Methods, systems, and computer products for implementing content conversion and presentation services

• US 8,543,912 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2006
• Issued: 09/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Yu, Ke
• Primary Examiner(s): Hutton, Jr., Doug
• Assistant Examiner(s): DYER, ANDREW R
• Application Number:
  US11/599,717
• Publication Number:
  US 20080115162A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,506 Days
• Field of Search: 715/255, 715/730
• US Class Current: 715/255
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/28 Arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/82 using signals not modulated onto a carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/72 using electronic programme guides [EPG] focusing on identifying broadcast space time H04H60/39 ; menu type display of EPG in television receivers H04N21/47
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/73 using meta-information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234336 by media transcoding, e.g. video is transformed into a slideshow of still pictures or audio is converted into text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26258 for generating a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlist, or scheduling item distribution according to such list retrieval of multimedia data based on playlists G06F16/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/60 for the sound signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer products for content conversion and presentation enabled services for television and Internet Protocol television applications. In exemplary embodiments, the system and method identify program content having embedded text, apply a conversion to the program content to extract voice data and play voice data in conjunction with the program content.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

extracting, by a computer processor in a content services provider system, embedded text from program content, the content services provider system providing program content to a user over a network;

converting, by the computer processor in the content services provider system, the embedded text extracted from the program content to voice data, wherein the embedded text includes a plurality of text fields, each text field converted to individual voice data;

creating a playlist comprising the embedded text and corresponding voice data such that the voice data is generated prior to a request for voice data from the user, the playlist including the embedded text and corresponding voice data;

storing the playlist on a storage device coupled to the content services provider system;

transmitting the program content and the playlist including the embedded text and corresponding voice data over the network to a program receiving device;

providing the program content including the embedded text and an indicator at a program screen of the program receiving device, the indicator specifying availability of the voice data, each text field converted to individual voice data being individually accessed by a navigation tool of the program receiving device;

in response to selection of a text field converted to individual voice data via the navigation tool of the program receiving device, providing the voice data from the playlist for the embedded text of the text field corresponding to the program content; and

displaying embedded text of the text field while playing streamed voice, the streamed voice representing the voice data corresponding to the embedded text;

wherein the program content includes television programming and an onscreen programming guide;

wherein creating the playlist includes;

configuring a data structure for the play list;

storing the embedded text for the play list in a first set of memory addresses of the data structure;

storing the voice data in a second set of memory addresses of the data structure; and

providing an index of the first and second set of memory addresses with an association between the embedded text and the voice data for the play list.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the onscreen programming guide comprises program titles, actors, begin time, and a brief description of the program content.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the program content includes a text stream having a format provided by a content services provider.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the program content includes video on demand programming.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the program content further includes premium channel programming.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the play list includes image data.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the program content corresponds to ecommerce.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the program content comprises video metadata;

wherein the voice data for the embedded text comprises artist name, title of the program content, genre, and artist biography.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the program content is Internet Protocol television content.