Contextual navigational control for digital television

Abstract

A contextual navigational control for digital television is described. An apparatus, comprises a contextual navigation control interface (CNCI). The CNCI includes a first area that represents a plurality of cable television programs having a first level of relevance. A second area represents a first group of the plurality of programs having a second level of relevance. A third area represents a first subgroup of the first group having a third level of relevance. A fourth area represents a second subgroup of the first group having a fourth level of relevance. There may be additional areas representing additional sub-groups of relevance to the current viewing context.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to systems and methods for presenting navigation; and control of television viewing services.

BACKGROUND

Interactive television (iTV) is currently available in varying forms. At the core of iTV applications are the navigation applications provided to subscribers to assist in the discovery and selection of television programming. Currently available methods and systems for browsing and selecting broadcast (linear television) are known as interactive program guides (IPGs)—or electronic program guides (EPGs). Current IPGs allow the subscriber to browse and select linear broadcast programming. These IPGs also include the ability to subset the broadcast linear program listing data by subject or type of programing.

In addition to linear broadcast television, subscribers may now also be given opportunities to select from a list of programs that are not linear, but instead are provided on demand. Such technology is generally referred to as Video on Demand (VOD). The current schemes for browsing and selecting VOD programs include the ability to select such programming from categories of programming.

Due to advances in technologies such as data compression, system operators such as cable multiple system operators (MSOs) and satellite operators are able to send more and more broadcast channels and on-demand content over their systems. This in turn has prompted broadcast content providers and programmers to develop more and more channels and on-demand content offerings. Also, the addition of digital video recorder (DVR) technology to set-top boxes (STBs) now provide additional options for time-shifted viewing of broadcast TV and increasing options for the storage of VOD titles that have been purchased for viewing, or likely-to-purchase.

The current television navigational structure is predicated on the numeric channel lineup where a channel's position is determined arbitrarily for each MSO system and without regard for clustering content type or brand. To the TV viewer, this is also manifested in the grid-based navigational tools as they are generally structured in a time-by-channel grid format. As a navigational model, this has become outdated with the increasing number of channels (500+). The problem is further exacerbated with the addition of non-linear (non time-based) On-Demand and time-shifted (DVR) content and other interactive applications such as games.

With these increasing number of TV viewing options comes a complexity of navigating the options to find something to watch. There are generally two types of viewers. One type of viewer knows the type of content they want to watch and are searching for an instance of that type of content. This is exemplified by a viewer who, wanting to watch an action film, wishes to browse available action films. The second type of viewer is one that has no specific notion of what they want to watch—they just want to find something interesting to them in a more impulse oriented manner.

The current state of technology for browsing for TV content includes searching lists of content underneath category heading or browsing large lists or grids of data to find content, or typing in search criteria. Each of these browse methods are referred to in this document as content search points. Content search points include IPG's and EPG's, Movies-On-Demand applications, text search, DVR recorded shows listings, and Category Applications as specified in the above-cited patent application. Current technology also consists of menus and toolbars that allow one to jump to the various content search points. The problem with current technology is that due to the large. amount of content on the Digital TV service, the menus and toolbars themselves are: becoming either long lists of specific content that are difficult to search, or short lists. of general categories that do not provide quick access to specific needs. Thus, the new features of digital television, new content types and the sheer volume of viewing options warrant a new navigational model for viewing television.

SUMMARY

A contextual navigational control for digital television is described. In one embodiment a contextual navigation control interface (CNCI) includes a first area that represents a plurality of cable television programs having a first level of relevance. A second area represents a first group of the plurality of programs having a second level of relevance. A third area represents a first subgroup of the first group having a third level of relevance. A fourth area represents a second subgroup of the first group having a fourth level of relevance. There may be additional areas representing additional sub-groups of relevance to the current viewing context.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will be understood and appreciated more fully from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary two-way cable television system that provides contextual navigational control for digital television, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates four dimensions of programming contextual relevance, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary user interface for selecting the contextual navigation control mode, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary user interface 400 for selecting category related links, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary user interface 505 for selecting channel/provider related links, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary network architecture, according to one embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary computer architecture, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention provides, in various embodiments, systems and methods by which subscribers are presented with a dynamic navigational interface for linking to content. This dynamic navigational interface speeds access to content by providing a minimal graphical interface and by first presenting contextual options to the viewer that are relevant to the currently viewed program, channel, provider or genre of same. The contextual options are further divided in the user presentation along multiple levels or dimensions from general to more specific relative to the currently viewed content.

