Method and system for providing time-shifted delivery of live media programs

• US 20020124258A1
• Filed: 03/01/2001
• Published: 09/05/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Minerva Networks, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Minerva Networks, Inc.
• Inventors: Fritsch, Jean-Georges
• Granted Patent: US 6,973,667 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/88
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6408 Unicasting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

Improved approaches for delivering media programs to viewers (e.g., subscribers) are disclosed. The media programs are typically broadcast in accordance with a schedule. The media program can be delivered to viewers through multicast or unicast. According to one aspect, the media programs are buffered (e.g., cached) in a data packet format such that producing unicasts for particular viewers requires less computation and resources such that more concurrent unicasts are able to be effectively supported.

Claims

1. A method for delivering media program content to users over a network, said method comprising:

receiving media program content to be delivered to one or more users;

converting the media program content being received into data packets; and

multicasting the data packets to those of the users desirous of viewing the media content program, wherein the data packets are being substantially simultaneously stored into a buffer storage device.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein said method further comprises:

removing a particular user out of the users receiving said multicasting upon receiving a pause request from the particular user, the pause request including a number of pause attributes; and

unicasting the data packets of the media content program to the particular user from the buffer storage device in accordance with the pause attributes associated therewith upon receiving a resume request from the particular user.

3. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein the data packets are IP packets.

4. A method as recited in claim 3, wherein the pause attributes include an IP address of a client machine being used the particular user.

5. A method as recited in claim 4, wherein said unicasting of the data packets comprises updating each of the data packets being delivered to the particular user with the IP address of the client machine.

6. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein the pause attributes comprises a pause point, and

wherein said unicasting comprises retrieving the data packets of the media content program from the buffer storage device in accordance with the pause point.

7. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein said method further comprises:

receiving, subsequent to said removing, a golive request from the particular user;

adding, in response to the golive request, the particular user to the users receiving said multicasting of the data packets of the media content program.

8. A method as recited in claim 7, wherein said method further comprises:

stopping, in response to the golive request, said unicasting of the data packets of the media content program to the particular user from the buffer storage device.

9. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein said method further comprises:

receiving an instant replay request from the particular user receiving said multicasting;

removing, in response to the instant replay request, the particular user from the users receiving said multicasting; and

unicasting, in response to the instant replay request, the data packets of the media content program to the particular user from the buffer storage device in accordance with a replay point.

10. A method as recited in claim 9, wherein the replay point is a predetermined backwards time shift.

11. A method for delivering media program content to users, said method comprising:

receiving media program content to be delivered to one or more users;

converting the media program content being received into data packets;

multicasting the data packets to those of the users desirous of viewing the media content program;

storing the data packets into a buffer storage device;

receiving a request from a particular user of the users receiving said multicasting, the request including a number of attributes; and

rearranging the particular user, in response to the request, with respect to the users receiving said multicasting.

12. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein said rearranging the particular user comprises one of:

(i) removing the particular use out of the users receiving said multicasting; and

(ii) putting the particular use back to the users receiving said multicasting.

13. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein the request is one of (i) a pulse request, (ii) an instant replay request, (iii) a resume request and (iv) a golive request.

14. A method as recited in claim 13, wherein one of the attributes is where said multicasting is paused, and

wherein said method further comprises:

unicasting the data packets from the buffer storage device, in accordance with the one of the attributes, to the particular user when the instant replay request is received.

15. A method as recited in claim 14, wherein said data packets stored in the buffer storage device comply with a multicasting protocol.

17. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein said multicasting and said storing are performed at substantially the same time.

18. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein the data packets are IP packets, and wherein the pause attributes include an IP address for a terminal associated with the particular subscriber.

19. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein the pause attributes comprises a pause point, and

wherein said unicasting comprising retrieving the data packets of the media content program from the buffer storage device in accordance with the pause point.

20. A method as recited in claim 16,

wherein said multicasting transmits the data packets over a network to those of the subscribers desirous of viewing the media content program, and

wherein said unicasting transmits the data packets over the network to the particular subscriber.

21. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein said method further comprises:

receiving, subsequent to said removing, a golive request from the particular subscriber;

adding, in response to the golive request, the particular subscriber to the subscribers receiving said multicasting of the data packets of the media content program.

