Google Inc.

Tyrone Hidekazu Nakahara

Stella Loh

Jose M Gonzalez

Sean Harvey

Daniel Stephen Padgett

David Andrew Brown

Akshay Lal

Charles Alexander Solarski

The present disclosure provides systems and methods for customized programming through 'virtual zoning', not based on network architecture or geographic region, via a modified electronic programming guide (EPG) provided to devices assigned to virtual zones. Broadcasters may thus provide virtual zone-based “localized” programming to devices regardless of location. The virtual zone-based EPG may be functionally identical to conventional EPGs, and thus fully compatible with existing recipient devices, without requiring custom programming or manufacturer resources. Content may be broadcast to virtual zones via multicast IP streams, with primary content provided to a plurality of virtual zones and custom content provided on a stream-by-stream basis. The resulting system is highly scalable, requiring additional resources only based on the number of virtual zones (which may be numbered in the tens or hundreds, in many implementations) rather than the number of recipient devices (which may be numbered in the millions).

Custom zoning for addressable television advertisements

At least one aspect of the present disclosure is directed to systems and methods of selecting and acknowledging content to broadcast. A system can receive, at a first time, a request for content to broadcast identifying a content publisher. The system can obtain cluster data of the content publisher corresponding to a first time, the cluster data identifying content selection metrics based on predicted characteristics of the cluster corresponding to the first time. The system can determine a subset of content items having cluster filtering criteria that satisfy the content selection metrics. The system can rank the subset of content items based on the content selection metrics to create an ordered list of content items. The system can transmit data identifying the order of the content items to the content publisher. The content publisher can insert the content into a broadcast in the order identified by the system.

Systems and methods to reduce acknowledgment requests in broadcast transmission networks

A system including a digital component request server that receives digital component requests for a supplemental digital component that will be presented in an additional multicast stream that is different to a multicast stream that is delivering content; a digital component distribution server that i) selects supplemental digital components to distribute over the additional multicast streams, the supplemental digital components being selected for one of the additional multicast streams being different to the supplemental digital component selected for each of the other additional multicast streams, and that ii) assigns one group of a plurality of groups of the multiple client devices to a respective one of the additional multicast streams; and an instruction generation server that generates instructions for the multiple client devices to tune to the respective additional multicast streams assigned to the group of multiple client devices that includes the different client device that submitted the request.

Optimized utilization of streaming bandwidth using multicast

A video delivery system alters information (such as time stamp information) associated with one or more frames of a first compressed video file to allow for accurate rendering of frames within the first compressed video file prior to a transition to a second compressed video file. For example, a time stamp of a particular frame of a compressed video file is altered prior to transmission of the particular frame by a video transmission system such that the altered time stamp indicates a time that has already passed. The particular frame can be decoded by a display system that receives the particular frame so that information included in the particular frame can be used in rendering of subsequently received frames. The display system can bypass display of the particular frame due to the altered time stamp.

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San Carlos, CA, United States of America

Tyrone Hidekazu Nakahara