Dynamic audio track selection for media streaming

• US 8,954,540 B2
• Filed: 08/06/2012
• Issued: 02/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adeia Media Holdings LLC (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Brightcove Incorporated
• Inventors: McGowan, Albert John, Carls, Richard I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tammy
• Application Number:
  US13/567,681
• Publication Number:
  US 20120303766A1
• Time in Patent Office: 918 Days
• Field of Search: 709/213, 709/220, 709/218, 709/219, 375/240.26, 725/32
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2183 Cache memory caches in web servers or browsers G06F16/9574; intermediate storage and caching in data networks H04L67/568
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23106 involving caching operations prefetching while addressing of a memory level in which the access to the desired data or data block requires associative addressing means within memory systems or architectures G06F12/0862; caching at an intermediate stage in a data network H04L67/568
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2393 involving handling client requests scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26258 for generating a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlist, or scheduling item distribution according to such list retrieval of multimedia data based on playlists G06F16/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8455 involving pointers to the content, e.g. pointers to the I-frames of the video stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing index files for dynamic audio track selection for media streaming can include receiving requests for media file segments (e.g., “chunks”) with a certain audio track and responding to the requests by dynamically generating the corresponding media file segment with the requested audio track. The generated media file segment can then be provided to the requesting entity.

Claims

1. A server for communicating a media file via a network, the server comprising:

an interface for communicating with the network;

a memory configured to store the media file; and

a processor communicatively coupled with the memory and the interface, the processor further configured to cause the server to;

receive, with the interface, a request for a first segment of the media file, the first segment comprising one of a plurality of separately-addressable segments of the media file;

determine, based on the request for the first segment of the media file, a starting point and an ending point of the requested first segment of the media file;

retrieve a first portion of the media file from the memory, wherein;

the first portion of the media file includes at least the requested first segment of the media file, and the first portion of the media file includes a video component and at least one audio track;

generate the requested first segment of the media file, wherein;

the requested first segment of the media file has a single audio track, and the requested first segment of the media file is generated, at least in part, from the first portion of the media file without transcoding; and

provide, with the interface, the requested first segment of the media file;

wherein generating the requested first segment of the media file occurs during playback of the media file.

2. The server recited in claim 1 wherein the processor is configured to cause the server to:

receive, with the interface, a request for a second segment of the media file, the second segment comprising one of the plurality of separately-addressable segments of the media file;

determine, based on the request for the second segment of the media file, a starting point and an ending point of the requested second segment of the media file;

retrieve a second portion of the media file from the memory, wherein the second portion of the media file includes at least the requested second segment of the media file;

generate the requested second segment of the media file, wherein the requested second segment of the media file has a single audio track different than the single audio track of the requested first segment of the media file; and

provide, with the interface, the requested second segment of the media file.

3. The server recited in claim 2, wherein the first portion of the media file and the second portion of the media file are the same.

4. The server recited in claim 2, wherein the first portion of the media file and the second portion of the media file comprise the entire media file.

5. The server recited in claim 1, wherein the video component and the at least one audio track are stored in separate files.

6. The server recited in claim 1, wherein the video component and the at least one audio track are stored in a single file.

7. The server recited in claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to cause the server to:

generate a file comprising the media file with the single audio track; and

store the generated file in the memory;

wherein the first portion of the media file comprises the generated file.

8. The server recited in claim 7, wherein generating the file comprises combining audio from a first file and video from a second file.

9. The server recited in claim 1, wherein:

the at least one audio track comprises two or more audio tracks; and

the processor is configured to cause the server to select the single audio track from the two or more audio tracks based on information received in the request for the first segment of the media file.

10. A method for streaming a media file via a data network, the method comprising:

receiving a request for a first segment of the media file, the first segment comprising one of a plurality of separately-addressable segments of the media file;

determining, based on the request for the first segment of the media file, a starting point and an ending point of the requested first segment of the media file;

retrieving a first portion of the media file, wherein;

the first portion of the media file includes at least the requested first segment of the media file, and the first portion of the media file includes a video component and at least one audio track;

generating, with a processing unit, the requested first segment of the media file, wherein;

the requested first segment of the media file has a single audio track, and the requested first segment of the media file is generated, at least in part, from the first portion of the media file without transcoding; and

providing the requested first segment of the media file;

wherein generating the requested first segment of the media file occurs during playback of the media file.

11. The method recited in claim 10, further comprising:

receiving a request for a second segment of the media file, the second segment comprising one of the plurality of separately-addressable segments of the media file;

determining, based on the request for the second segment of the media file, a starting point and an ending point of the requested second segment of the media file;

retrieving a second portion of the media file, wherein the second portion of the media file includes at least the requested second segment of the media file;

generating, with the processing unit, the requested second segment of the media file, wherein the requested second segment of the media file has a single audio track different than the single audio track of the requested first segment of the media file; and

providing the requested second segment of the media file.

12. The method recited in claim 10, wherein the video component and the at least one audio track are stored in separate files.

13. The method recited in claim 10, further comprising:

generating a file comprising the media file with the single audio track; and

storing the generated file;

wherein the first portion of the media file comprises the generated file.

14. The method recited in claim 13 wherein generating the file comprises combining audio from a first file and video from a second file.

15. The method recited in claim 10 wherein the at least one audio track comprises a plurality of audio tracks, the method further comprising selecting the single audio track from the plurality of audio tracks based on information received in the request for the first segment of the media file.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions embedded thereon for streaming a media file via a data network, the instructions including computer code for:

receiving a request for a first segment of the media file, the first segment comprising one of a plurality of separately-addressable segments of the media file;

determining, based on the request for the first segment of the media file, a starting point and an ending point of the requested first segment of the media file;

retrieving a first portion of the media file, wherein;

the first portion of the media file includes at least the requested first segment of the media file, and the first portion of the media file includes a video component and at least one audio track;

generating the requested first segment of the media file, wherein;

the requested first segment of the media file has a single audio track, and the requested first segment of the media file is generated, at least in part, from the first portion of the media file without transcoding; and

providing the requested first segment of the media file;

wherein generating the requested first segment of the media file occurs during playback of the media file.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions include computer code for:

receiving a request for a second segment of the media file, the second segment comprising one of the plurality of separately-addressable segments of the media file;

determining, based on the request for the second segment of the media file, a starting point and an ending point of the requested second segment of the media file;

retrieving a second portion of the media file, wherein the second portion of the media file includes at least the requested second segment of the media file;

generating the requested second segment of the media file, wherein the requested second segment of the media file has a single audio track different than the single audio track of the requested first segment of the media file; and

providing the requested second segment of the media file.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the video component and the at least one audio track are stored in separate files.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions include computer code for:

generating a file comprising the media file with the single audio track; and

storing the generated file;

wherein the first portion of the media file comprises the generated file.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, wherein generating the file comprises combining audio from a first file and video from a second file.