Described herein are systems and methods by which subscribers are presented with dynamic iTV navigational hierarchies that first present navigational options based on relevance to the available content on television, and to the currently viewed program, channel, provider or genre of program, channel or provider. In current navigational systems users are provided menus from which they can select a target content search point. These menus are either presented as long lists of options or as very short lists. The long lists provide greater subdivision of content but create a navigational obstacle in that the lists must be scanned to find a link to a specific content of interest. The short lists provide content search points that are much too general such that if the link is selected, the viewer is taken to yet another page for further categorization or the viewer is presented with a large set of content that must be browsed. The present invention enables the quick access to multiple levels of granularity of content categorization on a single menu, by using the context of the currently viewed program to set the state of the navigational control when displayed.

In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. As one example, the terms subscriber, user, viewer are used interchangeably throughout this description. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form, rather than in detail, in order to avoid obscuring the present invention. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that logical, mechanical, electrical, and other changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Some portions of the detailed descriptions•that follow are presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the means used by those skilled in the data processing arts to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of acts leading to a desired result. The acts are those requiring physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It has proven convenient at times, principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals as bits, values, signals, datum, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like.

It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the following discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as “processing” or “computing” or “calculating” or “determining” or “displaying” or the like, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.

The present invention can be implemented by an apparatus for performing the operations herein. This apparatus may be specially constructed for the required purposes, or it may comprise a general-purpose computer, selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in the computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a computer readable storage medium, such as, but not limited to, any type of disk including floppy disks, optical disks, CD-ROMs, and magnetic-optical disks, read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), EPROMs, EEPROMs, magnetic or optical cards, or any type of media suitable for storing electronic instructions, and each coupled to a computer system bus.

The algorithms and processes presented herein are not inherently related to any particular computer or other apparatus. Various general-purpose systems may be used with programs in accordance with the teachings herein, or it may prove convenient to construct more specialized apparatus to perform the required method. For example, any of the methods according to the present invention can be implemented in hard-wired circuitry, by programming a general-purpose processor or by any combination of hardware and software. One of skill in the art will immediately appreciate that the invention can be practiced with computer system configurations other than those described below, including hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, DSP devices, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like. The invention can also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. The required structure for a variety of these systems will appear from the description below.

The methods of the invention may be implemented using computer software. If written in a programming language conforming to a recognized standard, sequences of instructions designed to implement the methods can be compiled for execution on a variety of hardware platforms and for interface to a variety of operating systems. In addition, the present invention is not described with reference to any particular programming language. It will be appreciated that a variety of programming languages may be used to implement the teachings of the invention as described herein. Furthermore, it is common in the art to speak of software, in one form or another (e.g., program, procedure, application, etc.), as taking an action or causing a result. Such expressions are merely a shorthand way of saying that execution of the software by a computer causes the processor of the computer to perform an action or produce a result.

An Exemplary Cable Television System

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary two-way cable television system that provides contextual navigational control for digital television, according to one embodiment of the present invention. Generally, cable television system (CATV) 100 provides video and data services through a network of high bandwidth coaxial cables and fibers. The cable system includes a head-end amplifier 110 that combines the broadcast and data signals for transmission to the subscribers. The head-end 110 is connected to fiber or coax trunks 111 that carry the signals into the neighborhoods 120 where they are tapped off to provide service to the residence 130.

The head-end 110 is the initial distribution center for a CATV system 100. The head-end 110 is where incoming video and television signal sources (e.g., video tape, satellites, local studios) are received, amplified and modulated onto TV carrier channels for transmission on the CATV cabling system. The cable distribution system is a cable (fiber or coax) that is used to transfer signals from the head-end 110 to the end-users. The cable is attached to the television 131 through a set-top box 132. The set-top box 132 adapts the signals from the head-end 110 to a format suitable for the television 131. Additionally, the set-top box 132 renders a user interface through which the end-user navigates through menus to select programming to view.

CATV system 100 allows two-way data transmission. Data is provided by a cable modem 133 in the residence 130 and data gateway (cable modem termination system (CMTS)) 111 at the head-end 110. The CMTS 111 also provides an interface to other networks such as the Internet 140. Furthermore, CATV system 100 allows cable telephony to initiate, process and receive voice communications. Telephony is provided by a voice gateway 112 at the head-end 110 that converts communication signals between data networks and telephone networks (e.g., PSTN) 150. The data and telephony attributes of CATV system 100 described above, are for the reader's benefit to appreciate the entire CATV system 100. However, the present system for contextual navigational control may be mainly associated with the digital television content delivery aspects of CATV system 100.

