Method and system for remotely transcoding content

• US 8,887,207 B2
• Filed: 01/12/2012
• Issued: 11/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/12/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DIRECTV, LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: The DIRECTV Group, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Syed, Khader B., Casavant, Scott D., Lee, Sean S., Joseph, Kuriacose, Guzman, Jorge H., Koehlein, Michael J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Chenea
• Application Number:
  US13/349,271
• Publication Number:
  US 20140130106A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,034 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/68
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2343 involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements video transcoding H04N19/40; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234309 by transcoding between formats or standards, e.g. from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 or from Quicktime to Realvideo conversion of standards in analog television systems H04N7/01
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/254 Management at additional data server, e.g. shopping server, rights management server arrangements for maintenance or administration in data networks H04L41/00; network services using third party service providers H04L67/53
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4126 The peripheral being portable, e.g. PDAs or mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/436 Interfacing a local distribution network, e.g. communicating with another STB or one or more peripheral devices inside the home
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440218 by transcoding between formats or standards, e.g. from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 conversion of standards in analogue television systems H04N7/01
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content 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 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6143 involving transmission via a satellite

Abstract

A system and method for remotely transcoding content includes a set top box generating a playlist corresponding to content titles stored in a memory of the set top box. A user device is in communication with the cloud location and the set top box through a network. The user device reviews the playlist and selects a first content title from the playlist to form a selection. The cloud location includes a transcoder device transcoding content corresponding to the selection to form transcoded content. One of the cloud location and the set top box communicates the transcoded content to the user device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

transcoding content at a transcoder device to form transcoded content;

communicating the transcoded content to a set top box;

generating a playlist corresponding to transcoded content stored in the set top box;

communicating the playlist to a user device;

selecting a first content title from the playlist at the user device to form a selection; and

communicating the transcoded content corresponding to the selection from the set top box to the user device.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein generating the playlist comprises generating the playlist and communicating the playlist to a cloud location.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein transcoding content comprises communicating content simultaneously to the set top box and the transcode device wherein the transcoder device forms the transcoded content.

4. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein transcoding content comprises communicating content from the set top box through a network to the transcoder device to form transcoded content.

5. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein transcoding content is performed in response to receiving a request at a server associated with the transcoder device.

6. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising communicating the selection to the set top box.

7. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising storing the transcoded content in the set top box.

8. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising generating a request for the playlist at the user device and communicating the request for the playlist to the set top box.

9. The method as recited in claim 8 wherein communicating the request for the playlist to the set top box comprises communicating the request through a satellite.

10. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising generating a request for the playlist at the user device and communicating the request for the playlist to the set top box from a server located remotely from the set top box.

11. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising generating a request for the playlist at the user device and communicating the request to the set top box from a cloud location.

12. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising communicating the transcoded content to the set top box and wherein communicating the transcoded content to the user device comprises communicating the transcoded content to the user device from a cloud location.

13. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising storing a plurality of content in a storage device associated with a server located remotely from a set top box.

14. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein communicating transcoded content comprises communicating transcoded content from a server associated with the transcoder device to the user device.

15. The method as recited in claim 14 further comprising communicating the playlist to a cloud location from the set top box.

16. A system comprising:

a cloud location comprising a transcoder device transcoding content to form transcoded content and communicating the transcoded content;

a set top box receiving the transcoded content and generating a playlist corresponding to the transcoded content stored therein;

a user device in communication with the cloud location and the set top box through a network, said user device reviews the playlist and selects a first content title from the playlist to form a selection; and

the set top box communicating the transcoded content corresponding to the selection to the user device.

17. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the set top box communicates the playlist to the to the cloud location.

18. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the set top box communicates content through the network to the transcoder device to form transcoded content.

19. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the transcoder device receives content simultaneously with the set top box and wherein the transcoder device transcodes the content.

20. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the set top box receives the selection.

21. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the set top box stores content in the set top box.

22. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the user device generates a request for the playlist and communicates the request for the playlist to the set top box.

23. The system as recited in claim 22 further comprising a head end and a satellite, wherein the user device communicates the request for the playlist to the set top box through the satellite and the head end.

24. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the user device generates a request for the playlist and communicates the request for the playlist to the set top box from a server located remotely from the set top box.

25. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the transcoding device stores the transcoded content in a storage device located remotely from the set top box.

26. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the user device communicates a request for the playlist to the cloud location and the cloud location communicates the request to the set top box.

27. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein the cloud location communicates transcoded content to the set top box.

28. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein a storage device stores a plurality of content located remotely from the set top box.

29. The system as recited in claim 16 wherein a server associated with the transcoder device communicates transcoded content to the user device.

30. The system as recited in claim 29 wherein the set top box communicates the playlist to the cloud location from the set top box.