Integrated call capture for streaming audio

• US 9,185,154 B2
• Filed: 12/22/2011
• Issued: 11/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: West Technology Group LLC (West Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nasdaq, Inc.
• Inventors: Ball, Simon, Hauser, Carsten
• Primary Examiner(s): Augustine, Nicholas
• Application Number:
  US13/334,868
• Publication Number:
  US 20130283160A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,419 Days
• Field of Search: 715/716
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/103 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/56 Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities video conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/233 Processing of audio elementary streams monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64738 Monitoring network characteristics, e.g. bandwidth, congestion level data switched network analysis H04L41/14; monitoring functioning in data switched networks H04L43/0817; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64784 Data processing by the network data processing in packet switching systems H04L12/56; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; intermediate storage or scheduling H04L49/90; provisioning of proxy services in data packet switching networks H04L67/56

Abstract

Systems and techniques for capturing audio and delivering the audio in digital streaming media formats are disclosed. Several aspects of the systems and techniques operate in a cloud computing environment where computational power is allocated, utilized, and paid for entirely on demand. The systems and techniques enable a call to be made directly from a virtual machine out to a Public Switch Telephone Network (PSTN) via a common Session Interface Protocol (SIP) to PSTN Breakout service, and the audio to be delivered onward to one or more Content Delivery Network (CDN). An audio call capture interface is also provided to initiate and manage the digital streaming media formats.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a first user interface implemented using a cloud computing environment including one or more processors and configured to manage a set of multiple scheduled webcasts; and

a second user interface implemented using the cloud computing environment and configured to initiate at least one scheduled webcast from the set of multiple scheduled webcasts using at least one virtual machine instantiated in the cloud computing environment,

wherein the at least one virtual machine is configured to;

encode a digital data stream associated with the initiated scheduled webcast and encoded in a first encoding protocol to a second encoding protocol, and

transmit the encoded digital data stream in the second encoded protocol to a content distribution network, and

a second virtual machine in the cloud computing environment configured to receive the digital data stream encoded according to the first encoding protocol, and when an event affects a performance of the at least one virtual machine, the second virtual machine is configured to encode the digital data stream to generate an encoded digital data stream, the encoding being done according to the second encoding protocol,

wherein the second virtual machine is configured to transmit the encoded data stream from the second virtual machine to the content distribution network.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first user interface is configured to manage a calendar of dates and times associated with the set of multiple scheduled audio webcasts.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the first user interface includes a filter portion to search for one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts and arrange the set of multiple scheduled webcasts in the calendar based on a set of assigned dates and times.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the first user interface includes an organizer portion comprising a webcast list portion and an operator portion.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the webcast list portion identifies a start and end time of each one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts and a client identifier associated with each one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the webcast list portion includes an assign button that, once selected, causes an automatic allocation of one of the scheduled webcasts to one of a plurality of webcast operators.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein the operator portion identifies, in real time, at least one of a technical failure or technical impairment associated with one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts in progress.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein the first user interface comprises a chat portion allowing a communication to at least one of a plurality of webcast operators.

9. The system of claim 2, wherein the first user interface is configured to provide a schedule control for rescheduling at least one of the set of multiple scheduled audio webcasts from a first time interval to a second time interval, the first time interval different from the second time interval.

10. The system of claim 2, wherein the first user interface is configured to identify a plurality of webcast operators associated with the set of multiple scheduled webcasts.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the first user interface is configured to identify the plurality of webcast operators available to be assigned to the at least one scheduled webcast.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein one of the plurality of webcast operators is assigned to the at least one scheduled webcast in response to selection of one of the plurality of webcast operators from the first user interface.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the second user interface includes a webcast list portion, an event portion, and a chat portion.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the webcast list portion identifies a start and end time of each one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts assigned to one of a plurality of webcast operators.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the event portion comprises a work event area associated with each of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts identified in the webcast list portion.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein each work event area comprises webcast controls for instantiating and monitoring each of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein a first control of the webcast controls, upon selection, instantiates a first connection with a first encoder and a second control of the webcast controls, upon selection, instantiates a second connection with a second encoder, the first encoder encoding the digital stream in the second protocol and the second encoder encoding the digital stream in the second protocol.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the first control of the webcast controls, upon selection, disconnects the first connection from the first encoder.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the second control of the webcast controls, upon selection, disconnects the second connection from the second encoder.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein the work event area includes a first display associated with the encoded digital stream provided by the first encoder and a second display associated with the encoded digital stream provided by the second encoder.

21. The system of claim 17, wherein one of the webcast controls, upon selection, mutes at least one of the first encoder and the second encoder.

22. The system of claim 17, wherein one of the webcast controls, upon selection, allows for communication with a conference call operator.

23. The system of claim 16, wherein one of the webcast audio controls, upon selection, reassigns a webcast from the set of multiple scheduled webcasts from an operator to a supervisor.

24. The system of claim 16, wherein one of the webcast controls, upon selection, terminates one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts.

25. The system of claim 16, wherein one of the webcast controls, upon selection, finalizes a recording of the one of the multiple scheduled webcasts for transmission to the content distribution network.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein at least one of the webcast controls, upon selection, sets a starting location and an ending location in the recording for removing a portion of the webcast.

27. The system of claim 13, wherein the second user interface comprises a chat portion allowing for communication to at least one of a plurality of webcast operators.

28. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts is associated with an event type selected from the group consisting essentially of “

Basic Event”

, “

Enhanced Event”

, and “

Virtual Event”

.

