System and method for using television information codes

• US 8,806,533 B1
• Filed: 10/07/2005
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: United Video Properties Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: United Video Properties Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Mechler, Robert, Lau, Erwin, Gaydou, Danny II
• Primary Examiner(s): HOSSAIN, FARZANA E
• Application Number:
  US11/246,778
• Time in Patent Office: 3,231 Days
• Field of Search: 725 39- 61
• US Class Current: 725/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4826 using recommendation lists, e.g. of programs or channels sorted out according to their score
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 on tape

Abstract

A system and method for using information codes for recording television programs. Information codes may be published in magazines, newspapers, and the like, much like VCR Plus+™ codes. When a user desires to record one or more television programs based on information codes, the user selects an appropriate command button on his or her input device, and enters the information code that identifies a desired filter category (e.g. an actor filter represented as “01”) followed by a desired filter identifier (e.g. Richard Gere represented as “1234”). A processor receiving the user input searches an electronic program guide database for programs matching the filter information. The identified programs are then stored in a record memory for recording at an appropriate time. The identified programs may be further displayed for verification prior to storage in the record memory. Programs recommended to the viewers may also be identified via information codes.

Claims

1. A video recording system comprising:

a data store that stores media guidance data for a plurality of television programs, the media guidance data including a first filter criteria associated with a first subset of the plurality of television programs and a second filter criteria associated with a second subset of the plurality of television programs, wherein the first subset and the second subset each comprise more than one program;

a microprocessor coupled to the data store, wherein the microprocessor;

receives input from a user that selects a symbol that is presented to the user in a form that prevents the user from identifying which of the first and second subsets of programs is associated with the symbol without referencing a look-up table, wherein the symbol includes an information code, the information code comprising one of the first and second filter criteria;

decodes the information code to identify a user filter criteria;

compares the user filter criteria to the first and second filter criteria, wherein the first and second filter criteria are each determined without user input;

determines that the user filter criteria matches the first filter criteria;

and without user input,

identifies the first subset of the plurality of television programs associated with the first filter criteria for recording, and

stores instructions to record the identified first subset of the plurality of television programs as a result of the identifying.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the information code comprises a filter category and an identifier associated with the filter category, and wherein the filter category and the identifier associated with the filter category represent the user filter criteria.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the filter category represents an actor or actress filter, and the identifier identifies a particular actor or actress.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the filter category represents a theme or genre filter, and the identifier identifies a particular theme or genre.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein each filter criteria is unrelated to a program channel, date, time, or length.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the microprocessor generates display of information on the more than one television programs in the first subset.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein at least one of the more than one programs is deleted from a list of programs to be recorded in response to a user command.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the microprocessor compares a second user filter category and a second user identifier in the decoded information code with respectively a second filter category and a second identifier associated with a television program, and select the program associated with the second identifier for storage recording based on the comparison.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the information code identifies a plurality of filter categories and associated filter identifiers for retrieving one or more programs based on the plurality of filter categories and associated filter identifiers.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein, based on the determination, none of the programs in the second subset are recorded.

11. The video recording system of claim 1, wherein the symbol is selected from a plurality of symbols that are presented to the user in a form that prevents the user from identifying which of the first and second subsets of programs is associated with the symbol without referencing a look-up table.

20. The method of claim 10, wherein the symbol is selected from a plurality of symbols that are presented to the user in a form that prevents the user from identifying which of the first and second subsets of programs is associated with the symbol without referencing a look-up table.

12. A computer-implemented method for selecting video programs for recording, the method comprising:

storing media guidance data for a plurality of programs, the media guidance data including a first filter criteria associated with a first subset of the plurality of programs and a second filter criteria associated with a second subset of the plurality of programs, wherein the first subset and the second subset each comprise more than one program;

receiving from a user input that selects a symbol that is presented to the user in a form that prevents the user from identifying which of the first and second subsets of programs is associated with the symbol without referencing a look-up table, wherein the symbol includes an information code, the information code comprising exactly one of the first and second filter criteria;

decoding the received information code to identify a user filter criteria;

comparing the user filter criteria to the first and second filter criteria, wherein the first and second filter criteria are each determined without user input;

determining that the user filter criteria matches the first filter criteria; and

without user input, identifying the first subset of the plurality of programs associated with the first filter criteria for recording, and storing instructions to record the identified first subset of the plurality of programs as a result of the identifying.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the information code comprises a filter category and an identifier associated with the filter category, and wherein the filter category and the identifier associated with the filter category represent the user filter criteria.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the filter category represents an actor or actress filter, and the identifier identifies a particular actor or actress.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the filter category represents a theme or genre filter, and the identifier identifies a particular theme or genre.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein each filter criteria is unrelated to a program channel, date, time, or length.

17. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

displaying information on one or more programs in the first subset.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

deleting at least one program from a list of programs to be recorded in response to a user command.

19. The method of claim 12 wherein, based on the determination, none of the programs in the second subset are recorded.

21. A method for recording video programs in a data communications network including a web server hosting a website and a system including a video recorder coupled to the web server, the method comprising:

generating a display of information on a plurality of recommended video programs on the website;

associating a first non-human readable filter criteria with a first subset of the plurality of recommended video programs and associating a second non-human readable filter criteria with a second subset of the plurality of recommended video programs, wherein the first subset and the second subset each comprise more than one recommended video program;

receiving input from a user that selects a symbol that is presented to the user in a form that prevents the user from identifying which of the first and second subsets of programs is associated with the symbol without referencing a look-up table, wherein the symbol identifies more than one of the recommended video programs;

comparing, using control circuitry, the symbol to the first filter criteria and the second filter criteria;

determining that the user filter criteria matches the first filter criteria;

transmitting from the website to the system a command to record the first subset of recommended video programs as a result of the determining, the first subset of recommended video programs being identified by an information code included in the symbol that includes the first filter criteria; and

causing the video recorder to be automatically invoked to record the first subset of recommended video programs based on the first filter criteria.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein, based on the first filter criteria, none of the recommended video programs in the second subset of recommended video programs are recorded.