Method and apparatus for transmitting and receiving personal broadcasting data based on peer-to-peer communication

• US 9,537,675 B2
• Filed: 11/03/2009
• Issued: 01/03/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/24/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Zhang, Guanhua, Yu, Hee-Seok, Kwon, O-Hoon, Im, Sung-Bin, Chapalamadugu, Akhil
• Primary Examiner(s): Cho, Un C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Deng, Fangyan
• Application Number:
  US13/130,936
• Publication Number:
  US 20110231487A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,618 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 725/58
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• 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 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26283 for associating distribution time parameters to content, e.g. to generate electronic program guide data
• 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 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

Provided is a method of transmitting and receiving personal broadcasting data in a peer-to-peer (P2P) based network. A terminal (client) that receives a personal broadcast requests a tracker server for a viewing reservation by using electronic program guide (EPG) information or a uniform resource locator (URL) of a personal broadcasting channel, a terminal (broadcaster) that transmits personal broadcasting data receives a list of clients that made a viewing reservation of the personal broadcast from the tracker server and notifies the clients about starting of the personal broadcast when it is time to start the personal broadcast. Accordingly, the client starts streaming when notified of the starting of the personal broadcast by connecting to the personal broadcasting channel after making the viewing reservation, without having to wait for the personal broadcast to start.

Claims

1. A method of receiving a personal broadcast of a second terminal by using peer-to-peer (P2P) communication, the method comprising:

transmitting, by a first terminal, to a tracker server, information about a user made reservation to view the personal broadcast that is to be broadcast on a personal broadcasting channel of another user of the second terminal at a predetermined future time using the P2P communication;

transmitting a reservation request to the tracker server which receives the reservation request from multiple clients including the first terminal;

receiving, by the first terminal, a notification message from the second terminal which received from the tracker server, a list of clients which made the reservation requests for the personal broadcast provided by the second terminal, prior to streaming the personal broadcast, wherein the notification message comprises the notification information indicating that the personal broadcast, for which the reservation is made, is to be started on the personal broadcasting channel that is to broadcast the personal broadcast at the predetermined future time;

receiving from the tracker server, by the first terminal, timeline based electronic program guide (EPG) information about the personal broadcasting channel of the second terminal;

synchronizing, by the first terminal, the received EPG information directly with the second terminal based on a change in broadcasting on the personal broadcasting channel; and

receiving streaming data by the first terminal after the notification message is received;

wherein the tracker server provides the list of clients, which made the reservation requests to the second terminal which is a provider of the personal broadcast.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying by the first terminal the EPG information via a user interface for a user to make the user-made reservation.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving from the second terminal by the first terminal a uniform resource locator (URL) of a personal broadcasting channel of the second terminal, wherein the information is generated based on the URL.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the EPG information is based on extensible markup language (XML).

5. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for executing the method of claim 1.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the second terminal is a broadcaster which outputs the personal broadcast on the personal broadcasting channel of the second terminal at the predetermined future time,

the broadcaster receives from the tracker server a list of clients, which made the reservation requests to view the personal broadcast,

the reservation is made by the clients based on the EPG information comprising a personal channel identifier, a name of the personal broadcast, length of the personal broadcast, and a starting time of the personal broadcast,

the second terminal individually transmits the notification message to each of the clients on the list in response to the personal broadcast about to start broadcasting on the personal broadcasting channel, and

the first terminal displays the EPG information of at least two other terminals including the second terminal, and

the notification message is a trigger signaling starting of the personal broadcast without additional information regarding the personal broadcast.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein each of the clients on the list periodically synchronizes directly with the second terminal via a uniform resource locator (URL) for connecting to the personal broadcasting channel of the second terminal and wherein the notification message indicates that the broadcast, for which the reservation is made, is about to start regardless of an actual scheduled time and without providing an end indicator for the program.

6. A method of transmitting a personal broadcast by using P2P communication, the method comprising:

registering, by a terminal in a tracker server, timeline based EPG information about a personal broadcasting channel of a user of the terminal;

receiving, from the tracker server, by the terminal a list of clients which are users of other terminals, each of which made a viewing reservation to view the personal broadcast to be broadcast on a personal broadcasting channel of the terminal at a predetermined future time via the P2P communication;

synchronizing, by the terminal, the EPG information directly with said at least one client based on a change in broadcasting on the personal broadcasting channel; and

when the personal broadcast for which the viewing reservation is made is about to start, transmitting a notification message from the terminal to each of the clients on the list, prior to transmitting streaming data, based on the list of clients,

wherein the notification message comprises notification information that the personal broadcast for which the reservation is made is about to start on the personal broadcasting channel that is to broadcast the personal broadcast at the predetermined future time based on the list of clients received from the tracker server, and

wherein the tracker server provides the list of clients, which made the reservation requests to the second terminal which is a provider of the personal broadcast.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the viewing reservation by the at least one client is performed by referring to the EPG information registered in the tracker server.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising transmitting by the terminal a URL of the personal broadcasting channel to at least one client, wherein the viewing reservation by the at least one client is performed by referring to the URL.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the EPG information is based on XML.

10. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for executing the method of claim 6.

