Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Nicholas Jie Fang

Todd Bowra

Ashley Speicher

Sudhakar Visweswara Prabhu

Harry S Pyle

Christian R Lehew

Gurpratap Virdi

Gerald Albert Pogue, Jr

Daniel Diniz Niemeyer

Clifford Paul Strom

Brian Patrick Evans

Jeffrey Alan Davis

Eduardo P Oliveira

Stefan Francis Slivinski

Anand Paka

Daniel Rosenstein

Quinn Damerell

Dylan Keith Garrett

Dharmanshu Kamra

David M Davis

Eduardo Oliveria

Valerian Menn

Ashley C Speicher

Anand D Paka

A mobile computing device provides real-time streaming of multiple sources of audio and video. The mobile computing device receives audio and video streams from multiple sources, including a camera video stream, a microphone audio stream, a game audio stream, and a game video stream. The device adjusts microphone and/or the game input levels based on a user-selected audio mix setting to produce rebalanced microphone and game audio streams, multiplexes the rebalanced microphone and game audio streams to produce a multiplexed audio stream, and encodes the multiplexed audio stream to produce an encoded audio stream. The user-selected audio mix setting may be adjusted by a user of the mobile computing device. The mobile computing device packages the encoded audio stream with an encoded video stream of composited camera and game video streams into one or more streaming packets, and outputs the one or more streaming packets.

Audio balancing for multi-source audiovisual streaming

A method for low-latency streaming of audio and video via a mobile computing device to facilitate a high-quality, real-time interactive streaming experience. The method includes receiving an application audio stream generated by execution of an application program, an application video stream generated by execution of the application program, a microphone audio stream, and a camera video stream. The application audio stream and the microphone audio stream are mixed to produce a mixed audio stream. The application video stream and the camera video stream are composited to produce a composited video stream. The mixed audio stream is encoded to produce an encoded audio stream, and the composited video stream is encoded to produce an encoded video stream. The encoded audio and video streams are packaged into one or more streaming packets, and output, to a remote computing device.

Low-latency mobile device audiovisual streaming

The purchase of entertainment content online via advertising credits is disclosed herein. One disclosed embodiment comprises providing an advertising content item to a user over a network, and awarding an amount of advertising viewing credit to the user based upon the advertising content item provided to the user. Next, a request is received from the user to view an entertainment content item. In response, the entertainment content item is provided to the user, and at least a portion of the advertising viewing credit is deducted in exchange for providing the entertainment content item.

Entertainment content purchase via advertising viewing credit

Adjusting media streaming parameters of a media streaming device and media playback parameters of a media playback device is disclosed. In one embodiment, the system probes a network infrastructure to determine a network type, a playback device type, a streaming device type, a media content type, a preroll duration, and a playback device buffer size. Based upon these streaming and playback conditions, values of streaming parameters of a streaming device and values of playback parameters of a playback device are determined. Streaming parameters include the aggressiveness of the network transmitter, the slope of the transmit rate ramp-up, and the maximum transmit rate. Playback parameters include the amount of data prerolled by the playback device. The aforementioned values are sent to streaming and playback device control systems to control the streaming and the playback of the media, during and/or before playback.

Dynamically adapting media content streaming and playback parameters for existing streaming and playback conditions

A media server in a home entertainment network coordinates with a media receiver connected with the network to provide a media representation with a combined user interface on an attached display device. The media server receives compositing information from the media receiver over the network regarding the placemement of UI components generated by the media receiver. In response, the media server may adjust the positioning of graphics, media control information, metadata, media presentation windows, and other UI components for presentation by the media receiver such that the UI components generated by the media server do not interfere with the UI generated by the media receiver when rendered to the display device. Alternately, the media receiver may adjust the position of UI components such that the UI components generated by the media receiver do not interfere with the UI generated by the media server upon presentation.

Composition of local user interface with remotely generated user interface and media

An intelligent retransmission of data stream segments is disclosed. One embodiment comprises detecting a missing media data segment at a media receiver, assigning a value to the missing media data segment based upon media playback consequences of not utilizing the missing media data segment, comparing the value with a threshold, and requesting retransmission of the missing media data segment from a media server if the value meets a predetermined condition relative to the threshold. In this manner, retransmission is requested when it is determined that retransmission will improve playback performance relative to non-retransmission.

