Method for multicasting views of real-time streaming interactive video

• US 9,032,465 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2007
• Issued: 05/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: OL2 Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Perlman, Stephen G., van der Laan, Roger
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, NGOC K
• Application Number:
  US11/999,417
• Publication Number:
  US 20090119729A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,715 Days
• Field of Search: 725/88, 725 91- 92, 725/94, 725/109
• US Class Current: 725/114
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/335 using Internet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/358 Adapting the game course according to the network or server load, e.g. for reducing latency due to different connection speeds between clients
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/86 Watching games played by other players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/402 Communication between platforms, i.e. physical link to protocol
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/407 Data transfer via internet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/531 Server assignment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/552 for downloading to client devices, e.g. using OS version, hardware or software profile of the client device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/577 for watching a game played by other players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/634 for replaying partially or entirely the game actions since the beginning of the game
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/283 in response to processing delays, e.g. caused by jitter or round trip time [RTT]
• 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 65/762 at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/131 Protocols for games, networked simulations or virtual reality
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/222 Secondary servers, e.g. proxy server, cable television Head-end provisioning of proxy services in data packet switching networks H04L67/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23406 involving management of server-side video buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2343 involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements video transcoding H04N19/40; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23805 : Controlling the feeding rate to the network, e.g. by controlling the video pump
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2402 : Monitoring of the downstream path of the transmission network, e.g. bandwidth available traffic monitoring in data switching networks H04L43/00; monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4781 : Games
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 : involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6405 : Multicasting data broadcast and multicast in packet switching networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 : IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 : Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8173 : End-user applications, e.g. Web browser, game
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8545 : for generating interactive applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/106 : for domestic distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/16 : Central resource management; Negotiation of resources or communication parameters, e.g. negotiating bandwidth or QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 : Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 : WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A method includes multicasting by a server center of streaming interactive video/audio streams to multiple destinations via an outbound Internet traffic interface. A given video/audio stream is routed to multiple destinations simultaneously. At least one of the video/audio streams is received at a delay buffer of the server center, the delay buffer storing a replayable portion of at least one of the video/audio streams.

Claims

1. A method for streaming interactive video comprising:

running a twitch video game or application on one or more servers at a hosting service center, uncompressed streaming interactive video being produced therefrom;

compressing, by a compression unit of the hosting service center, the uncompressed streaming interactive video, thereby generating compressed streaming interactive video; and

transmitting the compressed streaming interactive video over the Internet from the hosting service center to a plurality of destinations, at least one destination being a client device associated with a user of the twitch video game or application, the client device being geographically remote to the hosting service center, wherein the compressed streaming interactive video is compressed with a worst-case, round-trip latency, from control input of the user on the client device to display of a response to the control input on the client device, of 90 milliseconds over a distance of 1500 miles or less from the hosting service center.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the destinations include multiple client devices correspondingly associated with multiple users of the twitch video game or application.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the hosting service center further includes one or more delay buffers coupled to receive the compressed streaming interactive video from the compression unit.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the compressed streaming interactive video comprises a bidirectional stream.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising simultaneously streaming video as a unidirectional stream generated by the one or more servers from the running of the twitch video games or application to multiple locations at the hosting service center.

6. The method of claim 3 where the compressed streaming interactive video delayed by the one or more delay buffers is streamed to another server at the hosting service center.

7. The method of claim 3 where the compressed streaming interactive video delayed by the one or more delay buffers is streamed to one or more client devices correspondingly associated with one or more users geographically remote to the hosting service center.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the transmitting of the compressed streaming interactive video comprises Internet Protocol (IP) multicasting of the compressed streaming interactive video.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising repeating, by routing servers, the compressed streaming interactive video.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising repeating, by switches, the compressed streaming interactive video.

11. A method for streaming interactive video comprising:

running a twitch video game or application on one or more servers at a hosting service center, uncompressed streaming interactive video being generated from the running of the twitch video game or application;

compressing, by a compression unit of the hosting service center, the uncompressed streaming interactive video to produce a plurality of different formats of compressed streaming interactive video, the different formats including different resolutions; and

transmitting the different formats of compressed streaming interactive video over a packetized network to a plurality of destinations, at least one of the destinations being geographically remote to the hosting service center, wherein the compressed streaming interactive video is compressed with a worst-case, round-trip latency, from a user control input on a client device at the at least one destination to display of a response to the user control input on the client device, of 90 milliseconds over a distance of 1500 miles or less from the hosting service center.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the different formats include different packet structures.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein at least one of the different formats include bidirectional compressed streaming interactive video, wherein video is output from a first server, and interactive control data is received as input to the first server.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the at least one of the different formats include unidirectional streaming video.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein at least one unidirectional streaming video stream and at least one bidirectional audio stream are generated from the output of the first server.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein at least one bidirectional stream is adaptive in response to the characteristics of a network.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein at least one unidirectional stream is adaptive in response to the characteristics of a network.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the at least one bidirectional compressed streaming interactive video stream is adaptive in response to the characteristics of a network and a least one unidirectional streaming video stream is not adaptive to the characteristics of the network.

19. The method of claim 14 wherein the unidirectional streaming video/audio is multicast.

20. The method of claim 11 wherein the plurality of destinations include one or more locations at the hosting service center.

21. The method of claim 11 wherein the plurality of destinations include a different hosting service center.

22. The method of claim 20 wherein the one or more locations comprises a server.

23. The method of claim 11 wherein at least one of the different formats of compressed streaming interactive video is decompressed and recompressed.

24. The method of claim 23 further comprising applying a transformation to the at least one of the different formats of compressed streaming interactive video before recompression.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the transformation is a scaling, warping or perspective transformation.

26. The method of claim 14 wherein the bidirectional compressed streaming interactive video is sent to a user of the twitch video game or application, and the unidirectional streaming video is sent to one or more spectators of the twitch video game or application.

27. The method of claim 11 wherein at least two formats of the different formats of compressed streaming interactive video are output from the hosting service center to more than one destination.

28. The method of claim 11 wherein the destinations include one or more delay buffers.

29. The method of claim 11 wherein the one or more delay buffers store at least one replayable portion of the compressed streaming interactive video.

30. The method of claim 11 wherein the twitch video game or application comprises a video game tournament and at least a portion of the destinations are associated with spectators of the video game tournament.