System and method for providing an interactive program guide for past, current, and future programming

• US 9,038,104 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2014
• Issued: 05/19/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Angiolillo, Joel, Cordero, Angel, Zhang, Xi
• Primary Examiner(s): CORBO, NICHOLAS T
• Application Number:
  US14/286,225
• Publication Number:
  US 20140259070A1
• Time in Patent Office: 361 Days
• Field of Search: 725/39, 725/40, 725/44, 725/50, 725/52
• US Class Current: 725/40
• 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 21/4221 Dedicated function buttons, e.g. for the control of an EPG, subtitles, aspect ratio, picture-in-picture or teletext
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• 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 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to a system and method for providing a program guide for past programming comprising receiving a user command to retrieve program data, retrieving the program data from a data source, and outputting, to a display device, the program data in response to receiving the user command. The program data may comprise information relating to previously-aired programming.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

displaying to a user a menu listing current, future, and previously-aired programming;

receiving, at an electronic receiver, a user command to retrieve program data, the program data comprising new facts relating to the previously-aired programming that were unavailable when the previously-aired programming was originally broadcast;

in response to receiving the user command retrieving, by a processor, the program data from a data source; and

outputting, to a display device, the retrieved program data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the data source comprises at least one of a database, a network provider, and a third party source.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the menu lists the current, future, and previously-aired programming chronologically and sequentially by channel.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the program data further comprises rebroadcast information for at least one of the current, future, and previously-aired programming.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the program data is displayed as a customized interactive program menu.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the program data further comprises at least one of program information, reviews, advertisement information, social network information, and statistics.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the statistics comprise event information from an event that occurred in the previously-aired programming.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the event was a sporting event and the statistics comprise a final score of the sporting event.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the menu displays a current time, thereby allowing the user to distinguish between the current, future, and previously-aired programming.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the retrieved program data is output in a submenu of the menu such that the user cannot see the new facts until bringing up the submenu.

11. A non-transitory computer readable media comprising code to perform the acts of the method of claim 1.

12. A system, comprising:

a receiver configured to receive a user command to display program data in an interactive program menu that lists current, future, and previously-aired programming, wherein the program data comprises information for the previously-aired programming, the information comprising new facts that were unavailable when the previously-aired programming was originally broadcast;

a processor configured to retrieve the program data from a data source in response to receiving the user command; and

an output configured to output, to a display device, the retrieved program data.

13. A method, comprising:

receiving program data from at least one data source, wherein the program data comprises new facts relating to previously-aired programming that was unavailable when the previously-aired programming was originally broadcast;

storing the program data in at least one database for retrieval and display upon user command;

displaying to a user a menu listing current, future, and the previously-aired programming;

receiving from the user, at an electronic receiver, a user command to display the program data; and

outputting, to a display device, the program data in response to receiving the user command.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the menu lists the current, future, and previously-aired programming chronologically and sequentially by channel.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the program data further comprises at least one of program information, rebroadcast information, reviews, advertisement information, social network information, scores, and statistics.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the statistics comprise event information from an event that occurred in the previously-aired programming.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the menu displays a current time, thereby allowing the user to distinguish between the current, future, and previously-aired programming.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising receiving, at the electronic receiver, a user command to retrieve program data for the current programming or the future programming.

19. A non-transitory computer readable media comprising code to perform the acts of the method of claim 13.

20. A system, comprising:

a receiver configured to receive program data from at least one data source, wherein the program data comprises new facts relating to previously-aired programming and that was unavailable when the previously-aired programming was originally broadcast;

at least one database configured to store the program data for retrieval and display upon user command; and

a media control station configured to;

display an interactive program guide listing current, future, and the previously-aired programming;

receive a user command to display the program data; and

output, to a display device, the program data in response to receiving the user command.