US008464299B1
`
`(12) United States Patent
`US 8,464,299 B1
`(10) Patent No.:
`Meier et al.
`(45) Date of Patent:
`Jun. 11, 2013
`
`(54)
`
`(75)
`
`(73)
`
`RESOURCE CONSERVATION FOR PACKET
`TELEVISION SERVICES
`
`Inventors:
`
`Rolf G. Meier, Carp (CA); Tim J.
`Rahrer, Ottawa (CA)
`
`Assignee: Rockstar Consortium US LP, Plano,
`TX (US)
`
`(*)
`
`Notice:
`
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 2212 days.
`
`(21)
`
`Appl. No.: 11/280,615
`
`(22)
`
`Filed:
`
`Nov. 16, 2005
`
`(60)
`
`(51)
`
`(52)
`
`(58)
`
`Related US. Application Data
`
`Provisional application No. 60/628,577, filed on Nov.
`17, 2004, provisional application No. 60/628,625,
`filed on Nov. 17, 2004.
`
`Int. Cl.
`
`(2006.01)
`
`G06F 15/16
`US. Cl.
`USPC ............................................... 725/95; 725/96
`Field of Classification Search
`USPC .............................. 725/58, 124, 125, 867104
`See application file for complete search history.
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`2002/0174437 A1 * 11/2002 Mano et al.
`..................... 725/95
`2003/0097659 A1 *
`5/2003 Goldman ................. 725/89
`
`2003/0206719 A1 *
`ll/2003 Bumgardner et al.
`..... 386/83
`3/2006 Steading ......................... 725/95
`2006/0064729 A1 *
`
`* cited by examiner
`
`Primary Examiner 7 Sam Bhattacharya
`(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm7Withrow & Terranova,
`PLLC
`
`(57)
`
`ABSTRACT
`
`The present invention controls delivery of television content
`to conserve network resources based on whether the televi-
`
`sion content is being viewed on a television monitor. A tele-
`vision gateway may monitor a viewer’ s interactions with the
`television gateway to determine whether the television con-
`tent is being viewed at the associated television monitor, or
`detect whether the television monitor is on or off. Upon
`determining that the viewer is not viewing the television
`content, various actions can be taken to conserve network
`resources.
`
`22 Claims, 5 Drawing Sheets
`
`
`CONTENT
`CORE
`
`SERVER
`
`TRANSPORT
`
`12
`
`NETWORK
`
`
`ACCESS
`
`‘~ _\
`NETWORK
`
`
`
` CONTENT /SERVER
`(a)O
`
`12
`
`
`TELEVISION
`GATEWAY
`
`16
`
`
`
`—‘ — — — TV CONTENT
`(FROM CONTENT SERVERS)
`............ CONTROL MESSAGES
`
`TV CONTENT
`(TO TV MONITOR)
`—-—-— USER INPUT
`
`
`
`SONY - Ex.-1008
`
`1
`
`Sony Corporation - Petitioner
`
`SONY - Ex.-1008
`Sony Corporation - Petitioner
`
`1
`
`

`

`US. Patent
`
`Jun. 11,2013
`
`Sheet 1 of5
`
`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`
`
`
`CONTENT
`
`CORE
`SERVER
`TRANSPORT
`
`
`
`12
`NETWORK
`
`
`
`
`
` ACCESS
`NETWORK
`
`
`2_o
`CONTENT x”, "
`
`SERVER
`
`12
`
` TELEVISION
`
`
`GATEWAY
`16
`
`
`
`_ — — — TV CONTENT
`
`(FROM CONTENT SERVERS)
`............ CONTROL MESSAGES
`
`——- TV CONTENT
`
`(TO TV MONITOR)
`
`—-—-- USER INPUT
`
`FIG. 1
`
`
`
`2
`
`

`

`US. Patent
`
`Jun. 11,2013
`
`Sheet 2 of5
`
`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`RECEIVE TELEVISION CONTENT
`FROM CONTENT SERVER
`
`DELIVER TELEVISION CONTENT
`TO TELEVISION MONITOR
`
`100
`
`102
`
`104
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`DETERMINE WHETHER TO ACTIVATE
`RESOURCE SAVING PROCESS
`BASED ON DEFAULT OR USER
`PREFERENCES (TIME, DATE, TIMER,
`CONTENT, SERVICE TYPE,
`TELEVISION STATE, ETC.)
