Diva Systems Corporation

Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Sedna Patent Services, LLC

Ted Ludvig

Donald F Gordon

David Hendler Sloo

Peter T Barrett

Ronald Alan Morris

Christopher Goode

Nathan W Osborn

Wieyang Lin

Various technologies for delivering contextual television advertisement are described. A user selection of a media title is received. The media title has an associated set of contextual metadata that includes information regarding the media title. A request for the media title is forwarded to a first server and an advertisement request including the set of contextual metadata is forwarded to a second server. The second server uses the set of contextual metadata to retrieve contextual television advertisement information. The contextual television advertisement information and the media title are received from the second server and the first server respectively. Also, the contextual television advertisement information and the media title are played.

Contextual television advertisement delivery

A demand television system comprising a broadcast encoder and a storage encoder. The broadcast encoder encodes a real-time video frame sequence to form a broadcast bitstream and broadcasts the broadcast bitstream to a plurality of subscriber equipment, while simultaneously the storage encoder encodes the real-time video frame sequence to form a storage bitstream that is stored in an information server. The subscriber equipment decodes the broadcast bitstream to display the broadcast program. At any time, the subscriber equipment may request to review the information previously displayed in the broadcast bitstream. As such, the storage bitstream is transmitted to the subscriber equipment. The storage bitstream facilitates standard play of the previously broadcast information as well as trick play such as fast forward and fast reverse functions.

Method and apparatus for producing demand real-time television

A method and apparatus for combining video frame sequences with a video display of an interactive program guide (IPG). The apparatus comprises a plurality of compositors that combine background information, video frame sequences and program guide graphics into a single video frame sequence. The sequence is then digitally encoded to form an MPEG-like bitstream. The same background information and video advertising is composited with a different program guide graphic to form another video sequence that is also encoded. A plurality of such sequences are produced with each sequence having a different program guide graphic. Each sequence is encoded and then multiplexed into a transport stream such that all the encoded sequences are transmitted to a subscriber's terminal using a single transport stream. As such, the subscriber can scroll from one program guide to the next without interruption of the background or video display as the program guide graphic is changed. Each graphic contains a set of programs (e.g., channels) listed along a left, vertical axis and each program associated with the channel is identified in a rectangular cell that extends toward the right. The horizontal axis represents time and about 2 hours of programming for ten channels is shown in the graphic.

Method and apparatus for combining video sequences with an interactive program guide

An &ldquo;all-in-one&rdquo; encoder that simultaneously produces an MPEG-2 compliant fast forward, fast reverse and play bitstreams from a sequence of video frames, e.g., 601-format video. The encoder subsamples the video sequence, extracting a plurality of frames from the video sequence and buffering the subsampled frames. Simultaneous with the subsampling and buffering, the source frames are encoded within a real-time encoder, e.g., an MPEG-2 encoder. The buffered frames are recalled from the buffer and coupled to a second real-time encoder. The second encoder forms both the fast forward and fast reverse bitstreams using a time multiplexing technique wherein a group of pictures (GOP) for the fast forward stream can be formed, followed by the compression of the same GOP having the frames organized in reverse order. As such, the compressed GOPs are represented by the fast forward and fast reverse bitstreams. The play, fast forward, and fast reverse bitstreams for each GOP are organized into a file and stored on the mass storage device (e.g., disk drive array) of the file server.

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Redwood City, CA, United States of America

Ted Ludvig