System and method for effectively transmitting content items to electronic devices

• US 8,572,211 B2
• Filed: 07/09/2008
• Issued: 10/29/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Carpio, Fredrik, Frazier, Milton, Georgis, Nikolaos
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Jungwon
• Application Number:
  US12/217,808
• Publication Number:
  US 20100011092A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,938 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/226, 709/229, 709/238, 709/206, 709/219, 705/14, 705/26, 715/526, 715/733, 715/745, 725/10, 725/74, 707/621, 707/5, 455/456.1, 455/436, 455/432.3, 370/277
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

A system and method for effectively transmitting content items to electronic devices includes a content server that is configured to access and store various types of content information. A recommendation engine of the content server analyzes network statistics and client profiles to identify appropriate content items for device users of the electronic devices. A transmitter receives the targeted content items from the content server, and responsively provides the content items to the electronic devices by broadcasting the content items over a unidirectional telecommunications link.

Claims

1. A system for supporting a content distribution procedure, comprising:

a content server comprising;

a content database that stores content items and a client profile associated with a user of an electronic device; and

a recommendation engine operable to;

analyze network statistics of said user based on usage of computer devices in an electronic network by said user, wherein said electronic device is not one of said computer devices in said electronic network;

automatically select a content from said content items based on said network statistics and said client profile; and

transmit said selected content to a transmitter,

wherein said transmitter automatically broadcasts said content to said electronic device through a unidirectional telecommunication link,

wherein said electronic device is implemented without a wireless transmission capability.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said electronic device is a portable wireless device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said electronic device comprises a wireless receiver without a transmission capability.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said content items comprise one or more of:

news data, traffic data, weather data, audio/video data, program guide data, and Internet website data.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said content server comprises said recommendation engine that automatically selects said content for sending to said electronic device.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said network statistics comprises Internet browsing statistics.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said client profile is manually created by said user.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said client profile is automatically created by said content server by analyzing said network statistics.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said client profile comprises demographic information corresponding to said user.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said demographic information comprises one or more of:

a client age, a client gender, a client location, a client ethnicity, a client marital status, client family information, a client annual income bracket, a client occupation, client hobbies, client interests, and a client political affiliation.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein said transmitter is a radio-frequency television broadcasting transmitter.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein a content manager of said electronic device determines whether to accept said content based upon a content acceptance criteria.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein said content acceptance criteria is manually programmed as a user preference by said user.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein a content manager of said electronic device locally stores said content and determines whether said locally-stored content is obsolete.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein said content manager performs a content update procedure by periodically deleting said obsolete content.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein a content manager of said electronic device presents an information window interface to said user for cataloguing and navigating said content.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein a content manager of said electronic device indicates to said user that requested functionalities are unavailable and wherein said content manager offers said user one or more alternative functionalities.

18. The system of claim 1, further comprising additional electronic devices that each receives different targeted content items on different respective unidirectional transmission channels.

19. A method for supporting a content distribution procedure, comprising:

in a content server;

storing content items and a client profile associated with a user of an electronic device;

analyze network statistics of said user based on usage of computer devices in an electronic network by said user, wherein said electronic device is not one of said computer devices in said electronic network;

selecting a content from said content items by a recommendation engine in said content server based on said network statistics and said client profile; and

transmitting said selected content to a transmitter,

wherein said transmitter automatically broadcasts said content to said electronic device through a unidirectional telecommunication link,

wherein said electronic device is implemented without a wireless transmission capability.