Media content discovery in an integrated media service that distributes media content by way of a plurality of different media distribution models

• US 9,043,837 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2013
• Issued: 05/26/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon and Redbox Digital Entertainment Services, LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Roberts, Brian F., Maskatia, Imran Arif, Bowers, Paul Bradley, Harris, Jeffrey L.
• Primary Examiner(s): MENGESHA, MULUGETA A
• Application Number:
  US14/043,589
• Publication Number:
  US 20140157314A1
• Time in Patent Office: 602 Days
• Field of Search: 725/40, 725 44- 45, 725/61, 725 52- 54
• US Class Current: 725/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0607 Regulated
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/20 Servers specifically adapted for the distribution of content, e.g. VOD servers; Operations thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/218 Source of audio or video content , e.g. local disk arrays details of retrieval in video databases G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/27 Server based end-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/40 Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/472 End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content end-user interfaces for retrieving video data from a database G06F16/739; network services for supporting unicast streaming H04L65/612
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• 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 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895

Abstract

An exemplary method includes a media service provider system 1) providing an end user of an integrated media service with access to a media program by way of a plurality of different media distribution models, 2) maintaining a catalog that includes comprehensive information about the media program, the comprehensive information being an aggregate of non-redundant information about the media program obtained from a plurality of independent source catalogs corresponding to the plurality of different media distribution models, and 3) providing, based on the comprehensive information included in the catalog, a media service user interface that supports discovery of the comprehensive information about the media program regardless of a user interface context from which a user request for information about the media program is received. Corresponding systems and methods are also described.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

providing, by a media service provider system, an end user of a media service with access to a media program by way of a plurality of different media distribution models;

maintaining, by the media service provider system, a catalogue that includes comprehensive information about the media program, the comprehensive information being an aggregate of non-redundant information about the media program obtained from a plurality of independent source catalogues corresponding to the plurality of different media distribution models; and

providing, by the media service provider system based on the comprehensive information included in the catalogue, a media service user interface that supports discovery of the comprehensive information about the media program regardless of a user interface context from which a user request for information about the media program is received;

wherein the comprehensive information includes information regarding a particular distribution model included in the plurality of different distribution models that is not represented in the user interface context from which the user request for information about the media program is received.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing of the media service user interface comprises:

providing a filtered browse view for display on a display screen, the filtered browse view providing a particular user interface context in which only media programs accessible by way a particular one of the media distribution models are represented in the filtered browse view;

receiving, within the filtered browse view, the user request for information about the media program; and

providing an information view for the media program for display in response to the receiving of the user request, the information view for the media program including the comprehensive information about the media program.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the comprehensive information about the media program included in the information view comprises:

information about the media program that is specific to the particular one of the media distribution models; and

information about the media program that is specific to another one of the media distribution models.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein:

the information specific to the particular one of the media distribution models indicates one or more media formats of the media program associated with the particular one of the media distribution models; and

the information specific to the another one of the media distribution models indicates one or more additional media formats of the media program associated with the another one of the media distribution models.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the comprehensive information about the media program included in the information view comprises information about the media program not associated with the particular one of the media distribution models.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the comprehensive information about the media program included in the information view indicates each of the media distribution models by way of which the media program is accessible through the media service.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing of the media service user interface comprises providing a browse view that includes a filter bar having a plurality of user-selectable filter options corresponding to the plurality of different media distribution models.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the providing of the media service user interface further comprises:

receiving a user selection of one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options corresponding to one of the plurality of different media distribution models; and

providing a filtered browse view for display on a display screen in response to the user selection, the filtered browse view providing a particular user interface context in which only media programs accessible by way of the one of the plurality of different media distribution models corresponding to the one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options are represented in the filtered browse view.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of different media distribution models comprise a digital media distribution channel and a physical media distribution channel.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the physical media distribution channel comprises a vending kiosk-based distribution channel.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of different media distribution models comprise a subscription-based media distribution model and a transaction-based media distribution model.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the subscription-based media distribution model and the transaction-based media distribution model are associated with a digital media distribution channel.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the catalogue is generated by inclusively merging the plurality of independent source catalogues corresponding to the plurality of different media distribution models.

14. The method of claim 1, embodied as computer-executable instructions on at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium.

15. A method comprising:

providing, by a media service provider system, an end user of a media service with access to a media program by way of a plurality of different media distribution models;

providing, by the media service provider system for display on a display screen, a browse view that includes a distribution model filter tool having a plurality of user-selectable filter options corresponding to the plurality of different media distribution models;

receiving, by the media service provider system, a user selection of one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options corresponding to one of the plurality of different media distribution models;

providing, by the media service provider system in response to the user selection, a filtered browse view for display on the display screen, the filtered browse view providing a user interface context in which only media programs accessible by way of the one of the plurality of different media distribution models corresponding to the one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options are represented;

receiving, by the media service provider system within the filtered browse view, a user request for information about the media program; and

providing, by the media service provider system in response to the user request, an information view for the media program for display on the display screen, the information view for the media program including comprehensive information about the media program, the comprehensive information being an aggregate of non-redundant information about the media program associated with the plurality of different media distribution models,

wherein the comprehensive information about the media program included in the information view comprises;

information about the media program that is specific to the one of the media distribution models corresponding to the selected one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options; and

information about the media program that is not associated with the one of the media distribution models corresponding to the selected one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the information about the media program that is specific to the one of the media distribution models corresponding to the selected one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options indicates at least one of a media format, a genre, and a subtitle language specific to the one of the media distribution models corresponding to the selected one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options; and

the information about the media program that is not associated with the one of the media distribution models corresponding to the selected one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options indicates at least one of an additional media format, and additional genre, and an additional subtitle language specific to a different one of the media distribution models.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of different media distribution models comprise:

a transactional-based media distribution model associated with a vending kiosk-based media distribution channel;

a transactional-based media distribution model associated with a digital media distribution channel; and

a subscription-based media distribution model associated with the digital media distribution channel.

18. The method of claim 15, embodied as computer-executable instructions on at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium.

19. A system comprising:

at least one computing device that includes;

a media distribution facility that provides an end user of a media service with access to a media program by way of a plurality of different media distribution models,

a media catalogue management facility that maintains data representative of a catalogue that includes comprehensive information about the media program, the comprehensive information being an aggregate of non-redundant information about the media program obtained from a plurality of independent source catalogues corresponding to the plurality of different media distribution models, and

a user interface facility that provides, based on the comprehensive information included in the catalogue, a media service user interface that supports discovery of the comprehensive information about the media program regardless of a user interface context from which a user request for information about the media program is received;

wherein the comprehensive information includes information regarding a particular distribution model included in the plurality of different distribution models that is not represented in the user interface context from which the user request for information about the media program is received.