US 2004/0111745 A1 · Systems and methods for contextually linking television program information

Abstract

The present invention provides systems and methods for providing television schedule information to a viewer, and for allowing the viewer to link, search, select and interact with information in a remote database, e.g., a database on the internet. The television schedule information can be displayed on a variety of viewer interfaces, such as televisions screens, computer monitors, PCTV screens and the like. The television schedule information may be stored on the viewer's computer, television, PCTV, or a remote server (e.g., a website), or the television schedule information may be downloaded from a remote database to the viewer's computer, television or PCTV.

Claims20

Dependent claims

An interactive electronic program guide (IPG) including a display screen comprising:

a database local to a viewer for storing television schedule information including information about television programs and a plurality of criteria associated with each television program;
and
a microprocessor local to the viewer configured to automatically generate a set of favorite criteria about television programs that the viewer would likely be interested in, search the database for identifying a television program that includes at least one of the favorite criteria, tag the identified television program stored in the local database that includes the at least one of the favorite criteria, and activate a function of the IPG related to the tagged television program without viewer's intervention.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

10/725,170Filed 1 Dec 2003

Priority

2 Oct 1995

Published

10 Jun 2004

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification37 codes

H04N 21/4435
OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB: memory management
H04N 5/782
Using magnetic recording: on tape
H04N 7/08
Television systems: systems for the simultaneous or sequential transmission of more than one television signal, e.g. additional information…
H04N 7/0884
The inserted signal being digital: for the transmission of additional display-information, e.g. menu for programme or channel selection

Family

Application08/537,650Continuation in part · filed 2 Oct 1995

Application60/015,648Us provisional application · filed 19 Apr 1996

Application60/022,826Us provisional application · filed 26 Jul 1996

Application08/837,298Continuation · filed 11 Apr 1997

Application10/725,170Continuation · filed 1 Dec 2003

Application10/725,170Continuation in part · filed 1 Dec 2003

US 6,732,369 B1Related patent

US 2004/0111745 A1This patent

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

Systems and methods for contextually linking television program information

Life of this patent

Systems and methods for contextually linking television program information

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20