Personal content server apparatus and methods
First Claim
1. A method of delivering content over a data network, said method comprising:
- receiving data relating to a reservation request, said reservation request comprising a request to reserve digital content for future delivery, said reservation request received via a first network and initiated from a first device;
utilizing a database to determine that said digital content has been purchased or downloaded by a second device associated with a second network, said utilizing comprising correlating, via information stored in said database, said first device to said second device, said information comprising data relating to a common subscription account associated with said first and second devices; and
enabling said digital content to be reserved for said first device when it is determined at least partly in response to a determination that said content has been purchased or downloaded by said second device over said second network.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Personal content server apparatus and associated methods that allow a user (e.g., cable or satellite network subscriber) to access content, such as a video program, from a location outside the subscriber'"'"'s network. In one embodiment, a personal content server streams the content to the subscriber over a network connection from the local e.g., (subscription) network to a remote network upon authorization by a content manager process. Various access, business or operational rules are applied depending on the content and delivery mode; e.g., to live video broadcast, video-on-demand (VOD), or archived content from the subscriber'"'"'s digital video recorder (DVR) or networked PVR. In another variant, reservation information (for example program or asset ID information) is cached at a headend or hub server, thereby obviating the subscriber (or the network) having to access the subscriber'"'"'s premises device. In yet another variant, a “virtual” CPE experience is provided for the remote user.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of delivering content over a data network, said method comprising:
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receiving data relating to a reservation request, said reservation request comprising a request to reserve digital content for future delivery, said reservation request received via a first network and initiated from a first device; utilizing a database to determine that said digital content has been purchased or downloaded by a second device associated with a second network, said utilizing comprising correlating, via information stored in said database, said first device to said second device, said information comprising data relating to a common subscription account associated with said first and second devices; and enabling said digital content to be reserved for said first device when it is determined at least partly in response to a determination that said content has been purchased or downloaded by said second device over said second network. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A network apparatus configured to deliver digital content over a network, said network apparatus comprising:
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at least one network data interface; processing apparatus in data communication with the at least one interface; and storage apparatus in data communication with the processing apparatus and comprising at least one computer program, the at least one program configured to, when executed on the processing apparatus; receive data indicative of a request to reserve at least one of a plurality of digital content for a future delivery, said data indicative of said request received via a first network an initiated from a first client device associated with a user; utilize multiple databases to determine that said digital content has been previously purchased by said user, said utilization of multiple databases comprising; utilization of a first database to correlate a first opaque variable associated with said user to a second opaque variable associated with said first client device; utilization of a second database to obtain a third opaque variable associated with said at least one of a plurality of content; and utilization of a third database to correlate said second opaque variable to said third opaque variable; when said determination indicates that said at least one of said plurality of digital content has been purchased by said user, permit said at least one of said plurality of digital content to be reserved for said first client device. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. Computer readable apparatus comprising a non-transitory storage medium, the non-transitory medium comprising at least one computer program having a plurality of instructions, the instructions configured to, when executed on a processing apparatus:
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receive data related to a reservation request, said reservation request comprising a request to reserve digital content for future delivery, said reservation request received via a first network and initiated from a first computerized device; utilize data within a database to determine that said digital content has been purchased or downloaded by a second computerized device associated with a second network, said utilization comprising a correlation, via said data within said database, of said first computerized device to said second computerized device, said data within said database relating to a common subscription account associated with said first and second computerized devices; and enable said digital content to be reserved for said first computerized device when it is determined at least partly in response to a determination that said digital content has been purchased or downloaded by said second computerized device over said second network. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification