Delivery of content

• US 8,984,144 B2
• Filed: 09/27/2011
• Issued: 03/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Schapira, Agustin, Lee, Yiu Leung
• Primary Examiner(s): Yohannes, Tesfay
• Application Number:
  US13/246,350
• Publication Number:
  US 20120226770A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 709/218, 709/227, 709/238, 725/98
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1021 based on client or server locations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for a pull model for delivery of data such as content metadata among interconnected content delivery networks (CDNi), allowing for accurate metadata information in appropriate edge servers in a large CDNi system. When a request for an asset in a CDN (CDN A) is to be served by another, interconnected CDN (CDN B), a link to the location where the metadata is stored within CDN A can be provided along with the request for CDN B to serve the content to the user. The link can be passed to the appropriate edge device in CDN B, which can retrieve the metadata to set up and support the content session. The encrypted information can also be passed recursively by CDN B to other CDNs with which it is interconnected.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving from a client device, by a first content delivery network (CDN), a first request for a content item, wherein the first request is received over a data network;

determining, by a computing device associated with the first CDN, to forward the first request for the content item to a second CDN different from the first CDN;

sending a query from the first CDN to a determined application programming interface (API) of the second CDN to obtain a location associated with the content item in the second CDN;

after receiving a query response from the second CDN, sending the location of the content item in the second CDN to the client device;

receiving at the first CDN, from the second CDN, a request for metadata associated with the content item; and

sending the metadata associated with the content item to the second CDN.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determined application programming interface (API) is published by a routing service of the second CDN.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the query comprises sending an HTTP POST message.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the HTTP POST message includes an internet protocol (IP) address of the client device and an address of the metadata within the first CDN.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the query response further comprises a signature usable to interpret and verify a validity of the query response.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the query response is sent in an HTTP OK message.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the location of the content item in the second CDN to the client device comprises sending an HTTP Redirect message to the client device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein forwarding the first request for the content item to a second CDN different from the first CDN comprises assigning the first request to the second CDN.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the query comprises a link to a location where the metadata is stored in the first CDN, and wherein the request for metadata received at the first CDN from the second CDN is based on the link.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising the second CDN determining to forward the request for the content item to a third CDN;

and

the second CDN passing the link to the third CDN.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising the second CDN dereferencing the link to obtain the metadata.

9. One or more non-transitory computer readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause a data processing system within a first content delivery network (CDN) to perform:

receiving from a client device a first request for a content item, wherein the first request is sent over a data network;

determining to forward the first request for the content item to a second CDN different from the first CDN;

sending a query from the first CDN to a determined application programming interface (API) of the second CDN to obtain a location associated with the content item in the second CDN;

after receiving a query response from the second CDN, sending the location of the content item in the second CDN to the client device;

receiving from the second CDN, a request for metadata associated with the content item; and

sending the metadata associated with the content item to the second CDN.

10. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 9, wherein the determined application programming interface (API) is published by a routing service of the second CDN.

11. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 9, wherein sending the query comprises sending an HTTP POST message.

12. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the HTTP POST message includes an internet protocol (IP) address of the client device and an address of the metadata within the first CDN.

13. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 9, wherein the query response further comprises a signature usable to interpret and verify a validity of the query response.

14. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 9, wherein the query response is sent in an HTTP OK message.

15. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 9, wherein sending the location of the content item in the second CDN to the client device comprises sending an HTTP Redirect message to the client device.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 9, wherein forwarding the first request for the content item to a second CDN different from the first CDN comprises assigning the first request to the second CDN.

23. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 9, wherein the query comprises a link to a location where the metadata is stored in the first CDN, and wherein the request for metadata received at the first CDN from the second CDN is based on the link.

24. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 23, further comprising the second CDN dereferencing the link to obtain the metadata.

17. A method comprising:

receiving from a first content delivery network (CDN), at a second CDN different from the first CDN, a query for a location associated with a content item to be sent to a client device by the second CDN;

sending a query response from the second CDN to the first CDN, the query response comprising the location associated with the content item in the second CDN and comprising a signature usable to verify a validity of the query response;

after sending the query response, receiving at the second CDN, from the client device, a request for the content item;

based on the request for the content item, querying the first CDN for metadata associated with the content item; and

determining whether to send the content item to the client device based on the metadata received from the first CDN.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the query is received in the form of an HTTP POST command comprising an internet protocol (IP) address of the client device and an address of the metadata.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the query response comprises a signature usable to interpret and verify a validity of the query response, and wherein the request for the content item comprises the signature.