Patent Application
20070056015
The present disclosure relates to Internet Protocol television (IPTV), and in particular to methods and machine-readable media to perform the methods for managing the IPTV bandwidth in known non-observation circumstances.
A television may receive programming content through a variety of transmission technologies such as by picking up broadcast radio signals with an antenna or by receiving a transmission through a coaxial cable. In additional to broadcast and cable technologies, the Internet is emerging as a television content transmission medium. Television that receives content through an Internet network connection via the Internet Protocol (IP) may be generically referred to as IPTV.
Television programming content requires a great amount of data, the transmission of which over the Internet demands a large portion of the bandwidth available to a subscriber. The problem is that bandwidth is a precious, substantially fixed, resource and IP Television, due its high volume content, demands a very large amount of the fixed bandwidth that is available to a subscriber household, or that is deliverable by an Internet service provider.
Research that has surveyed the viewing habits of television viewers reveals that a significant number of television users keep the television on, but do not attentively watch the programming. Such television usage in an IPTV environment squanders bandwidth that would otherwise be available to the household for other uses.
There is a need, therefore, for means by which television users are able to reduce the bandwidth utilized by IPTV content transmission when the television is on but unwatched.
The present disclosure provides the detailed description that follows, by reference to the noted drawings, by way of non-limiting examples of various embodiments, in which reference numerals represent the same parts throughout the several views of the drawings, and in which:
In view of the foregoing, the present disclosure is intended to bring out one or more of the advantages that will be evident from the description. The present disclosure makes reference to one or more specific embodiments. It is understood that the description of the embodiments is illustrative rather than limiting. The terminology, examples, drawings and embodiments, therefore, are not intended to limit the scope of the claims.
Accordingly, the present disclosure describes systems, methods, and machine-readable media that allow to-the-home bandwidth to be managed in circumstances where it is known to a subscriber that the direct observation of IP television programming is not occurring.
The next step involves reducing the bandwidth for the transmission of the user designated identified content at least partially by an Internet Protocol transmission 120. Two approaches for reducing bandwidth are illustrated. One approach involves adjusting the video component of the transmitted content to reduce the bandwidth 130. Another approach involves recording the user designated identified content to, for example, a Digital Video Recorder (DVR) and automatically playing back the recorded content in a loop 140. The content is displayed 150 on a suitable display medium such as a television or computer monitor.
Research of television viewing behavior shows that there is a population of television users who tune the television to a particular channel but do not directly watch the resulting broadcast. In a typical broadcast television system, this poses no additional loads on the system and does not incur additional cost for the content provider. In IPTV, however, these unattended content streams consume valuable bandwidth. The consequence of which is to reduce the content options available in the home. A further consequence is that the costs incurred by the service provider remain higher than would otherwise be necessary.
200 telephone interviews were conducted with cable/satellite TV customers. Three core viewing behaviors were identified from the responses of those surveyed:
The survey revealed that customers mix these three behaviors. The following discussion examines behavior #3 in more detail, as it is that behavior which creates a significant opportunity to reduce bandwidth usage consumed by IPTV content.
The data indicates that there are two main scenarios in which content is streamed but not directly watched:
DVR functionality is well known in the art and typically includes a digital memory that stores recorded content. Another typical feature is that the DVR-capable STB accepts content-recording instructions via a user-operated remote control or other input means (such as STB panel buttons), often by way of a content schedule menu displayed on the television screen that may be navigated with the remote control.
Continuing with the description of approach 1, at the end of the recording time period, the real time signal, and the recording thereof, is terminated 230 and the DVR begins playback of the recorded content in a repeated loop 240. In the case of a typical workday, the content provider saves over 8 hours of streaming bandwidth by using the method of this embodiment.
An alternative embodiment sends “The Dog Channel” content to the DVR during low network usage times and then uses the DVR content when “The Dog Channel” is tuned to in the program guide.” Off-peak downloading may be extended to other types of content to create “virtual” channels that are actually DVR stored content. Low usage times are periods having low bandwidth demand, such as, for example, between midnight and four am.
For example, color depth and resolution are significantly reduced, while maintaining full fidelity sound (since that is the perceptual output that is still be attended to in a background-use situation). In the example of
In both approaches the user accomplishes the goals they have set, while retaining bandwidth for other home uses. If other home uses are not occurring, then there is a transparent reduction of costs to the service provider. Bandwidth saving in both scenarios is potentially substantial, given the relatively high bandwidth requirements of IP television, particularly for High Definition streams.
Methods for managing bandwidth capacity in a system that receives television content from a content provider via an Internet protocol transmission provide a user interface to designate the selected content that will not be attentively viewed. The user interface may be, for example, a remote control and an on-screen menu display navigable with the remote control. The selected content is highlighted in the menu with a distinctive attribute to indicate the designation of the selected content. The attribute may be a distinctive highlight color, a font change such as bold or underline, flashing the selected content item in the menu, checkerboard or hatch-marked backgrounds, or some other suitable display feature or element to show the designation of the selected content.
Additionally or alternatively, the on-screen menu provides an optionally selectable interactive feature operable with the remote control to designate the selected content. For example, the feature may be an on-screen designator button. That is, a displayed “button” of the type with which any computer user is familiar and uses a mouse to interact with, although here the subscriber uses the remote control to interact with the button. Another example of a feature is an on-screen icon that may be selected with the remote to designate the selected content or which appears on the screen in association with the selected content once the content has been optionally designated by the subscriber.