Intelligent retransmission of data stream segments

Described herein is technology for, among other things, improving playback of media streams by maximizing bandwidth utilization. The technology may be implemented via a remote playback device on a network. It involves monitoring requests for portions of streaming media content and the associated responses to the requests and then adjusting request parameters to more effectively utilize available bandwidth. The effective available bandwidth may be controlled by moderating requests in order to induce behavior favorable to media streaming in the flow control mechanisms which control the amount of data sent in response to a request.

Adaptive bandwidth utilization

Systems and methods for use in connection with the trusted transmission and reception of content, such as encryption key information, from one computing device in a network to a second computing device are provided. In one embodiment, the invention provides a way to trust or validate the transfer of a public key using a very short code entered out of band of the network that is easy for end-users to remember, or write down.

Trusted network transfer of content using off network input code

Transrate/transcode functionality of media processing units in devices distributed within a networked media system are harnessed to enable media streaming to devices across networks while overcoming insufficient bandwidth to transmit the source content or while providing reformatted media to devices that do not support the source format. A policy engine may reallocate media processing resources for greater efficiency. The policy engine may further schedule time-slicing of media segments in available hardware and software-based codecs. Time-slicing may be used to transformatively process one or more media streams across potentially multiple media processing units connected within a network. The media streams are divided into independently processable segments based upon knowledge of underlying media formats. Processing requirements and a priority processing order may be determined for and assigned to each independently processable segment. The segments may be scheduled for delivery to the media processing units based upon the assigned priority and processing requirements.

Media stream slicing and processing load allocation for multi-user media systems

A media server in a home entertainment network coordinates with a media player connected with the network to provide a media presentation with a combined user interface (UI) on an attached display device. Media content is sourced locally on a networked media player. The media player extracts metadata related to the media content and transmits the metadata to the media server. The media server creates the UI to include components related to the media content rendered by the media player. The media server then transmits the UI to the media player for combination with the rendered media content for a composite output to a presentation device. The media server may further develop and transmit compositing instructions and additional media content to the media player for inclusion in the composite output.

Composition of local media playback with remotely generated user interface

A technique wherein a first electronic device, such as a server, provides to a second electronic device, such as a client device, a first portion of a digital-content stream. The first electronic device receives an identifier of a protection policy to be applied to the digital-content stream. The first electronic device provides to the second electronic device a data set that includes the policy and a key. In an embodiment, the data set is provided concurrently with providing the digital-content stream to the second electronic device. The first electronic device provides to the second electronic device a second portion of the digital-content stream that is encrypted using the key.

Implementation of media-protection policies

The scaling of a user interface according to network or device limitations is disclosed. One embodiment provides a method of scaling a user interface, comprising sending a user interface over a network to a networked device, detecting a performance limitation of the user interface in at least one of the network or the networked device, and scaling a parameter of the user interface in response to the detected limitation to improve the performance of the user interface. In this manner, a user interface may be scaled in response to limitations on performance and end-user experience can be improved.

Scalable user interface

Improved responsiveness and reduced latency of media playback on a media player is achieved by dynamic adjustment of storage parameters for the jitter buffer in the media player. Decreasing the size of the jitter buffer to a smaller constant value may provide acceptable, starvation-free playback in many cases. Playback of more demanding files requiring more buffered data for decode are addressed by dynamic adjustment of the jitter buffer parameters. An algorithmic or heuristic process is used to dynamically set the size of the jitter buffer before and during media playback. The jitter buffer size and/or preroll duration may be adjusted based upon the quality of playback experience. If playback starves, the jitter buffer size, starvation threshold, and/or preroll duration is increased before rebuffering and resuming playback. If the jitter buffer remains above a defined threshold for a given period of time, the jitter buffer size and/or preroll duration may be decreased, improving the responsiveness of startup and seek and trick mode operations.

Dynamic buffer settings for media playback

A media server in a home entertainment network allows a media rendering device to act as a digital media receiver. The media server enables trick mode functions such as scan forward or reverse, slow motion, pause, and seek on rendering devices with capabilities limited to 1&#xd7; playback. The media server receives commands from user input at the rendering device transmitted over the network to the media server. The media server manipulates the media stream before transmission over the network by deleting or adding frames to the media stream as necessary to emulate the desired playback functions and replacing frame timestamps to create a media stream that appears to the media rendering device as a sequential 1&#xd7; stream. The transmitted media stream may not contain all of the media content stored in the corresponding media file on the media server, thus avoiding limitations on the download bandwidth and local client storage.

Growing community of inventors

Redmond, WA, United States of America

Nicholas Jie Fang