To further understand the present invention consider that all content has descriptive attributes. For example, the show “Sopranos” could be described by the following four attributes: HBO, Drama, Primetime, Crime. These attribute dimensions, namely Provider, Genre, Time of Day and Content are chosen purely for illustration, and additional categories or dimension could easily be identified. The type and number of attributes is variable and may be unique to an article of content. In the navigational model described by this invention, these attributes are the doorways to other content of interest based on the notion that what the viewer is watching has some basic attributes that are of interest to the viewer and can be predictive of where the viewer may wish to navigate.

In one embodiment, the present contextual navigational control has four selection dimensions, or levels, with increasing contextual relevance to the currently broadcast program. FIG. 2 illustrates four dimensions of programming contextual relevance, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The four dimensions 200 or levels of navigation begin with the most general and proceed to the most content specific navigation that link context to the current content being viewed. These dimensions are:

• • a All Listings (non-filtered) Related Links 210
  • b Category Related Links 220
  • c Channel/Provider Related Links 230
  • d Show/Content Related Links 240

FIG. 2 illustrates how programming choices available to the viewer range from the most general or all programming choices, to filtered selections by content type (e.g. Sports), provider (e.g. ESPN), down to programming choices related to specific programming (e.g. a football game). Each contextual level of navigation from the most general to the most specific with respect to the current content will now be described in detail.

Level one (All Listings 210) represents the links to general system function, in particular, it allows the user to select how he/she wishes to interact with the present contextual navigation control. FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary user interface for selecting the contextual navigation control mode, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The control mode interface 300 includes the following viewing modes:

• • 1 Full Guide 310: Full Screen Guide of linear programming choices (either blocking video or with video inset)
  • 2 Mini-Guide 320: Overscreen guide to linear programming to allow for content selection with continued viewing of current programming
  • 3 On-Demand Guide 330: Guide to On-Demand programming. In some embodiments, this may be combined with the other guides.
  • 4 Favorites (not shown): list of content selections for user's favorite categories
  • 5 My VOD (not shown): list of On-Demand content according to selection rules provided by user
  • 6 My DVR Shows (not shown): list of previously recorded programs

Returning to FIG. 2, level two (category related links 220) represents a contextual level of navigation where programming content is ordered according to relevance by content category. The category related links level 220 consists of content categories where the category contextually presented is the one most relevant to the category of content currently being viewed. In one embodiment, the category related links level link 220 navigates the viewer to the ‘category application’. The present contextual navigation control provides a method for quickly jumping to the most relevant category based on the currently viewed program. For example, FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary user interface 400 for selecting category related links, according to one embodiment of the present invention. In this example, if the viewer is currently watching a football game then the ‘Sports’ category link 420 would be the item shown in the initial state of the contextual navigation control. As a further example, in situations where a viewer is watching a movie, the initial state of the second level 220 of the present contextual navigation control would be ‘Movies’ 430. Further examples are illustrated Table 1 below.

TABLE 1
Currently viewed program type Initial Category Link
Football                      Sports 420
Movie                         Movies 430
Sesame Street                 Kids 410
HD program                    HD (not shown)
Headline News                 News (not shown)

In this manner, the contextual display and dynamic positioning of the relevant links related to a current program, provider, category or genre of same, will assist the viewer to more quickly navigate to the programming they desire. The possible links are also navigable by the viewer once the selection is moved to highlight an element of the present contextual navigation control, as illustrated by FIG. 4. In other words, a viewer may navigate to and select the Kids link 410 or the Movies link 430 upon highlighting the Sports link 420 and in so doing expose further category selections.

Returning to FIG. 2, level three (Channel/Provider Related link 230) represents an additional order of relevance. This level consists of channel specific links where the channel category link contextually presented is the one most relevant to the category of content currently being viewed. This ‘programmer category application’ can be implemented as a category application or can be any content provided for the current channel or channel family to which this channel belongs. For example, in the examples of FIGS. 3 and 4, the viewer has selected a football game that sets the second level link 220 state to ‘Sports’ 420 initially.

