System and method for personalized TV

• US 8,302,127 B2
• Filed: 09/24/2001
• Issued: 10/30/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thomson Licensing SAS (Vantiva SA)
• Original Assignee: Thomson Licensing (Vantiva SA)
• Inventors: Klarfeld, Kenneth A., Humpleman, Richard, Bentolila, Isaac (Ariel), Zhou, Yiming
• Primary Examiner(s): Kumar, Pankaj
• Assistant Examiner(s): BROWN, RUEBEN M
• Application Number:
  US09/963,335
• Publication Number:
  US 20030067554A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,054 Days
• Field of Search: 725/46, 725/45, 725/9, 725/35, 705/14.66
• US Class Current: 725/46
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/322 used signal is digitally coded
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/231 Content storage operation, e.g. caching movies for short term storage, replicating data over plural servers, prioritizing data for deletion
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/251 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies details of learning user preferences for the retrieval of video data in a video database G06F16/739; computer systems using learning methods G06N3/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; 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 21/26283 for associating distribution time parameters to content, e.g. to generate electronic program guide data
• 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 21/44224 Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• 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 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/466 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies services using the results of monitoring in broadcast systems H04H60/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4668 for recommending content, e.g. movies
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4751 for defining user accounts, e.g. accounts for children
• 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 21/4756 for rating content, e.g. scoring a recommended movie
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4823 using a channel name
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• 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 21/8456 : by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 : using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 : Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 : by receiver means only

Abstract

A Personal TV System receives a plurality of video segments constituting a TV program and information describing each segment, and controls the display of the segments to a viewer in accordance with preferences of the viewer and with the description of each segment. Segments may be omitted or replaced with substitute segments. The viewer may review his preferences and edit or replace them. In a multi-viewer household, the system may prompt a viewer to confirm her preferences. A TV program may contain interactive segments, and when the viewer chooses to interact with a particular segment, the system automatically stores all subsequently received segments for later viewing while the viewer interacts with the selected segment. The system may present TV program choices to the viewer selected and arranged in accordance with her preferences.

Claims

1. A method for operating a television signal receiver, said method comprising:

processing, via the television signal receiver, information indicative of preferences of a viewer to develop a viewer characteristics information profile comprising a first plurality of television programs for the viewer;

storing, via the television signal receiver, the viewer characteristics information profile on a storage device associated with the television signal receiver;

presenting, via the television signal receiver, the viewer with a first list of television programs available for viewing, the television programs selected and arranged in accordance with the viewer characteristics information profile;

receiving, via the television signal receiver, feedback input from the viewer after viewing the first list and in response to the viewer answering a query, the feedback input requesting different selections than in the first list;

selecting, via the television signal receiver and a random selection algorithm, an alternative profile comprising a second plurality of television programs in response to the feedback input, the alternative profile and the viewer characteristics information profile both existing at the time the viewer provides the feedback input; and

presenting, via the television signal receiver, the viewer with a second list in response to the feedback input, the second list including alternative television programs available for viewing, the alternative television programs selected from the alternative profile.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the alternative profile includes alternative viewer characteristics information for the viewer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the alternative profile includes viewer characteristics information for a second viewer.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the alternative profile includes generic viewer characteristics information, the generic information pre-selected in accordance with one or more viewer demographic traits.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the generic information is pre-selected in accordance with any one or more of available television program content, rating, schedule, or duration.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

replacing the viewer characteristics information profile with the alternative profile.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

allowing the viewer to edit the alternative profile.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the alternative profile is selected from a plurality of available alternative profiles.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the feedback input is manually entered by the viewer.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the alternative television programs on the second list are each different from the television programs on the first list.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first list remains available after presenting the second list.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the second list is unrelated to the first list.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the second list is based on a viewer choice between alternative available lists.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the alternative profile is selected from a fixed set of profiles.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the fixed set of profiles is based on demographics.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the alternative profile is created based on a random selection from the fixed set of profiles.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the alternative profile is created by randomly selecting profile parameters from the fixed set of profiles.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the fixed set of profiles is one of pre-created and pre-captured.

19. A method, comprising:

processing, via a television signal receiver, information indicative of preferences of a viewer to develop a viewer characteristics information profile comprising a first plurality of television programs for the viewer;

storing, via the television signal receiver, the viewer characteristics information profile on a storage device associated with the television signal receiver;

selecting, via the television signal receiver, a predetermined number of television programs from a plurality of television programs available for viewing, the television programs selected in accordance with the viewer characteristics information profile;

presenting, via the television signal receiver, the viewer with a first list including the television programs selected in accordance with the viewer characteristics information profile;

receiving, via the television signal receiver, feedback input from the viewer requesting a different program selection than in the first list;

selecting, via the television signal receiver and a random selection algorithm, an alternative profile comprising a second plurality of television programs in response to the feedback input, the alternative profile and the viewer characteristics information profile both existing at the time the viewer provides the feedback input; and

presenting, via the television signal receiver, the viewer with a second list of selected programs in response to the feedback input, wherein the second list includes alternative television programs available for viewing and the alternative television programs are selected from the alternative profile.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein selecting the predetermined number of television programs comprises:

processing information indicative of characteristics of the selected television programs, and wherein presenting the first list comprises presenting the viewer with the first list arranged in accordance with the viewer characteristics information profile and the characteristics of the selected television programs.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the first list is sorted in accordance with a degree of correspondence between characteristics of each selected television program and the viewer characteristics information profile.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein presenting the first list comprises:

presenting the viewer with the first list including characteristics of the selected television programs.

23. A method for presenting television programs to a viewer, comprising:

processing, via a television signal receiver, information indicative of preferences of the viewer to develop a viewer characteristics information profile comprising a first plurality of television programs for the viewer;

storing, via the television signal receiver, the viewer characteristics information profile on a storage device associated with the television signal receiver;

selecting, via the television signal receiver, a predetermined number of television programs from a plurality of television programs available for viewing, the programs selected in accordance with the viewer characteristics information profile;

presenting, via the television signal receiver, the viewer with a first list of the selected programs, the first list arranged without viewer input in accordance with the viewer characteristics information profile;

receiving, via the television signal receiver, feedback input from the viewer based on a query requesting a different program selection than in the first list;

selecting, via the television signal receiver and a random selection algorithm, an alternative profile comprising a second plurality of television programs based on the feedback input, the alternative profile and the viewer characteristics information profile both existing at the time the viewer provides the feedback input; and

presenting, via the television signal receiver, the viewer with a second list of selected programs based on the feedback input, wherein the second list includes alternative television programs available for viewing and the alternative television programs are selected from the alternative profile.