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`CONTINUE
`
`ACTIVATE
`DELIVERY OF
`RESOURCE SAVING
`
`
`
`TELEVISION
`
`
`PROCESS
`CONTENT
`
`
`
`
`YES
`
`110
`
`
`
`MONITOR VIEWING INDICIA, SUCH AS
`USER ACTIVITY OR TELEVISION STATE
`
`INDICATIVE OF THE TELEVISION MONITOR
`BEING WATCHED IN LIGHT OF RESOURCE
`SAVING CRITERIA
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`112
`
`IS
`TELEVISION
`
`
`MONITOR BEING
`
`WATCHED
`
`
`NO
`
`FIG. 2A
`
`3
`
`

`

`US. Patent
`
`Jun. 11,2013
`
`Sheet 3 of5
`
`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`114
`
`DETERMINE RESOURCE SAVING
`ACTION TO TAKE BASED ON
`DEFAULT OR USER PREFERENCES
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`INITIATE RESOURCE
`SAVING ACTION
`
`136
`
`118
`
`
`
`HALT DELIVERY
`REDUCE
`PROVIDE
`
`
`OF TELEVISION
`TELEVISION
`LOCAL
`
`
`
`CONTENT FOR
`CONTENT
`CONTENT
`
`
`
`
` QUALITY
`DISPLAY
`
`
`
`
`INSTRUCT
`INSTRUCT
`
`
`
`INSTRUCT
`CONTENT
`CONTENT
`CONTENT
`
`
`
`SERVER TO
`SERVER TO
`SERVER TO
`
`
`
`
`STOP DELIVERY
`PROVIDE
`STOP
`
`
`
`
`LOWER QUALITY
`DELIVERY OF
`OF TELEVISION
`
`
`
`
`CONTENT
`TELEVISION
`TELEVISION
`
`
`
`
`
`CONTENT
`CONTENT
`
`
`
`138
`
`120
`
`122
`
`124
`
`140
`
`142
`
`PROVIDE ALERT
`FOR DISPLAY
`
`PROVIDE ALERT
`FOR DISPLAY
`
`PROVIDE ALERT
`FOR DISPLAY
`
`
`
`
`
`
`INITIATE DELIVERY
`CONTINUE DELIVERY
`
`
`PROVIDE BLANK
`
`OF LOCAL CONTENT
`OF (LOWER QUALITY)
`SCREEN SIGNAL
`
`
`
`TO TELEVISION
`TELEVISION CONTENT
`TO TELEVISION
`
`
`
`
`MONITOR
`TO TELEVISION
`MONITOR
`
`
`
`
`MONITOR
`(RECORDED
`
`
`
`
`CONTENT, SCREEN
`
`SAVER, ETC.)
`
`
`WAIT FOR ADDITIONAL
`USER INPUT
`
`FIG. 28
`
`4
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 11, 2013
`
`Sheet 4 of 5
`
`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`200
`
`MONITOR VIEWING INDICIA
`OVER TIME
`
`GENERATE RESOURCE SAVING
`CRITERIA BASED ON MONITORING
`
`202
`
`204
`
`
`
`
`
`
`APPLY RESOURCE SAVING
`CRITERIA TO RESOURCE
`SAVING PROCESS
`
`FIG. 3
`
`5
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 11, 2013
`
`Sheet 5 of 5
`
`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`3
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`

`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`1
`RESOURCE CONSERVATION FOR PACKET
`TELEVISION SERVICES
`
`This application claims the benefit of US. provisional
`patent application Ser. No. 60/628,577 filed Nov. 17, 2004
`and US. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/628,625
`filed Nov. 17, 2004, the disclosures of which are hereby
`incorporated by reference in their entireties.
`
`FIELD OF THE INVENTION
`
`The present invention relates to delivery of television con-
`tent, and in particular to controlling delivery of television
`content to conserve network resources based on whether the
`
`television content is being viewed.
