Automatically recording supplemental content

• US 9,191,694 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2013
• Issued: 11/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Dish Network Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Echostar UK Holdings Ltd (Echostar Corporation)
• Inventors: Casagrande, Steven Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Chevalier, Robert
• Application Number:
  US13/888,012
• Publication Number:
  US 20130243401A1
• Time in Patent Office: 925 Days
• Field of Search: 386/296, 386/291, 386/297, 386/298, 386/323, 386/326
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23113 involving housekeeping operations for stored content, e.g. prioritizing content for deletion because of storage space restrictions storage management, e.g. defragmentation G06F3/0604; snloading stored programs G06F9/445; housekeeping operations in file systems, e.g. deletion policies G06F16/10; buffering arrangements in a network node or in an end terminal in packet networks H04L49/90
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4263 involving specific tuning arrangements, e.g. two tuners
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6143 involving transmission via a satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6543 for forcing some client operations, e.g. recording remote booting in general G06F9/4416
• 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 21/8549 Creating video summaries, e.g. movie trailer retrieval in video databases by using presentations in form of a video summary G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8227 the additional signal being at least another television signal

Abstract

A content provider transmits instructions to a content receiver to record multiple instances of content. The instances of content are included in the same frequency band of a broadcast transmitted by the content provider via a first communication link and scrambled utilizing the same control word. The content provider determines to supplement the multiple instances of content and transmits an instruction to record a supplemental instance of content from a second content provider via a second communication link. The content receiver receives the instructions and accordingly receives, descrambles, and stores the multiple instances of content and the supplemental instance of content. In some implementations, the first communication link may be a satellite communication link and the second communication link may be a different type of communication link such as a terrestrial broadcast communication link and/or an Internet protocol communication link.

Claims

1. A television receiver configured to record supplemental content, the television receiver comprising:

one or more tuners;

one or more processors; and

a memory communicatively coupled with and readable by the one or more processors and having stored therein processor-readable instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

receive one or more instructions, via a tuner of the one or more tuners, to record a content instance received via a broadcast communication link;

record, based on the one or more instructions, the content instance;

receive one or more supplemental instructions to record a supplemental content instance, wherein recording of the supplemental content instance is to occur via a second communication link; and

record, based on the one or more supplemental instructions, the supplemental content instance via the second communication link.

2. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 1, wherein:

the content instance received via the broadcast communication link is received from a first content provider; and

the supplemental content instance received via the second communication link is received from a second content provider.

3. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 2, wherein:

the broadcast communication link is a satellite-based broadcast communication link; and

the second communication link is selected from the group consisting of;

a terrestrial broadcast communication link; and

an Internet protocol communication link.

4. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 3, wherein the content instance is part of a plurality of content instances that are each included in a same frequency band of a satellite broadcast, the processor-readable instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, further causing the one or more processors to:

receive one or more instructions, via the tuner of the one or more tuners, to record the plurality of content instances received via the broadcast communication link; and

record, based on the one or more instructions, the plurality of content instances.

5. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 4, wherein each content instance of the plurality of content instances are concurrently scrambled using a same control word.

6. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 1, wherein the supplemental content instance is associated with the content instance.

7. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 1, wherein the processor-readable instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, further causing the one or more processors to:

delete the recorded content instance after the supplemental content instance is recorded, wherein the recorded content instance and the recorded supplemental content instance are different instances of a same content.

8. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 2, wherein the supplemental content instance is not broadcast by the first content provider.

9. The television receiver configured to record supplemental content of claim 2, wherein the processor readable instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to record, based on the one or more supplemental instructions, the supplemental content instance via the second communication link are contingent on the content instance failing to be properly recorded.

16. The method for recording of claim 1, further comprising

deleting, by the television receiver, the recorded content instance after the supplemental content instance is recorded, wherein

the recorded content instance and the recorded supplemental content instance are different instances of a same content.

10. A method for recording supplemental content, the method comprising:

receiving, by a television receiver, one or more instructions, via a tuner of the television receiver, to record a content instance received via a broadcast communication link;

recording, by the television receiver, based on the one or more instructions, the content instance;

receiving, by the television receiver, one or more supplemental instructions to record a supplemental content instance, wherein recording of the supplemental content instance is to occur via a second communication link; and

recording, by the television receiver, based on the one or more supplemental instructions, the supplemental content instance via the second communication link.

11. The method for recording supplemental content of claim 10, wherein:

the content instance received via the broadcast communication link is received from a first content provider; and

the supplemental content instance received via the second communication link is received from a second content provider.

12. The method for recording supplemental content of claim 11, wherein:

the broadcast communication link is a satellite-based broadcast communication link; and

the second communication link is selected from the group consisting of;

a terrestrial broadcast communication link; and

an Internet protocol communication link.

13. The method for recording supplemental content of claim 12, wherein the content instance is part of a plurality of content instances that are each included in a same frequency band of a satellite broadcast, the method further comprising:

receiving, by the television receiver, one or more instructions, via the tuner of the television receiver, to record the plurality of content instances received via the broadcast communication link; and

recording, by the television receiver, based on the one or more instructions, the plurality of content instances.

14. The method for recording supplemental content of claim 13, wherein each content instance of the plurality of content instances are concurrently scrambled using a same control word.

15. The method for recording supplemental content of claim 10, wherein the supplemental content instance is associated with the content instance.

17. The method for recording supplemental content of claim 11, wherein the supplemental content instance is not broadcast by the first content provider.

18. The method for recording supplemental content of claim 11, recording, based on the one or more supplemental instructions, the supplemental content instance via the second communication link is contingent on the content instance failing to be properly recorded.

19. A non-transitory processor-readable medium for recording supplemental content, comprising processor-readable instructions configured to cause one or more processors to:

receive one or more instructions, via a tuner of the one or more tuners, to record a content instance received via a broadcast communication link;

record, based on the one or more instructions, the content instance;

receive one or more supplemental instructions to record a supplemental content instance, wherein recording of the supplemental content instance is to occur via a second communication link; and

record, based on the one or more supplemental instructions, the supplemental content instance via the second communication link.

20. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 19, wherein:

the content instance received via the broadcast communication link is received from a first content provider;

the supplemental content instance received via the second communication link is received from a second content provider;

the broadcast communication link is a satellite-based broadcast communication link; and

the second communication link is selected from the group consisting of;

a terrestrial broadcast communication link; and

an Internet protocol communication link.