Thomson Licensing

Thomson Licensing S.a.

Terry Wayne Lockridge

Mike Arthur Derrenberger

Thomas Edward Horlander

Daniel Thomas Wetzel

Robert Eugene Trzybinski

John Alan Gervais

Thomas Herbert Jones

Keith Reynolds Wehmeyer

John William Richardson

Kevin Elliott Bridgewater

Franck Abelard

Gregory George Tamer

Kevin Lloyd Grimes

Michael Francis Barry

Kevin Elliot Bridgewater

Todd Goosman

Douglas Harry Morgan Hutchins

Phillippe Leyendecker

A method is disclosed for transferring a received media object to remote devices in accordance to attributes in a user profile. The profile information additionally determinates the versions of the media object that are available to such remote devices and whether the media object may be stored in such remote devices.

Customer associated profile for accessing audio and video media objects

The disclosed embodiments relate to a system for providing remote tuning and clock synchronization in a network. The system includes a device that receives a signal that includes a plurality of channels, a device that receives a user request indicative of a desire to view at least one of the plurality of channels, and a filter that filters the received signal and transmits a user signal corresponding to the at least one of the plurality of channels to the user. An alternative embodiment of the system includes a device that receives a signal that includes a plurality of packets, at least a portion of the plurality of packets comprising an embedded time stamp, a device that detects the at least a portion of the plurality of packets containing the embedded time stamp, and a device that computes an adjusted time stamp based on the embedded timestamp and a precision local clock and incorporates the adjusted timestamp into the at least a portion of the plurality of packets containing the embedded timestamp prior to transmitting the at least a portion of the plurality of packets to the network.

Method and system for remote tuning and clock synchronization

A method, device, and computer readable medium for adaptively configuring a router in a communication system having a plurality of network devices. Data packets passing through the router are examined in order to determine network parameters associated with the plurality of network devices. A plurality of network interfaces in the router are then adapted to the network parameters so that the router is operatively coupled to the plurality of network devices.

Method and apparatus for adaptively configuring a router

A method and system for providing personal video recording functions to a client viewing a broadcast program in a multi-client network. To provide the PVR functions, predetermined storage limits are allocated for each client in a storage device on the network. Each client is permitted to execute the PVR functions if the client's stored broadcast programming has not reached the client's predetermined storage limit. Otherwise, the client is only permitted to view the broadcast program in real time or the stored broadcast program. A client may clear space in the client's allocated portion of the storage device by fast-forwarding through stored broadcast programming.

Method and system for memory PVR functions in a broadcast environment

The disclosed embodiments relate to a system and method for providing data in a multiple dwelling facility. The system may comprise a headend unit that receives a data stream that comprises a plurality of programs, and a multiple dwelling unit network that is adapted to receive at least a portion of the data stream from the headend unit and provide at least a subset of the plurality of programs to individual users in the multiple dwelling facility. The method may comprise the acts of receiving a data stream that comprises a plurality of programs, distributing at least a portion of the data stream to a multiple dwelling unit network, and providing access to a specific one of the plurality of programs to each of a plurality of individual users within the multiple dwelling facility via the multiple dwelling unit network depending on whether each of the plurality of individual users has met at least one predetermined condition.

Method and system for premium channel and pay per view video resell

A system for multiplexing a transport packet and an Ethernet packet comprises a transport interface for receiving a transport stream comprising the transport packet and a network interface for receiving a network stream comprising the Ethernet packet. The system comprises a packet identifier coupled to the transport interface for filtering the transport stream and selecting the transport packet and a date formatter coupled to the network interface for creating a transport header appended to the Ethernet packet. The system further comprises a multiplexer for receiving the transport packet from the packet identifier, for receiving the Ethernet packet from the data formatter, and for multiplexing the transport packet and the Ethernet packet comprising the transport header.

Transport network multiplexing for transport and ethernet packets

A method, device, and computer readable medium for adaptively configuring a router monitors data packets propagating in a network to detect a statically configured network device. A network interface within the router is adapted to network parameters associated with the statically configured network device to operatively couple the statically configured network device to the router.

