Messaging protocol for interactive delivery system

• US 7,707,608 B2
• Filed: 11/30/2006
• Issued: 04/27/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cox Communications Incorporated (Cox Enterprises Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Cox Communications Incorporated (Cox Enterprises Incorporated)
• Inventors: Edmonds, Jeremy S., Gordon, Donald F., Bayrakeri, Sadik, Comito, John P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Ngoc K.
• Application Number:
  US11/564,881
• Publication Number:
  US 20070089141A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,244 Days
• Field of Search: 725/39, 725/40, 725/41, 725/42, 725/43, 725/46, 725/44, 725/49, 725/54, 725/118, 725/148
• US Class Current: 725/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23617 by inserting additional data into a data carousel, e.g. inserting software modules into a DVB carousel arrangements for broadcast or for distribution of identical information repeatedly in broadcast distribution systems H04H20/16
• 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 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6118 involving cable transmission, e.g. using a cable modem
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6168 involving cable transmission, e.g. using a cable modem
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6405 Multicasting data broadcast and multicast in packet switching networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6581 Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Efficient messaging techniques that facilitate interactive program guide (IPG) delivery and allow a terminal to specifically designate requested items of information from a server. The IPG can be provided via a number of IPG pages, with each page including a number of defined regions. In one method, selection for a particular region of a particular page is received at a terminal and a determination is made whether the selected region is currently received. If the answer is no, a request for the selected region is generated and sent to a server. The request can conform to a particular message format that includes a number of fields, e.g., a region ID field that identifies the selected region, a subtype field that identifies a particular type, a time slot field that identifies a specific time slot, and a page offset field that identifies a specific page from among many.

Claims

1. A method for communication for an interactive information delivery system, comprising:

supporting, at a headend, an interactive program guide (IPG) comprising a plurality of IPG pages, each IPG page being defined with a plurality of regions;

partitioning, by a transport stream generator at a headend, a plurality of the IPG pages into a plurality of regions including guide, video, icon and program description regions;

determining IPG pages to be first provided to a terminal;

separately encoding each partitioned region of the IPG pages to be first provided to the terminal using slice-based encoding;

separately transmitting, from the transport stream generator, each encoded region of the IPG pages to be first provided to the terminal toward a terminal, each of the transmitted regions being adapted for assembly into a respective IPG page by the terminal;

receiving a demand-cast request message including a region identifier to identify at least one region of an IPG page to be provided next to the terminal; and

transmitting, to the terminal, the at least one region of the IPG page identified by the region identifier for updating only regions of the IPG page at the terminal associated with the region identifier.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the demand-cast request message further includes a subtype field for identifying a filter that is selected from a group consisting of:

pay-per-view, favorites, movies, kids, sports and music.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the demand-cast request message further includes a page offset field for identifying a particular IPG page.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the demand-cast request message further includes a time slot field for identifying a time slot of a particular IPG page.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the demand-cast request message is for a particular video for the video region.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the particular video is an advertisement.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein programming targeted to a predefined group is transmitted to a plurality of terminals associated with the predefined group.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the predefined group comprises at least one of an ethnic group and a special interest group.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the predefined group comprises a group associated with at least one of a school and a business.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the transmitted IPG pages comprise at least one of class instruction intended for a school group and targeted material.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the terminals associated with the predefined group are in a single geographic area.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the terminals associated with the predefined group are among different geographic areas.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the terminals associated with the predefined group are linked via a network group address.

14. The method of claim 5, wherein the video region comprises a barker video region which, when displayed, provides picture-in-picture video imagery.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the video displayed within the barker region comprises video requested by a terminal.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the requested region includes IPG add-on content provided by at least one of a multiple service operator (MSO) and a third party provider.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the IPG add-on content is provided to an IPO server from MSO equipment within the headend.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the IPG add-on content comprises at least one of real-time advertisement video and HTML pages adapted to support electronic commerce.

19. Apparatus for interactive information delivery system communication, comprising:

means for supporting, at a headend, an interactive program guide (IPG) comprising a plurality of IPG pages, each IPG page being defined with a plurality of regions;

means for partitioning, by a transport stream generator at a headend, a plurality of the IPG pages into a plurality of regions including guide, video, icon and program description regions;

determining IPG pages to be first provided to a terminal;

means for separately encoding each partitioned region of the IPG pages to be first provided to the terminal using slice-based encoding;

means for separately transmitting, from the transport stream generator, each encoded region of the IPG pages to be first provided to the terminal toward a terminal, each of the transmitted regions being adapted for assembly into a respective IPG page by the terminal;

means for receiving a demand-cast request message including a region identifier to identify at least one region of an IPG page to be provided next to the terminal; and

transmitting, to the terminal, the at least one region of the IPG page identified by the region identifier for updating only regions of the IPG page at the terminal associated with the region identifier.

20. A system for communication for an interactive information delivery system, comprising:

an interactive program guide (IPG) content source for supporting, at a headend, an interactive program guide (IPG) comprising a plurality of IPG pages, each IPG page being defined with a plurality of regions;

a transport stream generator, for partitioning a plurality of IPG pages into a plurality of regions including guide, video, icon and program description regions, each partitioned region being encoded using slice-based encoding; and

a session manager (SM) for determining IPG pages to be first provided to a terminal, for separately encoding each partitioned region of the IPG pages to be first provided to the terminal using slice-based encoding and for separately transmitting each encoded region of the IPG pages to be first provided to the terminal from the transport stream generator toward a terminal, each of the transmitted regions being adapted for assembly into a respective IPG page by the terminal;

the SM receiving a demand-cast request message including a region identifier to identify at least one region of an IPG page to be provided next to the terminal and

causing to be transmitted to the terminal the at least one region of the IPG page identified by the region identifier for updating only regions of the IPG page at the terminal associated with the region identifier.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein:

each of a plurality of terminals is coupled to both the session manager and the transport stream generator via a distribution network; and

a terminal-to-SM message for requesting one of the demand-cast streams identifies a particular region of a particular IPG page, the particular region being one of a plurality of regions, the regions including a guide region, a video region, an icon region, and a program description region, the particular IPG page being one of the IPG pages.

22. The system of claim 20, further comprising:

a plurality of local neighborhood equipment including the transport stream generator; and

a headend including the session manager.

23. The system of claim 20, wherein TSG-to-terminal messages include a list of available demand-cast streams.

24. The system of claim 20, wherein SM-to-TSG messages indicate stream released, stream requested, or reset for one of the demand-cast streams.

25. The system of claim 20, wherein TSG-to-SM messages include an acknowledgement of stream release, stream request, or reset for one of the demand-cast streams.