Service layer assisted change of multimedia stream access delivery

• US 8,661,155 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2008
• Issued: 02/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Gabin, Frederic, Roth, Gran
• Primary Examiner(s): Winder, Patrice
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chang, Julian
• Application Number:
  US12/346,314
• Publication Number:
  US 20100169504A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,883 Days
• Field of Search: 709230-235, 725/22, 725/32, 725/36, 725/62
• US Class Current: 709/235
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1083 In-session procedures
• 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: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/30 Resource management for broadcast services

Abstract

A streaming server sends a multimedia stream for delivery by a hybrid unicast-broadcast delivery network to a mobile terminal. To assist that mobile terminal change access delivery from unicast to broadcast, the streaming server sends multimedia content timing information that indicates one or more interstices in the content of the multimedia stream. The mobile terminal receives such multimedia content timing information upon receiving the multimedia stream by unicast. Although the mobile terminal determines the same multimedia stream is also available by broadcast, the mobile terminal initiates a change from unicast to broadcast during an interstice. Because the mobile terminal delays the access change until an interstice, any data loss resulting from the access change has a minimal effect on a subscriber'"'"'s experience of the multimedia content. Moreover, regular occurrence of interstices ensures that such change will not be significantly delayed, and thus, neither will use of broadcast.

Claims

1. A method in a mobile terminal of changing access delivery of a multimedia stream from unicast delivery to broadcast/multicast delivery in a hybrid unicast-broadcast delivery network, comprising:

receiving the multimedia stream by unicast delivery over a unicast bearer;

receiving multimedia content timing information that indicates, in advance, when one or more interstices in the content of the multimedia stream will occur, and that also indicates whether an access change during each of the one or more interstices is forbidden;

selectively checking, at one or more times associated with said one or more interstices indicated by the multimedia content timing information, whether the same multimedia stream is also available by broadcast/multicast delivery over a broadcast/multicast bearer; and

selectively initiating a change from unicast delivery of the multimedia stream to broadcast/multicast delivery during an interstice associated with a time at which said checking indicates availability of the multimedia stream by broadcast/multicast delivery, if the multimedia content timing information does not indicate that a change during that interstice is forbidden.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein selectively initiating a change from unicast delivery of the multimedia stream to broadcast/multicast delivery comprises initiating a change if the multimedia stream has been received by unicast delivery for a minimum period of time.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising requesting the multimedia content timing information.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving the multimedia content timing information comprises decoding a message that is received when the mobile terminal begins to receive the multimedia stream by unicast delivery and that is known to have the multimedia content timing information appended thereto.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving the multimedia content timing information comprises decoding one of a Real-Time Streaming Protocol message, a Real-time Transport Protocol packet, or a File Delivery over Unidirectional Transport (FLUTE) packet.

6. The method of claim 1,

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises one or more multimedia programs and one or more commercial advertisements, and the one or more interstices occur either during said commercial advertisements or during a break between a multimedia program and a commercial advertisement;

or

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises a motion picture film and one or more scene cuts therein, and the one or more interstices occur during said scene cuts.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein a time associated with an interstice comprises a time immediately before that interstice.

8. A mobile terminal comprising:

a receiver for communicatively coupling the mobile terminal with a streaming server and configured to receive a multimedia stream from the streaming server by unicast delivery over a unicast bearer or by broadcast/multicast delivery over a broadcast/multicast bearer; and

one or more processing circuits communicatively coupled to the receiver and configured to change access delivery of the multimedia stream from unicast delivery to broadcast/multicast delivery in a hybrid unicast-broadcast delivery network by;

receiving from the streaming server multimedia content timing information that indicates, in advance, when one or more interstices in the content of the multimedia stream will occur, and that also indicates whether an access change during each of the one or more interstices is forbidden;

selectively checking, at one or more times associated with said one or more interstices indicated by the multimedia content timing information, whether the same multimedia stream is also available from the streaming server by broadcast/multicast delivery; and

selectively initiating a change from unicast delivery of the multimedia stream to broadcast/multicast delivery during an interstice associated with a time at which said checking indicates availability of the multimedia stream by broadcast/multicast delivery, if the multimedia content timing information does not indicate that a change during that interstice is forbidden.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 8 wherein the one or more processing circuits are configured to selectively initiate a change from unicast delivery of the multimedia stream to broadcast/multicast delivery by initiating a change if the multimedia stream has been received by unicast delivery for a minimum period of time.

