Content streaming and broadcasting

• US 9,756,373 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2015
• Issued: 09/05/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: David Houston
• Original Assignee: Booma Inc.
• Inventors: Houston, David Howard, DeLauder, Charles Mark, Wombwell, Andrew Norman, Delshad, Daniel Aaron
• Primary Examiner(s): MENGESHA, MULUGETA A
• Application Number:
  US14/839,858
• Publication Number:
  US 20170064359A1
• Time in Patent Office: 739 Days
• Field of Search: 725109-110
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2187 Live feed
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23106 involving caching operations prefetching while addressing of a memory level in which the access to the desired data or data block requires associative addressing means within memory systems or architectures G06F12/0862; caching at an intermediate stage in a data network H04L67/568
• 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 21/2343 involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements video transcoding H04N19/40; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2393 involving handling client requests scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2665 Gathering content from different sources, e.g. Internet and satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2743 Video hosting of uploaded data from client

Abstract

Apparatuses and methods are described herein for interactive streaming among a broadcasting device and a plurality of viewing devices, including, but not limited to, receiving, by a server, a request from the broadcasting device to output content captured by the plurality of viewing devices as an output stream. The server queues the plurality of viewing devices for displaying the content in the output stream sequentially. The server receives the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices. The server stitches the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices into the same output stream for displaying the content in real time.

Claims

1. A method for interactive streaming among a broadcasting device and a plurality of viewing devices, comprising:

receiving, by a server, a request from the broadcasting device to output content captured by the plurality of viewing devices as an output stream;

queuing, by the server, the plurality of viewing devices by determining a queue according to which content from the plurality of viewing devices is to be stitched for displaying the content in the output stream sequentially;

receiving, by the server, the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices; and

stitching, by the server, the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices into the same output stream according to the queue for displaying the content in real time;

wherein determining the queue according to which the content from the plurality of viewing devices is to be stitched comprises;

determining a first position in the queue for a first viewing device of the plurality of viewing devices;

determining a second position in the queue for a second viewing device of the plurality of viewing devices, wherein the second position is after the first position in the queue; and

first content from the first viewing device is stitched to be before second content from the second viewing device in the output stream.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending, by the server, the stitched output stream to the plurality of viewing devices and the broadcasting device to be displayed.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising sending, by the server, content of the broadcasting device to the plurality of viewing devices prior to sending the stitched output stream to the plurality of viewing devices.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the plurality of viewing devices are outputting the content of the broadcasting device concurrent with the server receiving the request.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the plurality of viewing devices are queued based on a time at which each of the plurality of viewing devices started to receive the content of the broadcasting device.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the plurality of viewing devices are queued at random.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing, by the server to each of the plurality of viewing devices, an indication of a position in the queue for each of the plurality of viewing devices.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the request to output content captured by the plurality of viewing devices is based on user input of a broadcaster using the broadcasting device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein:

a predetermined length of the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices is stitched in the output stream; and

the predetermined length of the content for each of the plurality of viewing devices is the same in the output stream.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein:

the predetermined length is determined by the server as default;

or the predetermined length corresponds to a broadcaster-set length of time received from the broadcasting device.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the content from the plurality of viewing devices is received according to the queue.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-readable instructions, such that, when executed by a processor, performs a method for interactive

streaming among a broadcasting device and a plurality of viewing devices, the method comprising:

receiving a request from the broadcasting device to output content captured by the plurality of viewing devices as an output stream;

queuing the plurality of viewing devices by determining a queue according to which content from the plurality of viewing devices is to be stitched for displaying the content in the output stream sequentially;

receiving the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices; and

stitching the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices into the same output stream according to the queue for displaying the content in real time;

wherein determining the queue according to which the content from the plurality of viewing devices is to be stitched comprises;

determining a first position in the queue for a first viewing device of the plurality of viewing devices;

determining a second position in the queue for a second viewing device of the plurality of viewing devices, wherein the second position is after the first position in the queue; and

first content from the first viewing device is stitched to be before second content from the second viewing device in the output stream.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, the method further comprising sending, by the server, the stitched output stream to the plurality of viewing devices and the broadcasting device to be displayed.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12, the method further comprising sending, by the server, content of the broadcasting device to the plurality of viewing devices prior to sending the stitched output stream to the plurality of viewing devices.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the plurality of viewing devices are outputting the content of the broadcasting device concurrent with the server receiving the request.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the plurality of viewing devices are queued based on a time at which each of the plurality of viewing devices started to receive the content of the broadcasting device.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the plurality of viewing devices are queued at random.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, the method further comprising providing, by the server to each of the plurality of viewing devices, an indication of a position in the queue for each of the plurality of viewing devices.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the request to output content captured by the plurality of viewing devices is based on user input of a broadcaster using the broadcasting device.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein a predetermined length of the content from each of the plurality of viewing devices is stitched in the output stream.

20. A method for interactive streaming among a broadcasting device and a plurality of viewing devices, comprising:

receiving, by a first viewing device of the plurality of viewing devices from a server, a position in queue for stitching to output content from the plurality of viewing devices;

receiving, by the first viewing device from the server, stitched real-time content from at least one of the plurality of viewing devices other than the first viewing device as output stream;

displaying, by the first viewing device, the received stitched real-time content; and

sending, by the first viewing device to the server, the content of the first viewing device based on the position of the first viewing device in queue;

wherein the queue according to which the content from the plurality of viewing devices is to be stitched comprises;

a first position in the queue for a first viewing device of the plurality of viewing devices;

a second position in the queue for a second viewing device of the plurality of viewing devices, wherein the second position is after the first position in the queue; and

first content from the first viewing device is stitched to be before second content from the second viewing device in the output stream.