22. A method as recited in claim 21, wherein said method further comprises:

stopping, in response to the golive request, said unicasting of the data packets of the media content program to the particular subscriber from the buffer storage device.

23. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein said method further comprises:

receiving an instant replay request from the particular subscriber receiving said multicasting;

removing, in response to the instant replay request, the particular subscriber from the subscribers receiving said multicasting; and

unicasting, in response to the instant replay request, the data packets of the media content program to the particular subscriber from the buffer storage device in accordance with a replay point.

24. A method as recited in claim 23, wherein the replay point is a predetermined backwards time shift.

27. A method as recited in claim 26, wherein the replay point is a predetermined backwards time shift.

29. A media delivery center as recited in claim 28, wherein said protocol conversion unit performs a packetization on the media stream in producing the data packets.

30. A media delivery center as recited in claim 28, wherein the media stream is encrypted and remains encrypted after being converted into the data packets for the media stream.

31. A media delivery center as recited in claim 28,

wherein the delivery of the data packets for the media program to a plurality of users in the multicasting fashion is performed in accordance with a schedule, and

wherein the delivery of the data packets for the media program from said buffer to individual users in the unicasting fashion provides delayed delivery of the media program to the individual users.

32. A media delivery center as recited in claim 31, wherein the media stream is encrypted and remains encrypted after being converted into the data packets for the media stream.

33. A media delivery center as recited in claim 32, wherein said protocol conversion unit performs a packetization on the media stream in producing the data packets.

34. A media delivery center as recited in claim 28, wherein each of the users has a network address associated therewith, and

wherein said unicast delivery unit operates to modify the data packets for the media program from said buffer that are to be delivered to a particular one of the individual users in the unicasting fashion by modifying a destination address of the data packets to reflect the network address of the particular one of the individual users.

35. A media delivery center as recited in claim 34, wherein said protocol conversion unit performs a packetization on the media stream in producing the data packets.

16. A method for delivering media program content to subscribers in accordance with subscriber control, said method comprising:

receiving media program content to be delivered to one or more subscribers;

converting the media program content being received into data packets;

multicasting the data packets to those of the subscribers desirous of viewing the media content program;

storing the data packets into a buffer storage device;

receiving a pause request from a particular subscriber of the subscribers receiving said multicasting, the pause request including at least pause attributes;

removing, in response to the pause request, the particular subscriber of the subscribers receiving said multicasting;

subsequently receiving a resume request from the particular subscriber; and

unicasting, in response to the resume request, the data packets of the media content program to the particular subscriber from the buffer storage device in accordance with the pause attributes associated therewith.

25. A method for delivering media program content to subscribers in accordance with subscriber control, said method comprising:

receiving media program content to be delivered to one or more subscribers;

converting the media program content being received into data packets;

multicasting the data packets to those of the subscribers desirous of viewing the media content program;

storing the data packets into a buffer storage device;

receiving a pause request from a particular subscriber of the subscribers receiving said multicasting, the pause request including at least pause attributes;

removing, in response to the pause request, the particular subscriber of the subscribers receiving said multicasting;

subsequently receiving a golive request from the particular subscriber; and

adding, in response to the golive request, the particular subscriber to the subscribers receiving said multicasting of the data packets of the media content program.

26. A method for delivering media program content to subscribers in accordance with subscriber control, said method comprising:

receiving media program content to be delivered to one or more subscribers;

converting the media program content being received into data packets;

multicasting the data packets to those of the subscribers desirous of viewing the media content program;

storing the data packets into a buffer storage device;

receiving an instant replay request from a particular subscriber of the subscribers receiving said multicasting;

removing, in response to the instant replay request, the particular subscriber from the subscribers receiving said multicasting; and

unicasting, in response to the instant replay request, the data packets of the media content program to the particular subscriber from the buffer storage device in accordance with a replay point.

28. A media delivery center that couples to a network for delivery of media program contents to users, said media delivery center comprising:

a protocol conversion unit that receives a media stream of a media program and converts the media stream into data packets;

a network interface that couples to a physical network;

a multicast delivery unit, operatively connected to said protocol conversion unit and said network interface, that delivers the data packets for the media program to a plurality of users in a multicasting fashion;

a buffer that stores the data packets for the media program;

a unicast delivery unit, operatively connected to said buffer and said network interface, that delivers the data packets for the media program from said buffer to individual users in a unicasting fashion.