Media adaptive distribution system and method

• US 8,850,498 B1
• Filed: 05/18/2009
• Issued: 09/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Collideo, LLC
• Original Assignee: Collideo, LLC
• Inventors: Roach, Wayne C., Pascal, Gil R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pendleton, Brian T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Luong, Alan
• Application Number:
  US12/467,767
• Time in Patent Office: 1,961 Days
• Field of Search: 725/87, 725/91, 725/98, 725/100, 725/109, 725/110, 725/114, 725/116, 725/117, 725/118, 725/138, 37524001-24027, 380/201, 380/202, 380/210, 380/217
• US Class Current: 725/91
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2347 involving video stream encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2541 Rights Management protecting software against unauthorised usage in a vending or licensing environment G06F21/10; security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4184 providing storage capabilities, e.g. memory stick
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4405 involving video stream decryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand

Abstract

A system and method for distributing digital video contents that provides the content owner, service provider, video distributors and consumers with a method for secure delivery of digital media content by encryption using a portable digital video storage and distribution device that includes a decoder and, wired, USB and HDMI wireless interfaces to transmit digital contents for viewing on a television, laptop/personal computer or other portable viewing devices. The system consists of a remote content-distribution management platform that provides end-to-end protection and a portable digital video storage and distribution device using broadband wireless technologies such as 802.11n and ultra wideband (UWB).

Claims

1. A portable media-on-demand (MOD) contents distribution apparatus comprising:

a media input receiver configured to receive and process an incoming encrypted and encoded media stream from a remote distribution source, the media input receiver comprising;

a media-input interface adaptable to communicate with and to receive the incoming media stream from the remote distribution source; and

a media-input processor configured to decompress and verify user access information of the incoming media stream;

an adaptive transcoder for processing the incoming media stream received by the media input receiver configured to determine the bit rate of the media stream and to decompress the incoming media stream, thereby generating a processed media stream;

a media output component;

a communication processor coupled to the media input receiver and the adaptive transcoder, the communications processor being configured to manipulate the processed media stream to produce a transmission-ready stream; and

a media-output interface adaptable to communicate with the media output component, the media-output interface coupled to the communications processor, the media output component configured to stream transmission-ready stream to a media output device for transmitting to a viewing device; and

a multi-processor device distribution manager;

comprising;

a device distribution management platform;

a computer-readable medium having stored therein data representing the processed media stream, wherein the computer-readable medium is in communication with the adaptive transcoder; and

a processor in communication with the computer-readable medium, the processor having stored therein computer-executable code to manage distribution of the processed media stream.

2. The portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus of claim 1, wherein the viewing device is portable.

3. The portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus of claim 1, wherein the adaptive transcoder comprises:

an adaptive bit rate connection module for determining the appropriate bit rate to generate a processed stream having a second media format adaptable to be viewed on a viewing device from an input stream having a first media format;

a transcoder processor coupled to the adaptive bit rate connection module to generate the processed stream having a second media format;

a decoder processor engine; and

an encoder engine for formatting the processed stream for further transmission.

4. The portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus of claim 1, wherein the media output component is a set-top device.

5. The portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus of claim 1, wherein the media output component is a portable viewing device.

6. The portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus of claim 1, wherein the media output component is a radio-frequency transmitting device coupled to the communications processor, the radio-frequency transmitting device configured to transmit decrypted and decoded digital stream to the media output device.

7. The portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus of claim 1 wherein the media output interface is an USB interface.

8. The portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus of claim 1 wherein the media output interface is a wireless HDMI interface.

