User defined rules for assigning destinations of content

• US 9,736,527 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2016
• Issued: 08/15/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.), TV Guide Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Bryant, Jay S., Fereira, Edgar
• Primary Examiner(s): Saltarelli, Dominic D
• Application Number:
  US15/053,450
• Publication Number:
  US 20160173934A1
• Time in Patent Office: 537 Days
• Field of Search: 725 80, 725 82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/214 Specialised server platform, e.g. server located in an airplane, hotel, hospital arrangements specially adapted for local area broadcast systems H04H20/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2143 located in a single building, e.g. hotel, hospital or museum arrangements specially adapted for plural spots in a confined site in broadcast systems H04H20/63; adaptations for transmission by electric cable for domestic distribution in television systems H04N7/106
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2146 located in mass transportation means, e.g. aircraft, train or bus flight-deck installations for entertainment or communications B64D11/0015; arrangements specially adapted for transportation systems in broadcast systems H04H20/62; moving wireless networks H04W84/005
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/258 Client or end-user data management, e.g. managing client capabilities, user preferences or demographics, processing of multiple end-users preferences to derive collaborative data arrangements for services using the result on the distributing side of broadcast systems H04H60/66; profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4112 having fewer capabilities than the client, e.g. thin client having less processing power or no tuning capabilities
• 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 21/4334 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 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43622 Interfacing an external recording device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• 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 21/4751 for defining user accounts, e.g. accounts for children
• 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 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen

Abstract

A media guidance application is provided by which users can define rules for assigning user equipment devices as destinations for media content. For example, a user may define a rule by which selected media content having attributes that satisfy a user-defined condition are downloaded, recorded, or streamed to a particular, user-specified user equipment device. The user may define and manage rules using media guidance menus, and may restrict other users from accessing the rules (e.g., parents restricting children).

Claims

1. A method for allowing media content to be automatically assigned to a device among a plurality of devices belonging to a media network, the method comprising:

receiving a user input selecting media content;

determining which one of the plurality of devices is associated with a rule that is satisfied by the selected media content by comparing a condition of each rule associated with each of the plurality of devices to a content attribute of the selected media content;

in response to determining that the rule is satisfied by the selected media content, automatically assigning the device associated with the rule as the destination of the selected media content; and

in response to determining that the content attribute of the selected media content does not correspond to the condition of the rule for any of the plurality of devices, automatically assigning a default device as the destination of the selected media content.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the rule is defined by a user input, the user input comprising an identification of a device and at least one condition that must be satisfied by the media content for the identified device to be assigned as a destination device for the media content, wherein the at least one condition comprises at least one attribute that is an attribute associated with media content.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the user specified a destination device for the selected media content; and

assigning the specified destination device as a storage destination for the selected media content if a destination device is specified.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a user input selecting media content comprises receiving a user input identifying media content for recording.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a user input selecting media content comprises receiving the user input at a device that is associated with the network.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the rule is stored on a device in the media network.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically assigning the identified device comprises automatically assigning the identified device to record the selected media content.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a user input selecting media content comprises receiving a user input identifying stored media content for transferring.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically assigning a device as the destination of the selected media content comprises automatically assigning a second device as a second destination of the selected media content.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein each device in the plurality of devices is suitable as a destination device for the selected media content.

11. A system for allowing media content to be automatically assigned to a device among a plurality of devices belonging to a media network, the system comprising:

a user input interface; and

control circuitry configured to;

receive, from the user input interface, a user input selecting media content;

determine which one of the plurality of devices is associated with a rule that is satisfied by the selected media content by comparing a condition of each rule associated with each of the plurality of devices to a content attribute of the selected media content;

automatically assign the device associated with the rule as the destination of the selected media content in response to determining that the rule is satisfied by the selected media content; and

automatically assign a default device as the destination of the selected media content in response to determining that the content attribute of the selected media content does not correspond to the condition of the rule for any of the plurality of devices.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the rule is defined by a user input, the user input comprising an identification of a device and at least one condition that must be satisfied by the media content for the identified device to be assigned as a destination device for the media content, wherein the at least one condition comprises at least one attribute that is an attribute associated with media content.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry is further configured to:

determine whether the user specified a destination device for the selected media content; and

assign the specified destination device as a storage destination for the selected media content if a destination device is specified.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry, when receiving the user input selecting media content, is further configured to receive a user input identifying media content for recording.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry, when receiving the user input selecting media content, is further configured to receive the user input at a device that is associated with the network.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the rule is stored on a device in the media network.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry, when automatically assigning the identified device, is further configured to automatically assign the identified device to record the selected media content.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry, when receiving a user input selecting media content, is further configured to receive a user input identifying stored media content for transferring.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry, when automatically assigning the device as the destination of the selected media content, is further configured to automatically assign a second device as a second destination of the selected media content.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein each device in the plurality of devices is suitable as a destination device for the selected media content.