Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.

Comcast Cable Communications, LLC

Sudhanshu Sharma

Brian Frederick Roberts

Donald H Relyea

Japan A Mehta

Raul I Aldrey

Harpal Singh Bassali

Neena Pandey

Heath Stallings

Anthony Marco Lemus

Kishore Tallapaneni

Lonnie Katai

Michael J D'Argenio

Jayson Sellers

Shrividhyaa N Kannan

Karthic Chinnadurai

James D Mora

Vedhashree Sampath

Carl Randall Mosty

The disclosure relates generally to providing synchronized supplemental content. In one aspect, second user devices may be used to consume supplemental content associated with primary content presented on a first display. The supplemental content may be synchronized with the primary content. Such synchronization may be performed by detecting and reporting triggers within the primary content and transmitting synchronization signals to appropriate second user devices. Another aspect of the disclosure relates to determining which interfaces or applications will report the triggers, and fine-tuning how many interfaces or applications will report the triggers.

Synchronizing multiple transmissions of content

Exemplary methods and systems for managing media content sessions are disclosed herein. As described in more detail below, a media content access device may detect a media content session associated with the media content access device, communicate with one or more other media content access devices by way of a local area network to detect one or more other media content sessions associated with the one or more other media content access devices, and present a graphical user interface configured to facilitate user management of the media content session and the one or more other media content sessions. Corresponding methods and systems are also disclosed.

Methods and systems for managing media content sessions

A method may include receiving an enhanced television (ETV) application in a video client over a first data path and executing the ETV application in the video client. In one embodiment, the ETV application may include an enhanced television binary interchange format (EBIF) resource. The method may also include extracting, from the EBIF resource, an identifier of an extension application and requesting the identified extension application. The method may include receiving the extension application, over a second data path different than the first data path and executing the extension application.

Enhanced television extension

An exemplary method includes receiving a command input by a user to record media content, recording media content data representative of the media content in response to the command, automatically selecting at least one storage device from a local storage device and a network storage device for storage of the recorded media content data in accordance with at least one of a plurality of storage balancing factors, and storing the recorded media content data in the at least one selected storage device. Corresponding methods and systems are also disclosed.

Methods and systems for dynamically balancing storage of recorded media content data between a local storage device and a network storage device

A method includes detecting, from an Enhanced Television (ETV) Integrated Signaling Stream (EISS), an indication that an ETV application is available to be downloaded; downloading, in response to the indication, the ETV application from a video stream identified by the indication, where the ETV application does not conform to an ETV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) standard; detecting, from the EISS, another indication that the ETV application is to be started; executing, in response to the other indication, the ETV application to generate an ETV page, where the ETV page includes information that is not permitted by the EBIF standard; and displaying the ETV page on a video display device to enables a user to interact with the ETV page.

Provisioning an enhanced television (ETV) application

An exemplary method includes receiving a plurality of data chunks each representative of a distinct portion of a media content program, generating a personalized version of the media content program based on at least a subset of the data chunks and in accordance with one or more of a plurality of personalization factors associated with a user, and providing the personalized version of the media content program for presentation to the user. Corresponding methods and systems are also described.

Methods and systems for generating a personalized version of a media content program for a user

An exemplary method includes a video messaging system 1) providing an asynchronous video messaging service, 2) maintaining communication thread data representative of a video communication thread that includes a plurality of video messages exchanged between users of the asynchronous video messaging service, 3) providing a user interface configured to facilitate user interaction with the video communication thread, 4) receiving, by way of the user interface, a user input command to process multiple video messages included in the video communication thread, and 5) stitching together the multiple video messages for use in processing the multiple video messages in response to the user input command. Corresponding systems and methods are also disclosed.

Video messaging systems and methods

An approach provides interactive application and advertisement within media streams. A program map table of a media stream is retrieved, wherein the program map table includes a plurality of private descriptor fields that permit user specified tag values. One of the descriptor fields is configured to indicate whether the media stream is associated with an interactive application or advertisement information.

Method and apparatus for providing an interactive application within a media stream

A media client receives, from a remote control device, a signal to launch a selected interactive television application and sends, to the remote control device, a client program for reprogramming buttons on the remote control device. The media client sends, to the remote control device, a script, for button functions of the remote control device, which are based on the selected interactive television application. The remote control device executes the script on the client program to reprogram the buttons functions. The media client presents, on a display device, a button map that corresponds to the script, and receives, from the remote control device, a signal based on the scripting.

Systems and methods to adaptively change functionality of a remote control device to execute the script on a client program for reprogramming buttons on the remote control device

Growing community of inventors

Coppell, TX, United States of America

Sudhanshu Sharma