System, Apparatus for Content Delivery for Internet Traffic and Methods Thereof

• US 20110280143A1
• Filed: 05/11/2011
• Published: 11/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Qian, Tao, Tian, Hongbo, Li, Sanqi, Lin, Kui, Han, Houxiao
• Granted Patent: US 9,628,579 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/252
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/14 Charging , metering or billing arrangements for data wireline or wireless communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1435 volume-based
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1439 time-based
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1485 Tariff-related aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1489 dependent on congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5029 Service quality level-based billing, e.g. dependent on measured service level customer is charged more or less
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5067 Customer-centric QoS measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/30 for supporting lawful interception, monitoring or retaining of communications or communication related information circuit switched telephony call monitoring H04M3/2281
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/306 intercepting packet switched data communications, e.g. Web, Internet or IMS communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1063 Application servers providing network services systems providing special services to telephonic subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/143 Termination or inactivation of sessions, e.g. event-controlled end of session
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/2885 Hierarchically arranged intermediate devices, e.g. for hierarchical caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5681 Pre-fetching or pre-delivering data based on network characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/324 : in the data link layer [OSI layer 2], e.g. HDLC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/325 : in the network layer [OSI layer 3], e.g. X.25 H04L69/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/40 : for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity, e.g. service redundancy protocols, protocol state redundancy or protocol service redirection management of faults, events, alarms or notifications in data switching networks H04L41/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/83 : Notification aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/84 : Types of notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/844 : Message, e.g. SMS
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/85 : characterised by the type of condition triggering a notification
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/852 : Low balance or limit reached
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/88 : Provision for limiting connection, or expenditure
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/888 : severing connection after predetermined time or data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/80 : Arrangements enabling lawful interception [LI]

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method of serving media includes receiving a delivery log of traffic use after every first time interval for an user equipment. The user equipment is part of a hot billing class of users. The traffic use comprises data usage by the user equipment during communication with a media server in a layer2 access network. A user traffic information computed from the delivery log is transmitted to a billing center. A account status information is received from the billing center. The account status information is received if the user equipment exceeds a user account metric. A session termination information based on the account status information is transmitted.

Claims

1. A method of serving media, the method comprising:

receiving a delivery log of traffic use after every first time interval for an user equipment, the user equipment being part of a hot billing class of users, wherein the traffic use comprises data usage by the user equipment during communication with a media server in a layer2 access network;

transmitting a user traffic information from the delivery log to a billing center;

receiving account status information from the billing center, wherein the account status information is received if the user equipment exceeds a user account metric; and

transmitting session termination information based on the account status information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the delivery log of traffic use is received at a media data function at a content delivery network.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the transmitting session termination information is transmitted to a media controller at a content delivery network.

4. A method of serving media, the method comprising:

periodically generating a delivery log comprising traffic use for an on-going session with a user equipment for every first time interval;

transmitting the delivery log periodically every second time interval;

receiving session termination information, wherein the session termination information is received if the user equipment exceeds a user account metric; and

terminating the on-going session with the user equipment.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the delivery log is generated at a media server at a layer2 access network.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the delivery log is transmitted to a media data function in a content delivery network.

7. A method of serving media, the method comprising:

receiving a request to serve media content to a user equipment;

receiving a subset of packet data protocol (PDP) information, the PDP comprising a flag indicating charging type of the user equipment;

determining the charging type of the user equipment based on the flag;

determining the media content to be served is not cacheable if the charging type of the user equipment is a real time charging type; and

forwarding the request to serve the media content without caching if the charging type of the user equipment is the real time charging type.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the request is received at a media controller.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

if the charging type of the user equipment is not real time charging type;

processing caching information regarding the media content, the caching information comprising information regarding whether the media content requested by the user equipment is cacheable, and

assigning a first media server from a hierarchical set of media servers to serve the user equipment if the media content to be served is cacheable, the hierarchical set of media servers comprising a plurality of first type of media servers deployed in a plurality of layer2 access networks, the user equipment being coupled to a content delivery network through a layer2 access network of the plurality of layer2 access networks.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the charging type of the user equipment is a hot billing charging type.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the first media server is deployed in the layer2 access network.

12. A method of media streaming, the method comprising:

maintaining a list of local media servers deployed in a first layer2 access network;

maintaining a IP address of a media controller in a content delivery network, the media controller configured to assign a media server to serve a user equipment;

determining if a local media server from the list of local media servers has failed;

receiving a request from the user equipment to serve media content; and

forwarding the request from the user equipment to the media controller if the local media server has failed.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the list of media servers is maintained at an inter working function unit (IWF) deployed in the first layer2 access network serving the user equipment.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein receiving a request from the user equipment comprises receiving a retry message after the local media server delivering the media content to the user equipment fails.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the request from the user equipment comprises information for a start location in the media content.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the information for a start location in the media content comprises a byte-range request.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein determining if a local media server from the list of local media servers has failed comprises maintaining a heart beat with the local media server.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein determining if a local media server from the list of local media servers has failed comprises monitoring a time difference between a reply from the local media server after forwarding the received request to the local media server.

19. The method of claim 12, further comprising forwarding the request from the user equipment to the local media server if the local media server has not failed.

20. A method of media streaming, the method comprising:

assigning a first media server to serve a user equipment in response to a request to serve a cacheable media content to a user equipment;

monitoring a status of the first media server to determine if the first media server fails; and

if the first media server fails;

assigning a second media server to serve the user equipment,

generating a redirect message having a source message of the first media server, the redirect message redirecting the user equipment to the second media server, and

sending the redirect message.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the first media server is assigned at a media controller in a content delivery network, and wherein the first media server is deployed in a layer2 access network.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein monitoring a status of the first media server comprises determining if the first media server has failed at a media controller.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein monitoring a status of the first media server comprises receiving information if the first media server fails at a media controller.