Accessing television services

• US 7,155,674 B2
• Filed: 05/03/2002
• Issued: 12/26/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SeaChange International Incorporated
• Original Assignee: SeaChange International Incorporated
• Inventors: Kraiman, Stephen Jay, Breen, George Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): BAUTISTA, XIOMARA L
• Application Number:
  US10/137,995
• Publication Number:
  US 20030204846A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,698 Days
• Field of Search: 715716-721, 715/733, 715/738, 715/740, 715/751, 715/753, 715/758, 715/759, 715/765, 715/810, 715/835, 715/846, 715/853, 715/854, 715/866, 715/962, 348/734, 705/14, 709/217, 725 32- 51, 725/59, 725/61, 725/86, 725/87
• US Class Current: 715/719
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25883 being end-user demographical data, e.g. age, family status or address arrangements for identifying locations of users in broadcast systems H04H60/52
• 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 21/4438 Window management, e.g. event handling following interaction with the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8173 End-user applications, e.g. Web browser, game
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/16 Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309

Abstract

A television system allows viewers to access a number of different groups of television content, or “service aggregates.” A portal interface for each group provides a direct means for the viewer to navigate between members of a service aggregate, without necessarily having to accesses a global program guide for the television system. The groups of television content can be formed from various criteria including forming the groups based on business rules.

Claims

1. A method for providing access to television content comprising at a service provider:

sending a first video content program over a first channel, the first video content program or the first channel being provided by a content provider from among a plurality of content providers;

receiving a request from a viewer watching the first video content program over the first channel;

in response to the request, presenting a viewer-activated interface that includes a selection menu which provides the viewer with selective access to a limited group of alternative video content programs or channels, including one or more video-on-demand programs, the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels available for selection at any time from the selection menu being dependent on the first video content program or the first channel being watched by the viewer and substantially limited to video content programs or channels available from a predetermined group of one or more affiliated content providers of which the content provider that provides the first video content program or the first channel is a member;

enabling the viewer to interactively select a second video content program or a second channel from the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels; and

presenting the selected second video content program or the second channel to the viewer.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the first video content program includes a video content program that belongs to a group consisting of a television broadcast and a video-on-demand program.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the group of alternative programs or channels includes a video content program that belongs to a group consisting of a television broadcast, a video-on-demand program, an advertisement, a subscription program, a subscription-on-demand program, and a group of items of video content.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the content provider comprises a television network.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the service provider comprises a television system operator.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the service provider comprises a cable television system operator.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprises sending the first video content program over the first channel to a terminal associated with the viewer.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the terminal associated with the viewer is a set-top box.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprises sending information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels associated with the first video content program or the first channel being watched by the viewer.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising accepting the information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels from content providers.

11. The method of claim 9 further comprising accepting the information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels from a portal provider.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the portal provider does not provide video content programs or channels to the service provider.

13. The method of claim 9 further comprising determining the information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels by the service provider.

14. The method of claim 9 wherein sending the information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels includes sending instructions for execution at a terminal associated with the viewer.

15. The method of claim 9 wherein sending the first video content program comprises:

sending the first video content program over the first channel to a terminal associated with the viewer, and sending information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels associated with the first video content program or the first channel to the terminal associated with the viewer.

16. The method of claim 9 wherein sending information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels associated with the first video content program or the first channel comprises sending the information in conjunction with the first video content program.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein sending the information in conjunction with the first video content program comprises sending the information that defines the group of alternative video content programs or channels in-band with a transport stream used to send the first video content program.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein sending the information in conjunction with the first video content program comprises sending the information out-of-band separately from the first video content program.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein sending the information out-of-band separately from the first video content program comprises sending the information using a data packet transport protocol.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein presenting the viewer-activated interface further comprises enabling the viewer to make the request by pressing a single button on a remote control.

21. The method of claim 1 further comprising presenting the viewer-activated interface to provide the viewer with access to a group of alternative video content programs or channels that are further based on a time interval within the first video content program.

22. The method of claim 1 further comprising presenting the viewer-activated interface to provide the viewer with access to a group of alternative video content programs or channels that are further based on viewer characteristics.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the viewer characteristics include demographic information associated with the viewer.

24. A method for providing access to television content comprising, at a service provider:

sending a first video content program over a first channel, the first video content program or the first channel being provided by a content provider from among a plurality of content providers;

accepting a request from a viewer watching the first video content program over the first channel;

in response to the request, presenting a viewer-activated interface that includes a selection menu which provides the viewer with selective access to a limited group of alternative video content programs or channels, including one or more video-on-demand programs, the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels available for selection at any time from the selection menu being dependent on the first video content program or the first channel being watched by the viewer and substantially limited to video content programs or channels available from a predetermined group of one or more affiliated content providers of which the content provider that provides the first video content program or the first channel is a member;

accepting a selection from the viewer of a second video content program or a second channel from the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels; and

presenting the selected second video content program or the second channel to the viewer.

28. The video delivery system of claim 24 wherein the terminals are further configured to execute instructions that define the group of alternative video content programs associated with the first video content program or the first channel.

25. A video delivery system comprising:

means for sending a first video content program over a first channel, the first video content program or the first channel being provided by a content provider from among a plurality of content providers;

means for receiving a request from a viewer watching the first video content program over the first channel;

means for presenting a viewer-activated interface that includes a selection menu which provides the viewer with selective access to a limited group of alternative video content programs or channels, including one or more video-on-demand programs, the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels available for selection at any time from the selection menu being dependent on the first video content program or the first channel being watched by the viewer and substantially limited to video content programs or channels available from a predetermined group of one or more affiliated content providers of which the content provider that provides the first video content program or the first channel is a member;

means for enabling the viewer to interactively select a second video content program or a second channel from the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels; and

means for presenting the selected second video content program or the second channel to the viewer.

26. A video delivery system comprising:

a service provider; and

a plurality of terminals coupled to the service provider, each configured to receive video content programs over one or more channels from the service provider;

wherein the video delivery system is configured to present a viewer-activated interface that includes a selection menu which provides the viewer with selective access to a limited group of alternative video content programs or channels, including one or more video-on-demand programs, the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels available for selection at any time from the selection menu being dependent on a first video content program presented over a first channel to a first of the terminals and substantially limited to video content programs or channels available from a predetermined group of one or more affiliated content providers of which the content provider that provides the first video content program or the first channel is a member;

the video delivery system being further configured to enable the viewer to interactively select a second video content program or a second channel from the limited group of alternative video content programs or channels.

27. The video delivery system of claim 26 wherein the terminals are configured to receive information that defines the group of alternative video content programs associated with the first video content program or the first channel.