System and method for switching between media streams for non-adjacent channels while providing a seamless user experience

• US 9,635,416 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2015
• Issued: 04/25/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Spotify AB (Spotify Technology SA)
• Original Assignee: Spotify AB (Spotify Technology SA)
• Inventors: Hoffert, Eric, Berkley, Mike, Faaborg, Kevin, Soderstrom, Gustav
• Primary Examiner(s): Kumar, Pankaj
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hicks, Charles N
• Application Number:
  US14/743,694
• Publication Number:
  US 20150365720A1
• Time in Patent Office: 677 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42222 Additional components integrated in the remote control device, e.g. timer, speaker, sensors for detecting position, direction or movement of the remote control, microphone or battery charging device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42224 Touch pad or touch panel provided on the remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43072 of multiple content streams on the same device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43079 of additional data with content streams on multiple devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/437 Interfacing the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. for transmitting client requests to a VOD server flow control in data networks H04L47/10; streaming protocols, e.g. RTP or RTCP, H04L65/65; scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests in data packet switching networks H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4384 involving operations to reduce the access time, e.g. fast-tuning for reducing channel switching latency
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4392 involving audio buffer management
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44004 involving video buffer management, e.g. video decoder buffer or video display buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections
• 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 21/4755 : for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 : End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02

Abstract

A client device with one or more processors, memory, and a display displays a first video stream that corresponds to a first channel in a sequence. While displaying the first video stream and before receiving a request to display a second video stream corresponding to a second channel in the sequence, the client device preloads, from a remote content source, video content of one or more intervening channels. In response to receiving the request, the client device transitions from displaying the first video stream to displaying the second video stream: a portion of the first video stream is concurrently displayed with at least a portion of the preloaded video content of one or more intervening channels, and at least a portion of the preloaded video content of one or more intervening channels is displayed concurrently with at least a portion of the second video stream.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

at a client device with one or more processors, memory, and a display;

displaying a first video stream on the display, wherein the first video stream corresponds to a first channel in a sequence of channels,

while displaying the first video stream and prior to receiving a request to display a second video stream corresponding to a second channel in the sequence of channels, wherein the second channel is separated from the first channel in the sequence of channels by one or more intervening channels, preloading video content of at least one of the one or more intervening channels from a remote content source;

receiving the request to display the second video stream; and

in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream, transitioning from displaying the first video stream to displaying the second video stream on the display, the transitioning comprising;

displaying at least a portion of the first video stream on the display concurrently with at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels; and

displaying at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels concurrently with at least a portion of the second video stream.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, while displaying the first video stream and prior to receiving the request to display the second video stream, preloading video content of the second video stream from the remote content source;

wherein transitioning to displaying the second video stream includes concurrently displaying at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels and at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the second video stream.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the second video stream is a live video stream;

preloading the second video stream includes caching the preloaded video content of the second video stream; and

the method further comprises, in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream;

determining whether the request meets recency criteria;

in accordance with a determination that the request meets recency criteria, playing the second video stream using the cached portion of the second video stream; and

in accordance with a determination that the request does not meet the recency criteria, requesting, from the remote content source, video content corresponding to a portion of the second video stream separate from the cached portion of the second video stream.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream:

displaying at least a portion of the first video stream on the display concurrently with at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels and at least a portion of the second video stream.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the transitioning comprises:

sliding a first video tile that includes content from the first video stream toward a first edge of the display;

sliding one or more intervening video tiles that include content from one or more of the intervening channels across the display; and

sliding a second video tile that includes content from the second video stream onto the display from a second edge of the display that is opposite to the first edge of the display.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

requesting a subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream; and

in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream, sequentially displaying the subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream while receiving and decoding video data corresponding to the second video stream separate from the subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream.

