhancing a television broadcast program comprising:

(a) storing an incoming media stream on a first memory storage, the incoming media stream comprising a television broadcast program and a television broadcast advertisement for display during a break in the television broadcast program;

(b) receiving replacement advertising data from a second memory storage, the advertising data comprising an executable instruction set for rendering a first animated video replacement advertising segment by a client processor;

(c) selecting the first replacement advertising segment based on a viewer profile;

(d) rendering on the client processor the first animated video replacement advertising segment by executing the executable instruction set;

(e) blocking the display of the television broadcast advertisement, such that the television broadcast advertisement is not displayed;

(f) displaying the first animated video replacement advertising segment instead of the television broadcast advertisement on a television display;

(g) determining whether the television broadcast program has resumed after end of the television broadcast advertisement, determining whether the first replacement advertising segment has ended, and if the first replacement advertising segment has not ended, storing the resumed television broadcast program on a third memory storage from a beginning point, and displaying the resumed broadcast program from the beginning point;

(h) displaying the resumed television broadcast program after completion of the animated video replacement advertising segment; and

,

(i) developing the viewer profile based on viewer interaction with the first replacement advertising segment, where developing the viewer profile includes;

displaying an on-screen query of optional modifications to the first replacement advertising segment;

receiving a viewer selection of at least one modification to the first replacement advertising segment;

rendering the at least one modification to the first replacement advertising segment; and

,

retaining the viewer selection of the at least one modification to the first replacement advertising segment as part of the viewer profile; and

,

(j) automatically applying the previously retained viewer selection of the at least one modification to a second replacement advertising segment that is received after the first replacement advertising segment.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising creating the viewer profile based on a set of preferences selected by the viewer.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said modifications comprise color, component in displayed objects, viewing perspective, zoom, play-back speed, background audio sound track, and special effects.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said modifications are accompanied by computer-generated special effects.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a plurality of audio accompaniments to the first advertising segment, and selecting the audio accompaniment based either on the viewer profile or on the music used most by the viewer on their set-top box or personnel music catalog on a storage device external to the set-top box.

6. The method of claim 1, where viewer interaction comprises applying a modification selected by the viewer to the first replacement advertising segment.

7. The method of claim 1, where viewer interaction occurs during the display of the first animated video replacement advertising segment.

8. A method for enhancing a television broadcast program comprising:

(a) storing incoming programming data on a first memory storage, the programming data representing synchronization data for a plurality of sequential television broadcast segments in a television broadcast program;

(b) storing information related to a plurality of replacement program segments on a second memory storage;

(c) selecting a first replacement segment based on a viewer profile;

(d) synchronizing the first replacement segment with one of said plurality of television broadcast segments;

(e) receiving executable instruction sets for generating the selected replacement segments, and rendering on a local processor the selected first replacement segment by executing the executable instructions sets;

(f) blocking the display of the television broadcast segment;

(g) displaying the selected first replacement segment on a television display in place of the synchronized television broadcast segment;

(h) determining whether a next sequential television broadcast segment in the television broadcast program has commenced after end of the blocked television broadcast segment, determining whether the selected first replacement segment has ended, and if the selected first replacement segment has not ended, storing the next sequential television broadcast segment on a third memory storage from a beginning point, and displaying the next sequential segment from the beginning point after the selected first replacement segment has ended; and

,

(i) developing the viewer profile based on viewer interaction with the replacement segment;

where developing the viewer profile includes;

displaying an on-screen query of optional modifications to the first replacement advertising segment;

receiving a viewer selection of at least one modification to the first replacement advertising segment;

rendering the at least one modification to the first replacement advertising segment; and

,

retaining the viewer selection of the at least one modification to the first replacement advertising segment as part of the viewer profile; and

,

(j) automatically applying the previously retained viewer selection of the at least one modification to a second replacement advertising segment that is selected after the first replacement advertising segment.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising developing the viewer profile based on past selections of replacement segments.

10. The method of claim 8 further comprising developing the viewer profile based on a set of preferences selected by the viewer.

11. The method of claim 8 further comprising augmenting the viewer preferences based on the viewer'"'"'s past selection of fast-forwarding or skipping through selected segments.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the executable instruction sets for generating an advertising segment comprise executable programming code for rendering into an animated video segment by a client processor.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising displaying an on-screen query of optional replacement segments, and selecting the desired replacement segments in response to a command received from the viewer.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the programming data is received from data encoded with television broadcast program, from an electronic programming guide or from an internet server.

15. The method of claim 8 wherein the data representing the selected replacement segments comprise geometry and texture data for use with the executable instruction sets for rendering into an animated video segment by a client processor.

16. The method of claim 8, where viewer interaction comprises applying a modification selected by the viewer to the first replacement segment.

17. The method of claim 8, where viewer interaction occurs during the display of the first replacement segment.

18. A system for displaying enhanced television broadcast programs comprising:

a multimedia controller having;

a first memory storage for storing viewer profiles,

a television broadcast signal tuner receiver,

a communication port in communication with external sources of replacement advertising data, the advertising data comprising executable instruction sets for rendering a first animated video replacement advertising segment, the first animated video replacement advertisement being selected based on a viewer profile stored in the first memory storage,

a second memory storage for storing a television broadcast stream, the television broadcast stream comprising a television broadcast program and a television broadcast advertisement for display during a break in the television broadcast program,

a third memory storage for storing the replacement advertising data,

a processor capable of rendering the first animated video replacement advertising segment by executing the executable instruction sets in the replacement advertising data and further capable of blocking the display of the television broadcast advertisement, such that the television broadcast advertisement is not displayed,

a video display monitor in communication with the multimedia controller, the video display monitor configured to display the television broadcast program and the first animated video replacement advertising segment during a break in the television broadcast program; and

a manual input device in communication with the multimedia controller,

wherein;

the multimedia controller is further operative to determine whether the television broadcast program has resumed after the end of the television broadcast advertisement, to determine whether the first replacement advertising segment has ended, and if the first replacement advertising segment has not ended, to store the resumed television broadcast program on the first memory storage from a beginning point, and to display the resumed broadcast program from the beginning point; and

,

the multimedia controller is further operative to develop the viewer profile based on viewer interaction with the first animated video replacement advertising segment based on;

the video display monitor being further operative to display an on-screen query of optional modifications to the first animated video replacement advertising segment;

the manual input device being further operative to receive a viewer selection of at least one modification to the first animated video replacement advertising segment;

the processor being further operative to render the at least one modification to the first animated video replacement advertising segment;

the first memory storage being further operative to retain the viewer selection of the at least one modification to the first animated video replacement advertising segment as part of the viewer profile used in selecting the first animated video replacement advertising segment; and

,

the processor being further operative to automatically render the at least one previously received modification retained by the first memory storage to a second animated video replacement advertising segment that is selected after the first animated video replacement advertising segment.

19. The system of claim 18 further comprising a personal computer in communication with the multimedia controller.

20. The system of claim 18 further comprising a fourth memory storage for storing television broadcast programs in digitized format for later recall and display.

21. The system of claim 18 wherein the manual input device comprises a mouse, a joystick, a keyboard or a remote control.

22. The system of claim 21 wherein the remote control comprises a personal digital assistant having an infrared transceiver for communication with the multimedia controller, said personal digital assistant having a configurable display on a touch sensitive screen, said configurable display being configured to correspond to the active selections available to a user for a given images on the video display monitor.

23. The system of claim 18, where the processor is further configured to render a modification to the first animated video replacement advertising segment during viewer interaction with the first animated video replacement advertising segment.