System and method for providing program recommendations through multimedia searching based on established viewer preferences

• US 9,641,895 B2
• Filed: 11/25/2015
• Issued: 05/02/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Begeja, Lee, Blewett, Charles Douglas, Gibbon, David Crawford, Liu, Zhu, Renger, Bernard S., Rosen, Kenneth H., Shahraray, Behzad
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, THAI Q
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hunter, Mishawn
• Application Number:
  US14/952,158
• Publication Number:
  US 20160080814A1
• Time in Patent Office: 524 Days
• Field of Search: 386248, 386262, 386291, 725 46, 725 58
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/11 by using information not detectable on the record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/28 by using information signals recorded by the same method as the main recording G11B27/22 takes precedence
• 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 21/25891 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 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44222 Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4524 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; systems specially adapted for using geographical information in broadcast systems H04H60/70; protocols in which the network application is adapted for the location of the user terminal in communication control or processing 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 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; 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 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4668 for recommending content, e.g. movies

Abstract

A system and method is disclosed for processing viewer profiles and program metadata from a number of sources to provide viewing suggestions and recommendations to one or more viewers.

Claims

1. A method of operation of a central program controller, the method comprising:

reviewing program recordings previously scheduled by a user via a video recording device;

generating a profile using a weighted algorithm, the profile based on a specific event occurring in a certain area, user identified preferences, and the program recordings previously scheduled by the user, the weighted algorithm assigning more weight to the program recordings previously scheduled by the user than the user identified preferences;

deriving metadata for a plurality of programs;

comparing the profile to the metadata;

selecting one of the plurality of programs based on the comparing to generate a program recommendation; and

transmitting the program recommendation to the video recording device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the deriving metadata comprises deriving the metadata contemporaneously with a broadcasting of the one of the plurality of programs in a first geographic area.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the video recording device is located in a second geographic area, and the program recommendation is transmitted to the video recording device before a broadcast of the one of the plurality of programs is transmitted to the second geographic area.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the profile is further based on a user action comprising one of selecting a new program, selecting a scene of a specific program, rewinding the scene, and skipping the scene.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the profile is further based on a time of day.

6. A central program controller comprising:

a processor; and

a memory to store computer program instructions, the computer program instructions when executed on the processor cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

reviewing program recordings previously scheduled by a user via a video recording device;

generating a profile using a weighted algorithm, the profile based on a specific event occurring in a certain area, user identified preferences, and the program recordings previously scheduled by the user, the weighted algorithm assigning more weight to the program recordings previously scheduled by the user than the user identified preferences;

deriving metadata for a plurality of programs;

comparing the profile to the metadata;

selecting one of the plurality of programs based on the comparing to generate a program recommendation; and

transmitting the program recommendation to the video recording device.

7. The central program controller of claim 6, wherein the deriving metadata comprises deriving the metadata contemporaneously with a broadcasting of the one of the plurality of programs in a first geographic area.

8. The central program controller of claim 7, wherein the video recording device is located in a second geographic area, and the program recommendation is transmitted to the video recording device before a broadcast of the one of the plurality of programs is transmitted to the second geographic area.

9. The central program controller of claim 6, wherein the profile is further based on a user action comprising one of selecting a new program, selecting a scene of a specific program, rewinding the scene, and skipping the scene.

10. The central program controller of claim 6, wherein the profile is further based on a time of day.

11. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing computer program instructions for operation of a central program controller, which, when executed on a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

reviewing program recordings previously scheduled by a user via a video recording device;

generating a profile using a weighted algorithm, the profile based on a specific event occurring in a certain area, user identified preferences, and the program recordings previously scheduled by the user, the weighted algorithm assigning more weight to the program recordings previously scheduled by the user than the user identified preferences;

deriving metadata for a plurality of programs;

comparing the profile to the metadata;

selecting one of the plurality of programs based on the comparing to generate a program recommendation; and

transmitting the program recommendation to the video recording device.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the deriving metadata comprises deriving the metadata contemporaneously with a broadcasting of the one of the plurality of programs in a first geographic area.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the video recording device is located in a second geographic area, and the program recommendation is transmitted to the video recording device before a broadcast of the one of the plurality of programs is transmitted to the second geographic area.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the profile is further based on a user action comprising one of selecting a new program, selecting a scene of a specific program, rewinding the scene, and skipping the scene.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the profile is further based on a time of day.