Multimedia service system based on user history

• US 7,712,113 B2
• Filed: 07/13/2001
• Issued: 05/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Lee, Jin Soo, Yoon, Kyoung Ro, Jun, Sung Bae
• Primary Examiner(s): Kelley; Christopher
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shepard; Justin E
• Application Number:
  US09/903,650
• Publication Number:
  US 20020059313A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,217 Days
• Field of Search: 725/1, 725 9- 21
• US Class Current: 725/9
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/33 Arrangements for monitoring the users' behaviour or opinions
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/37 for identifying segments of broadcast information, e.g. scenes or extracting programme ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/40 for identifying broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/46 for recognising users' preferences
• 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 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/418 External card to be used in combination with the client device, e.g. for conditional access
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4333 Processing operations in response to a pause request
• 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 21/44204 Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44222 Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• 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 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• 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 21/6582 : 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 21/8352 : involving content or source identification data, e.g. Unique Material Identifier [UMID]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 : by receiver means only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17327 : with deferred transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

Disclosed is a user history based multimedia service system, wherein user history data include a multimedia consumption type and/or consumption behavior of the user. The consumption type data includes a start time or end time of the multimedia content consumption (i.e., simple view data), content recording time and format, content backup time and format, and content transfer time and format. The consumption behavior data includes a content access/play data such as a normal finish, skimmed, skipped, slowed, or replay, and a stopped data of the content access/play. The consumption type or consumption behavior data include information on program identification and information on access to the consumption type/consumption behavior data. The respective data is provided for each user and program.

Claims

1. A method implemented by an apparatus including a storage device and a controller for processing user history data stored in the storage device, the method comprising:

storing, in the storage device, a hierarchical data structure for describing user history, the hierarchical data structure including

(a) a user information element to identify a user,

(b) a first user action history of the user as a first structural element of the hierarchical data structure, the first user action history including

(b-1) a first data protection attribute to specify whether all information in the first user action history is protected or not, and

(b-2) a first list of user action items for describing the user'"'"'s multimedia consumption including skipping or slow playing a piece of content, and

(c) a second user action history of the user as a second structural element at the same level of the hierarchical data structure as the first structural element, the second user action history including

(c-1) a second data protection attribute to specify whether all information in the second user action history is protected or not, and

(c-2) a second list of user action items for describing the user'"'"'s media consumption including playing or recording a content stream,

wherein each user action item in both the first and second lists records a corresponding action of the user'"'"'s consumption of content from a respective multimedia program and has (i) an action time indicating when the corresponding action of the user took place and (ii) a unique content reference identifier that identifies the consumed multimedia program independent of the multimedia program'"'"'s location and enables access to content related metadata that is not provided in the user history; and

wherein at least one user action item in the first list of user action items includes timing information for identifying the skipped or slow played piece of content.

2. The method for processing user history data as claimed in claim 1, wherein each unique content reference identifier is a content reference ID (CRID) of a Content ID Forum (CIDF).

3. The method for processing user history data as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second user action history describes the user'"'"'s consumption type and includes data that represents a consumption type indicating how the user consumed content from the respective multimedia program.

4. The method for processing user history data as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first user action history describes the user'"'"'s consumption behavior and includes data that represents a consumption behavior with respect to the respective multimedia program.

5. The method for processing user history data as claimed in claim 4, wherein the data that represents the consumption behavior indicates a selection from an action type group including operations of normal play, skip, replay, and slow play.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the storage device includes a portable medium.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the storage device includes a smart card.

8. A method implemented by an apparatus including a storage device and a controller for processing user history data stored in the storage device, the method comprising:

storing, in the storage device, a hierarchical data structure for describing user history, the hierarchical data structure including

(a) a user information element to identify a user,

(b) a first user action history of the user as a first structural element of the hierarchical data structure, the first user action history including

(b-1) a first data protection attribute to specify whether all information in the first user action history is protected or not, and

(b-2) a first list of user action items for describing the user'"'"'s multimedia consumption including skipping or slow playing a piece of content, and

(c) a second user action history of the user as a second structural element at the same level of the hierarchical data structure as the first structural element, the second user action history including

(c-1) a second data protection attribute to specify whether all information in the second user action history is protected or not, and

(c-2) a second list of user action items for describing the user'"'"'s media consumption including playing or recording a content stream,

wherein each user action item in both the first and second lists records a corresponding action of the user'"'"'s consumption of content from a respective multimedia program and has (i) an action time indicating when the corresponding action of the user took place and (ii) a unique content reference identifier that identifies the consumed multimedia program independent of the multimedia program'"'"'s location and enables access to content related metadata that is not provided in the user history.

9. The method for processing user history data according to claim 8, wherein the second user action history describes the user'"'"'s consumption type and includes data that indicates how the user consumed content from the respective multimedia program.

10. The method for processing user history data according to claim 8, wherein the first user action history describes the user'"'"'s consumption behavior, and the user action type indicates a selection from an action type group including operations of normal play, skip, replay, and slow play.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein storing the hierarchical data structure includes storing the hierarchical data structure in a smart card.