9. A computer-based method of distributing media-on-demand (MOD) contents comprising the steps of:

storing data in a computer readable medium, the data being associated with a media stream having a series of frames and DCT coefficients;

storing executable code in a computer processor linked to the computer readable medium;

generating an encrypted and encoded media stream, in response to a user selecting MOD contents via a user interface platform, by encrypting and encoding the user-selected MOD contents via a conditional access management system in a head-end distribution management component at a remote distribution source by executing the computer code using the computer processor;

transmitting the encrypted and encoded media stream via a network to a portable MOD contents distribution apparatus at the user location;

decoding and decrypting the media stream in a transcoding component of the portable MOD contents distribution apparatus, thereby generating a processed stream capable of being transmitted to a viewing device;

adaptively adjusting the bit rate of the processed stream in the transcoding component of the portable MOD contents distribution apparatus for display on a viewing device;

generating a transmission-ready stream from the processed stream using a communication processor;

packetizing the transmission-ready stream using a streaming packetizer system for transmitting the data packets via a media output device wirelessly; and

transmitting the transmission-ready stream via a media output device wirelessly to a portable viewing device;

wherein generating an encrypted and encoded media stream further comprises;

extracting DCT bits in a plurality of frames in the media stream to analyze similarity among the frames in the media stream wherein the DCT bit further comprises sign bits and motion vectors;

flagging varied-value frames wherein the varied-value frames have DCT values different than the DCT of frames in the media stream;

providing a DCT value of a critical scene reference;

calculating a distortion impact value by comparing the varied DCT value of a varied-value frame with the DCT value of the critical scene reference;

calculating a distortion threshold value from the value of the distortion impact;

selecting key frames for encryption by flagging frames having a distortion impact value below the distortion threshold value; and

encrypting the key frames.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising the step of:

storing the media stream in a storage module of the portable MOD contents distribution apparatus.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the network is the Internet.

12. The method of claim 9 further comprising the step of:

communicating the portable MOD contents distribution apparatus with a set-top device to transmit the media stream to the set-top device.

13. The method of claim 9 further comprising the step of watermarking the media stream.

17. A non-transitory computer readable medium programmed to carry out the method of claim 9.

14. A media-on-demand (MOD) contents distribution system comprising:

a remote MOD storage at a remote distribution source;

a contents-distribution manager coupled with the remote MOD storage at a remote distribution source for processing and distributing MOD over a network, the contents-distribution manager comprising;

a user interface platform configured to receive input from user for selecting MOD contents for purchase;

an encryption engine configured to process and encrypt the user-selected media stream at the contents-distribution manager;

an encoder processor engine coupled to the encryption engine for encoding the media stream to generate collectively with the encryption engine, at the contents-distribution manager, a processed media stream adaptable to be transmitted over a network to the user in an encrypted and encoded media stream;

a portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus adaptable to receive the encrypted and encoded media stream over a network at the user end further comprising;

a media input receiver for receiving and processing an incoming encrypted and encoded media stream from a remote distribution source, the media input receiver comprising;

a media-input interface adaptable to communicate with and to receive the incoming media stream from the remote distribution source; and

a media-input processor configured to decompress and verify user access information of the incoming media stream;

an adaptive transcoder for processing the incoming media stream received by the media input receiver configured to determine the bit rate of the media stream and to decompress the incoming media stream, thereby generating a processed media stream;

a media output component;

a communication processor coupled to the media input receiver and the adaptive transcoder, the communications processor being configured to manipulate the processed media stream to produce a transmission-ready stream; and

a media-output interface adaptable to communicate with the media output component, the media-output interface coupled to the communications processor, the media output component configured to stream transmission-ready stream to the media output device for transmitting to a viewing device; and

a multi-processor device distribution manager, the multi-processor device distribution manager comprising;

a device distribution management platform;

a computer-readable medium having stored therein data representing the processed media stream, wherein the computer-readable medium is in communication with the adaptive transcoder; and

a processor in communication with the computer-readable medium, the processor having stored therein computer-executable code to manage distribution of the processed media stream; and

;

a viewing device adaptable to receive MOD stream from a portable media-on-demand contents distribution apparatus.

15. The media-on-demand contents distribution system of claim 14, wherein the network is the Internet.

16. The media-on-demand contents distribution system of claim 14 further includes a set-top device at the user end.