Enhanced video programming system and method for providing a distributed community network

• US 20030005151A1
• Filed: 08/12/2002
• Published: 01/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/1996
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: ACTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Original Assignee: ACTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Inventors: Duda, Carl R., Harrington, Jeffrey M., Ullman, Craig D., Abato, Michael R.
• Application Number:
  US10/217,637
• Publication Number:
  US 20030005151A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/238
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 13/0825 the ejection arrangement being of the push-push kind
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1043 Gateway controllers, e.g. media gateway control protocol [MGCP] controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/222 Secondary servers, e.g. proxy server, cable television Head-end provisioning of proxy services in data packet switching networks H04L67/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4305 Synchronising client clock from received content stream, e.g. locking decoder clock with encoder clock, extraction of the PCR packets arrangements for synchronising receiver with transmitter by comparing receiver clock with transmitter clock H04L7/0012; arrangements for synchronising receiver with transmitter wherein the receiver takes measures against momentary loss of synchronisation H04L7/0083
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4758 for providing answers, e.g. voting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8547 involving timestamps for synchronizing content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

A distributed community network for providing services to an arbitrarily large community of end users by distributing the load among many machines. The network uses hubs on the machines for routing packets. The hubs obtain routing instructions from a router and use those instructions for routing the packets. The packets include content for the machines based upon a particular network service, such as a chat service for permitting users to interact in chat rooms or a push/pull service for pushing content to the user machines either directly or based upon information received from the users.

Claims

1. A method for routing packets of information in a network, comprising:

at a routing device located on a network, establishing at least one directory comprising at least one routing instruction to one or more targets in the network;

receiving a message to modify the at least one routing instruction; and

modifying the at least one routing instruction.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a packet at the routing device;

accessing the at least one directory comprising the at least one routing instruction to one or more targets in the network; and

routing the packet to the one or more targets in the network.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the operation of receiving a message to modify the at least one routing instruction comprises:

receiving a message to add at least one routing instruction for at least one new target in the network to the at least one directory.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the operation of receiving a message to modify the at least one routing instruction comprises:

receiving a message to delete at least one routing instruction for at least one new target in the network from the at least one directory.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the routing device comprises a hub.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the routing instruction comprises an identification of participants to receive the packet.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the routing instruction further comprises an address on the network to send the packet.

8. A method for transmitting data packets of information to one or more client devices, comprising:

in a server, providing for at least one directory comprising at least one identification of a client and at least one identification of at least one type of content to transmit to the client;

accessing the at least one directory; and

transmitting a packet from the server, the packet corresponding with the at least one type of content, the packet comprising the at least one identification of the client.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

receiving a message to modify the at least one directory; and

modifying the directory.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the message to modify the at least one directory comprises an instruction to add at least one identification of a client.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the message to modify the at least one directory comprises an instruction to add at least one identification of at least one type of content.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the message to modify the at least one directory comprises an instruction to delete at least one identification of a client.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the message to modify the at least one directory comprises an instruction to delete at least one identification of at least one type of content.

14. The method of claim 8 where the at least one type of content is selected from the group consisting of text data, video data, audio data, a uniform resource identifier, a uniform resource name, and a uniform resource locator.

15. The method of claim 8 wherein the operation of transmitting a packet from the server further comprises the operation of transmitting a packet from the server to a network.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the network is selected from the group consisting of the Internet, a wide-area network, a local area network, an intranet, a cable TV distribution medium, a broadcast medium, and a satellite broadcast medium.