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`The increasing bandwidth and reliability of packet net-
`works has reached levels where streaming high quality tele-
`vision content is now possible. For packet-based television
`services, content providers will likely not send streaming
`television content for all available channels to all subscribers
`
`at the same time. Instead, only the television content for the
`selected channel will be streamed to the subscriber. As such,
`the amount of network resources required to service a given
`number of subscribers is greatly reduced from a scenario
`where subscribers are simultaneously receiving television
`content for many channels.
`Even though network capacity is increasing, the number of
`potential subscribers is very large and the television content is
`growing more data intensive. Subscribers demand high qual-
`ity television content, which corresponds to lower compres-
`sion rates and greater bandwidth requirements. Further, the
`bandwidth required to support high-definition television con-
`tent is many times that necessary for standard definition tele-
`vision content. Accordingly, there remains a need to conserve
`the network resources required to provide packet-based tele-
`vision services.
`
`A significant waste ofnetwork resources occurs when tele-
`vision content is delivered to a television monitor that is not
`
`being viewed. Many subscribers leave their televisions on for
`long periods of time when no one is home or watching the
`television. It is also commonplace for subscribers to leave
`their set top boxes on, even when the television monitor is off.
`In either case, the television content is being delivered over
`the packet network to the set top box, thus wasting network
`resources. When thousands of subscribers are wasting net-
`work resources, such waste becomes significant and the
`packet network must be over built to accommodate the waste.
`In addition, video content will typically have very high pri-
`ority in the network so video streams that are not being
`actively recorded or viewed will preclude or diminish the
`performance of other services vying for the network band-
`width. As such, there is a need for a technique to control
`delivery of the television content
`to conserve network
`resources when the television content is not being viewed.
`
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`
`The present invention controls delivery of television con-
`tent to conserve network resources based on whether the
`
`television content is being viewed on a television monitor,
`where the term television monitor includes but is not limited
`
`to a television, a video processor with separate display panel,
`a video projector, or a portable or handheld device that is able
`to display a video stream. A television gateway may monitor
`
`10
`
`15
`
`20
`
`25
`
`30
`
`35
`
`40
`
`45
`
`50
`
`55
`
`60
`
`65
`
`2
`
`a viewer’s interactions with the television gateway to deter-
`mine whether the television content is being viewed at the
`associated television monitor or detect whether the television
`
`monitor is on or off. Upon determining that the viewer is not
`viewing the television content, various actions can be taken to
`conserve network resources. Conservation actions may be
`avoided if the content is being recorded. These actions may
`include providing instructions to the content provider to halt
`delivery of all or a portion ofthe television content or provide
`the television content at a reduced quality level to reduce the
`bandwidth needed for transporting the television content. If
`delivery of the television content is halted, the television
`gateway may provide a blank screen or locally stored televi-
`sion content to the television monitor for display. When a
`conservation action is taken, an alert may be provided for
`display on the television monitor before, during, or after
`initiating the action to alert the viewer of the action.
`Those skilled in the art will appreciate the scope of the
`present invention and realize additional aspects thereof after
`reading the following detailed description of the preferred
`embodiments in association with the accompanying drawing
`figures.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
`FIGURES
`
`The accompanying drawing figures incorporated in and
`forming a part ofthis specification illustrate several aspects of
`the invention, and together with the description serve to
`explain the principles of the invention.
`FIG. 1 is a block representation of a packet-based televi-
`sion environment according to one embodiment ofthe present
`invention.
`
`FIGS. 2A and 2B provide a flow diagram illustrating opera-
`tion of a television gateway according to one embodiment of
`the present invention.
`FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a learning technique
`according to one embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 4 is a block representation of a television gateway
`according to one embodiment of the present invention.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED
`EMBODIMENTS
`
`The embodiments set forth below represent the necessary
`information to enable those skilled in the art to practice the
`invention and illustrate the best mode of practicing the inven-
`tion. Upon reading the following description in light of the
`accompanying drawing figures, those skilled in the art will
`understand the concepts of the invention and will recognize
`applications of these concepts not particularly addressed
`herein. It should be understood that these concepts and appli-
`cations fall within the scope of the disclosure and the accom-
`panying claims.