10. The mobile terminal of claim 8 wherein the one or more processing circuits are further configured to request the multimedia content timing information from the streaming server.

11. The mobile terminal of claim 8 wherein the one or more processing circuits are configured to receive the multimedia content timing information by decoding a message that is received when the mobile terminal begins to receive the multimedia stream by unicast delivery and that is known to have the multimedia content timing information appended thereto.

12. The mobile terminal of claim 8 wherein the one or more processing circuits are configured to receive the multimedia content timing information by decoding one of a Real-Time Streaming Protocol message, a Real-time Transport Protocol packet, or a File Delivery Over Unidirectional Transport (FLUTE) packet.

13. The mobile terminal of claim 8,

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises one or more multimedia programs and one or more commercial advertisements, and the one or more interstices occur either during said commercial advertisements or during a break between a multimedia program and a commercial advertisement;

or

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises a motion picture film and one or more scene cuts therein, and the one or more interstices occur during said scene cuts.

14. The mobile terminal of claim 8, wherein a time associated with an interstice comprises a time immediately before that interstice.

15. A method in a streaming server of assisting a mobile terminal change access delivery of a multimedia stream from unicast delivery to broadcast/multicast delivery in a hybrid unicast-broadcast delivery network, comprising:

sending the multimedia stream for unicast and broadcast delivery by said network to one or more mobile terminals;

determining multimedia content timing information that indicates when one or more interstices in the content of the multimedia stream will occur;

indicating as part of the multimedia content timing information whether an access change during each of the one or more interstices is forbidden; and

sending said multimedia content timing information to each of one or more mobile terminals when that mobile terminal begins to receive the multimedia stream from said network by unicast delivery.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein sending said multimedia content timing information to one or more mobile terminals comprises sending the multimedia content timing information responsive to a request from the one or more mobile terminals.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein sending said multimedia content timing information to one or more mobile terminals comprises appending the multimedia content timing information to a message known by the one or more mobile terminals to have the multimedia content timing information appended thereto.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein sending said multimedia content timing information to one or more mobile terminals comprises sending one of a Real-Time Streaming Protocol message, a Real-time Transport Protocol packet, or a File Delivery Over Unidirectional Transport (FLUTE) packet.

19. The method of claim 15,

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises one or more multimedia programs and one or more commercial advertisements, and the one or more interstices occur either during said commercial advertisements or during a break between a multimedia program and a commercial advertisement;

or

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises a motion picture film and one or more scene cuts therein, and the one or more interstices occur during said scene cuts.

20. A streaming server configured to assist a mobile terminal change access delivery of a multimedia stream from unicast delivery to broadcast/multicast delivery in a hybrid unicast-broadcast delivery network, comprising:

a stream processing circuit configured to establish and manage the multimedia stream;

an interstice determining circuit configured to determine multimedia content timing information that indicates when one or more interstices in the content of the multimedia stream will occur and to indicate as part of the multimedia content timing information whether an access change during each of the one or more interstices is forbidden; and

a network interface circuit configured to send the multimedia stream for unicast and broadcast delivery by said network to one or more mobile terminals and to send the multimedia content timing information to each of one or more mobile terminals when that mobile terminal begins to receive the multimedia stream from said network by unicast delivery.

21. The streaming server of claim 20 wherein the network interface circuit is configured to send the multimedia content timing information to one or more mobile terminals responsive to a request from the one or more mobile terminals.

22. The streaming server of claim 20 wherein the network interface circuit is configured to send the multimedia content timing information to one or more mobile terminals by appending the multimedia content timing information to a message known by the one or more mobile terminals to have the multimedia content timing information appended thereto.

23. The streaming server of claim 20 wherein the network interface circuit is configured to send the multimedia content timing information to one or more mobile terminals by sending one of a Real-Time Streaming Protocol message, a Real-time Transport Protocol packet, or a File Delivery Over Unidirectional Transport (FLUTE) packet.

24. The streaming server of claim 20,

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises one or more multimedia programs and one or more commercial advertisements, and the one or more interstices occur either during said commercial advertisements or during a break between a multimedia program and a commercial advertisement;

or

wherein the content of the multimedia stream comprises a motion picture film and one or more scene cuts therein, and the one or more interstices occur during said scene cuts.