Method for content delivery involving a policy database

• US 9,270,748 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2008
• Issued: 02/23/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Karlsson, Per, Souza, Victor
• Primary Examiner(s): Tiv, Backhean
• Application Number:
  US13/140,932
• Publication Number:
  US 20110252115A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,623 Days
• Field of Search: 709/224, 709/217
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/756 adapting media to device capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/762 at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1076 Resource dissemination mechanisms or network resource keeping policies for optimal resource availability in the overlay network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5651 Reducing the amount or size of exchanged application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 Negotiation of communication capabilities

Abstract

The present invention comprises a content delivery system for delivering content to clients. The content delivery system comprises at least one mobile object adapted to be executed on the content delivery system and on other content delivery systems or multimedia devices adapted for mobile objects. Each mobile object comprises a media file and is further adapted to determine the capabilities of the other content delivery systems or multimedia devices and to monitor data related to the clients'"'"' access of the media file. The content delivery system also comprises a transcoder unit for transcoding the media file to another media file prior sending it to the other content delivery system or multimedia device. The invention solves problems that can arise when sending large media files to content delivery systems or multimedia devices having limited capabilities.

Claims

1. A first content delivery system for delivering content to at least one client, said first content delivery system comprising:

a processor;

a memory area, and

at least one mobile object adapted to be stored in the memory area and to be executed in the first content delivery system and in at least one second content delivery system and where the mobile object comprises the following parts;

a first media file accessible by clients;

a policy data base; and

execution logic comprising program code and a data area where the data area comprises client access data related to the clients'"'"' access of the first media file and where the execution logic is adapted to determine capabilities of the second content delivery system and to monitor the client access data, to interrogate the policy data base, to copy the mobile object excluding the first media file to the second content delivery system when certain conditions stored in the policy data base are met by the client access data and create a reference to the copied mobile object in the mobile object; and

wherein the first content delivery system further comprises a transcoder unit, adapted to transcode the first media file into a second media file prior to sending the second media file to the copied mobile object in the second content delivery system.

2. The content delivery system as in claim 1 further comprising an execution environment adapted for mobile objects and where the execution logic in the mobile object is further adapted to monitor data related to the execution environment.

3. A content delivery system for delivering content to at least one client, said content delivery system comprising:

a processor,

a memory area, and

at least one mobile object adapted to be stored in the memory area and to be executed in the content delivery system and in at least one multimedia device adapted to execute mobile objects and comprising the client and where the mobile object comprises the following parts;

a first media file accessible by the client;

a policy data base;

execution logic comprising program code and a data area and where the data area comprises client access data related to the client'"'"'s access of the first media file and where the execution logic is adapted to receive a request for the first media file from the client, to determine capabilities of the multimedia device, to copy the mobile object excluding the first media file to the multimedia device when certain conditions stored in the policy data base are met by the client access data and create a reference to the copied mobile object in the mobile object; and

where the content delivery system further comprises a transcoder unit adapted to transcode the first media file into a second media file prior to the sending of the second media file to the copied mobile object in the multimedia device.

4. The content delivery system as in claim 3 further comprising an execution environment adapted for mobile objects and where the execution logic in the mobile object is further adapted to monitor data related to the execution environment.

5. A method for placing content in a content delivery network comprising the steps of:

executing in a first content delivery system a first mobile object comprising execution logic, a policy data base and a first media file accessible by at least one client and where the execution logic comprises client access data related to the clients'"'"' access of the first media file;

monitoring the client access data;

when certain conditions stored in the policy data base are met by the client access data, sending a copy of and created by the first mobile object excluding the first media file to a second content delivery system;

determining capabilities of the second content delivery system for receiving the first media file;

creating a reference to the copied first mobile object in the first mobile object;

transcoding the first media file into a second media file if the second content delivery system is not capable of receiving the first media file; and

sending the second media file to the copied first mobile object in the second content delivery system.

6. The method as in claim 5 where the step of determining the capabilities of the second content delivery system comprises the step of receiving from the copied first mobile object a message comprising data about the capabilities of said second content delivery system.

7. The method as in claim 6 further comprising the step of erasing the reference after a certain period of time.

8. The method as in claim 5, where the client is located in the second content delivery system.

9. A method for placing content in a multimedia device comprising the steps of:

executing in a content delivery system a first mobile object comprising execution logic, a policy data base and a first media file accessible by a client in the multimedia device and where the execution logic comprises client access data related to the client'"'"'s access of the first media file;

receiving a request from the client to access the first media file;

when certain conditions stored in the policy data base are met by the client access data, sending a copy of and created by the first mobile object excluding the first media file to the multimedia device;

determining capabilities in the multimedia device for receiving the first media file;

creating a reference to the copied first mobile object in the first mobile object;

transcoding the first media file into a second media file if the multimedia device is not capable of receiving the first media file; and

sending the second media file to the copied first mobile object in the multimedia device.

10. The method as in claim 9 where the step of determining the capabilities of the multimedia device comprises the step of receiving from the copied first mobile object a message comprising data about the capabilities of said multimedia device.

11. The method as in claim 9 further comprising the step of erasing the reference after a certain period of time.