Predictive transmitting of video stream data

• US 9,621,926 B1
• Filed: 09/25/2015
• Issued: 04/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lee, Alexandra Elizabeth Baoboe, Weisman, Joel William, Strand, William Alexander, Zakian, Christopher Samuel
• Primary Examiner(s): Taylor, Joshua
• Assistant Examiner(s): Peterson, Terrika
• Application Number:
  US14/866,773
• Time in Patent Office: 564 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/222 Secondary servers, e.g. proxy server, cable television Head-end provisioning of proxy services in data packet switching networks H04L67/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234 Processing of video elementary streams, e.g. splicing of video streams or manipulating encoded video stream scene graphs
• 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 21/23439 for generating different versions
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2347 involving video stream encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2408 Monitoring of the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. client requests monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876; scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/251 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies details of learning user preferences for the retrieval of video data in a video database G06F16/739; computer systems using learning methods G06N3/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25841 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; arrangements for identifying locations of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/51; location of the user terminal in data switching networks H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44016 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for substituting a video clip
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6336 directed to decoder
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8455 involving pointers to the content, e.g. pointers to the I-frames of the video stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/85406 involving a specific file format, e.g. MP4 format

Abstract

Techniques are described for providing a predictive data streaming service associated with a visual media file. For example, third type of frame data for a visual media file may be transmitted to a client device from a streaming service. In embodiments, a selection of the particular visual media file may be transmitted to the streaming service. A request may be made to an interface associated with the client device, via an application program interface call, for a first data stream of a first type of frame data and a second data stream of a second type of frame data for the particular visual media file. The request may be based at least in part on the selection of the particular visual media file and after receipt of the third type of frame data. The third type of frame data, the first data stream of the first type of frame data, and the second data stream of the second type of frame data may be interleaved based at least in part on instructions from the interface.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

maintaining, by a computer system, B-frames, I-frames, and P-frames for a plurality of visual media files;

receiving an indication of an interaction with a particular visual media file from a computing device, the particular visual media file of the plurality of visual media files;

transmitting, by the computer system, the B-frames of the particular visual media file to a computing device for local storage based at least in part on the indication and prior to transmitting other frames of the particular visual media file; and

in response to receiving information that identifies a selection of the particular visual media file;

transmitting, by the computer system over a network, the I-frames of the particular visual media file and the P-frames of the particular visual media file to the computing device; and

transmitting instructions to the computing device that instruct the computing device to interleave the locally stored B-frames of the particular visual media file, the I-frames of the particular visual media file, and the P-frames of the particular visual media file according to a frame arrangement associated with the particular visual media file; and

presenting, via the computing device, a decompressed version of the particular visual media file.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising obtaining location information associated with the computing device.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, further comprising transmitting the B-frames of the particular visual media file to a proxy server based at least in part on the location information associated with the computing device.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the interaction comprises at least one of an action by a user with a graphical representation of the particular visual media file presented via the computing device, selecting, by the user, a trailer for the particular visual media file via the computing device, or querying, by the user, for additional information associated with the particular visual media file via the computing device.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the B-frames of the particular visual media file to the computing device is further based at least in part on factors associated with the visual media file, the factors corresponding to a recommended list of visual media files, or a trending list of the visual media files.

6. A client device comprising:

a processor; and

a memory including instructions that, when executed with the processor, cause the system to, at least;

receive at the client device B-frames for a particular visual media file from a streaming service;

transmit selection of the particular visual media file to the streaming service;

request, by making an application program interface call to an interface associated with the client device, a first data stream of I-frames for the particular visual media file and a second data stream of P-frames data for the particular visual media file, the request based at least in part on the selection of the particular visual media file and after receipt of the B-frames for the particular visual media file; and

interleave the B-frames, the first data stream of I-frames, and the second data stream of P-frames based at least in part on instructions from the interface.

7. The client device of claim 6, wherein the B-frames, the first data stream of the I-frames, and the second data stream of the P-frames for the particular visual media file are compressed according to an H.264 compression technique.

8. The client device of claim 6, wherein the instructions, when executed with the processor, further cause the system to present a decompressed version of the particular visual media file to a display device based at least in part on the interleaved B-frames, the first data stream of the I-frames, and the second data stream of the P-frames for the particular visual media file.

9. The client device of claim 6, wherein the interface comprises at least a front-end that is configured to respond to data access requests from the client device, the data access requests including the API call.

10. The client device of claim 6, wherein the interface comprises at least a back-end that is configured to receive and process the first data stream of the I-frames and the second data stream of the P-frames for the particular visual media file based at least in part on the selection of the particular visual media file.

11. The client device of claim 6, wherein the instructions from the interface to interleave the B-frames, the first data stream of the I-frames, and the second data stream of the P-frames is based at least in part on metadata associated with each frame comprising the particular visual media file.

12. The client device of claim 6, wherein frames included in the B-frames are encrypted.

13. The client device of claim 12, wherein the frames included in the B-frames are decrypted based at least in part on the first data stream of the I-frames, the second data stream of the P-frames, and the instructions to interleave.

14. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

transmitting, by a computer system, one or more B-frame data streams for one or more visual media files to a computing device for storage;

transmitting, by the computer system over a network, an I-frame data stream of a visual media file of the one or more visual media files and a P-frame data stream of the visual media file to the computing device based at least in part on input from the computing device;

instructing the computing device to interleave a particular B-frame data stream of the one or more B-frame data streams that corresponds to the visual media file, the I-frame data stream of the visual media file, and the P-frame data stream of the visual media file, the particular B-frame data stream accessed from storage on the computing device; and

transmitting instructions to present a decompressed version of the visual media file comprising the particular B-frame data stream of the visual media file, the I-frame data stream of the visual media file, and the P-frame data stream of the visual media file interleaved together.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein portions of B-frames included in the one or more B-frame data streams are compressed utilizing a shared dictionary compression technique.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the shared dictionary compression technique includes identifying similar objects with similar vectors in the portions of B-frames included in the one or more B-frame data streams.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein transmitting the one or more B-frame data streams for the one or more visual media files is based at least in part on factors associated with a user including at least user browsing history, user preferences, or a recommendation generated by an electronic marketplace for the user.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, wherein transmitting the one or more B-frame data streams for the one or more visual media files is further based at least in part on a confidence value associated with the recommendation exceeding a threshold for the visual media file.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein the one or more B-frame data streams for the one or more visual media files are encrypted and, wherein transmitting the I-frame data stream and the P-frame data stream of the visual media file includes providing a key that is generated based at least in part on the input from the computing device.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein transmitting the one or more B-frame data streams for the one or more visual media files to the computing device is based at least in part on an indication that corresponds to a type of the computing device.