Interactive program manager and methods for presenting program content

• US 8,402,503 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2006
• Issued: 03/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Malik, Dale
• Primary Examiner(s): Parry, Chris
• Application Number:
  US11/350,244
• Publication Number:
  US 20070186269A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,596 Days
• Field of Search: 725/33
• US Class Current: 725/135
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4122 additional display device, e.g. video projector digital output for controlling a plurality of local displays G06F3/1423
• 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 21/4532 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 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• 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 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4668 for recommending content, e.g. movies
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4826 using recommendation lists, e.g. of programs or channels sorted out according to their score
• 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 21/4884 for displaying subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/814 comprising emergency warnings arrangements specially adapted for emergency or urgency in broadcast systems H04H20/59; arrangements for providing alarms, notifications, alerts to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

An interactive program manager comprises a receiver, a controller and an analyzer. The receiver presents audio and visual content for display. The controller directs the receiver to select a first channel and to forward a second channel different from the first channel. The analyzer monitors a program guide and at least the second channel for content of interest in accordance with a user profile. The controller also directs the receiver in response to an operator input.

Claims

1. A multimedia system comprising:

a receiver configured to;

receive a plurality of channels and a plurality of data feeds that are different from the plurality of channels; and

present for display multimedia content on a first device;

a profile store configured to store a user profile for a particular user;

a controller configured to direct the receiver to select a first program of a first channel of the plurality of channels and to direct at least the first program to the first device; and

an analyzer coupled to the receiver and the profile store, the analyzer configured to;

monitor a first source to identify content of interest for the particular user based on the user profile;

send a notification indicator to the first device via the receiver when the content of interest is identified, the notification indicator indicating that the content of interest has been identified; and

in response to user input responsive to the notification indicator, send a menu display to the first device, the menu display including a first user selectable option to view a submenu, wherein the submenu comprises an option to selectively enable display of an alert associated with the first source in response to information indicating that an alert condition exists and wherein the alert is displayable on the first device in conjunction with the first program of the first channel.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyzer is configured to store an interactive callback address with a location of the first program in response to the notification indicator.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the menu display includes a second user selectable option to cause the receiver to send particular content of the content of interest to the first device, a third user selectable option to cause the receiver to send the particular content to the first device and to send content of the first program to a recording device, and a fourth user selectable option to forward the particular content to the recording device while continuing to send the content of the first program to the first device.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyzer is directed to monitor the first program based on the user profile to determine when content from the first program includes content of interest when the user selects the second user selectable option.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the menu display includes at least one second user selectable option to direct a change from a first display mode to a second display mode.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the second display mode comprises a picture-in-picture audio select input that overrides an audio portion of a main display with audio information from a picture-in-picture source.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the data feeds comprises a program guide.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyzer is further configured to send the alert to the first device in response to information indicating the alert condition and the user profile indicating that display of the alert associated with the first source is enabled.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyzer is further configured to send a second alert to the first device when alert data of at least one data feed of the plurality of data feeds indicates a second alert condition and the user profile indicates an alert enabled mode, wherein the alert data indicates at least one of:

a local weather alert and an evacuation.

10. A method for interactively presenting alternative content, comprising:

receiving from a content provider a plurality of channels and a plurality of data feeds that are different from the plurality of channels;

sending content of at least a first program of a first channel of the plurality of channels to a display device;

analyzing data of a program guide provided as one of the plurality of data feeds based on a user profile to identify available alternative content of interest, wherein the alternative content of interest is associated with a second channel of the plurality of channels;

evaluating the user profile to identify one of a plurality of indicator modes;

presenting an indicator in accordance with the identified one of the plurality of indicator modes when the alternative content of interest is identified, wherein the indicator indicates that the alternative content of interest is available; and

in response to user input corresponding to the indicator, sending a menu to the display device, the menu including a first user selectable option to view a submenu, wherein the submenu comprises an option to selectively enable display of an alert associated with the second channel in response to information indicating that an alert condition exists and wherein the alert is displayable on the display device in conjunction with the first program of the first channel.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein analyzing the program guide based on the user profile comprises applying a content classification hierarchy included in the user profile to information of the program guide.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the indicator modes comprise an audio mode, a visual and audio mode, and a visual mode.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the menu includes a second user selectable option that causes particular alternative content of the alternative content of interest to be sent to the display device, a third user selectable option that causes the content of the first program to be recorded and that causes the articular alternative content to be sent to the display device, and a fourth user selectable option to display the first program and the particular alternative content simultaneously on the display device.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

analyzing content provided on a select program for information that matches a user interest based on the user profile; and

presenting the indicator to indicate that the alternate content is available, wherein the alternate content is the select program.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising sending at least one of the plurality of data feeds to a portion of the display device.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

establishing an interactive session with a user in response to a command from a control device after receiving the user input corresponding to the indicator.

17. The method of claim 10, further comprising sending a second alert to the display device when alert data of at least one data feed of the plurality of data feeds indicates a second alert condition and the user profile indicates an alert enabled mode.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the alert data indicates at least one of:

a local weather alert and an evacuation.

19. The method of claim 10, wherein the menu includes a second user selectable option to apply a text stream over a select portion of a display.

20. The method of claim 10, further comprising sending information related to broadcast and non-broadcast program content to the display device in response to a timer.

21. A method for interactively presenting alternative content, comprising:

receiving a user profile of a user from a profile store;

receiving a plurality of channels;

sending content of at least a first program of a first channel of the plurality of channels to a display device;

automatically identifying alternative content of interest for the user from a data stream descriptive of the plurality of channels, wherein the alternative content of interest is identified based on the user profile and the alternative content of interest is associated with a second channel of the plurality of channels;

sending an indicator to the display device, wherein the indicator indicates that the alternative content of interest is available;

receiving a user input responsive to the indicator; and

in response to the user input, sending a menu display to the display device, wherein the menu display includes user selectable options including;

a first user selectable option to view the first program and record particular alternative content of interest;

a second user selectable option to view the particular alternative content of interest;

a third user selectable option to view the first program;

a fourth user selectable option to view the particular alternative content of interest and record the first program; and

a fifth user selectable option to view a submenu, wherein the submenu comprises an option to selectively enable display of an alert associated with the second channel in response to information indicating that an alert condition exists and wherein the alert is displayable on the display device in conjunction with the first program of the first channel.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the submenu further comprises an option to select a main display source, an option to enable or disable picture-in-picture, and an option to select a picture-in-picture source when picture-in-picture is enabled.

23. The method of claim 21, further comprising sending the alert to the display device in response to receiving information indicating the alert condition and the user profile indicating that display of the alert associated with the data stream is enabled.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein the submenu further comprises an option to specify the indicator.

25. An apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

a computer readable medium coupled to the processor, the computer readable medium comprising instructions, that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

receive a plurality of channels and a plurality of data feeds that are different from the plurality of channels;

send content of at least a first program of a first channel of the plurality of channels to a display device;

analyze data of a program guide provided as one of the plurality of data feeds based on a user profile to identify available alternative content of interest, the alternative content of interest associated with a second channel of the plurality of channels;

evaluate the user profile to identify one of a plurality of indicator modes;

present an indicator in accordance with the identified one of the plurality of indicator modes when the alternative content of interest is identified, wherein the indicator indicates that the alternative content of interest is available; and

send a menu to the display device in response to user input corresponding to the indicator, the menu including a first user selectable option to view a submenu, wherein the submenu comprises an option to selectively enable display of an alert associated with the second channel in response to information indicating that an alert condition exists and wherein the alert is displayable on the display device in conjunction with the first program of the first channel.