Method and system for providing set-top box remote access functions in a browser extension based on advertising metadata

• US 9,668,010 B2
• Filed: 06/04/2015
• Issued: 05/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Scott, Charles V., White, Scott, Cansler, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Bruckart, Benjamin R
• Assistant Examiner(s): THOMAS, JASON M
• Application Number:
  US14/730,757
• Publication Number:
  US 20150271544A1
• Time in Patent Office: 726 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• 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 21/4227 Providing Remote input by a user located remotely from the client device, e.g. at work
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4753 for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6543 for forcing some client operations, e.g. recording remote booting in general G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6581 Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8173 End-user applications, e.g. Web browser, game
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A method and a system for providing remote set-top box access functions in an Internet browser extension based on advertisement metadata is disclosed. A meta-data tag associated with an advertisement embedded on a currently viewed web page is scanned. It is determined that the meta-data tag is related to entertainment content. A media manipulation action for the entertainment content is determined. A notification that the media manipulation action is available for the entertainment content is displayed. Controls to store the media manipulation action on a user account are provided, and the manipulation action is stored to the user account.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a processing system including a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations comprising;

displaying an offer to install a web browser plug-in at a web browser of equipment of a user; and

responsive to receiving a selection of the offer, providing instructions to install the web browser plug-in,

wherein responsive to being installed, the web browser plug-in performs operations comprising;

scanning a meta-data tag of an advertisement to obtain advertisement information that describes the advertisement, wherein the advertisement is embedded on a web page that is being presented at a display device;

identifying entertainment content that is related to the advertisement by comparing the advertisement information from the meta-data tag with content information of entertainment content stored in a database;

determining capabilities of each of a plurality of remote set-top boxes;

determining availability of a media manipulation action for the entertainment content based on the capabilities;

providing a notification for presentation at the display device indicating that the media manipulation action is available for the entertainment content at one or more of the plurality of remote set-top boxes according to the determining, wherein the notification comprises an icon separate from the advertisement, and wherein the notification is provided without providing a link in the meta-data tag for access to the media manipulation action; and

providing controls for the media manipulation action via a web portal that provides access to the remote set-top boxes and provides controls for different features of the respective remote set-top boxes.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

sending the media manipulation action to the web portal to cause performance of the media manipulation action.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the controls for the media manipulation action comprise controls to store the media manipulation action associated with a user account.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving login information associated with the user account;

verifying the login information; and

providing account information associated with the user account for presentation at the display device.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the icon comprises a selectable item, and wherein the controls for the media manipulation action are provided responsive to selection of the item.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the selectable item comprises text associated with the entertainment content.

7. The device of claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving a user selection of the item; and

responsive to the receiving, providing a graphical user interface for presentation at the display device adapted to receive the media manipulation action.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the icon is a browser toolbar icon.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the media manipulation action is selected from the group consisting of scheduling a digital video recorder recording and downloading a video on demand.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the content information comprises titles, and wherein the identifying of the entertainment content is performed based on comparing the titles of the entertainment content with text strings in the advertisement, with objects in the advertisement and with the advertisement information from the meta-data tag.

11. A method comprising:

displaying, by a processing system including a processor, an offer to install a web browser plug-in at a web browser of equipment of a user; and

providing, by the processing system, instructions to install the web browser plug-in, responsive to receiving a selection of the offer;

wherein responsive to being installed, the web browser plug-in performs operations comprising;

comparing advertisement information describing an advertisement with entertainment information of an entertainment database, wherein the advertisement is embedded on a web page presented at a display device, and wherein the advertisement information is obtained from a meta-data tag of the advertisement;

identifying entertainment content related to the advertisement information based on the comparing;

determining capabilities of each of a plurality of remote set-top boxes;

determining availability of a media manipulation action for the entertainment content based on the capabilities; and

providing a notification for presentation at the display device indicating that the media manipulation action is available for the entertainment content at one or more of the plurality of remote set-top boxes, wherein the notification is separate from the advertisement, and wherein the notification is provided without providing a link in the meta-data tag for access to the media manipulation action; and

providing controls for the media manipulation action via a web portal that provides access to the remote set-top boxes and provides controls for different features of the respective remote set-top boxes.

12. The method of claim 11,

wherein the notification comprises a selectable item and the controls for the media manipulation action are provided responsive to selection of the item, and

wherein the web browser plug-in sends the media manipulation action to the web portal to cause performance of the media manipulation action.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the web browser plug-in is installed in accordance with instructions from a domain controller of the processing system communicating with the equipment of the user via a network.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the comparing further comprises comparing the advertisement information from the meta-data tag with titles of the entertainment content stored in the entertainment database.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the controls for the media manipulation action comprise controls to store the media manipulation action at a memory of at least one of the remote set-top boxes.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the media manipulation action is selected from the group consisting of scheduling a digital video recorder recording and downloading a video on demand.

17. A device, comprising:

a processing system including a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations comprising;

providing a web portal for accessing a plurality of media processors via a network;

displaying the web portal at a display device of equipment of a user, the equipment of the user thereby accessing the media processors, each of the media processors being remote from the equipment of the user;

displaying an offer to install a web browser plug-in at a web browser of the equipment of the user;

responsive to receiving a selection of the offer, providing instructions to install the web browser plug-in,

wherein responsive to being installed, the web browser plug-in performs operations comprising;

scanning a meta-data tag of an advertisement to obtain advertisement information that describes the advertisement, wherein the advertisement is embedded on a web page that is being presented at the display device,

identifying entertainment content that is related to the advertisement by comparing the advertisement information from the meta-data tag with content information of entertainment content stored in a database,

determining capabilities of each of the plurality of media processors;

determining availability of a media manipulation action for the entertainment content based on the capabilities, and

providing a notification for presentation at the display device indicating that the media manipulation action is available for the entertainment content at one or more of the plurality of media processors according to the determining, wherein the notification is separate from the advertisement, and wherein the notification is provided without providing a link in the meta-data tag for access to the media manipulation action; and

providing, via the web portal, controls for different features of the respective media processors.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the content information comprises titles, and wherein a network device comprises a domain controller communicating with the equipment of the user via the network, and wherein the web browser plug-in, responsive to being installed, embeds functionality for accessing the media processor into the web browser of the equipment of the user.

19. The device of claim 17,

wherein the notification comprises a selectable item and the controls for the media manipulation action are provided responsive to selection of the item, and

wherein the web browser plug-in sends the media manipulation action to at least one media processor of the plurality of media processors or to the web portal to cause the at least one media processor to perform the media manipulation action.

20. The device of claim 17, wherein the media manipulation action is selected from the group consisting of scheduling a digital video recorder recording and downloading a video on demand.