Further embodiments provide a broadband network for managing bandwidth capacity in a system that receives television content from a content provider via an Internet protocol transmission. The network includes, but is not necessarily limited to a machine-readable medium having instructions stored therein that, when executed by a machine in communication with the network, the instructions cause the machine to perform: accepting a user-designation of selected television content that will not be substantially viewed by the user; and reducing the bandwidth used by the selected content relative to the bandwidth the content would use without the user designation.
Elements of the network may include, but not be limited to, segments of wireless telecom connections and segments of coaxial cable connections for transmission of content to the subscriber. Additionally, the network may include a set-top box device connected to the broadband network and to a television display. The set-top box may include digital video recorder functionality.
The bandwidth reduction a) directly benefits the user, if they want to use the bandwidth for other purposes and b) is essentially transparent to the user in a number of scenarios found to be common in the viewing population.
The computer system 600 may include a processor 602 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), or both), a main memory 604 and a static memory 606, which communicate with each other via a bus 608. The computer system 600 may further include a video display unit 610 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a flat panel, a solid state display, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 600 may include an input device 612 (e.g., a remote control to operate a machine such as, for example, a set-top box device), a disk drive unit 616, a signal generation device 618 (e.g., a speaker or remote control) and a network interface device 620.
The disk drive unit 616 may include a machine-readable medium 622 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g., software 624) embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein, including those methods illustrated in herein above. The instructions 624 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory 604, the static memory 606, and/or within the processor 602 during execution thereof by the computer system 600. The main memory 604 and the processor 602 also may constitute machine-readable media. Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to, application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays and other hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement the methods described herein. Applications that may include the apparatus and systems of various embodiments broadly include a variety of electronic and computer systems. Some embodiments implement functions in two or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with related control and data signals communicated between and through the modules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Thus, the example system is applicable to software, firmware, and hardware implementations.
In accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, certain of the methods described herein are intended for operation as software programs running on a computer processor. Furthermore, software implementations can include, but not limited to, distributed processing or component/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtual machine processing can also be constructed to implement the methods described herein.
The present invention contemplates a machine readable medium containing instructions 624, or that which receives and executes instructions 624 from a propagated signal so that a device connected to a network environment 626 can send or receive voice, video or data, and to communicate over the network 626 using the instructions 624. The instructions 624 may further be transmitted or received over a network 626 via the network interface device 620.
In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, and as mentioned above, certain of the methods described herein are intended for operation as software programs running on a programmable machine such as a computer processor within which a set of instructions, when executed, may cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. The machine may comprise a set-top box (STB) or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machines, such as, for example the combination of a television display, remote control device, and a set-top box, that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.
Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to, application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays and other hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement the methods described herein. Applications that may include the apparatus and systems of various embodiments broadly include a variety of electronic and computer systems, including set-top box devices. Some embodiments implement functions in two or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with related control and data signals communicated between and through the modules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Thus, the example system is applicable to software, firmware, and hardware implementations.
In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, the methods described herein are intended for operation as software programs running on a computer processor. Furthermore, software implementations can include, but not limited to, distributed processing or component/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtual machine processing can also be constructed to implement the methods described herein.
The present disclosure contemplates a machine readable medium containing instructions or which receives and executes instructions from a propagated signal, so that a device connected to a network environment can send or receive voice, video or data, and to communicate over the network using the instructions. The instructions may further be transmitted or received over a network via a network interface device such as a remote control.
The term “machine-readable medium” should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term “machine-readable medium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the present disclosure. The term “machine-readable medium” shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to: solid-state memories such as a memory card or other package that houses one or more read-only (non-volatile) memories, random access memories, or other re-writable (volatile) memories; magneto-optical or optical medium such as a disk or tape; and carrier wave signals such as a signal embodying computer instructions in a transmission medium; and/or a digital file attachment to e-mail or other self-contained information archive or set of archives is considered a distribution medium equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more of a machine-readable medium or a distribution medium, as listed herein and including art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which the software implementations herein are stored.
Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to, application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays and other hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement the methods described herein. Furthermore, alternative software implementations including, but not limited to, distributed processing or component/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtual machine processing can also be constructed to implement the methods described herein.
It should also be noted that the software implementations of the present disclosure as described herein are optionally stored on a tangible storage medium, such as: a magnetic medium such as a disk or tape; a magneto-optical or optical medium such as a disk; or a solid state medium such as a memory card or other package that houses one or more read-only (non-volatile) memories, random access memories, or other re-writable (volatile) memories. A digital file attachment to e-mail or other self-contained information archive or set of archives is considered a distribution medium equivalent to a tangible storage medium. The disclosure is considered to include a tangible storage medium or distribution medium, including a propagated signal, as listed herein and including art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which the software implementations herein are stored.
Although the present specification describes components and functions implemented in the embodiments with reference to particular standards and protocols, the disclosure is not limited to such standards and protocols. Each of the standards for Internet and other packet switched network transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP) represent examples of the state of the art. Such standards are periodically superseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentially the same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards and protocols having the same functions are considered equivalents.
The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended to provide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments, and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all the elements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use of the structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Other embodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Figures are merely representational and may not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions thereof may be exaggerated, while others may be minimized. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.
Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments. Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description.
The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R. § 1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen that various features are grouped together in a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.
The disclosure has made reference to several exemplary embodiments. It is understood, however, that the words that have been used are words of description and illustration, rather than words of limitation. Changes may be made within the purview of the appended claims, as presently stated and as amended, without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure in all its aspects. Although the disclosure has been described with reference to particular means, materials and embodiments, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the particulars disclosed; rather, the disclosure extends to all functionally equivalent technologies, structures, methods and uses such as are within the scope of the appended claims.