7. An electronic device, comprising:

a display;

one or more processors; and

memory storing one or more programs configured to be executed by the one or more processors, the one or more programs including instructions for;

displaying the first video stream on the display, wherein the first video stream corresponds to a first channel in a sequence of channels,

while displaying the first video stream and prior to receiving a request to display a second video stream corresponding to a second channel in the sequence of channels, wherein the second channel is separated from the first channel in the sequence of channels by one or more intervening channels, preloading video content of at least one of the one or more intervening channels from a remote content source;

in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream, transitioning from displaying the first video stream to displaying the second video stream on the display, the transitioning comprising;

displaying at least a portion of the first video stream on the display concurrently with at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels; and

displaying at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels concurrently with at least a portion of the second video stream.

8. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions for preloading video content of the second video stream from the remote content source while displaying the first video stream and prior to receiving the request to display the second video stream;

wherein transitioning to displaying the second video stream includes concurrently displaying at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels and at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the second video stream.

9. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein:

the second video stream is a live video stream;

preloading the second video stream includes caching the preloaded video content of the second video stream; and

the one or more programs further include instructions for, in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream;

determining whether the request meets recency criteria;

in accordance with a determination that the request meets recency criteria, playing the second video stream using the cached portion of the second video stream; and

in accordance with a determination that the request does not meet the recency criteria, requesting, from the remote content source, video content corresponding to a portion of the second video stream separate from the cached portion of the second video stream.

10. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions for:

displaying at least a portion of the first video stream on the display concurrently with at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels and at least a portion of the second video stream, in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream.

11. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the transitioning comprises:

sliding a first video tile that includes content from the first video stream toward a first edge of the display;

sliding one or more intervening video tiles that include content from one or more of the intervening channels across the display; and

sliding a second video tile that includes content from the second video stream onto the display from a second edge of the display that is opposite to the first edge of the display.

12. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions for:

requesting a subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream; and

in response to the request to display the second video stream, sequentially displaying the subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream while receiving and decoding video data corresponding to the second video stream separate from the subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions, which when executed by an electronic device, cause the electronic device to:

display a first video stream on a display, wherein the first video stream corresponds to a first channel in a sequence of channels,

while displaying the first video stream and prior to receiving a request to display a second video stream corresponding to a second channel in the sequence of channels, wherein the second channel is separated from the first channel in the sequence of channels by one or more intervening channels, preload video content of at least one of the one or more intervening channels from a remote content source;

in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream, transition from displaying the first video stream to displaying the second video stream by;

displaying at least a portion of the first video stream on the display concurrently with at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels; and

displaying at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels concurrently with at least a portion of the second video stream.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein:

the one or more programs further comprise instructions, which when executed by the electronic device, cause the electronic device to preload video content of the second video stream from the remote content source while displaying the first video stream and prior to receiving the request to display the second video stream; and

the instructions to transition to displaying the second video stream include instructions to display concurrently at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels and at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the second video stream.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein:

the second video stream is a live video stream;

the instructions to preload the second video stream include instructions to cache the preloaded video content of the second video stream; and

the one or more programs further comprise instructions, to be executed by the electronic device in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream, which cause the electronic device to;

determine whether the request meets recency criteria;

in accordance with a determination that the request meets recency criteria, play the second video stream using the cached portion of the second video stream; and

in accordance with a determination that the request does not meet the recency criteria, request, from the remote content source, video content corresponding to a portion of the second video stream separate from the cached portion of the second video stream.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions, which when executed by the electronic device, cause the electronic device to:

display at least a portion of the first video stream on the display concurrently with at least a portion of the preloaded video content of the at least one of the one or more intervening channels and at least a portion of the second video stream, in response to receiving the request to display the second video stream.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions to transition from displaying the first video stream to displaying the second video stream comprise:

instructions to slide a first video tile that includes content from the first video stream toward a first edge of the display;

instructions to slide one or more intervening video tiles that include content from one or more of the intervening channels across the display; and

instructions to slide a second video tile that includes content from the second video stream onto the display from a second edge of the display that is opposite to the first edge of the display.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions, which when executed by the electronic device, cause the electronic device to:

request a subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream; and

in response to the request to display the second video stream, sequentially display the subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream while receiving and decoding video data corresponding to the second video stream separate from the subset of frames of the video content of the second video stream.