For the purpose of illustrating the third level's relevance (Channel/Provider Related link 230), FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary user interface 505 for selecting channel/provider related links, according to one embodiment of the present invention. Continuing with the examples shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, FIG. 5 illustrates that the football game is on ESPN. Given that the viewer is watching the football game on ESPN, when the navigation control 505 is launched, the initial state of third level (Channel/Provider Related link 230) will be ‘ESPN’ 501. This permits the viewer to jump directly to a sports category 501 to see what other sports programming is available on other networks, such as NBC 502, or AMC 503. Additionally, the viewer can jump to a provider category by selecting ESPN 501 to see what other programming and information ESPN is providing. Further examples of relationships between currently viewed channel and the initial option display for the channel/provider link level 230 are shown in Table 2 below.

TABLE 2
Currently viewed channel The Initial Channel Link
ESPN                     ESPN
Discovery                Discovery
Discovery Wings          Discovery
TLC                      Discovery
Headline News            News

The ‘Discovery’ example is provided to illustrate that multiple channels may link to a single channel-family content application. All of the possible links are also navigable by the viewer once the selection is moved to highlight this element of the contextual navigation control.

Returning to FIG. 2, level four (Show/Content Related links 240) represents an additional order of relevance. The show/content level 240 consists of program or show specific links where the channel program link (contextually) presented is the one most relevant to the content currently being viewed. For example, if the current program being viewed is the ESPN show “Pardon the Interruption”, this link could in one embodiment be an interactive application for “Pardon the Interruption”. In one embodiment, the other links available in this level could be interactive applications for programs or shows that share some attribute in common with the current program being viewed.

It will also be apparent that the relationships to categories may be specified in any manner and may contain additional levels of relevance. For instance, in the example of a viewer watching football on ESPN, the first order of relevance was content category (sports), the second order of relevance was the current channel (ESPN), a third order of relevance can be added to be specific to the program. For example if the game were a college game between LSU and Florida then an additional order of relevance might be a link to an application for ‘College football’ or for ‘South-Eastern Conference’.

An Exemplary Network Architecture

Elements of the present invention may be included within a client-server based system 500 such as that illustrated in FIG. 6. According to the embodiment depicted in FIG. 6, one or more servers 510 communicate with a plurality of clients 530-535 and set-top boxes 570-575. The clients and set-top boxes 530-535 and set-top boxes 570-575 may transmit and receive data from servers 510 over a variety of communication media including (but not limited to) a local area network (“LAN”) 540 and/or a wide area network (“WAN”) 525 (e.g., the Internet). Alternative communication channels such as cable RF and wireless communication via GSM, TDMA, CDMA or satellite broadcast (not shown) are also contemplated within the scope of the present invention.

Servers 510 may include a database for storing various types of data. This may include, for example, specific client data (e.g., user account information and user preferences) and/or more general data. The database on servers 510 in one embodiment runs an instance of a Relational Database Management System (RDBMS), such as Microsoft™ SQL-Server, Oracle™ or the like. A user/client may interact with and receive feedback from servers 510 using various different communication devices and/or protocols. According to one embodiment, a user connects to servers 510 via client software. The client software may include a browser application such as Netscape Navigator™ or Microsoft Internet Explorer™ on the user's personal computer, which communicates to servers 510 via the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (hereinafter “HTTP”). In other embodiments included within the scope of the invention, clients may communicate with servers 510 via cellular phones and pagers (e.g., in which the necessary transaction software is electronic in a microchip), handheld computing devices, and/or touch-tone telephones (or video phones). According to another embodiment, set-top boxes 570-575 connects to servers 510 via a TV application.

Servers 510 may also communicate over a larger network (e.g., network 525) with other servers 550-552. This may include, for example, servers maintained by businesses to host their Web sites—e.g., content servers such as “yahoo.com.” Network 525 may include router 520. Router 520 forwards data packets from one local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN) to another. Based on routing tables and routing protocols, router 520 reads the network address in each IP packet and makes a decision on how to send if based on the most expedient route. Router 520 works at layer 3 in the protocol stack.

An Exemplary Computer Architecture

Having briefly described an exemplary network architecture which employs various elements of the present invention, a computer system 600 representing exemplary clients 530-535, set-top boxes 570-575 (e.g., set-top box 132) and/or servers (e.g., servers 510), in which elements of the present invention may be implemented will now be described with reference to FIG. 7.

