Dynamic IPTV group profile creation and management

• US 8,079,042 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2008
• Issued: 12/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Foti, George, Mitra, Nilo, Higgs, Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Lonsberry, Hunter
• Application Number:
  US12/259,689
• Publication Number:
  US 20100107204A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,141 Days
• Field of Search: 725 9- 21, 725 25- 31, 348/734
• US Class Current: 725/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• 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

Abstract

An IPTV group profile is dynamically generated based on individual IPTV user profiles, whenever a user joins or leaves a shared IPTV session at an IPTV Terminal Function (ITF). The IPTV group profile may be implemented as a modification to the IPTV user profile of each user. In one embodiment, a “group” branch includes the additional access privileges and/or restrictions from the IPTV user profiles of other group members. The modified IPTV user profiles of users in the group are placed on a network entity such as an XDM Server (XDMS), to which the ITF subscribes via XCAP. As users join or leave a shared IPTV session at an ITF, the IPTV-AS updates the IPTV user profiles on the XDMS, which notifies the ITF of the changes. Each user'"'"'s IPTV user profile at the ITF thus reflects group access privileges, preferences and restrictions for the duration of the shared IPTV session.

Claims

1. A method of managing user profiles for multiple IPTV Terminal Function (ITF) users by an IPTV Application Server, comprising:

obtaining a first IPTV user profile for a first user registered at an ITF;

detecting a second user registered at the ITF;

obtaining a second IPTV user profile for the second user;

generating a first IPTV group profile from the first and second IPTV user profiles, the first IPTV group profile appropriate for both the first and second user together; and

providing the first IPTV group profile to the ITF by storing the group profile on an XDM server to which the ITF is subscribed for notifications.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein both the first and second user subscribe to the same IPTV Service Provider.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein generating a first IPTV group profile from the first and second IPTV user profiles comprises generating a first IPTV group profile from the first and second IPTV user profiles according to one or more IPTV group profile generation policies.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein generating a first IPTV group profile from the first and second IPTV user profiles comprises expanding the first IPTV user profile to include access privileges in the second IPTV user profile.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein generating a first IPTV group profile from the first and second IPTV user profiles comprises restricting the first IPTV user profile to include access restrictions in the second IPTV user profile.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein generating a first IPTV group profile from the first and second IPTV user profiles comprises modifying a group branch of each of the first and second IPTV user profiles.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising detecting either the first or second user has de-registered from the ITF.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising replacing the first IPTV group profile with the IPTV user profile associated with the remaining registered user.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

detecting a third user registered at the ITF;

obtaining a third IPTV user profile for the third user;

generating a second IPTV group profile from the first, second, and third IPTV user profiles, the second IPTV group profile appropriate for the first, second, and third users together; and

providing the second IPTV group profile to the ITF.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

detecting either the first or third user has de-registered from the ITF;

generating a third IPTV group profile from the second IPTV user profiles and the IPTV user profile associated with the remaining registered user, the third IPTV group profile appropriate for the second and remaining registered users together; and

providing the third IPTV group profile to the ITF.

11. An IPTV Terminal Function supporting shared IPTV sessions, comprising:

a network interface;

television interface for outputting IPTV content; and

a controller for receiving a plurality of IPTV user profiles for registered users from the network interface and for maintaining the plurality of IPTV user profiles for registered users and for controlling the television interface to selectively output IPTV content in accordance with access privileges and restrictions in at least one of the plurality of IPTV user profiles, for subscribing to notifications

associated with changes to a registered user profiles in the plurality of IPTV user profiles from an XDM server, and for retrieving updated IPTV user profiles to share access privileges and restrictions among concurrently registered users.

12. The IPTV Terminal Function of claim 11 wherein the controller is operative to independently subscribe to the XDM Server for each currently registered user.

13. The IPTV Terminal Function of claim 11 wherein the controller is operative to select an appropriate group branch in the registered user IPTV user profiles from among a plurality of group branches.

14. An IPTV Application Server, comprising a controller operative to:

receive IPTV subscriptions from users at an IPTV Terminal Function (ITF);

obtain an IPTV user profile for each subscribed user;

detect two or more users concurrently subscribed at the same ITF;

generate an IPTV group profile including access privileges and restrictions appropriate to all concurrently subscribed users;

modify at least one of the obtained IPTV user profiles and

provide the IPTV group profile and the modified IPTV to the ITF by storing the generated and modified profile on an XDM Server to which the ITF is subscribed for notification of profile modifications.

15. The IPTV Application Server of claim 14 wherein the controller is operative to generate an IPTV group profile by modifying a group branch of the each IPTV user profile.

16. The IPTV Application Server of claim 15 wherein the controller is operative to provide the IPTV group profile to the ITF by storing each modified IPTV user profile on the XDM Server for retrieval by the ITF.

17. IPTV Application Server of claim 14 wherein the controller is operative to retain the IPTV user profile of each concurrently subscribed user.