Method and apparatus for managing delivery of multimedia content in a communications system

• US 6,230,205 B1
• Filed: 11/16/1999
• Issued: 05/08/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Communications Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Howser, James L., Sinnreich, Heinrick, Garrity, Martin Michael, Heneghan, John Coyle, Willis, Edward D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh, Ayaz
• Assistant Examiner(s): WINDER, PATRICE L
• Application Number:
  US09/441,305
• Time in Patent Office: 539 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/204, 709/217, 709/218, 709/219, 709/231, 709/233, 709/238, 709/227, 709/232, 709/250, 370/429, 370/477, 345/302, 348/7
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method and apparatus for managing delivery of data, also referred to as “content”, by a data processing system in a communications system in which a number of content providers and content consumers are located within the communications system. The data processing system receives a request to accept delivery of content at the data processing system, wherein the request originates from a requesting content provider. A determination is made as to when the content may be received from the requesting content provider and when the content may be transmitted to content consumers based on contents already scheduled to be delivered from the number of content providers. Delivery of the content from the requesting content provider is accepted based on a determination of when the content may be received and when the content may be transmitted.

Claims

1. A communications system comprising:

a network;

an interface to a content provider;

a plurality of subscribers connected to the network;

a data processing system connected to the network including;

a storage device, wherein the storage device includes a plurality of contents;

a server, wherein the server sends content to subscribers of the content;

a push broker, wherein the push broker manages delivery of contents by the server to the plurality of subscribers, wherein the push broker includes a plurality of modes of operation including;

a first mode of operation in which the push broker monitors the interface to the content provider for an establishing of a communications link to the content provider for a transmission of live content;

a second mode of operation, responsive to detecting the establishing of the communications link, in which the push broker determines whether the transmission is a valid transmission; and

a third mode of operation, responsive to a valid transmission, in which the push broker directs the server to transmit the live content to the plurality of subscribers.

2. The communications system of claim 1, wherein the data processing system is a distributed data processing system in which the server on a first computer within the distributed data processing system and the push broker executes on a second computer within the distributed data processing system, wherein the first computer is in communication with the second computer.

3. The communications system of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of subscribers receive content from the data processing system over a wireless communications link to a satellite and wherein the network includes a satellite in which the satellite delivers the content to the plurality of subscribers using multicast transmissions.

4. The communications system of claim 1, wherein the data processing system includes a fourth mode of operation in which the push broker monitors for communications from the plurality of subscribers for errors in transmission of content to the plurality of subscribers and stores errors in transmission.

5. The communications system of claim 1, wherein the first, second, and third mode of operations are executed by an event process started by the push broker.

6. A method in a communications system for managing delivery of content to a plurality of content consumers, the method comprising:

obtaining transmission information;

determining content type based on the transmission information;

receiving the content;

in response to receiving live content, determining whether the transmission is a valid transmission and transmitting, when the transmission is a valid transmission, the live content from a content provider to content consumers as the content is received;

in response to receiving staged content, storing the content in a storage device in response to a determination that the content is staged content; and

transmitting the staged content to content consumers based on a transmission time assigned for the staged content.

7. A method of claim 6, wherein a plurality of content consumers have requested the content and wherein the step of transmitting the staged content comprises initiating a thread, for each content consumer requesting the content, to handle transmitting the content.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising:

terminating a thread initiated during the initiation step in response to a completion of transmission of content to a content consumer associated with the thread.

9. A multicast data processing system for use in managing multicast delivery of content in a communications system comprising:

a database containing a schedule of events;

a server process, wherein the server process multicasts content to a plurality of content consumers; and

a live event process, having a plurality of modes of operation including;

a first mode of operation in which the live event process waits for a content provider to initiate a transmission of live content by the content provider;

a second mode of operation, responsive to initiation of the transmission of live content by the content provider, in which the live event process determines whether the transmission is a valid transmission; and

a third mode of operation, responsive to a presence of a valid transmission, in which the live event process directs transmission of content by the server process to the plurality of content consumers.

10. The multicast data processing system of claim 9, wherein in the third mode of operation, the live event process spawns an event process to direct transmission of the content by the server to the plurality targets.

11. The multicast data processing system of claim 9 further comprising:

a staged event process having a plurality of modes of operation including;

a first mode of operation in which the staged event process obtains a staged event from the database, and

a second mode of operation, responsive to obtaining a staged event, in which the staged event process updates scheduling information, wherein the staged event process returns to the first mode of operation.

12. The multicast data processing system of claim 11 further comprising:

a staged event spawner process having a plurality of modes of operation including;

a first mode of operation in which the staged event spawner process waits for a next scheduled event; and

a second mode of operation, responsive to an occurrence of the next scheduled event, in which the staged event spawner directs transmission of content associated with the next scheduled event.

13. The multicast data processing system of claim 12, wherein the live event process, the staged event process, and the staged event spawner process are threads executing within a push broker process.

14. The data processing system of claim 12, wherein the staged event spawner in the second mode of operation spawns an event process to handle transmission of the content associated with the next scheduled event.

15. The multicast data processing system of claim 14, wherein the live event process in the third mode of operation spawns an event process to direct transmission of content to the plurality of content consumers by the server process.

16. The multicast data processing system of claim 14, wherein transmission of content by the multicast server to the plurality of content consumers is a multicast transmission including a satellite based communications path.

17. A computer program product for a push broker process for use in a computer to manage delivery of content to a plurality of content consumers in a communications system, the computer program product comprising:

a computer usable medium;

first instructions for monitoring an interface to a content provider for an establishing of a communications link to the content provider for a transmission of live content;

second instructions, responsive to detecting the establishing of the communications link, in which a determination is made as to whether the transmission is a valid transmission; and

third instructions, responsive to a valid transmission, in which the live content is transmitted to the plurality of content consumers,

wherein the instructions are embodied within the computer usable medium.

18. The computer program product of claim 17 further comprising:

fourth instructions for obtaining a staged event from a schedule of staged events; and

fifth instructions, responsive to obtaining a staged event, in which scheduling information is updated.

19. The computer program product of claim 17 further comprising:

fifth instruction for detecting a next scheduled event; and

sixth instructions, responsive to an occurrence of the next scheduled event, in which transmission of content associated with the next scheduled event is directed to the plurality of content consumers.