Wireless multimedia content brokerage service for real time selective content provisioning

• US 8,695,044 B1
• Filed: 08/31/2012
• Issued: 04/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Qurio Holdings Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Qurio Holdings Incorporated
• Inventors: Islam, Farhad Fuad, Amidon, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Bui, Kieu Oanh T
• Application Number:
  US13/601,172
• Time in Patent Office: 585 Days
• Field of Search: 725/40, 725/43, 725/62, 725/106, 455/556.1
• US Class Current: 725/62
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/61 for supporting one-way streaming services, e.g. Internet radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44227 Monitoring of local network, e.g. connection or bandwidth variations; Detecting new devices in the local network configuring of peripheral devices in general G06F9/4411; monitoring connectivity in data switched networks H04L43/0811
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application

Abstract

A wireless multimedia content brokerage service can provide for real time selective content extraction in a manner that allows users to easily obtain, at a mobile device, one or more portions of a real time multimedia composite content presentation. The brokerage service ensures that the experience is transparent from the point of view of the user, and additionally does not require any specific interaction between the user and the display, or interaction between the user and the content service provider (or providers). Instead, the brokerage service handles the transactional details involved in subscribing to content and in obtaining, formatting, and forwarding content to the mobile device. Additionally, since the content of interest is not forwarded from the display itself and since some embodiments of the system do not rely on any interactivity at the display to identify the display device or content, relatively unsophisticated display devices can be used.

Claims

1. A multimedia content brokerage computing device comprising:

memory; and

circuitry associated with the memory, the circuitry configured to;

receive a request from a mobile device to launch an extraction service when the mobile device comes into vicinity of a device capable of receiving multimedia content component streams;

determine a location of the mobile device;

assign a server to provide content to the mobile device based on the location of the mobile device;

establish a connection with a content provider;

obtain the multimedia content component streams from the content provider;

extract a plurality of identifiers for the multimedia content component streams; and

provide the plurality of identifiers to the mobile device in a single instance, wherein a single user interface is generated at the mobile device using the plurality of identifiers where the plurality of identifiers includes an identifier that corresponds to each multimedia content component stream of the multimedia content component streams such that the single user interface includes each of the identifiers that corresponds to each multimedia content component stream.

2. The device set forth in claim 1 wherein the multimedia content brokerage computing device is further configured to:

receive selection data from the mobile device identifying one multimedia content component stream of the multimedia content component streams for extraction; and

provide content associated with the selection data to the mobile device.

3. The device set forth in claim 1, wherein the multimedia content brokerage computing device is further configured to buffer at least one of the multimedia content component streams and to discontinue buffering accessed data comprising at least one stream that is not identified in the selection data.

4. The device set forth in claim 1, wherein the multimedia content brokerage computing device is further configured to:

interface with the content provider and, in response to the selection data provided by the mobile device, transmit data identifying at least one change in the device capable of receiving multimedia content component streams.

5. The device set forth in claim 1, wherein the multimedia content brokerage computing device is further configured to:

determine whether one or more subscriptions are needed to obtain the multimedia component streams and, if so, obtain the needed subscription or subscriptions.

6. The device set forth in claim 1, wherein the multimedia content brokerage computing device is further configured to:

after establishing a connection with the content provider, interface with the content provider and obtain at least one structured data file identifying a network address for each of the multimedia content component streams.

7. The device set forth in claim 1, wherein the multimedia content brokerage computing device is further configured to:

obtain a structured data file comprising data identifying a spatial arrangement of a media presentation displayed on the device capable of receiving multimedia content component streams; and

generate the user interface based on the structured data file.

8. The device set forth in claim 1, wherein the multimedia content brokerage computing device is further configured to:

access presentation identification data and identify at least one content provider as part of a partial content service session; and

based on the location of the mobile device and an identity of the content provider, determine whether to transfer the partial content service session to a mirror brokerage computing device.

9. The device set forth in claim 8 wherein the mirror brokerage computing device is configured to access the selection data, access data for the multimedia content component streams, buffer the data, and transmit the buffered data to the mobile device in response to a transfer of the partial content extraction session.

10. A method of providing partial content extraction, the method comprising:

receiving a request from a mobile device to launch an extraction service when the mobile device comes into vicinity of a device capable of receiving multimedia content component streams;

determining a location of the mobile device;

assigning a server to provide content to the mobile device based on the location of the mobile device;

establishing a connection with a content provider;

obtaining multimedia content component streams from the content provider;

extracting a plurality of identifiers for the multimedia content component streams; and

providing the plurality of identifiers to the mobile device in a single instance, wherein a single user interface is generated at the mobile device using the plurality of identifiers where the plurality of identifiers includes an identifier that corresponds to each multimedia content component stream of the multimedia content component streams such that the single user interface includes each of the identifiers that corresponds to each multimedia content component stream.

11. The method set forth in claim 10, further comprising:

receiving selection data from the mobile device identifying one multimedia content component stream of the multimedia content component streams for extraction; and

providing content associated with the selection data to the mobile device.

12. The method set forth in claim 10, further comprising buffering at least one of the multimedia content component streams and, after receiving the selection data, discontinuing buffering at least one stream that is not identified in the selection data.

13. The method set forth in claim 10, further comprising:

interfacing with the content provider and, in response to the selection data provided by the mobile device, transmitting data identifying at least one change in the device capable of receiving multimedia content component streams.

14. The method set forth in claim 10, wherein the user interface data defines a layout of a graphical user interface, the graphical user interface comprising respective portions corresponding to the one multimedia content component stream.

15. The method set forth in claim 10, further comprising:

determining whether one or more subscriptions are needed to obtain the multimedia component streams and, if so, obtaining the needed subscription or subscriptions.

16. The method set forth in claim 10, further comprising:

after establishing a connection with the content provider, interfacing with the content provider and obtaining at least one structured data file identifying a network address for each of the multimedia component content streams.

17. The method set forth in claim 16, further comprising:

obtaining a structured data file comprising data identifying a spatial arrangement of a media presentation displayed on the device capable of receiving multimedia content component streams; and

generating the user selection interface based on the structured data file.

18. The method set forth in claim 16, further comprising:

accessing access presentation identification data;

identifying at least one content provider for a partial content service session; and

based on the location of the mobile device and an identity of the content provider, determining whether to transfer the partial content service session to a mirror brokerage computing device.

19. A multimedia content brokerage computing device comprising:

memory; and

circuitry associated with the memory, the circuitry configured to;

receive a request from a mobile device to launch an extraction service when the mobile device comes into vicinity of a device capable of providing multimedia content component streams;

determine a location of the mobile device;

assign a server to provide content to the mobile device based on the location of the mobile device;

establish a connection with a content provider;

obtain the multimedia content component streams from the content provider;

extract a plurality of identifiers for the multimedia content component streams;

provide the plurality of identifiers to the mobile device in a web page wherein a single user interface is generated at the mobile device using the plurality of identifiers where the plurality of identifiers includes an identifier that corresponds to each multimedia content component stream of the multimedia content component streams such that the single user interface includes each of the identifiers that corresponds to each multimedia content component stream.

20. The device set forth in claim 19, wherein the circuitry is further configured to:

receive selection data from the mobile device identifying one multimedia content component stream of the multimedia content component streams for extraction; and

provide content associated with the selection data to the mobile device.