59. The system of claim 1, wherein the first and second user interfaces are distributed across multiple virtual machines sharing a same domain name server (DNS).

60. The system in claim 1, wherein the first and second user interfaces are distributed across multiple virtual machines and implement data replication to ensure that each of the multiple virtual machines can assume the encoding and transmitting.

29. A method of providing webcasts comprising:

managing, by a first user interface implemented using a cloud computing environment including one or more processors, a set of multiple scheduled webcasts;

initiating, by a second user interface implemented using the cloud computing environment, at least one scheduled webcast from the set of multiple scheduled webcasts using at least one virtual machine instantiated in the cloud computing environment;

encoding, at the at least one virtual machine, a digital data stream associated with the initiated scheduled webcast and encoded in a first encoding protocol to a second encoding protocol; and

transmitting, from the at least one virtual machine, the encoded digital data stream in the second encoded protocol to a content distribution network;

receiving at a second virtual machine in the cloud computing environment the digital data stream encoded according to the first encoding protocol,

encoding, by the second virtual machine, the digital data stream according to the second encoding protocol to generate an encoded digital data stream when an event affects a performance of the at least one virtual machine, and

transmitting the encoded data stream from the second virtual machine to the content distribution network.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the managing include managing a calendar of dates and times associated with the set of multiple scheduled webcasts.

31. The method of claim 30, comprising providing a filter portion of the first user interface for searching for one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts and arranging the set of scheduled webcasts in the calendar based on a set of assigned dates and times.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the first user interface includes an organizer portion comprising a webcast list portion and an operator portion.

33. The method of claim 32, comprising displaying a start and end time of each one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts and a client identifier associated with each one of the set of scheduled webcasts in the webcast list portion.

34. The method of claim 33, comprising automatically assigning one of the multiple scheduled webcasts to one of a plurality of webcast operators in response to a selection of an assign button included in the webcast list portion.

35. The method of claim 32, comprising displaying, in real time, at least one of a technical failure or technical impairment associated with one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts in progress in the operator portion.

36. The method of claim 30, comprising providing a chat portion of the first user interface, the chat portion allowing a communication to at least one of a plurality of webcast operators.

37. The method of claim 30, comprising providing a schedule control included in the first user interface for rescheduling at least one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts from a first time interval to a second time interval, the first time interval different from the second time interval.

38. The method of claim 30, comprising displaying, in the first user interface, a plurality of webcast operators associated with the set of multiple scheduled webcasts.

39. The method of claim 38, comprising displaying, in the first user interface, the plurality of webcast operators available to be assigned to the at least one scheduled webcast.

40. The method of claim 39, comprising assigning one of the plurality of webcast operators to the at least one scheduled audio webcast in response to selection of one of the plurality of webcast operators from the first interface.

41. The method of claim 29, wherein initiating the at least one scheduled audio webcast comprises providing a second user interface, the second user interface comprising a webcast list portion, an event portion, and a chat portion.

42. The method of claim 41, comprising displaying a start and end time of each one of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts assigned to one of a plurality of webcast operators in the webcast list portion.

43. The method of claim 41, wherein the event portion comprises a work event area associated with each of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts identified in the webcast list portion.

44. The method of claim 43, comprising providing webcast controls in each work event area for instantiating and monitoring each of the set of scheduled webcasts.

45. The method of claim 44, comprising:

instantiating a first connection with a first encoder in response to a selection of a first control of the webcast controls and;

instantiating a second connection with a second encoder in response to a selection of a second control of the webcast controls, the first encoder encoding the digital stream in the second protocol and the second encoder encoding the digital stream in the second protocol.

46. The method of claim 45, comprising disconnecting the first connection from the first encoder upon selection of the first control of the webcast controls.

47. The method of claim 45, comprising disconnecting the second connection from the second encoder upon selection of the second control of the webcast controls, the second control different from the first control.

48. The method of claim 45, comprising providing in the work event area a first audio display associated with the encoded digital stream provided by the first encoder and a second audio display associated with the encoded digital stream provided by the second encoder.

49. The method of claim 45, comprising muting at least one of the first encoder and the second encoder upon selection of one of the webcast controls.

50. The method of claim 45, comprising providing communication with a conference call operator upon selection of one of the webcast controls.

51. The method of claim 44, comprising reassigning an audio webcast from the set of scheduled webcasts from an operator to a supervisor upon selection of one of the webcast controls.

52. The method of claim 44, comprising terminating one of the set of scheduled webcasts upon selection of one of the webcast controls.

53. The method of claim 44, comprising finalizing a recording of the one of the multiple scheduled webcasts for transmission to the content distribution network upon selection of one of the webcast controls.

54. The method of claim 53, comprising setting a starting location and an ending location in the recording for removing a portion of webcast upon selection of at least one of the webcast audio controls.

55. The method of claim 41, comprising providing a chat portion for allowing communication to at least one of a plurality of webcast operators.

56. The method of claim 29, wherein each of the set of multiple scheduled webcasts is associated with an event type selected from the group consisting essentially of “

Basic Event”

, “

Enhanced Event”

, and “

Virtual Event”

.

57. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

receiving the digital data stream encoded according to the first encoding protocol at a second virtual machine in the cloud computing environment, and when an event affects a performance of the at least one virtual machine, encoding the digital data stream on the second virtual machine to generate an encoded digital data stream, the encoding being done according to the second encoding protocol, and transmitting the encoded data stream from the second virtual machine to the content distribution network.

58. The method in claim 29, wherein the first and second user interfaces are distributed across multiple virtual machines and implement data replication to ensure that each of the multiple virtual machines can assume the encoding and transmitting.