`The present invention controls delivery of television con-
`tent to conserve network resources based on whether the
`
`television content is being viewed on a television monitor. In
`one embodiment, a television gateway, such as a set top box or
`residential gateway, monitors a viewer’ s interactions with the
`television gateway to determine whether the television con-
`tent is being viewed at the associated television monitor. Ifthe
`viewer is not viewing the television content, various actions
`can be taken to conserve network resources. These actions
`
`may include providing instructions to a content provider to
`halt delivery ofthe television content or provide the television
`content at a reduced quality level to reduce the bandwidth
`needed for transporting the television content. If delivery of
`
`7
`
`

`

`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`3
`the television content is halted, the television gateway may
`provide a blank screen or locally stored television content to
`the television monitor for display. In another embodiment, the
`television gateway monitors the power or current consump-
`tion of the television monitor to determine whether the tele-
`
`vision content is being viewed.
`With reference to FIG. 1, a packet-based television envi-
`ronment 10 is illustrated wherein content servers 12 are able
`
`to stream packet-based television content to a television
`monitor 14 via a television gateway 16, which may represent
`a set top box or like device. The content servers 12 may reside
`on a core transport network 18, wherein an access network 20
`is used to facilitate a connection between the television gate-
`way 16 and the core transport network 18. The streamed
`television content may be delivered using any number of
`appropriate packet-based communication protocols, includ-
`ing the Internet Protocol (IP).
`In operation, the television gateway 16 and the content
`servers 12 are able to exchange control messages to effec-
`tively control the delivery of the television content from the
`content servers 12 to the television gateway 16, which will
`process the received television content as necessary and then
`deliver the television content to the television monitor 14 in
`
`an appropriate format for display. The television gateway 16
`and content servers 12 can cooperate to allow the television
`gateway 16 to receive software and firmware updates,
`exchange billing information for various services, report
`viewer activity, and the like. Middleware may be provided on
`the content servers 12, a standalone network element, or a
`combination thereof to assist in providing an electronic pro-
`gramming guide and user profiles. The middleware may also
`be able to monitor user actions and viewing behaviors.
`Viewers will have various mechanisms with which to con-
`
`trol the television monitor 14 and the television gateway 16.
`For example, a television monitor remote control 22 may be
`provided for controlling only the television monitor 14. Alter-
`natively, a multi-function remote control 24 may be used to
`control aspects of the television gateway 16 as well as the
`television monitor 14. Other input devices may include a
`mouse 26, keyboard 28, orjoystick 30. In one embodiment of
`the present invention, these input devices are used to detect
`viewer activity, which is indicative of the viewer actually
`viewing the television content that is being received by the
`television gateway 16 and delivered to the television monitor
`14 for viewing. The television gateway 16 can make a deter-
`mination as to whether the television content is being viewed.
`If a determination is made that the television content is not
`
`being viewed, the television gateway 16 can take appropriate
`action to conserve network resources. These actions may
`include but are not limited to instructing the content server 12
`to stop delivering the television content, instructing the con-
`tent server 12 to reduce the quality ofthe television content in
`an effort to reduce the data rate or bandwidth associated with
`
`10
`
`15
`
`20
`
`25
`
`30
`
`35
`
`40
`
`45
`
`50
`
`delivering the television content, or the like. Other examples
`will be described further below.
`
`55
`
`Turning now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, a flow diagram illus-
`trates operation of the television gateway 16 according to one
`embodiment of the present invention. Assume that the televi-
`sion gateway 16 has reacted to viewer input and instructed a
`content server 12 to deliver selected television content for
`
`viewing. Accordingly, the television gateway 16 will receive
`the television content from the appropriate content server 12
`(step 100) and deliver the television content to the television
`monitor 14 for display (step 102).
`Upon receiving the television content, or at some point
`while the television content is being delivered, the television
`gateway 16 will determine whether to activate a resource
`
`60
`
`65
`
`4
`
`saving process, which is a process used to determine if and
`when a resource saving action should be taken (step 104).
`Virtually any criteria may be used to determine if and when to
`activate the resource saving process. In this embodiment, the
`resource saving process is initiated based on either default or
`user preferences, which are stored by the television gateway
`16 or made accessible to the television gateway 16. The
`default or user preferences help to define the criteria used to
`activate the resource saving process and may be based on the
`current time, date, timer expiration, the television content, the
`type of television content (service type), whether the televi-
`sion monitor is on or off, and the like. The criteria may also be
`based on bandwidth or other resources required by other
`applications or services. Information bearing on the require-
`ments of other applications or services may come from vari-
`ous network entities, as well as the television gateway 16.
