Interactive television system with programming-related links

• US 8,255,952 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2010
• Issued: 08/28/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: United Video Properties Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Boylan, Peter C. III, Ellis, Michael D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Ngoc
• Application Number:
  US12/761,522
• Publication Number:
  US 20100205635A1
• Time in Patent Office: 865 Days
• Field of Search: 725/39, 725/40, 725/42, 725/43, 725/52
• US Class Current: 725/42
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• 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 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8153 comprising still images, e.g. texture, background image
• 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 21/8545 for generating interactive applications
• 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 7/163 by receiver means only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

An interactive television system with programming-related links is provided. The system may include user television equipment on which interactive program guide and non-program-guide applications may be implemented. Information that is displayed in a display screen for a non-program-guide application may be related to programming. A display screen or overlay for programming that is related to the information may be displayed when a user selects the displayed information. The display or overlay for the programming may include advertisements, video, graphics, options, or programming descriptions. The display screen or overlay may have been displayed by the program guide application.

Claims

1. An interactive television system having user television equipment on which an interactive program guide application and an interactive non-program-guide application are each at least partially implemented wherein the program guide application provides an application program interface to the non-program-guide application, said user television equipment being configured to:

use the non-program-guide application to display a non-program-guide information display region that includes at least one non-program-guide option that is related to a program identified in the non-program guide information display region;

receive a user selection of the non-program-guide option that is related to the program identified in the non-program guide information display region;

use the non-program-guide application to provide instructions for the program guide application based on the application program interface in response to the user selection; and

use the program guide application to display, based on the instructions received from the non-program-guide application, a programming information display region that includes a plurality of options that are related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region when the non-program-guide option is selected, wherein the plurality of options provides the user with an opportunity to access program guide data and non-program-guide data.

2. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the programming information display region includes at least one of:

a program guide option that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

a plurality of program guide options that are related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

video that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

a graphic that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region; and

an advertisement that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region.

3. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the non-program-guide option is at least one of:

an advertisement;

a graphic;

a phrase that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region; and

a word that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region.

4. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the user television equipment is further configured to display an indicator with the non-program-guide option to indicate to the user that the non-program-guide option is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region.

5. The system defined in claim 4, wherein the user selection of the non-program-guide option is provided by selecting the indicator.

6. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the user television equipment includes a program guide database of programming information for the program guide application, and wherein the user television equipment is further configured to access the program guide database to determine which program identified in the non-program-guide information display region is related to the selected non-program-guide option.

7. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the programming information display region is at least one of:

an overlay; and

a display screen.

8. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the user television equipment is further configured to provide the user with an opportunity to return to the non-program-guide information display region when the programming information display region has been displayed.

9. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the programming is at least one of:

a particular program;

a particular channel;

a particular network; and

a particular service package.

10. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the non-program-guide application comprises executable code that includes a program guide function that is executed when the non-program-guide option is selected.

11. A method for providing an interactive television system having user television equipment on which an interactive program guide application and an interactive non-program-guide application are each at least partially implemented, wherein the program guide application provides an application program interface to the non-program-guide application, the method comprising:

using the non-program-guide application to display a non-program-guide information display region that includes at least one non-program-guide option that is related to a program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

receiving a user selection of the non-program-guide option that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

using the non-program-guide application to provide instructions for the program guide application based on the application program interface in response to the user selection; and

using the program guide application to display, based on the instructions received from the non-program-guide application, a programming information display region that includes a plurality of options that are related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region when the non-program-guide option is selected, wherein the plurality of options provides the user with an opportunity to access program guide data and non-program-guide data.

12. The method defined in claim 11, wherein the programming information display region includes at least one of:

a program guide option that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

a plurality of program guide options that are related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

video that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region;

a graphic that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region; and

an advertisement that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region.

13. The method defined in claim 11, wherein the non-program-guide option is at least one of:

an advertisement;

a graphic;

a phrase that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region; and

a word that is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region.

14. The method defined in claim 11, further comprising displaying an indicator with the non-program-guide option to indicate to the user that the non-program-guide option is related to the program identified in the non-program-guide information display region.

15. The method defined in claim 14, wherein the user selection of the non-program-guide option further comprises selecting the indicator.

16. The method defined in claim 11, further comprising accessing a program guide database of programming information for the program guide application to determine which program identified in the non-program-guide information display region is related to the selected non-program-guide option.

17. The method defined in claim 11, further comprising displaying the programming information display region in at least one of:

an overlay; and

a display screen.

18. The method defined in claim 11, further comprising providing the user with an opportunity to return to the non-program-guide information display region when the programming information display region has been displayed.

19. The method defined in claim 11, wherein the programming is at least one of:

a particular program;

a particular channel;

a particular network; and

a particular service package.

20. The method defined in claim 11, wherein the non-program-guide application comprises executable code that includes a program guide function that is executed when the non-program-guide option is selected.