Interactive video distribution systems – Operator interface
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-21
2001-10-23
Faile, Andrew (Department: 2611)
Interactive video distribution systems
Operator interface
C345S215000, C345S215000, C348S722000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06308327
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention disclosed broadly relates to computer systems and methods, and more particularly relates to computer systems and methods for interactive content insertion in interactive digital television environment.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Television production, mass media, and Internet technology companies are turning their attention to the emerging medium of Interactive TV. Interactive TV uses technologies from the Internet to deliver interactive content in the form of graphical and informational elements on the same screen as a video program. Once transmitted over the air or via telephone wires and cables, the interactive content is televised on top of video programming viewed on traditional TV sets, computers, and on other video-ready digital products
To the end user or viewer, the interactive content appears as graphical and informational images on the screen overlaying a video broadcast. Often these images are opaque and cover the video broadcast in part, or they are transparent or semi-transparent. Specific reoccurring interactive content images include icons, banners, labels, menus, information about the program, data one can print, open text fields in which one can insert an email address, or forms to fill out in order to buy a product. If the producer has done an adequate job, the interactive content will be relevant to the television programming presented with it.
To navigate and participate in such interactive television broadcasts, viewers can use the buttons on the remote control, type commands or words with a wireless keyboard on certain systems, or use the mouse if viewing interactive TV via a computer with a TV tuner card. Depending upon the network, the viewer's set-top box will receive an electronic programming guide (EPG); a special TV-online service containing links to local information; or applications like email, games, home banking, and community message boards. The viewer's responses to the interactive content are transferred by the set-top box as signals back to the broadcast station. Where the viewer's set-top box is connected to the broadcaster over a cable TV network, the viewer's response signals are returned over a duplex commumication path of the cable TV network. Where the viewer 's set-top box is connected to the broadcaster over a wireless link, the viewer's response signals can be returned over a duplex commumication path of the wireless link or alternately they may be returned via another medium, such as the public switched telephone network.
A problem exists in how to effectively control the Digital TV Studio to organize the interactive content and input its data to an MPEG-2 data injector, which embeds the interactive content in an MPEG-2 Transport Stream to be sent to the end user. Today's systems generally require the broadcaster to preview the entire length of each program before the program is transmitted, in order to index the program with sequential code data representing the interactive content to be presented in the program. Such systems generally require separate sub-systems to watch the program and lack the capability to monitor the end user's usage of the interactive content.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To address the above problem, the present invention provides an improved method and apparatus for selectively inserting interactive content into a live TV or recorded broadcasting presentation and tracking the usage of the inserted content by end user viewers of the presentation. The invention enables operators to watch the live audiovisual programming feed, view and navigate product lists from e-commerce servers, control the insertion of interactive content into the audiovisual programming, monitor the content insertion status, and track the usage by client viewers of the inserted content in real time.
The invention embeds content into digital TV programs. It includes the features of an advanced, agent based, information exchanging mechanism between different web browsers, real-time information fetching and organizing, real-time information broadcasting, the ability to cancel existing embedded interactive content, and interactive contents sorting. The invention further includes an integrated monitoring system, a live audiovisual feed (original live TV program) preview feature, an interactive icon (user interface of an inserted interactive service) preview feature, client site interactive services status monitoring, acknowledgment of content insertion, and the ability to save cost compared to traditional TV studios. The invention features an e-commerce enablement environment for monitoring transaction results returned from the viewers. The invention also provides an automatic execution feature, based on scheduling for event-driven automatic execution using an event-action mapping list or based on time-driven automatic execution using a time-action mapping list.
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Chen Jeane
Lipscomb James S.
Liu Lurng-Kuo
Menon Jai Prakash
Zhang Liang-Jie
Faile Andrew
International Business Machines - Corporation
Morgan & Finnegan , LLP
Redmond, Jr. Joseph C.
Shofi David M.
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