Digital content delivery and viewing system and method

• US 20050010963A1
• Filed: 09/26/2003
• Published: 01/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Haivision Network Video, Inc. (Haivision Network Video Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Haivision Network Video, Inc. (Haivision Network Video Corp.)
• Inventors: Zorc, Brian J., Allen, Fred, Zeng, Jingdong, Yellen, Adam P., Lim, Robert C.
• Granted Patent: US 7,734,684 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/131
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A media distribution system is provided whereby devices on a network are provided with native-mode, optimized content viewers adapted to receive and present digital content provided elsewhere on the network. An agent is downloaded to a device, where it gathers information regarding the device environment and uses that information to identify the appropriate application for that device. The appropriate application for a particular device is then downloaded to the device to enable the device to present the content to a user.

Claims

1. A method for delivering a binary application to a device comprising:

receiving a request for content from the device;

delivering an agent program to said device, said agent program adapted to execute in a runtime environment on said device;

receiving information from said agent program regarding a platform of said device; and

delivering a platform specific application to said device, said application being adapted to display said content to a user and to execute on said platform of said device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving a request for content comprises receiving an HTTP or HTTPS request.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said runtime environment is a JAVA™

runtime environment.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein sending said agent program to said device comprises sending said agent program over an Internet Protocol network.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising delivering content adapted for use with said platform specific application to said device following the delivery of the platform specific application to the device.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein said content comprises audio/video content and informational services content.

7. The method of claim 5 further comprising receiving and logging statistical and event data from the device, said statistical and event data comprising information on content accessed by the device.

8. The method of claim 5 further comprising providing access to said content only to devices having proper entitlement to said content.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein delivering said content comprises delivering said content using multicast User Datagram Protocol.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein said content is selected from the group consisting of network services navigation data, electronic program guide data, entertainment services, interactive services, authorization information, order confirmation, conditional access entitlement information and commands, sports information, weather information, financial information, news information, and configuration data.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein receiving and logging statistical and event data comprises receiving said statistical and event data over a UDP/IP network.

12. A system for providing and displaying media content from a network on a client device comprising:

a media server system adapted to receive media content and to encode said media content for delivery over a data network, said media server system comprising an agent provisioning component;

one or more devices connected to said media server system via said network and adapted to send a request for said media content to said media server system, said one or more devices executing a runtime environment;

wherein said agent provisioning component of said media server system is adapted to respond to said request for said media content by delivering an agent program for execution within said runtime environment of said one or more devices, said agent program adapted to determine platforms of said one or more client devices and to send information regarding said platforms to said media server system, said media server system responding to said information regarding said platforms by sending a native-mode binary media viewer application to said one or more devices and delivering an encoded media stream adapted to be displayed on said one or more devices using said native-mode binary media viewer application.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein said request for said media content is an HTTP or HTTPS request.

14. The system of claim 12 wherein said runtime environment is a JAVA™

runtime environment.

15. The system of claim 12 wherein said network is an Internet Protocol network.

16. The system of claim 12 wherein delivering said encoded media stream comprises delivering a media stream having audio/video content and informational services content.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein said media server system is further adapted to receive and log statistical and event data from one or more of said devices, said statistical and event data comprising information regarding content accessed by the device.

18. The system of claim 16 wherein said informational services content is selected from the group consisting of network services navigation data, entertainment services, electronic program guide data, interactive services, authorization information, conditional access entitlement information and commands, sports information, weather information, financial information, news information, and configuration data.

19. The system of claim 16 wherein said media server system is adapted to transmit said informational services content over a UDP/IP network.

20. The system of claim 17 wherein said media server system is adapted to receive said statistical and event data over a UDP/IP network.

21. The system of claim 12 wherein said media server system is adapted to provide said encoded media stream only to devices having proper entitlement to said encoded media stream.

22. A system for accessing media from a media server system using a device, said system comprising:

requesting from within a runtime environment on said device media content from a selection of content sources;

downloading an agent applet onto said device for execution in said runtime environment, said agent applet identifying a platform of said device;

sending to said media server system information regarding said platform of said device;

receiving from said media server system a native-mode application for execution on said platform of said device; and

receiving a media stream from said media server system, said native-mode application being adapted to decode said media stream for providing said requested media content on said platform of said device.