Management and use of channel configuration information

• US 8,793,349 B2
• Filed: 01/14/2011
• Issued: 07/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated), Synamedia Limited
• Original Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated), BNI Video (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Schlack, John, Hasek, Charles A. IV
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild, Lynn
• Assistant Examiner(s): SOWA, TIMOTHY JOHN
• Application Number:
  US13/006,763
• Publication Number:
  US 20110173304A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,292 Days
• Field of Search: 709/228, 725/86, 725/138, 725/143, 725/151
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast

Abstract

A configuration as discussed herein includes a content management system. The content management system can reside in a central location or be distributed amongst multiple different locations in a network environment. In general, the content management system keeps track of configuration information for the retrieval of content. For example, the content management system identifies a presence of one or more content delivery sources in the network environment. The content management system utilizes the contact information to communicate with content delivery sources for discovery of configuration information. The configuration information can indicate: i) a respective address of the content delivery source, ii) a type of content outputted by the respective address, iii) a format of the content such as streaming data outputted by the respective address. The configuration information can be used to identify an address in which to retrieve requested content according to a desired format.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

identifying a presence of a content delivery source in a network environment that includes a plurality of content sources;

obtaining contact information to communicate with the content delivery source;

utilizing, at a first content management system, the contact information to initiate communications with the content delivery source to discover configuration information, the discovered configuration information indicating;

i) an address of the content delivery source,

ii) a type of content outputted by the address, and

iii) a format of the content outputted by the address;

communicating the discovered configuration information to a second content management system; and

automatically managing configuration information for each content source in the plurality of content sources, the configuration information allowing for the retrieval of content according to a selected one of multiple different possible content formats, wherein contact information for each source in the plurality of content sources is used to query each source and obtain the configuration information for each source, and wherein the configuration information includes linear multicast information.

2. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

generating a map to include;

i) the address of the content delivery source,

ii) the type of content outputted by the address, and

iii) the format of the content outputted by the address.

3. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

utilizing the discovered configuration information to generate a map;

generating the map to include a first entry, the first entry indicating a first address of the content delivery source from which a particular type of content is retrievable from the content delivery source according to a first encoding format; and

generating the map to include a second entry, the second entry indicating a second address of the content delivery source from which the particular type of content is retrievable from the content delivery source according to a second encoding format.

4. The method as in claim 3 further comprising:

receiving, from a client device in the network environment, a request for retrieval of the particular type of content;

identifying a suitable format for playback of the particular type of content on the client device, the suitable format being the second encoding format;

accessing the second entry of the discovered configuration information in the map to identify the second address; and

establishing communications with the content delivery source via the second address to retrieve the particular type of content according to the suitable format.

5. The method as in claim 1, wherein obtaining the contact information includes:

receiving a management address with which to communicate with the content delivery source;

receiving device type information indicating a device type of the content delivery source; and

receiving location information indicating location of the content delivery source in the network environment.

6. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

communicating with the content delivery source to retrieve channel information, the channel information indicating a configuration of multiple resources in the content delivery source that process the content into multiple different formats for multicasting of the content in the network environment, wherein the retrieved channel information includes identities of the multiple resources, the channel information specifying an interconnectivity of the multiple resources to produce the content into multiple different formats.

7. The method as in claim 1, wherein utilizing the contact information includes:

communicating with the content delivery source to identify a port from which to receive the content via a multicast session in which multiple recipients simultaneously receive streaming of the content from the port.

8. The method as in claim 1, wherein the format of the content indicates at least one processing parameter in a group consisting of:

a CODEC used to process the content, a playback resolution of the content, and a bit rate of the content outputted by the address.

9. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

using a channel name mapping table to determine a numerical source identifier value, the channel name mapping table including;

i) multiple different names of a channel that outputs the content from the address of the content delivery source,

ii) an actual name for the channel, and

iii) the numerical source identifier value, the numerical source identifier value being representative of the channel.

10. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

receiving, from a client device in the network environment, a request for retrieval of particular content;

identifying a suitable format for playback of the particular content on the client device;

accessing the discovered configuration information to identify the address of the content delivery source, the address of the content delivery source outputting the particular content according to the suitable format; and

establishing communications with the address of the content delivery source to retrieve the particular content according to the suitable format.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically managing the configuration information for a grouping of linear content sources, wherein the grouping of linear content sources is included in the plurality of content sources, wherein the linear content sources include encoding and grooming devices and the encoding and grooming devices include a rate shaping device and an encryptor device.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the content management system can store groups of addresses from which different types of content can be retrieved and different addresses within a particular address grouping can be used to obtain content according to different streaming formats.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein managing the configuration information includes normalizing the configuration information and merging the configuration information with other configuration information from one or more of the plurality of content sources.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the linear multicast information from each source is used to build a listing of path configuration information that includes details of a path of each linear channel from each source.

15. A method comprising:

via at least one computer device operating in a network environment;

configuring a content delivery source, in the network environment that includes a plurality of content sources, with an address at a first content management system configured to keep track of content outputted by multiple content delivery sources including the content delivery source;

at the first content management system, communicating with the content delivery source to receive configuration information indicating;

i) an address of the content delivery source,

ii) a type of content outputted by the address, and

iii) a format of the content outputted by the address;

communicating the discovered configuration information to a second content management system; and

automatically managing configuration information for each content source in the plurality of content sources, the configuration information allowing for the retrieval of content according to a selected one of multiple different possible content formats, wherein contact information for each source in the plurality of content sources is used to query each source and obtain the configuration information for each source, and wherein the configuration information includes linear multicast information.

16. A computer system comprising:

a processor;

a memory unit that stores instructions associated with an application executed by the processor; and

an interconnect coupling the processor and the memory unit, enabling the computer system to execute the application and perform operations of;

identifying a presence of a content delivery source in the network environment that includes a plurality of content sources;

obtaining contact information to communicate with the content delivery source;

utilizing, at a first content management system, the contact information to initiate communications with the content delivery source to discover configuration information, the discovered configuration information indicating;

i) an address of the content delivery source,

ii) a type of content outputted by the address, and

iii) a format of the content outputted by the address;

communicating the discovered configuration information to a second content management system; and

automatically managing configuration information for each content source in the plurality of content sources, the configuration information allowing for the retrieval of content according to a selected one of multiple different possible content formats, wherein contact information for each source in the plurality of content sources is used to query each source and obtain the configuration information for each source, and wherein the configuration information includes linear multicast information.

17. The computer system as in claim 16 further supporting operations of:

utilizing the discovered configuration information to generate a map;

generating the map to include a first entry, the first entry indicating a first address of the content delivery source from which a particular type of content is retrievable from the content delivery source according to a first encoding format; and

generating the map to include a second entry, the second entry indicating a second address of the content delivery source from which the particular type of content is retrievable from the content delivery source according to a second encoding format.

18. The computer system as in claim 16 further supporting operations of:

receiving, from a client device in the network environment, a request for retrieval of the particular type of content;

identifying a suitable format for playback of the particular type of content on the client device, the suitable format being the second encoding format;

accessing the second entry of the discovered configuration information in the map to identify the second address; and

establishing communications with the content delivery source via the second address to retrieve the particular type of content according to the suitable format.

19. The computer system as in claim 16, wherein obtaining the contact information includes:

receiving a management address with which to communicate with the content delivery source;

receiving device type information indicating a device type of the content delivery source; and

receiving location information indicating location of the content delivery source in the network environment.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon for processing data information, such that the instructions, when carried out by a processing device, cause the processing device to perform operations of:

identifying a presence of a content delivery source in the network environment that includes a plurality of content sources;

obtaining contact information to communicate with the content delivery source;

utilizing, at a first content management system, the contact information to initiate communications with the content delivery source to discover configuration information, the discovered configuration information indicating;

i) an address of the content delivery source,

ii) a type of content outputted by the address, and

iii) a format of the content outputted by the address;

communicating the discovered configuration information to a second content management system; and

automatically managing configuration information for each content source in the plurality of content sources, the configuration information allowing for the retrieval of content according to a selected one of multiple different possible content formats, wherein contact information for each source in the plurality of content sources is used to query each source and obtain the configuration information for each source, and wherein the configuration information includes linear multicast information.