Media content playback system and method
AssigneeHarman International Industries, Incorporated
InventorLevi Pearson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus for switching media content playback from a first playback device to a second playback device across a plurality of playback devices may include a controller programmed to detect a change in location of a portable device from a first media zone including a first playback device to a second media zone including a second playback device, determining a playback position of currently played media content provided from a first media source to the first playback device, identify a second media source that is available at the second media zone, and control the second media source to transmit the currently played media content to the second playback device to switch playback from the first playback device to the second playback device at the playback position.
Claims12
An apparatus for switching media content playback across a plurality of playback devices, comprising:
- a first playback device in a first media zone and a second playback device in a second media zone, and a controller programmed to:
- detect a change in location of a portable device from the first media zone including the first playback device to the second media zone including the second playback device, the first playback device and second playback device being distinct from the portable device;
- determining a playback position of currently played media content provided from a first media source to the first playback device;
- identify a second media source that is available at the second media zone based at least in part on a source hierarchy and content availability;
- and
- control the second media source to transmit the currently played media content to the second playback device to switch playback from the first playback device to the second playback device at the playback position in response to detecting the change in location of the portable device from the first media zone to the second media zone.
A non-transitory computer-readable medium tangibly embodying computer-executable instructions of a software program, the software program being executable by a processor of computing device to provide operations comprising:
- controlling a first media source to transmit media content to a first playback device in a first zone,
- detecting a second zone based on a location of a portable device,
- determining a playback position of the media content,
- detecting a second media source that includes the media content based on the second zone, and
- controlling the second media source to transmit a copy of the media content to a second playback device within the second zone to switch playback of the media content from the first playback device to the second playback device, wherein switching playback of the media content is done according to a user defined setting that selects between switching playback of the media content from the first playback device to the second playback device after the media content is finished playing, and switching playback of the media content from the first playback device to the second playback device at the playback position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.