An adaptive transport protocol decoder includes a source of a stream of packets, each including a payload, and having a first transport protocol, and a source of a stream of packets, each including a payload, and having a second transport protocol. A protocol decoder, coupled to the first and second packet stream sources, extracts the respective payloads from the packets from a selected one of the first and second packet stream sources.

Adaptive transport protocol

A system and method for distributing satellite television program signals utilizes IP and Ethernet multicast addresses to define and allow the acquisition and/or distribution of a particular satellite television program signal. The satellite program identification data or parameters for the particular satellite program signal are encoded by an IP multicast address assigned to the particular satellite television program signal from a block of IP multicast addresses, preferably by a mini head end. The assigned IP multicast address is mapped to an Ethernet IP address for distribution to an Ethernet compatible component such as a satellite signal receiver or set top box. In this manner, any and all satellite program signals may be provided to one or more satellite signal receivers through IP multicasting.

System and method for utilizing multicast IP and ethernet to locate and distribute a satellite signal

A server apparatus receives packetized data and transmits the packetized data over a network. The apparatus includes an input for receiving the packetized data from a signal source. An AC clock counter receives an AC power signal and generates a count value in dependence upon a frequency of the AC power signal. An output is coupled to the network and transmits the packetized data and the count value to a client device. A clock associated with the client device is controlled in dependence upon the count value.

Jitter prevention in a digital communication network

A method and an apparatus using a system level clocking scheme to remove jitter from multi-media packets distributed over an asynchronous network, in particular an asynchronous network. The present invention overcomes the problems associated with jitter introduced in an asynchronous network by using various time stamps to synchronize a client device clock to a headend clock and to control the data flow in the client device to match the rate that the data is received by a broadband receiver coupled to the headend. A first time stamp is prepended to the transport packets when the packets are received from the headend. A second time stamp is placed in the data frame when the data frame is placed on the network. A third time stamp is placed in the data frame when the data frame is received from the network. The second and third time stamps are used for synchronizing the client clock to the server clock, which is in turn frequency locked to the headend clock. The first time stamp is used for data flow control wherein the client controls the data flow to correspond to the rate the data is received at the server.

Multi-media jitter removal in an asynchronous digital home network

A method and an apparatus using a system level clocking scheme to remove jitter from multi-media packets distributed over an asynchronous network. The present invention overcomes the problems associated with jitter introduced in an asynchronous network by using various time stamps to synchronize a client device clock to a headend clock and to control the data flow in the client device to match the rate that the data is received by a broadband receiver coupled to the headend. The present invention allows the client device to synchronize to a selected one of a plurality of headend clock by including a clock adjustment factor along with the time stamps. The time stamps are added at the physical layer so that the time stamps correspond to the time the data packets are placed onto and received from the asynchronous network.

The invention concerns a method () and system () for performing a trick mode on a video signal containing a plurality of original pictures. The invention includes the steps of, in response to a trick mode command, selectively repeating () at least one of the original pictures to convert the video signal to a trick mode video signal having the original pictures and at least one repeated original picture and selectively displaying () at least a portion of the original picture and at least a portion of the repeated original pictures in accordance with a predetermined sequence to avoid a vibration artifact. Each original picture and each repeated original picture can contain at least two fields.

Slow video display trick mode

A method and apparatus for ensuring a correct satellite signal connection. Specifically, a user selects a satellite signal via an integrated receiver/decoder (IRD) from at least one satellite, and the IRD sends a command signal to a selector switch to acquire and lock onto said satellite signal. The IRD repeats transmission of the command signal to the selector switch once the IRD has acquired and locked onto said information signal. Thus, in the event that the selector switch failed to switch to a low noise block converter (LNB) corresponding to the initial command signal, then the repeated command signal helps to ensure that the selector switch switches to the LNB corresponding with the latest command signal sent by the IRD.

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Indianapolis, IN, United States of America

Terry Wayne Lockridge