Method for enabling bandwidth management for mobile content delivery

• US 8,843,597 B2
• Filed: 03/01/2012
• Issued: 09/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Leblanc, Michael, Glidden, Jody, Hudson, David James, Delong, Ian Brian, Sibbald, Martyn Edward, Powell, Howard Frith
• Primary Examiner(s): Yohannes, Tesfay
• Application Number:
  US13/409,338
• Publication Number:
  US 20120158918A1
• Time in Patent Office: 936 Days
• Field of Search: 709/219, 709/224, 709/246, 370/468
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/822 Collecting or measuring resource availability data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/824 Applicable to portable or mobile terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/828 Allocation of resources per group of connections, e.g. per group of users
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services

Abstract

A system, method and device are disclosed for managing bandwidth in content delivery from a push content server to a wireless device. The system may include: a content server configurable to deliver content to the wireless device; a processor for controlling operation of the server; a communications subsystem coupled to the processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and a storage device coupled to the processor. The content server may include a module for managing bandwidth in content delivery from the content server to the wireless device, the module being configured to cause the content server to: record a policy for the delivery of content to the wireless device; initiate content delivery to the wireless device; evaluate the policy to determine whether new content for delivery is deliverable to the wireless device; deliver content when the policy is satisfied; and decline delivery of content when the policy is not satisfied.

Claims

1. A system for content delivery from a content server to a client device, the system comprising:

a processor configured to execute computer-executable instructions to cause the processor to;

select a mode of transmission for delivering the content to the client device by evaluating a current bandwidth usage according to a predefined policy;

the predefined policy being defined to;

cause selection of a first mode of transmission when the current bandwidth usage is within a predefined bandwidth usage threshold; and

cause selection of a second mode of transmission when the current bandwidth usage is outside of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold; and

deliver content using the selected mode of transmission,

wherein the first mode of transmission comprises one of a carrier mode of transmission, roaming mode of transmission, non-carrier mode of transmission, and a tethered mode of transmission;

wherein the second mode of transmission comprises one of a carrier mode of transmission, roaming mode of transmission, non-carrier mode of transmission, and a tethered mode of transmission; and

wherein the second mode of transmission is different than the first mode of transmission.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first mode of transmission has a higher cost of transmission than the second mode of transmission when the current bandwidth usage is outside of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the policy is for pooled bandwidth and the client device is part of a bandwidth pool, and wherein, when the current bandwidth usage of the client device is outside of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold, the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to:

evaluate the current bandwidth usage based on a pooled bandwidth usage threshold in place of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold when additional bandwidth is available from the bandwidth pool.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the pooled bandwidth usage threshold is based on a size of a remaining content data to be delivered to the client device.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the predefined policy is further defined to cause selection of the first or the second mode of transmission based on at least one of:

bandwidth available, bandwidth cost, type of the content to be transmitted, size of the content to be transmitted, and available modes of transmission.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the content server is a push content server for pushing content to the client device.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein when the selected mode of transmission is not available, the computer executable instructions further cause the processor to:

queue the content for delivery; and

deliver the content using the selected mode of transmission when the selected mode of transmission is available.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected mode of transmission is the second mode of transmission, and wherein the computer executable instructions further cause the processor to:

when the second mode of transmission is not available, and when the current bandwidth usage has dropped below the predetermined bandwidth usage threshold, select the first mode of transmission for delivering the content.

9. A method for content delivery from a content server to a client device, the method comprising:

selecting a mode of transmission for delivering the content to the client device by evaluating a current bandwidth usage according to a predefined policy;

the predefined policy being defined to;

cause selection of a first mode of transmission when the current bandwidth usage is within a predefined bandwidth usage threshold; and

cause selection of a second mode of transmission when the current bandwidth usage is outside of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold; and

delivering content using the selected mode of transmission,

wherein the first mode of transmission comprises one of a carrier mode of transmission, roaming mode of transmission, non-carrier mode of transmission, and a tethered mode of transmission;

wherein the second mode of transmission comprises one of a carrier mode of transmission, roaming mode of transmission, non-carrier mode of transmission, and a tethered mode of transmission; and

wherein the second mode of transmission is different than the first mode of transmission.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first mode of transmission has a higher cost of transmission than the second mode of transmission when the current bandwidth usage is outside of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the policy is for pooled bandwidth and the client device is part of a bandwidth pool, further comprising, when the current bandwidth usage of the client device is outside of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold:

evaluating the current bandwidth usage based on a pooled bandwidth usage threshold in place of the predefined bandwidth usage threshold when additional bandwidth is available from the bandwidth pool.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the pooled bandwidth usage threshold is based on a size of a remaining content data to be delivered to the client device.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined policy is further defined to cause selection of the first or the second mode of transmission based on at least one of:

bandwidth available, bandwidth cost, type of the content to be transmitted, size of the content to be transmitted, and available modes of transmission.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the delivering is performed by the content server.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

when the selected mode of transmission is not available, queuing the content for delivery; and

delivering the content using the selected mode of transmission when the selected mode of transmission is available.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the delivering is performed by the client device.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein the selected mode of transmission is the second mode of transmission, further comprising:

when the second mode of transmission is not available, and when the current bandwidth usage has dropped below the predetermined bandwidth usage threshold, selected the first mode of transmission for delivering the content.