Averting ad skipping in adaptive bit rate systems

• US 9,503,765 B2
• Filed: 07/24/2015
• Issued: 11/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ARRIS Enterprises LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: ARRIS Enterprises LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bjordammen, David M., Samant, Niranjan R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheleheda, James R
• Application Number:
  US14/808,188
• Publication Number:
  US 20150334431A1
• Time in Patent Office: 487 Days
• Field of Search: 725/87, 725/88, 725/90, 725/93, 725/96
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0253 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0262 during computer stand-by mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23418 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics television picture signal circuitry for scene change detection H04N5/147; filtering for image enhancement G06T5/00; methods or arrangements for recognising scenes G06V20/00; arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23424 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for inserting or substituting an advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23805 Controlling the feeding rate to the network, e.g. by controlling the video pump
• 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 21/2625 for delaying content or additional data distribution, e.g. because of an extended sport event
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26258 for generating a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlist, or scheduling item distribution according to such list retrieval of multimedia data based on playlists G06F16/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6373 for rate control , e.g. request to the server to modify its transmission rate flow control in packet networks H04L47/10
• 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

Abstract

An adaptive bit rate system uses adaptive streaming to deliver content to client devices capable of adaptive bit rate streaming. Techniques for averting or inhibiting ad skipping by an adaptive bit rate client device that receives media chunks from the adaptive bit rate system may include techniques for both live content and on demand content. Techniques include modifying a buffer size for access to trick plays and/or constructing a manifest file with limited content based on ad breaks.

Claims

1. A device for limiting adaptive bit rate content streamed through a network to a client for impeding ad skipping by the client, the device comprising one or more processors configured to:

responsive to a request for an on demand asset, identify a first period in at least one of a plurality of differently encoded files of the on demand asset in which an adaptive bit rate media segment associated with the request for the on demand asset is located,

identify an ad break associated with the first period;

generate a manifest file referencing adaptive bit rate media segments that occur within the first period of the at least one of the plurality of differently encoded files of the on demand asset for use by an adaptive bit rate client device for retrieval of the referenced media segments,

following an indication of retrieval of desired adaptive bit rate media segments by the adaptive bit rate client device during the first period, append to the manifest file references to ad content associated with the ad break that is associated with the first period;

impeding ad skipping by waiting for a playback duration of the ad break to expire before appending to the manifest file references to adaptive bit rate media segments that occur within a second period of the at least one of the plurality of differently encoded files of the on demand asset.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of differently encoded files of the on demand asset encoded at different rates are segmented into a plurality of adaptive bit rate media segments, wherein the on demand asset comprises a plurality of content periods separated by ad break periods, each period including a plurality of the adaptive bit rate media segments.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the appendage to the manifest file with references to ad content associated with the ad break omits identification of I-frame playlists for the ad content, thereby impeding trick plays on the ad content during the playback duration.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein after the ad playback duration expires, adding to the manifest file references to I-frames of ad content in the ad break associated with the expired playback duration for facilitating trick plays on the already played back ad content.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the manifest file is used by the adaptive bit rate client device to identify different representations of the requested on demand asset.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein a period is at least one of:

the period between a start point of the on demand asset and a start of a first ad block,

the period between two ad blocks within the on demand asset,

the period between an end of the on demand asset and a last ad block,

the period between a location of the adaptive bit rate media segment in the on demand and a location of a next ad block, or

the period between the location of the adaptive bit rate media segment in the on demand and a location of a previous ad block.

7. The device of claim 1, further comprising posting the adaptive bit rate media segments that correspond to a current version of the manifest file to an origin server.

8. The device of claim 1, further comprising including references in the manifest file to ad content associated with at least one period that occurs in the on demand asset at a time prior to the first period, wherein the playback duration of the ad break is determined based on both the ad content associated with the first period and the ad content associated with the at least one period that occurred in the on demand asset at the time prior to the first period.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the indication that the adaptive bit rate client device has received the desired adaptive bit rate media segments during the first period comprises at least one of:

an indicator that the adaptive bit rate client device has played back all retrieved media segments in the first period,

an indicator that the adaptive bit rate client device has fast-forwarded to an end of available media segments in the first period referenced in the manifest file,

an indicator that the adaptive bit rate client device has initiated a fast-forward function or a rewind function to retrieve content from the second period where the second period occurs either after the first period or prior to the first period,

receiving a request for an updated manifest file, or

receiving a request for media segments from the second period in at least one of the plurality of differently encoded files of the on demand asset.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the indicator that the adaptive bit rate client device has played back all retrieved media segments in the first period is based on monitoring by the just in time packager, wherein the just in time packager determines that the last media segment in the first period has been requested.

11. The device of claim 1, wherein the adaptive bit rate media segments referenced by the manifest file that occur within the first period comprise at least one of:

all of the adaptive bit rate media segments available in the first period, or

the identified adaptive bit rate media segment and the adaptive bit rate media segments that occur in the first period at a time later than the adaptive bit rate media segment.

12. The device of claim 1, wherein the ad content is stored pre-packaged in a location separate from the on demand asset.

13. The device of claim 1, wherein the manifest file is generated on a client-by-client basis and is generated and provided only to the requesting adaptive bit rate client device.

14. The device of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of differently encoded files includes a plurality of periods, each period representing a block of content of a finite duration within the on demand asset, each of the plurality of periods having a plurality of adaptive bit rate media segments and associated with a respective ad break.

15. The device of claim 1, wherein generating the manifest file and appending to the manifest file are fulfilled in real time in response to a specific client request for the on demand asset, whereby generating the manifest file or posting associated media segments to an origin server are done only after the request is received.

16. The device of claim 1, wherein at least the first or second period ends at a start of an ad break associated with a period.

17. The device of claim 1, wherein a period is at least one of:

the period between a first adaptive bit rate media segment of the on demand asset and a first ad break,

the period between two ad breaks within the on demand asset, or

the period between an end of the on demand asset and a last ad break in the on demand asset.

18. The device of claim 1, wherein the adaptive bit rate media segment associated with the request is in multiple files in the plurality of differently encoded files, and the manifest file references media segments from the first period in each of the multiple files for a selection between file formats by the adaptive bit rate client device.

19. The device of claim 1, wherein the adaptive bit rate client device selects between a multiple of the plurality of differently encoded files based on at least one of a bandwidth or a best rate.