US 10,372,309 B2Granted

Method and system for controlling a scheduling order of multimedia content for a broadcast

AssigneeiHeartMedia Management Services, Inc.

InventorNigel Attwell

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

A scheduling order can be designated for the broadcast and playback of multimedia content (e.g., music, news, other audio, advertising, etc) with respect to slots within the scheduling order. The broadcast day is divided into dayparts having blocks of time and including multiple time slots. One of those time slots, a transition period, is adjacent to another daypart. The transition period may be scheduled using a different algorithm for adjacency scheduling to satisfy both horizontal and vertical adjacency requirements. The remaining slots for the schedule can be scheduled from one or more categories of media items associated with the block being scheduled.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A method executed by a computing device for populating a multimedia schedule for broadcast, the method comprising:

selecting, via a user interface of the computing device, a plurality of multimedia content corresponding to at least one multimedia category;
performing a first portion of an automated scheduling task by scheduling a first daypart and an adjacent second daypart of a plurality of dayparts of a first day with the plurality of multimedia content using a forward scheduling algorithm, wherein the first daypart and the second daypart have respective first and second transition periods adjacent to one another;
performing a second portion of the automated scheduling task by scheduling a third daypart and an adjacent fourth daypart of a second plurality of dayparts of a second day being adjacent the first day with the plurality of multimedia content using the forward scheduling algorithm, wherein the third daypart and the fourth daypart have respective third and fourth transition periods adjacent to one another;
performing a third portion of the automated scheduling task by scheduling the first, second, third and fourth transition periods using a reverse scheduling algorithm, the reverse scheduling algorithm satisfying both horizontal and vertical adjacency requirements, wherein the horizontal adjacency requirements include a requirement that a multimedia content of the plurality of multimedia content is not also scheduled in adjacent transition periods of adjacent dayparts, and the vertical adjacency requirements include a requirement that the multimedia content of the plurality of multimedia content is not also scheduled during an equivalent transition period of the second day;
and
broadcasting the plurality of multimedia content in accordance with the first, second, and third portions of the automated scheduling task.

3 more elements

A method executed by a computing device for modifying a multimedia schedule for broadcast, the method comprising:

selecting the multimedia schedule for the broadcast via a graphic user interface;
determining whether a slot from a plurality of slots of a daypart for a day is a transition period of the daypart;
and
when the slot to be scheduled is the transition period of the daypart, employing a scheduling algorithm selected based on a category associated with the transition period, to:
satisfy horizontal adjacency requirements for the transition period by modifying the multimedia schedule with a multimedia content such that the multimedia content is not also scheduled in an adjacent slot of the day relative to the transition period of the daypart;
and
satisfy vertical adjacency requirements for the transition period by modifying the multimedia schedule with the multimedia content such that the multimedia content is not also scheduled during a same daypart across an adjacent day that is relative to the day;
producing a modified multimedia schedule for the broadcast;
displaying the modified multimedia schedule for the broadcast;
and
broadcasting the multimedia content in accordance with the modified multimedia schedule.

8 more elements

A computing device comprising:

a processor;
memory operably associated with the processor;
a graphic user interface operably associated with the processor and the memory;
and
a program of instructions configured to be stored in the memory and executed by the processor, the program of instructions including:
selecting, via the graphic user interface, a slot to be scheduled from a plurality of slots of a daypart for a day;
determining whether the slot to be scheduled is a transition period of the daypart;
when the slot to be scheduled is the transition period of the daypart, employing a scheduling algorithm selected based on a category associated with the transition period, to:
schedule a multimedia content for the transition period to satisfy horizontal adjacency requirements for the transition period such that the multimedia content is not also scheduled in adjacent slots of the day relative to the transition period of the daypart;
and
schedule the multimedia content for the transition period to also satisfy vertical adjacency requirements for the transition period such that the multimedia content is not also scheduled during a same daypart across an adjacent day relative to the day;
and
broadcast the multimedia content as scheduled.

10 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/837,976Filed 27 Aug 2015 · continuation
Priority: 16 Aug 2010
Published: US 2015/0370457 A124 Dec 2015
Granted: 6 Aug 2019
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

G06F 3/04842
For the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a…:…
G06F 3/0481
Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]: based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a…
H04H 60/06
Arrangements for generating broadcast information; Arrangements for generating broadcast-related information with a direct linking to broadcast…:…
H04H 60/47
Arrangements for identifying or recognising characteristics with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time, e.g. for…:…

Family

Application12/856,952Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 16 Aug 2010
Application12/914,000Parent of this continuation · filed 28 Oct 2010
US 8,418,182 B2Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 9 Apr 2013
Application13/940,877Parent of this continuation · filed 12 Jul 2013
US 8,490,099 B2Parent of this continuation · filed 16 Jul 2013
US 2015/0370457 A1Pre-grant publication · published 24 Dec 2015
US 9,152,296 B2Parent of this continuation
Application12/914,000Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 2012/0042315 A1Published application
US 2012/0042316 A1Published application
US 2013/0305154 A1Published application
US 10,372,309 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

Timeline

Citations

Open elsewhere

Building an agent or pulling many patents? Use the API or MCP server instead of scraping pages. Get an API key