Client-server based interactive television guide with server recording

• US 9,232,254 B2
• Filed: 12/27/2011
• Issued: 01/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: UV Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Ellis, Michael D., Thomas, William L., Lemmons, Thomas R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dang, Hung
• Assistant Examiner(s): Park, Sunghyoun
• Application Number:
  US13/338,014
• Publication Number:
  US 20120093488A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,470 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/00 Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2143 located in a single building, e.g. hotel, hospital or museum arrangements specially adapted for plural spots in a confined site in broadcast systems H04H20/63; adaptations for transmission by electric cable for domestic distribution in television systems H04N7/106
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2225 Local VOD servers
• 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 21/2318 using striping
• 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 21/2335 involving reformatting operations of audio signals, e.g. by converting from one coding standard to another details of audio signal transcoding G10L19/173
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23439 for generating different versions
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2353 specifically adapted to content descriptors, e.g. coding, compressing or processing of metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2387 Stream processing in response to a playback request from an end-user, e.g. for trick-play
• 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 21/25435 involving characteristics of content or additional data, e.g. video resolution or the amount of advertising
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/262 Content or additional data distribution scheduling, e.g. sending additional data at off-peak times, updating software modules, calculating the carousel transmission frequency, delaying a video stream transmission, generating play-lists scheduling strategies for dispatcher in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/4881; arrangements for scheduling broadcast services or broadcast-related services H04H60/06; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; establishing a time schedule or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/62
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26283 for associating distribution time parameters to content, e.g. to generate electronic program guide data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/274 Storing end-user multimedia data in response to end-user request , e.g. network recorder
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2747 Remote storage of video programs received via the downstream path, e.g. from the server
• 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 21/4335 Housekeeping operations, e.g. prioritizing content for deletion because of storage space restrictions storage management, e.g. defragmentation G06F3/0604; unloading stored programs G06F9/445; storage management in file systems G06F16/10; buffering arrangements in a network node or in an end terminal in packet networks H04L49/90
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47208 : for requesting near-video-on-demand content
• 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 21/47217 : for controlling playback functions for recorded or on-demand content, e.g. using progress bars, mode or play-point indicators or bookmarks specific graphical features in visual interfaces H04N21/4312
• 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 21/4828 : for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 : involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/643 : Communication protocols network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP], H04L65/65
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 : IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6581 : Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 : Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 : by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/91 : Television signal processing therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 : Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

An interactive television program guide system is provided. An interactive television program guide provides users with an opportunity to select programs for recording on a remote media server. Programs may also be recorded on a local media server. The program guide provides users with VCR like control over programs that are played back from the media servers and over real-time cached copies of the programs. The program guide also provides users with an opportunity to designate gift recipients for whom programs may be recorded.

Claims

1. A method for providing users with access to respective directories of user recorded programs using a program guide, the method comprising:

receiving at a remote server, using processing circuitry, a program from a broadcast source;

recording, using the processing circuitry, the program on the remote server in response to receiving a request to record the program from a user equipment of a plurality of user equipment, wherein the user equipment is located on a network different from (1) a respective network of each other user equipment of the plurality of user equipment and (2) a network of the remote server;

maintaining, using the processing circuitry, on the remote server, a user directory for each user of each user equipment of the plurality of user equipment, wherein each user directory reflects programs that have been recorded on the remote server for each respective user; and

enabling, using the processing circuitry, each user to access the respective user directory associated with the respective user from the remote server using the program guide.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the enabling each user to access the respective user directory comprises generating for display, using the processing circuitry, the respective user directory associated with the respective user.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising enabling each user to indicate, using the processing circuitry, a desire to delete a selected recorded program.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising deleting, using the processing circuitry, a user directory entry for the selected recorded program in response to a user indicating a desire to delete a selected recorded program if more than one user has requested the recorded program to be recorded.

5. The method of claim 3 further comprising deleting, using the processing circuitry, the selected recorded program in response to a user indicating a desire to delete a selected recorded program if only one user has requested the selected program to be recorded.

6. The method of claim 1, comprising enabling, using the processing circuitry, each user to select to play a recorded program that has been recorded by the respective user.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising recording, using the processing circuitry, a particular program for a first one of the users while a second one of the users is accessing the second user'"'"'s personal program guide.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising storing, using the processing circuitry, a media directory of programs, recorded by a storage device at the remote server, on the storage device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein a first user directory comprises a first entry for a first program recorded for a first user of the first user directory and a second user directory comprises a second entry for a second program recorded for a second user of the second user directory, and wherein the first entry includes a first pointer to a program in the media directory of programs and the second entry includes a second pointer to the program in the media directory.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing, using the processing circuitry, in the user directory for each respective user, a pointer to a given program recorded for the respective user.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the user equipment is located on a local area network different from (1) a respective local area network of each other user equipment of the plurality of user equipment and (2) a local area network of the remote server.

12. A system for providing users with access to respective directories of user recorded programs using a program guide, the system comprising:

processing circuitry configured to;

receive at a remote server a program from a broadcast source;

record the program on the remote server in response to receiving a request to record the program from a user equipment of a plurality of user equipment, wherein the user equipment is located on a network different from (1) a respective network of each other user equipment of the plurality of user equipment and (2) a network of the remote server;

maintain, on the remote server, a user directory for each user of each user equipment of the plurality of user equipment, wherein each user directory reflects programs that have been recorded on the remote server for each respective user; and

enable each user to access the respective user directory associated with the respective user from the remote server using the program guide.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

generate for display the respective user directory associated with the respective user.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

enable each user to indicate a desire to delete a selected recorded program.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

delete a user directory entry for the selected recorded program in response to a user indicating a desire to delete a selected recorded program if more than one user has requested the recorded program to be recorded.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

delete the selected recorded program in response to a user indicating a desire to delete a selected recorded program if only one user has requested the selected program to be recorded.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

enable each user to select to play a recorded program that has been recorded by the respective user.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

record a particular program for a first one of the users while a second one of the users is accessing the second user'"'"'s personal program guide.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

store a media directory of programs, recorded by a storage device at the remote server, on the storage device.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein a first user directory comprises a first entry for a first program recorded for a first user of the first user directory and a second user directory comprises a second entry for a second program recorded for a second user of the second user directory, and wherein the first entry includes a first pointer to a program in the media directory of programs and the second entry includes a second pointer to the program in the media directory.

21. The system of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

store in the user directory for each respective user, a pointer to a given program recorded for the respective user.

22. The system of claim 12, wherein the user equipment is located on a local area network different from (1) a respective local area network of each other user equipment of the plurality of user equipment and (2) a local area network of the remote server.