Method and system for supplying media over communication networks

• US 8,438,297 B1
• Filed: 01/31/2005
• Issued: 05/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chen, Songqing, Guo, Lei, Xiao, Zhen, Zhang, Xiaodong
• Primary Examiner(s): Barot, Bharat N
• Assistant Examiner(s): Huq, Farzana
• Application Number:
  US11/047,528
• Time in Patent Office: 3,018 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/217, 709/219, 709/231, 709/232, 709/236
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/75 Media network packet handling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services independent of the application payload and not provided for in the other groups of this subclass networks security protocols H04L9/40; wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/00 Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD] real-time bi-directional transmission of motion video data H04N7/14 ; broadcast or conference over packet switching networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content

Abstract

Methods and systems for supplying media over communication networks are described. In one embodiment, a media supplier determines whether a media object hosted on a web server will be supplied to a client by streaming or not by streaming. Preferably, if the determination is to stream, the media supplier streams the media object to the client. Otherwise, the media supplier preferably allows the host web server to supply the media object to the client. In some cases, the same media supplier may be capable of supplying clients with media objects hosted on any of at least two web servers.

Claims

1. A method of supplying media to clients, comprising:

receiving, by a hardware media supplier, a request for a media object hosted on a web server;

determining, by the hardware media supplier, whether to stream the media object to a client, wherein the determining whether to stream includes;

ascertaining, by the hardware media supplier, whether the media object is a duration definable media object based upon a file name suffix of a format defined in a request header for the media object;

if the determining is to stream, determining, by the hardware media supplier, a part of the media object to stream to the client and streaming the part of the media object to the client to meet a network connection speed of the client; and

if the determining is not to stream, allowing, by the hardware media supplier, the web server to supply the media object by downloading to the client.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is intercepted by a request handler of the hardware media supplier.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising prior to streaming the media object to the client:

receiving a request for the media object from the web server; and

transmitting the media object that is requested.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining the part of the media object to stream, includes:

receiving a selection of the part of the media object from the client.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the streaming of the part of the media object is of less than all of the media object, further comprising:

receiving a selection from the client on whether to stream a remainder of the media object.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

retaining the media object that is streamed to the client in a cache after the media object is streamed to the client.

7. The method of claim 6, the media object that is retained is a prefix of the media object.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

converting the media object from a non-streaming format into a streaming file format.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

adapting at least the part of the media object to meet a parameter of the client.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the parameter comprises the network connection speed of the client.

11. A system for supplying media to clients, comprising:

a request handler in a media supplier, embodied in hardware, for determining whether to stream a media object hosted on a web server to a client or to allow the web server to supply the media object to the client not by streaming, wherein the determining whether to stream includes;

ascertaining whether the media object is a duration definable media object based upon a file name suffix of a format defined in a request header for the media object and if not, allowing the web server to handle the request to have the media object supplied to the client by downloading and determining a part of the media object to stream to the client to meet a network connection speed of the client; and

a streaming engine in the media supplier for streaming the part of the media object to the client.

12. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

a streaming converter in the media supplier for converting a non-streaming format for the media object to a streaming file format.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the request handler is for adapting at least the part of the media object to meet a parameter of the client.

14. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

a cache in the media supplier for caching at least the part of the media object.

15. A system for supplying media to clients, comprising:

a web server for hosting media objects;

and

a hardware media supplier comprising;

a request handler for determining whether to stream a media object hosted on the web server to a client or to allow the web server to supply the media object to the client not by streaming and determining a part of the media object to stream to the client to meet a network connection speed of the client, wherein the determining whether to stream includes;

ascertaining whether the media object is a duration definable media object based upon a file name suffix of a format defined in a request header for the media object and if not, allowing the hosting web server to handle a request for the media object to have the media object supplied to the client by downloading; and

a streaming engine for streaming the part of the media object to the client.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the hardware media supplier and the web server communicate using hypertext transfer protocol.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the web server includes at least two web servers.