Linear program guide for media content access systems and methods

• US 8,028,313 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2006
• Issued: 09/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Stallings, Heath, Relyea, Don, Roberts, Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): Kelley; Christopher
• Assistant Examiner(s): MENGESHA, MULUGETA A
• Application Number:
  US11/614,604
• Publication Number:
  US 20080155595A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,741 Days
• Field of Search: 725 37- 61, 715/719, 715/784, 715/785, 715/819
• US Class Current: 725/39
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4438 Window management, e.g. event handling following interaction with the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72

Abstract

In one of many possible embodiments, a system includes a media content processing subsystem configured to provide at least a portion of a linear program guide to a display for presentation to a user. The linear program guide includes a list of media content carriers and associated media content instances, and an endpoint located at one end of the list. The media content carriers and the endpoint are navigable by the user, and the endpoint is associated with at least one selectable navigation tool for navigating within the linear program guide. In certain embodiments, the selectable navigation tool includes a selectable shortcut to a predefined location within the linear program guide.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a media content processing subsystem configured to provide at least a portion of a linear program guide to a display, said linear program guide including

a list of media content carriers and associated media content instances, and

an endpoint located at one end of said list;

wherein said media content carriers and said endpoint are navigable, and

wherein said media content processing subsystem is further configured to

detect a user navigating to said endpoint,

provide at least one previously unavailable selectable navigation tool in response to said user navigating to said endpoint,

dynamically generate a channel group by adding at least one media content carrier to the channel group based on a category of a media content instance broadcast by the media content carrier at a particular time, and

present a selectable shortcut to the dynamically generated channel group to the user via the navigation tool.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one selectable navigation tool includes a selectable shortcut to a predefined location within said linear program guide.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein said predefined location within said program guide includes one of said media content carriers, said one of said media content carriers having been pre-associated with said selectable shortcut.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said one of said media content carriers is located at least proximate to another end of said list of media content carriers.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein said predefined location within said program guide includes a subset group of multiple said media content carriers, said subset group of multiple said media content carriers having been pre-associated with said selectable shortcut.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein said subset group of multiple said media content carriers is associated with a category of media content.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one selectable navigation tool includes a plurality of selectable shortcuts to a plurality of corresponding predefined locations within said linear program guide.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein each of said selectable shortcuts is associated with a different subset group of said media content carriers.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein each said different subset group of said media content carriers is associated with a different category of media content.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one selectable navigation tool is included in a navigation palette, said media content processing subsystem configured to provide said navigation palette to the display for presentation as an overlay to said at least a portion of said linear program guide.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein said media content processing subsystem is configured to

detect a user selection of said selectable navigation tool, and

cause, in response to said detection of said user selection, a selection tool to move to a predefined location within said program guide, said predefined location having been pre-associated with said selectable navigation tool.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein said linear program guide further includes another endpoint located at another end of said list, said another endpoint being navigable by the user and associated with at least one other selectable navigation tool for navigating within said linear program guide.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein said endpoint is not adjacent to the media content carrier at the other end of said list of said media content carriers.

14. An apparatus comprising:

a graphics engine configured to generate one or more graphics to be provided to a display for presentation to a user; and

at least one processor communicatively coupled to said graphics engine, said processor configured to cause said graphics engine to generate a program guide graphical user interface to be provided to the display, said program guide graphical user interface including at least a portion of a linear program guide, said linear program guide including

a list of navigable media content carriers and associated media content instances,

a first navigable endpoint located at one end of said list, and

a second navigable endpoint located at another end of said list;

wherein when the user navigates to said first navigable endpoint, said at least one processor is configured to cause at least one previously unavailable selectable navigation tool to be provided to the display for presentation to the user; and

wherein when the user navigates to said second navigable endpoint, said at least one processor is configured to cause at least one other previously unavailable selectable navigation tool to be provided to the display for presentation to the user,

wherein at least one of said predefined locations includes a subset group of said media content carriers, wherein said subset group is dynamically generated by adding at least one media content carrier to said subset group based on a category of a media content instance broadcast by the media content carrier at a particular time.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said at least one selectable navigation tool includes a selectable shortcut to a first predefined location within said linear program guide, and said at least one other selectable navigation tool includes a selectable shortcut to a second predefined location within said linear program guide.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein said first predefined location includes one of said media content carriers located adjacent to said second navigable endpoint, and said second predefined location includes a different one of said media content carriers located adjacent to said first navigable endpoint.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said at least one selectable navigation tool includes a plurality of selectable shortcuts to a plurality of predefined locations within said linear program guide.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein each said subset group of said media content instance is associated with a different category of media content.

19. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said at least one processor is configured to detect a user selection of said selectable navigation tool, and navigate, in response to said detection of said user selection, to a predefined location within said linear program guide, said predefined location having been pre-associated with said selectable navigation tool.

20. A method comprising:

providing at least a portion of a linear program guide to a display device for presentation to a user, said linear program guide including

a list of navigable media content carriers and associated media content instances, and

a navigable endpoint located at one end of said list;

detecting a user navigation to said endpoint;

providing, in response to said user navigation to said endpoint, at least one previously unavailable selectable navigation tool to the display device for presentation to the user;

dynamically generating a channel group by adding at least one media content carrier to the channel group based on a category of a media content instance broadcast by the media content carrier at a particular time; and

presenting a selectable shortcut to the dynamically generated channel group to the user via the navigation tool.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

detecting a user selection of said selectable navigation tool; and

navigating, in response to said detection of said user selection, to a predefined location within said program guide, said predefined location having been pre-associated with said selectable navigation tool.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein said navigating step includes automatically moving a selection tool to said predefined location.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein said predefined location includes a particular one of said content carriers located at least proximate to the other end of said list of content carriers.