Dynamic video source selection for providing the best quality programming

• US 8,418,207 B2
• Filed: 09/09/2009
• Issued: 04/09/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Dish Network Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Dish Digital LLC
• Inventors: Jenkin, Geraint, Liassides, Marcus C.
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN BA, HOANG VU A
• Application Number:
  US12/556,347
• Publication Number:
  US 20100064324A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,308 Days
• Field of Search: 725/59, 725/91, 725/93, 725/100, 725/109, 725/114, 725/116, 725/131, 725/139, 725/151, 386/200, 386/213, 386/219
• US Class Current: 725/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1059 End-user terminal functionalities specially adapted for real-time communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2181 comprising remotely distributed storage units, e.g. when movies are replicated over a plurality of video servers distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS], H04L67/1097
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25833 involving client hardware characteristics, e.g. manufacturer, processing or storage capabilities allocation of resources considering hardware capabilities in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/5044; allocation of resources considering software capabilities in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/5055
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4113 PC
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4181 for conditional access
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42607 for processing the incoming bitstream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/443 OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4433 Implementing client middleware, e.g. Multimedia Home Platform [MHP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6112 involving terrestrial transmission, e.g. DVB-T
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/631 Multimode Transmission, e.g. transmitting basic layers and enhancement layers of the content over different transmission paths or transmitting with different error corrections, different keys or with different transmission protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8166 involving executable data, e.g. software arrangements for executing specific programs G06F9/44; broadcasting computer programmes in broadcast systems H04H20/91; involving the movement of software or configuration parameters H04L67/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 : on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A Dynamic Video Source Selection (DVSS) component that can be implemented in a physical or virtual STB that is capable of presenting a high quality service and consistent navigational paradigm to the viewer, while detecting, selecting, and presenting the best quality programming possible based upon the current position of the viewer'"'"'s device within the network.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of dynamic video source selection (DVSS), comprising:

using a DVSS component operating on an electronic device, determining that the electronic device is located within a network environment in which there are a plurality of sources available for delivering video content to the electronic device, wherein the electronic device is configured to receive and present video content on a display;

using the DVSS component, selecting one of the plurality of sources for delivering the video content over a delivery network from the selected source to the electronic device based on which of the plurality of sources can deliver the highest quality copy of the video content that is available to the electronic device;

receiving at the electronic device the video content over the delivery network from the selected source; and

presenting the video content on the display.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said presenting comprises presenting the video content using a consistent navigational paradigm to a user, regardless of the selected source.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said presenting comprises presenting the video content as at least one of a video, a video and text, a video and graphics, a graphical user interface, and a video and a graphical user interface.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the video content at each of the plurality of sources is the same video content.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising requesting the video content from the selected source.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein said requesting comprises:

issuing a request for the video content from one of the plurality of sources that uses a multicast enabled delivery network; and

upon determining that the request fails, re-issuing the request for the video content from another one of the plurality of sources that is a non-multicast enabled delivery network.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the request is an Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) request, and wherein the re-issued request is a Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP) request.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein said requesting comprises:

issuing a request for the video content from one of the plurality of sources in a closed network infrastructure;

upon determining that the request fails, re-issuing the request for the video content from another one of the plurality of sources in an open network infrastructure.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of sources is a Digital Video Broadcasting source that delivers the video content over the air, and wherein said receiving comprises receiving the video content over the air without requesting the video content.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of sources uses a multicast enabled delivery network that delivers the video content as Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) content, and at least one of the plurality of sources use a non-multicast enabled delivery network.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the non-multicast enabled delivery network is a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) delivery network, and HTTP delivery network delivers the video content as one or more HTTP streamlets.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the non-multicast enabled delivery network is a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) delivery network.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is a physical set-top box (STB).

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is a computing device operating a STB emulation system.

15. A system, comprising:

an electronic device operating in a network environment in which there are a plurality of sources available for delivering video content to the electronic device, wherein the electronic device is configured to receive and present the video content on a display,

wherein the electronic device comprises a computing device operating a Dynamic Video Source Selection (DVSS) component, wherein the DVSS component is configured to select one of the plurality of sources for delivering the video content over a delivery network from the selected source to the electronic device based on which of the plurality of sources can deliver the highest quality copy of the video content that is available to the electronic device, and

wherein the electronic device is configured to receive the video content over the delivery network from the selected source and to present the video content on the display.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the electronic device is a physical set-top box.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the electronic device is a computing device operating a STB emulation system.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the DVSS component is configured to request the video content by,

issuing a Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) request for the video content from one of the plurality of sources that uses a multicast enabled delivery network;

and

upon determining that the IGMP request fails, re-issuing the request as Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request for the video content from another one of the plurality of sources that is a HTTP delivery network.

19. A machine-readable storage medium storing thereon when executed by a computing device cause the computing device to perform a method, comprising:

determining that the computing device is located within a network environment in which there are a plurality of sources available for delivering video content to the computing, device wherein the computing device is configured to receive and present video content on a display;

selecting one of the plurality of sources for delivering the video content over a delivery network from the selected source to the electronic device based on which of the plurality of sources can deliver the highest quality copy of the video content that is available to the electronic device;

receiving the video content over the delivery network from the selected source; and

presenting the video content on the display.

20. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 19, further comprising requesting the video content from the selected source, wherein said requesting comprises:

issuing a request for the video content from one of the plurality of sources that uses a multicast enabled delivery network; and

upon determining that the request fails, re-issuing the request for the video content from another one of the plurality of sources that is a non-multicast enabled delivery network.