`For example, the preferences for activating the resource
`saving process may dictate that activation occur after two
`hours of viewing a given channel, during daytime hours, and
`only if television content is not pay-per-view content. Nota-
`bly, activation of the resource saving process does not trigger
`a resource saving action, but simply activates a process to
`determine whether a resource saving action should be taken.
`If the resource saving process should not be activated (step
`106), delivery of the television content will continue (step
`108), wherein another determination whether to activate the
`resource saving process may take place at a future time or on
`a periodic or systematic basis (step 104).
`If the resource saving process should be activated (step
`106), the television gateway 16 will begin monitoring view-
`ing indicia, which may be virtually any type of information
`indicative of the television monitor 14 being watched, in light
`of resource saving criteria (step 110). The viewing indicia
`may relate to user activity involving the television gateway 16
`and indicative of a viewer being present to view the television
`content provided to the television monitor 14. User activity
`could involve the viewer changing channels, changing vol-
`ume, pausing, rewinding, fast forwarding, or otherwise pro-
`viding input to control the television gateway 16. Viewing
`indicia relating to the television state may relate to whether
`the television monitor 14 is on or off. Ifthe television monitor
`
`14 is off, the television gateway 16 can readily determine that
`the television monitor 14 is not being viewed. As will be
`described further below, the television gateway 16 may be
`able to monitor power or current consumption of the televi-
`sion monitor 14 to determine whether the television monitor
`
`14 is on or off. The resource saving criteria are essentially the
`rules or guidelines to which the viewing indicia is applied to
`allow the television gateway 16 to determine whether the
`television monitor 14 is being watched.
`If the television gateway 16 determines that the television
`monitor 14 is being watched (step 112), the television gate-
`way 16 will continue monitoring the viewing indicia accord-
`ing to the resource saving process (step 110). If the television
`monitor 14 is not being watched (step 112), the television
`gateway 16 may determine a resource saving action to take
`based on the default or user preferences, if multiple resource
`saving actions are available (step 114). The television gate-
`way 16 will then initiate a resource saving action (step 116).
`In the illustrated example, the television gateway 16 can
`initiate one of three resource saving actions: halting delivery
`ofthe television content, reducing the quality ofthe television
`content, and providing local content, which is locally stored
`on the television gateway 16 or associated device, for display
`instead of the television content from the content server 12.
`
`If the resource saving action to halt delivery of the content
`is selected (step 118), the television gateway 16 will instruct
`
`8
`
`

`

`US 8,464,299 B1
`
`5
`the content server 12 to stop delivery of the television content
`(step 120), provide an alert for the viewer to display on the
`television monitor 14 (step 122), and provide a blank screen
`signal to the television monitor 14 (step 124). At this point,
`the television gateway 16 may wait for additional user input
`before taking additional action (step 126).
`Ifthe resource saving action was to reduce the quality ofthe
`television content to effectively reduce the data rate associ-
`ated with delivering the television content and thus the
`required bandwidth associated with delivering the television
`content (step 128), the television gateway 16 will instruct the
`content server 12 to provide a lower quality version of the
`television content (step 130). As such, the content server 12
`may employ more intense compression algorithms and/or
`reduce the content resolution to minimize the data rates nec-
`
`essary to deliver the television content to the television gate-
`way 16. During this process, the television gateway 16 may
`provide an alert to the viewer for display on the television
`monitor 14 (step 132). The alert may indicate that a lower
`quality television signal is being provided, as well as provide
`the viewer with an option to go back to viewing the higher
`quality television signal. The television gateway 16 will then
`continue to deliver the television content to the television
`
`monitor 14 (step 134) and wait for additional user input prior
`to taking further action (step 126).
