Method and apparatus for managing bandwidth by managing selected internet access by devices in a Wi-Fi linked audience

A method for providing a shared interactive audience enhanced experience in a venue at an event comprising:

• providing a venue for an event in which a shared user experience is provided to audience members in the venue in which Internet access is available only through an Internet connection at the venue;
• providing a concert network controller and communicating with one or more portable interactive devices of audience members via a local wireless network;
• linking the concert network controller to an Internet connection for gathering content for use in the shared interactive audience experience;
• linking the portable interactive devices to the Internet connection via the concert network controller;
• receiving content from the Internet connection via transmission of Uniform Resource Locator requests from the concert network controller or the one or more portable interactive devices;
• defining a set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators for operation of the interactive audience enhanced experience including access of data in preselected categories by the concert network controller;
• filtering the Uniform Resource Locator requests and permitting the business logic Uniform Resource Locator requests through the filter;
• and
• blocking other Uniform Resource Locator requests not in the set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators.

A non-transitory machine-readable medium that provides instructions, which when executed by a processor, causes said processor to perform operations comprising:

• coupling a concert network controller and one or more portable interactive devices by a local communications link;
• linking the concert network controller to an Internet connection;
• selecting content to be obtained from the Internet connection via the concert network controller for inclusion in the audience enhanced experience;
• collecting requested data from the Internet connection and providing the data to the concert network code controller;
• defining a set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators;
• providing a the Uniform Resource Locator web filter in said concert controller and setting the Uniform Resource Locator web filter to allow a requests for Uniform Resource Locators in the set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators;
• including in said set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators additional Uniform Resource Locators for maintaining operation of one or more operating systems of the one or more portable interactive devices;
• and
• blocking requests for other Uniform Resource Locators not in the set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators.

A system in which a concert network controller interacts with portable interactive devices in a venue to provide a shared user experience comprising:

• a concert network controller;
• a local communications link linking one or more portable interactive devices and the concert network controller;
• a link for interfacing the concert network controller to an Internet connection for transmitting Uniform Resource Locator requests and for receiving content from the Internet connection for inclusion in the audience enhanced experience;
• and
• a Uniform Resource Locator web filter capable of:
• defining a set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators;
• allowing the Uniform Resource Locator requests in the set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators;
• including in said set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators additional Uniform Resource Locators for maintaining operation of one or more operating systems of the one or more portable interactive devices;
• and
• blocking other Uniform Resource Locator requests not in the set of business logic Uniform Resource Locators.