Enhanced music services for television

• US 20030023975A1
• Filed: 06/28/2002
• Published: 01/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Scott, Samuel T., Lee, Alvin P., Simms, Andrew M., Crawford, Jeffrey D., Schrader, Joseph A., Crow, William M.
• Application Number:
  US10/186,107
• Publication Number:
  US 20030023975A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26208 the scheduling operation being performed under constraints
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/266 Channel or content management, e.g. generation and management of keys and entitlement messages in a conditional access system, merging a VOD unicast channel into a multicast channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2665 Gathering content from different sources, e.g. Internet and satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• 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 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• 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 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8126 involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8352 involving content or source identification data, e.g. Unique Material Identifier [UMID]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 : Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/50 : Tuning indicators; Automatic tuning control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/783 : Adaptations for reproducing at a rate different from the recording rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 : by receiver means only

Abstract

An enhanced television navigation service supplies broadcast television music programming, digital audio and related content. The related content is linked with the broadcast programming and is presented to the user. By linking the related content with the programming in this fashion, the user can tune to a program based on information indicators presented by the service.

Claims

1. A method for presenting a dynamic navigation interface comprising the steps of:

receiving a plurality of broadcast television programs relating to a specific theme, each of the plurality of television programs including an Event ID;

receiving enhanced Internet protocol (IP) data including an Event ID associating the IP data with at least one of the plurality of programs;

presenting, on a video display, a listing including a series of visual cues based on the IP data, each of the visual cues corresponding to a currently playing television program relating to the specific theme;

receiving a user selection of one of the visual cues;

tuning to a channel associated with the event ID in response to user selection of the visual cue; and

reordering the series of visual cues in the listing after the user selection of one of the visual cues.

2. The invention as in claim 1 wherein the theme is music.

3. The invention as in claim 2 further including the steps of

receiving a plurality of broadcast digital audio channels, each of the broadcast digital audio channels including an Event ID;

receiving enhanced Internet protocol (IP) data including an Event ID associating the IP data with at least one of the plurality of digital audio channels; and

presenting a second series of visual cues based on the IP data on the video display.

4. The invention as in claim 3 further including the steps of

receiving a user selection of one of the second visual cues;

and

tuning to the audio channel associated with the event ID in response to user selection of the visual cue.

5. The invention as in claim 4 wherein the video display is a conventional television receiver.

6. The invention as in claim 4 wherein each of the series of television visual cues corresponding to a currently playing television program comprises a program listing and an icon, the icon indicating that the program listing is a television program.

7. The invention as in claim 6 wherein each of the series of audio visual cues comprises an audio listing and an icon, the icon indicating that the program listing is a digital audio program

8. The invention as in claim 1 wherein the Internet protocol data portion is filtered to correspond to currently available music television programming.

9. A Music Tuner comprising:

A method for presenting a dynamic navigation interface comprising the steps of;

receiving a plurality of broadcast television programs relating to a specific theme, each of the plurality of television programs including an Event ID;

receiving enhanced Internet protocol (IP) data including an Event ID associating the IP data with at least one of the plurality of programs;

presenting, on a video display, a listing including a series of visual cues based on the IP data, each of the visual cues corresponding to a currently playing television program relating to the specific theme;

receiving a user selection of one of the visual cues;

tuning to a channel associated with the event ID in response to user selection of the visual cue; and

reordering the series of visual cues in the listing after the user selection of one of the visual cues.

10. A method for presenting a tunable Alert on a television receiver concerning a broadcast music program comprising the steps of:

receiving television scheduling data concerning a plurality of televised music events, each of which includes an associated unique event identifier;

receiving a content stream including at least one unique event identifier while one of the plurality of music events is being broadcast;

presenting a tunable alert in response to the received content stream;

in response to user selection of the tunable alert, determining a channel associated with the alert based on the unique event identifier; and

automatically tuning to the associated channel.

11. The invention as in claim 10 wherein the content stream is a real-time content stream.

12. The invention as in claim 11 wherein the tunable alert presents information concerning other in-progress music events.

13. A method for presenting a visual indicator on a television device concerning a currently available music offering comprising the steps of:

receiving an active status indicator only while a music event is active and at least one unique event identifier associating the active status indicator with the televised music event;

processing the status indicator;

presenting an active status alert in response to the received content stream;

in response to user selection of the active status alert, determining a channel associated with the alert based on the unique event identifier; and

automatically tuning to the associated channel.

14. A method for delivering enhanced television programming data comprising the steps of:

receiving a schedule for a plurality of television listings, each of the plurality of television listings including a unique event identifier;

receiving enhanced Internet protocol (IP) data including an event identifier associating the IP data with one of the plurality of television listings;

presenting a visual cue based on the IP data on a display device informing a user of an action.

15. A method of providing enhanced television services comprising:

receiving a music data string, wherein the music data string is associated with tuning information;

displaying a representation of the music data string on a display device;

receiving a selection from the user of the representation of the music data string; and

tuning a display device to display a channel responsive to the tuning information associated with the music data string.

16. The method as in claim 15 further including the steps of:

receiving an updated music data string associated with tuning information; and

displaying an updated representation of the music data string on the display device.

17. The method as in claim 16 wherein the music data string includes information relating to the presentation of a music video on a television channel.

18. The method as in claim 17 wherein the music data string includes information relating to a currently televised music video on a television channel.

19. The method as in claim 18 wherein the music data string includes information relating to the presentation of an audio program on a digital audio channel.

20. The method as in claim 19 wherein the music data string includes information relating to a currently broadcast song on a digital audio channel.

21. A method for creating digital video recording enhancements for music programming comprising the steps of:

creating program event log indices marking events in the program meeting program-specific rules; and

transmitting the program event log indices to a client system.

22. The invention of claim 21 wherein the program event log indices are created as the program is broadcast.

23. The invention of claim 22 wherein the program event log indices are transmitted to the client system in real-time.

24. The invention of claim 21 wherein the program-specific rules relate to music programming.

25. A method for processing video recording enhancements in a client system adapted to receive television and audio programming comprising the steps of:

receiving the television programming;

storing the television programming as a recorded program;

receiving program event indices developed according to one or more defined rules applied to the television programming; and

associating the program event indices with corresponding segments in the recorded program.

26. The invention of claim 25, wherein at least one of the plurality of defined rules requires an event log to be captured upon the occurrence of a certain action in the television programming.