Programming-on-demand cable system and method

A method for broadcasting on a non-real-time basis any one of a plurality of electrical data representing different broadcast programs, comprising the steps of:

• providing a central data station including an electro-optical transducer apparatus for converting electrical data to optical data, a data receiving station including an optico-electrical transducer apparatus for reconverting the optical data back to the electrical data, a fiber optic line comprising a plurality of transmission channels connecting the transducer apparatuses, and a broadcasting device electrically connected to the data receiving station for receiving and broadcasting the electrical data transmitted from the data receiving station,
• providing a plurality of memory devices electrically connected to the central data station, each memory device having a plurality of data cells and being identifiable by a respective address signal,
• preprogramming each memory device data cell with electrical data representing a portion of a broadcast program such that each memory device contains an entire broadcast program, each memory device being responsive to its received address signal to thereby transmit its electrical data to the electro-optical transducer apparatus,
• providing a user-operable generating device at the location of the broadcasting device, the user-operable generating device being electrically connected by a telephone line to the central data station and responsive to input applied by the user for generating any one of the address signals,
• applying an input to the generating device to generate a selected one of the address signals,
• transmitting the generated address signal to the central data station for identification of the memory device identifiable by the generated address signal,
• transmitting the generated address signal to the identified memory device, whereby the memory device simultaneously transmits the electrical data in each of its data cells to the electro-optical transducer apparatus for converting the electrical data to digital pulse code modulated optical data and then transmits the optical data through the plurality of transmission channels of the fiber optic line to the optico-electrical transducer apparatus for reconverting the optical data back to the electrical data, each of said channels carrying a separate portion of said entire broadcast program, and
• thereafter transmitting the electrical data to the broadcasting device for the broadcasting thereof.