US 7,690,020 B2Granted

Hybrid central/distributed VOD system with tiered content structure

AssigneeTime Warner Cable, a division of Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P.

InventorMetod Lebar

Life of this patent

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Abstract

The present invention provides a hybrid central/distributed and tiered video on demand (VOD) service network with tiered content structure. In particular, the present invention uses media servers located in both the headend station and the hub stations. Set-top boxes generally would be supplied VOD services from the high-demand content media servers located in the hub station nearest to the user. The central media server located in the headend would be used as an installed backup to the hub media servers; as the primary source for lower demand VOD services and as the source of the real time, centrally encoded programs with PVR (personal video recorder) capabilities. By distributing the servers to the hub stations, the size of the fiber transport network associated with delivering VOD services from the central headend media server is reduced. The invention provides that each user has access to several server ports located on at least two servers. Multiple paths and channels are available for content distribution to each user, assuring high system reliability and enhanced asset availability. Substantial cost benefits are derived from the reduced need for a large content distribution network and the reduced storage capacity requirements for hub servers.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A system for selecting a network path for delivering on-demand content comprising:

a multi-channel network, wherein the multi-channel network comprises a content transport network, a supertrunk network, and a distribution network;
a headend comprising a central media server and a resource management processor;
a hub remote from the headend comprising a hub media server and a QAM, wherein the hub and the headend are connected via the content transport network and the supertrunk network;
and
a video termination device, wherein the video termination device is connected to the hub via a distribution network and wherein the video termination device comprises an instruction for sending a request for a particular on-demand content to the resource management processor, and
wherein the resource management processor comprises instructions for:
selecting a source from which to obtain the particular on-demand content from a plurality of content sources comprising the hub media server and the central media server in response to the request sent from the video termination device;
selecting a path over which to deliver the particular on-demand content to the video termination device, and
wherein the instruction for selecting a path comprises:
if the selected source is the hub media server, then selecting the distribution network as the selected path;
if the selected source is the central media server, then selecting the content transport network, if available, and the distribution network as the selected path, wherein the content transport network transports a transport network stream comprising the particular on-demand content to the QAM where it is RF modulated prior to routing to the distribution network;
and
if the selected source is the central media server and if the content transport network is not available, then selecting the supertrunk network and the distribution network as the selected path, wherein the supertrunk network transports a supertrunk stream comprising the particular on-demand content that is previously RF modulated and that is routed to the distribution network without further modulation by the QAM;
and
wherein the selected source delivers the particular on-demand content over the selected path to the video termination device.

12 more elements

A method for selecting a network path for delivering on-demand content in a multi-channel network, wherein the multi-channel network connects a headend, a hub remote from the headend and a video termination device, wherein the multi-channel network comprises a content transport network, a supertrunk network and a distribution network, wherein the headend comprises a central media server and a resource management processor, wherein the hub comprises a hub media server and a QAM, the hub and the headend being connected via the content transport network and the supertrunk network, and wherein the video termination device comprises an instruction for sending a request for a particular on-demand content to the resource management processor and is connected to the hub via the distribution network, the method comprising:

selecting a source from which to obtain the particular on-demand content from a plurality of content sources comprising the hub media server and the central media server in response to the request sent from the video termination device;
selecting a path over which to deliver the particular on-demand content to the video termination device, wherein selecting a path comprises:
if the selected source is the hub media server, then selecting the distribution network as the selected path;
if the selected source is the central media server, then selecting the content transport network if available and the distribution network as the selected path, wherein the content transport network transports a transport network stream comprising the particular on-demand content to the QAM where it is RF modulated prior to routing to the distribution network;
and
if the selected source is the central media server and if the content transport network is not available, then selecting the supertrunk network and the distribution network as the selected path, wherein the supertrunk network transports a supertrunk stream comprising the particular on-demand content that is previously RF modulated and that is routed to the distribution network without further modulation by the QAM;
and
delivering the particular on-demand content over the selected path from the selected content source to the video termination device.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 09/876,677Filed 7 Jun 2001 · us provisional application
Priority: 30 Jun 2000
Published: US 2002/0059619 A116 May 2002
Granted: 30 Mar 2010
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

H04N 7/17318
Transmission or handling of upstream communications: direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
H04N 7/10
Television systems: adaptations for transmission by electrical cable
H04N 21/2225
Secondary servers, e.g. proxy server, cable television Head-end: local VOD servers
H04N 21/23106
Content storage operation, e.g. caching movies for short term storage, replicating data over plural servers, prioritizing data for deletion:…