Flexible video-on-demand viewing period
First Claim
1. A method for providing a video access period, the method comprising:
- providing, by a server of a subscription service, a video to a customer of the subscription service via an electronic device, wherein the video is available for playback as long as a subscription account associated with the customer of the subscription service is active;
setting, by the server of the subscription service, a bookmark at a point in the video that allows the playback of the video from the point in the video,removing, by the server of the subscription service, access to the video upon expiration of a maximum rental period measured from a time the video was provided to the customer of the subscription service; and
discarding, by the server of the subscription service, the bookmark set at the point in the video upon expiration of the maximum rental period.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A flexible video-on-demand viewing period is varied depending on whether the customer has completed viewing the entire program, allowing the viewing period to be extended if the customer has not completed viewing the entire program. The approach better assures the customer that they will have the opportunity to complete viewing the entire program, compared to a fixed rental period, while assuring program copyright owners that the utility of the rental is limited, fundamentally as intended, preserving the future value of the asset. The approach also enables viewers to retain bookmarks as needed for content that is not naturally tied to a rental period, such as subscription video-on-demand, without unnecessarily enlarging their list of active rentals.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. A method for providing a video access period, the method comprising:
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providing, by a server of a subscription service, a video to a customer of the subscription service via an electronic device, wherein the video is available for playback as long as a subscription account associated with the customer of the subscription service is active; setting, by the server of the subscription service, a bookmark at a point in the video that allows the playback of the video from the point in the video, removing, by the server of the subscription service, access to the video upon expiration of a maximum rental period measured from a time the video was provided to the customer of the subscription service; and discarding, by the server of the subscription service, the bookmark set at the point in the video upon expiration of the maximum rental period. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A server of a subscription service for providing a video access period, the server of the subscription service comprising:
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a memory within the server of the subscription service; and a processor within the server of the subscription service, coupled to the memory, configured to; provide a video to a customer of the subscription service via an electronic device, wherein the video is available for playback as long as a subscription account associated with the customer of the subscription service is active; set a bookmark at a point in the video that allows the playback of the video from the point in the video; remove access to the video upon expiration of a maximum rental period measured from a time the video was provided to the customer of the subscription service; and discard the bookmark set at the point in the video upon expiration of the maximum rental period. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method for managing customer access to a video, the method comprising:
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providing, by a server of a subscription service, the video to a customer of the subscription service via an electronic device, wherein the video is available to the customer of the subscription service for a period constrained by viewing activity of the customer of the subscription service; playing back the video; setting a bookmark at a point in the video that allows subsequent playback of the video from the point set by the bookmark; removing access to the video upon expiration of a maximum rental period measured from a time the video was provided to the customer of the subscription service; and discarding the bookmark set at the point in the video upon expiration of the maximum rental, period. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18)
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Specification