Methods and computer program products for reporting internet protocol television related data collected from application and device data

• US 8,261,299 B2
• Filed: 05/22/2008
• Issued: 09/04/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.), LYFT Incorporated
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pirani, Akbar, Branam, Michael Sr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Srivastava, Vivek
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le, Rong
• Application Number:
  US12/125,419
• Publication Number:
  US 20090293078A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,566 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/9
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/33 Arrangements for monitoring the users' behaviour or opinions
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/46 for recognising users' preferences
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/66 for using the result on distributors' side
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/82 the transmission system being the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• 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 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• 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

Methods and computer program products for reporting application and device data retrieved from within an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) network environment are provided. IPTV system usage data is retrieved from at least one IPTV device and normalized into a predetermined data format. The IPTV system usage data is parsed according to predetermined criteria. The parsed IPTV system usage data is delivered to a dedicated data mart for storage, the IPTV system usage data that is stored within at least one dedicated data mart is accessed, and the IPTV system usage data that is stored at the at least one dedicated data mart is used to generate a report.

Claims

1. A method for reporting application and device data retrieved from within an internet protocol television network environment, the method comprising:

retrieving, by a device activity tracking component stored on an internet protocol television infrastructure, internet protocol television system usage data from a user device, the device activity tracking component stored on the internet protocol television infrastructure being distinct and separate from the user device;

normalizing, by a data collection component stored on an internet protocol television gateway, the internet protocol television system usage data that has been retrieved into a predetermined data format, the data collection component stored on the internet protocol television gateway being connected to a preference sever and to the internet protocol television infrastructure;

parsing, by the data collection component, the internet protocol television system usage data according to predetermined criteria;

delivering, by the data collection component stored on the internet protocol television gateway, the internet protocol television system usage data that has been parsed to dedicated data marts comprising a first dedicated data mart, a second dedicated data mart, and a third dedicated data mart for storage;

wherein the device activity tracking component stored on the internet protocol television infrastructure is configured to determine when a current activity is initiated by a core application and a secondary application, in which the core application is an internet protocol television software platform on the user device and the secondary application is software created for the core application;

wherein based on the device activity tracking component determining that the current activity is initiated within the secondary application, the device activity tracking component is configured to retrieve user preferences for the secondary application in which the user preferences are stored on the preferences server; and

wherein the device activity tracking component is configured to annotate captured current activity data with information that distinguishes whether the current activity originated at the core application or the secondary application.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising accessing the internet protocol television system usage data that is stored within the dedicated data marts;

utilizing the internet protocol television system usage data that is stored at the dedicated data marts to generate reports, the reports comprising a first report for a number of customers that utilized a search directory application and a second report for a number of customers that searched with a weather application to search a weather forecast for a particular city within a particular time period; and

responsive to an event corresponding to utilizing the weather application, capturing event information specifying that the weather application was accessed, a time of the event, a length of time that the event lasted, and functional features that were accessed within the weather application;

wherein retrieving the internet protocol television system usage data further comprises retrieving an identity of the user device that is accessing an internet protocol television system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving the internet protocol television system usage data further comprises retrieval of internet protocol television account sign-on information that is associated with an internet protocol television account.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying an account user that is associated with an internet protocol television account.

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising retrieving preference information that has been associated with the internet protocol television account.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving the internet protocol television system usage data further comprises retrieving information in regard to an activity event type that is initiated at the user device.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising retrieving information that is generated by the current activity.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the user device is periodically polled for the internet protocol television system usage data generated by an internet protocol television system user.

9. A method for reporting application and device data retrieved from an internet protocol television network environment, the system comprising:

a device activity tracking component stored on an internet protocol television infrastructure, the device activity tracking component stored on the internet protocol television infrastructure being distinct and separate from a user device; and

a data collection component stored on an internet protocol television gateway, the data collection component stored on the internet protocol television gateway being connected to a preference sever and to the internet protocol television infrastructure

wherein the device activity tracking component is configured to retrieve internet protocol television system usage data from the user device;

wherein the device activity tracking component is configured to normalize the internet protocol television system usage data retrieved into a predetermined data format;

wherein the device activity tracking component stored on the internet protocol television infrastructure is configured to determine when a current activity is initiated by a core application and a secondary application, in which the core application is an internet protocol television software platform on the user device and the secondary application is software created for the core application;

wherein based on the device activity tracking component determining that the current activity is initiated within the secondary application, the device activity tracking component is configured to retrieve user preferences for the secondary application in which the user preferences are stored on the preferences server;

wherein the device activity tracking component is configured to annotate captured current activity data with information that distinguishes whether the current activity originated at the core application or the secondary application.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the device activity tracking component is configured to:

determine if the internet protocol television system usage data is internet protocol television system usage error data that comprises error occurrences;

analyze the internet protocol television system usage error data;

parse the internet protocol television system usage error data according to predetermined criteria;

create an error log notating the error occurrences in the internet protocol television system usage error data; and

determine if the error occurrences of accumulated internet protocol television system usage error data are greater than a predetermined threshold;

wherein the internet protocol television system usage error data is analyzed to identify a type and frequency of respective ones of the error occurrences.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein retrieving the internet protocol television system usage data further comprises retrieving an identity of the user device that is accessing the internet protocol television network environment.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein retrieving the internet protocol television system usage data further comprises retrieval of internet protocol television account sign-on information that is associated with an internet protocol television account.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein in an event that the error occurrences in the internet protocol television system usage error data is greater than a predetermined threshold, an error report is generated and delivered to a system administrator.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein retrieving the internet protocol television system usage data further comprises identifying an account user that is signed-on to the internet protocol television account.