`If the resource saving action is to provide local content for
`display on the television monitor 14 (step 136), the television
`gateway 16 may instruct the content server 12 to stop delivery
`of the television content (step 138), provide an alert to the
`viewer for display on the television monitor 14 indicating that
`local content is being displayed (step 140), and then initiate
`delivery of the local content to the television monitor (step
`142). The local content may be recorded at the television
`gateway 16 or may be provided by another media device. The
`actual content may be a stored television program, slideshow,
`or desired screen saver. Again, the television gateway 16 may
`wait for additional user input before taking additional action
`(step 126).
`As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the television
`gateway 16 may erroneously determine that a viewer is not
`watching the television content being provided to the televi-
`sion monitor 14, even if the television monitor 14 is being
`viewed by the viewer. As such, customer satisfaction
`demands that the resource saving criteria be configured to
`react to the viewing indicia in an accurate manner. This is
`important in order to ensure that the television gateway 16
`does not errantly initiate a resource saving action when the
`television monitor 14 is being viewed. As a corollary, there is
`a desire to minimize wasted network resources, and therefore,
`have the television gateway 16 determine when the television
`monitor 14 is not being viewed as quickly as possible. To
`maximize the efficiency of the resource saving process, the
`resource saving criteria may have many variables, including
`various viewing indicia.
`Further, a learning process may be employed wherein the
`television gateway 16 will analyze the viewer’s habits over
`time in light of various viewing indicia to create customized
`resource saving criteria, which are based on the habits of the
`viewer or viewers associated with a given television gateway
`1 6. For example, if a user never views content late at night, the
`stream is still active late at night, and the recording device is
`not active, then it is likely that no one is viewing the television
`content. As such, the television gateway 16 may employ the
`resource saving action. These statistics can be pulled from the
`middleware that tracks user requests for content and viewing
`patterns. An exemplary learning process is provided in the
`flow diagram of FIG. 3. Initially, the television gateway 16
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`will monitor viewing indicia over time (step 200) and gener-
`ate customized resource saving criteria based on the monitor-
`ing of the viewing indicia (step 202). The television gateway
`16 will then apply the resource saving criteria to control the
`resource saving process described above (step 204).
`Those skilled in the art will recognize that there are numer-
`ous ways to modify the present invention as well as additional
`or optional actions that may be taken in association with
`implementing the present invention. For example, the televi-
`sion gateway 16 may be configured to turn offthe power to the
`television monitor 14 when the television content is not being
`viewed. Further, since most of the bandwidth associated with
`the television content is allocated to the video content, the
`television gateway 16 could instruct the content server 12 to
`continue delivery of the audio content and halt the video
`content. As indicated, different types of programming, such
`as video-on-demand or pay-per-view content, which may
`involve less user interaction or require a fee for viewing, may
`warrant not using the resource saving process or changing the
`resource saving process to be less invasive or restrictive.
`Many of the actions may be provided in sequence. For
`example, once it is determined that the television content is
`not being viewed, the first action may operate to reduce the
`quality of the television content. If user input is not received
`within a certain amount oftime after a reduction in the quality
`of the television content, a second action could be taken to
`halt the delivery ofthe television content and provide a screen
`saver or locally recorded content to the television monitor 14.
`As an alternative to the above-illustrated embodiment, an
`alert could be provided prior to initiating the resource saving
`action and give the viewer time to cancel the resource saving
`action before the action is initiated. If the television gateway
`16 can operate as a digital video recorder (DVR), the resource
`saving process may be deactivated when television content is
`being recorded. The resource saving process may also be tied
`to the relative length of the programming, wherein for a
`two-hour program, the resource saving process will not be
`initiated for at least two hours. Programming length can be
`obtained from the middleware or electronic programming
`guide. Alternatively, the resource saving process may be ini-
`tiated at the end of a program or at the beginning of another
`program, as well as at different times throughout the program,
`depending on the desires of the user and the presets provided
`by the content providers.
`With reference to FIG. 4, a block representation of a tele-
`vision gateway 16 is provided. The television gateway 16 will
`include a network interface 32 adapted to connect directly or
`indirectly to the access network 20 and an audio/video inter-
`face 34 adapted to provide content to the television monitor
`14. The content will definitely include the television content,
`and may include audio content as well. The audio content may
`also be provided to an optional stereo receiver or like audio
`processor. The audio/video interface 34 may provide analog
`or digital audio and video signals, or a combination thereof,
`depending on the desired connectors and formats. The tele-
`vision content received via the network interface 32 will be
`
`processed in traditional fashion by a signal processor 36 and
`forwarded through the audio/video interface 34 for delivery
`to the television monitor 14. In addition to processing the
`television content, the signal processor 36 may be involved in
`providing signaling to the content servers 12 via the network
`interface 32, as well as to the television monitor 14 via the
`audio/video interface 34.
