Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.

Wenjie Liu

Zhiying Jin

Juhong Liu

Haosheng Guo

Martin Busse

Haiyan Zhou

Jimena Velarde

Jack Jianxiu Hao

Fenglin Yin

Shuai Wu

Angel Cordero

Amir Ahmed

Surender Mallesh

Andrew Roberto Turner

A device receives updated television content, and generates a file that provides an indication to copy the updated television content to multiple television distribution sites, where each television distribution site includes multiple television distribution devices. The device identifies one of the multiple television distribution devices, associated with each of the multiple television distribution sites, to receive the file, packages the updated television content with the file, for the identified one of the multiple television distribution devices, and provides the updated television content and the file to the identified one of the multiple television distribution devices.

Publication of television content to television distribution sites

This disclosure details the implementation of methods, systems and computer program products for local DVR scheduling conflict management (hereinafter, 'SCM'). SCM systems allow for automatic organization, prioritization, and conflict resolution for multiple scheduled recording specifications. Conflicting scheduled recordings may be re-organized based on single-stage and/or multi-stage conflict resolution procedures. Embodiments of SCM systems may also implement weighted conflict resolution, wherein user preferences and/or prioritizations may be assigned to scheduled recordings and considered in the re-organization of conflicting recordings. In one embodiment, a method is disclosed, comprising: receiving a new scheduled recording instruction comprising at least a new program identifier and a new time; comparing the new scheduled recording instruction to an existing recording schedule to determine if a recording conflict exists; performing a conflict resolution for an existing conflict to yield a new recording schedule; and storing the new recording schedule in a scheduling database.

Methods, systems and computer program products for local DVR scheduling conflict management

This disclosure details the implementation of apparatuses, methods and systems for improving the relevancy of Interactive Program Guide search results on a wireless user's handset and television (hereinafter, 'IPG'). The IPG implements a search facility whereby users may enter search criteria into a wireless user's handset or television or the like and receive search results sorted to provide the most relevant results first. In one embodiment, the IPG may receive search criteria into a search engine and determine one or more search results in response to the search criteria. The IPG may query one or more databases of attributes, compare the search results to the attributes, and calculate weights for each of the search results according to one or more attributes. The IPG may also sort and return the compared search results so that the results are returned in order of relevance according to the weighting.

Apparatuses, methods and systems for improving the relevancy of interactive program guide search results on a wireless user's handset and television

A system is configured to receive a portion of a word; retrieve a group of words matching the portion of the word; retrieve information associated with a set of words in the group, where the information, for a particular one of the words, indicates a measure of popularity of the particular word, geographic location information associated with the particular word, time information associated with the particular word, or user preference information associated with the particular word; rank the set of words based on the information; present a list of words from the set of words for display based on the ranking; receive selection of a word from the list of words; perform a search for television content based on the selected word to identify a group of television content; receive selection of television content from the group of television content; and present the selected television content for display.

Automated query generation for televison content searching

A method includes receiving viewership data associated with television contents; calculating one or more local boosting factors and a national boosting factor for each of the television contents based on the viewership data; applying boosting factor assignment heuristics to the one or more local and national boosting factors for each of the television contents; selecting one or more boosting factors based the applying of the boosting factor assignment heuristics for each of the television contents; and publishing the one or more boosting factors to one or more television distribution sites for each of the television contents.

Boosting factor for television content

Growing community of inventors

Waltham, MA, United States of America

Wenjie Liu