11. An apparatus for providing a personal broadcast by using P2P communication to a first terminal, the apparatus comprising:

a reservation processor which, when an external input for making a reservation to view the personal broadcast that is to be broadcast on a personal broadcasting channel of a user of a second terminal at a predetermined future time, is received, transmits information about the reservation to a tracker server;

an EPG processor which receives timeline based EPG information about the personal broadcasting channel of the second terminal from the tracker server;

a synchronizer which synchronizes the EPG information of a user of the first terminal directly with the second terminal based on a change in broadcasting on the personal broadcasting channel; and

a streaming unit which starts streaming with the second terminal using the P2P communication when the starting of the personal broadcast, for which the reservation is made, is notified from the second terminal which received from the tracker server, a list of clients which made the reservation requests,

wherein, when the personal broadcast, for which the reservation is made, is about to start to be broadcast on the personal broadcasting channel and prior to the streaming by the streaming unit, the second terminal transmits a notification message to the first terminal, the notification message comprising information indicating that the personal broadcast, for which the reservation is made, is about to start, and

wherein the tracker server provides the list of clients, which made the reservation requests to the second terminal which is a provider of the personal broadcast.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the EPG processor is configured to control a display of the EPG information via a user interface for the user to make the reservation.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising a URL receiver which receives a URL of a personal broadcasting channel of the second terminal from the second terminal, wherein the reservation processor generates the information based on the URL.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the EPG information is based on XML.

15. An apparatus for transmitting a personal broadcast by using P2P communication, the apparatus comprising:

an EPG registering unit which registers, in a tracker server, timeline based EPG information about a personal broadcasting channel of a user of the apparatus;

a receiver which receives, from the tracker server, a list of clients, each of which is a terminal of another user which made a viewing reservation to view the personal broadcast that is to be broadcast via the P2P communication on the personal broadcasting channel at a predetermined future time;

a synchronizer which synchronizes the EPG information of the apparatus directly with the terminal of the at least one client based on a change in broadcasting on the personal broadcasting channel; and

a notifying unit which generates a notification message to each of the clients on the list comprising information indicating that the personal broadcast, for which the viewing reservation was made, is about to start on the personal broadcasting channel that is to broadcast the personal broadcast at the predetermined future time based on the list of clients received from the tracker server, and transmitting the generated notification message when it is time for the viewing reservation of the personal broadcast on the personal broadcasting channel and prior to streaming the personal broadcast by the clients on the list,

wherein the tracker server provides the list of clients, which made the reservation requests to the receiver, and wherein the apparatus is a provider of the personal broadcast.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the viewing reservation by the at least one client is performed by referring to the EPG information registered in the tracker server.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising a URL transmitter which transmits a URL of the personal broadcasting channel to the at least one client, wherein the viewing reservation by the at least one client is performed by referring to the URL.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the synchronizer synchronizes the EPG information with the at least one client independently from synchronizing of the URL.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the EPG information is based on XML.

20. A system of managing personal broadcast, the system comprising:

a first terminal that broadcasts the personal broadcast on a personal broadcasting channel of a user of the first terminal;

a second terminal of another user that requests the personal broadcast to be broadcast on the personal broadcast channel by reserving in advance via a viewing reservation that indicates that the second terminal is to tune to the personal broadcasting channel to view the broadcast of the personal broadcast which is to be broadcast at a predetermined future time;

a server which registers the personal broadcast of the first terminal, receives a plurality of reservation requests from a plurality of terminals including the second terminal, and transmits a list of clients that made the plurality reservation requests to the first terminal, which generates individual notification messages to each of the clients on the list,

wherein each of the notification messages comprises information indicating that the personal broadcast requested by the second terminal is about to start to be broadcast on the personal broadcasting channel, and transmits the generated notification message to the first terminal when the personal broadcast is about to start, and provides the list of the plurality of terminals to the first terminal for transmission of the individual notification message to each of the plurality of terminals,

wherein the personal broadcast is obtained in a peer-to-peer (P2P) network in which each of the first and second terminals are peers that serve as at least one of a client and a broadcaster,

wherein the first terminal is a provider of the personal broadcast and the server provides, to the first terminal, the list of client without contents of the personal broadcast,

wherein the server receives from the first terminal timeline based electronic program guide (EPG) information about the personal broadcasting channel of the first terminal, and

wherein the first terminal synchronizes directly with the second terminal the received EPG information based on a change in broadcasting on the personal broadcasting channel.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the first terminal notifies the second terminal of the start of the broadcast of the personal broadcast on the personal broadcasting channel based on the list provided by the server and wherein the broadcast of the personal broadcast on the personal broadcasting channel is at a time different from the predetermined future time, as modified by the first terminal.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein the first terminal registers with the server a the personalized channel that comprises electronic programming guide (EPG) information.

23. The system of claim 20, wherein each of the first terminal and the second terminal function as a server and as a client.

24. The system of claim 20, wherein the first terminal is configured to obtain the personal broadcast from the second terminal and the second terminal is configured to obtain the personal broadcast from the first terminal via the server, which is intermediate server that facilitates communication between the first terminal and the second terminal.