`
`The functionality afforded by the television gateway 16 is
`predominantly controlled by a control system 38, which
`cooperates with the signal processor 36 to provide the func-
`tionality described above. In particular, the control system 38
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`US 8,464,299 B1
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`7
`will have the requisite memory and data to implement a
`resource saving function 40, which effectively implements
`the resource saving process. The control system 38 is also
`associated with a user interface 42, which is configured to
`receive user input directly through an associated keypad or
`any of the other input devices illustrated in FIG. 1. The user
`interface 42 may also provide a display directly on the tele-
`vision gateway 16. Accordingly, the viewing indicia relating
`to viewer activity is received via the user interface 42 and
`processed by the control system 38 in light of the resource
`saving criteria.
`When the viewing indicia relates to the power or current
`consumption ofthe television monitor 14, the television gate-
`way 16 may include additional circuitry to monitor the power
`or current supplied to the television monitor 14. In particular,
`the television gateway 16 will generally have a power supply
`44, which supplies power to the various electronics in the
`television gateway 16 from an AC power source. The AC
`power source may also provideAC power to a power outlet 46
`into which the power cord for the television monitor 14 can be
`plugged. Thus, the television monitor 14 will derive its power
`from the television gateway 16. If a power or current sense
`circuit 48 is used to monitor the power or current provided to
`the television monitor 14, power or current provided to the
`television monitor 14 can be determined at any given time,
`and provided to the control system 38 as viewing indicia.
`Accordingly, when the television monitor 14 is on, a higher
`power and current are provided to the television monitor 14.
`When the television monitor 14 is off, a lower power or
`current level is provided to the television monitor 14. As such,
`the control system 38 will have a clear indication as to
`whether the television monitor 14 is on or off.
`
`Notably, different television monitors 14 will require dif-
`ferent power or current levels for operation. As such, the
`control system 38 may cooperate with the power or current
`sense circuitry 48 to monitor the power or current provided to
`the television monitor 14 over a given period of time, and
`effectively learn the respective levels for the on and off states.
`Once the learning is complete, the control system 38 will be
`ready to process the viewing indicia received from the power
`or current sense circuitry 48 in an effective manner. If a
`learning process is not desirable, default power or current
`levels may be defined for on or off states.
`The television gateway 16 may also include an infrared or
`radio frequency (RF) interface 50 capable of transmitting
`wireless signals to recording devices and the television moni-
`tor 14. For the present invention, the television gateway 16
`may turn the television monitor 14 off by transmitting an
`appropriate signal via the infrared or RF interface 50 when
`content delivery is stopped as part of a resource saving action.
`The power sensing function can be used to confirm that the
`television monitor 14 is off. Those skilled in the art will
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`recognize other types of wired or wireless interfaces through
`which the television monitor 14 may be controlled.
`Accordingly, the present invention provides an efficient
`and effective technique for conserving network resources
`based on whether the television content being delivered for
`viewing is actually being viewed. A determination as to
`whether the television content is actually being viewed may
`be based on user activity indicative of the content being
`viewed, whether the television monitor 14 is in an on or off
`state based on power or current consumption monitoring, or a
`combination thereof. If a determination is made that the tele-
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`vision content is not being viewed, various actions may be
`taken to stop the delivery of the television content or change
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`aspects of the television content to minimize the network
`resources necessary for transporting the television content for
`viewing.
`Those skilled in the art will recognize improvements and
`modifications to the preferred embodiments of the present
`invention. All such improvements and modifications are con-
`sidered within the scope of the concepts disclosed herein and
`the claims that follow.
`
`What is claimed is:
`
`1. A method for conserving resources associated with
`packet television services comprising:
`receiving television content from a content provider over a
`packet network;
`providing the television content to a television monitor for
`display to a viewer;
`determining if