One embodiment of computer system 600 comprises a system bus 620 for communicating information, and a processor 610 coupled to bus 620 for processing information. Computer system 600 further comprises a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device 625 (referred to herein as main memory), coupled to bus 620 for storing information and instructions to be executed by processor 610. Main memory 625 also may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of instructions by processor 610. Computer system 600 also may include a read only memory (ROM) and/or other static storage device 626 coupled to bus 620 for storing static information and instructions used by processor 610.

A data storage device 627 such as a magnetic disk or optical disc and its corresponding drive may also be coupled to computer system 600 for storing information and instructions. Computer system 600 can also be coupled to a second I/0 bus 650 via an I/0 interface 630. Multiple I/0 devices may be coupled to I/0 bus 650, including a display device 643, an input device (e.g., an alphanumeric input device 642 and/or a cursor control device 641). For example, video news clips and related information may be presented to the user on the display device 643.

The communication device 640 is for accessing other computers (servers or clients) via a network 525, 540. The communication device 640 may comprise a modem, a network interface card, or other well-known interface device, such as those used for coupling to Ethernet, token ring, or other types of networks.

A contextual navigational control for digital television has been described. It will be appreciated that the embodiments described above are cited by way of example, and that the present invention is not limited to what has been particularly shown and described hereinabove. Rather, the scope of the present invention includes both combinations and subcombinations of the various features described hereinabove, as well as variations and modifications thereof which would occur to persons skilled in the art upon reading the foregoing description and which are not disclosed in the prior art.

Claims

1. A method comprising: causing, by a computing device, output of a content item;receiving, by the computing device and during the output of the content item, a user request to output a content guide;determining, by the computing device, during the output of the content item, and based on the user request, a content category associated with the content item;generating, by the computing device and based on the user request, the content guide to comprise: an indication for the determined content category, wherein the indication is configured to be selectable, anda control to expand the content guide to output selectable options for additional content categories; andcausing, by the computing device, output of the generated content guide.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the content category associated with the content item comprises determining a content provider associated with the content item or a genre associated with the content item.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the content guide further comprises: determining a second content category associated with the content item, wherein the second content category is a subcategory of the content category; andgenerating the content guide to further comprise a second indication for the second content category.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the second content category corresponds to one or more content providers associated with the content category or the content item.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein causing output of the generated content guide comprises overlaying the content guide on the content item.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein causing output of the generated content guide comprises causing output of the content guide while causing output of the content item.

7. A method comprising: receiving, by a computing device and while causing output of a content item associated with a content category, a user request to output a content guide;determining, by the computing device, while causing output of the content item, and based on the user request, a content provider associated with the content item;generating, by the computing device and based on the user request, the content guide to comprise: an indication for the determined content provider, wherein the indication is configured to be selectable, anda control to expand the content guide to output selectable options for other content providers providing content items associated with the content category; andcausing, by the computing device, output of the generated content guide.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the content category associated with the content item comprises a genre associated with the content item.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein generating the content guide comprises: generating the content guide to further comprise a second indication for the content category.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein causing output of the generated content guide comprises overlaying the content guide on the content item.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein causing output of the generated content guide comprises causing output of the content guide while causing output of the content item.

12. A method comprising: determining, during output of a content item, a content category associated with the content item;generating, by a computing device and during the output of the content item, a content guide to comprise: a first indication for the content category associated with the content item,a second indication for a content subcategory of the content category, anda control to expand the content guide to output selectable options for additional content categories; andcausing, by the computing device, output of the generated content guide.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the content category associated with the content item comprises a genre associated with the content item.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein generating the content guide further comprises: generating the content guide to further comprise a second control to expand the content guide to output second selectable options for additional content subcategories.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein causing output of the generated content guide comprises overlaying the generated content guide on the content item.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein causing output of the generated content guide comprises causing output of the generated content guide while causing output of the content item.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a second user request to expand the content guide; andupdating the content guide to comprise the selectable options for the additional content categories.

18. The method of claim 7, further comprising: receiving a second user request to expand the content guide; andupdating the content guide to comprise the selectable options for the other content providers.

19. The method of claim 12, further comprising: receiving a second user request to expand, based on the control, the content guide; andupdating the content guide to comprise the selectable options for the additional content categories.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the content subcategory comprises a content provider associated with the content item, and wherein generating the content guide further comprises generating the content guide to further comprise: a second control to expand the content guide to output second selectable options for additional content providers providing content items associated with the content category.