Methods and systems for delivering signals from cable networks to telecommunications networks

• US 9,369,775 B2
• Filed: 01/31/2003
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Roman, Gerald J.
• Primary Examiner(s): HONG, MICHAEL HYUN
• Application Number:
  US10/355,685
• Publication Number:
  US 20040154043A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,883 Days
• Field of Search: 725/62, 725/73, 725/13, 725/106
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18506 Communications with or from aircraft, i.e. aeronautical mobile service
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18578 Satellite systems for providing broadband data service to individual earth stations for selecting H04W; provisions for broadband connection, H04Q11/0478
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2801 Broadband local area networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2221 being a cable television head-end CATV in broadcast systems H04H20/78
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2381 Adapting the multiplex stream to a specific network, e.g. an Internet Protocol [IP] network transmission of MPEG streams over ATM H04L12/5601
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6131 involving transmission via a mobile phone network wireless downlink channel access H04W74/006
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6143 involving transmission via a satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64707 for transferring content from a first network to a second network, e.g. between IP and wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/10 Adaptations for transmission by electrical cable H04N7/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

Methods and systems are disclosed for delivering electrical signals from a cable network to a telecommunications network. The electrical signals are received from a community antenna television network and communicated via the telecommunications network. The telecommunications network may then communicate those electrical signals to end-users and to customers. Because the electrical signals may include video, music, data, and other cable content, this cable content is communicated along the telecommunications network and, thus, distributed to an end user.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, at a server, video content via a satellite link, the video content sent from a headend of a community antenna television network;

sending, from the server, the video content to switching equipment associated with a telecommunications network;

sending, from the switching equipment, the video content to a communications server associated with the telecommunications network;

formatting, by the communications server, all the video content into wireless mark-up language messages;

sending, from the communications server, the wireless mark-up language messages via a data network to a wireless application gateway;

sending, from the wireless application gateway, the wireless mark-up language messages to a base station;

transmitting, from the base station, the wireless mark-up language messages via a wireless data network to a mobile device; and

processing, by the base station, a dual-tone multi-frequency signal received from the mobile device via the wireless data network, the dual-tone multi-frequency signal input by a user of the mobile device to decline receipt of the wireless mark-up language messages transmitted from the base station.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising formatting all the video content into voice extensible mark-up language messages.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising sending the video content to a central office.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising sending the video content to a public switched telephone network.

5. A system, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory device storing instructions that when executed cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising;

receiving video content via a feed connected to a headend of a community antenna television network;

formatting all the video content into wireless mark-up language messages;

sending the wireless mark-up language messages via a data network to a wireless application gateway for wireless transmission from a base station; and

receiving a dual-tone multi-frequency signal transmitted from a mobile device via the data network, the dual-tone multi-frequency signal input by a user of the mobile device to decline receipt of the wireless mark-up language messages wirelessly transmitted from the base station.

6. A method, comprising:

receiving video and music content from a community antenna television network;

formatting all the video and music content into wireless mark-up language messages;

sending the wireless mark-up language messages to a gateway;

sending the wireless mark-up language messages from the gateway to a base station;

transmitting the wireless mark-up language messages via a wireless data network from the base station;

receiving, by the base station, a dual-tone multi-frequency signal sent via the wireless data network from a mobile device, the dual-tone multi-frequency signal input by a user of the mobile device to decline receipt of the wireless mark-up language messages transmitted via the wireless data network from the base station; and

ceasing transmission of the wireless mark-up language messages from the base station in response to receipt of the dual-tone multi-frequency signal sent via the wireless data network from the mobile device.

7. A method, comprising:

receiving video content from a community antenna television network;

formatting all the video content into voice extensible mark-up language messages;

sending the voice extensible mark-up language messages to a gateway;

sending the voice extensible mark-up language messages from the gateway to a base station;

transmitting the voice extensible mark-up language messages from an antenna associated with the base station;

receiving, by the base station, a dual-tone multi-frequency signal sent via a wireless data network from a mobile device, the dual-tone multi-frequency signal input by a user of the mobile device to decline receipt of the voice extensible mark-up language messages transmitted from the antenna associated with the base station; and

ceasing transmission of the voice extensible mark-up language messages from the antenna associated with the base station in response to receipt of the dual-tone multi-frequency signal sent from the mobile device.