US009477814E2 (12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 9,477,814 B2 Wan et al. (45) Date of Patent: Oct. 25, 2016 (54) DISTRIBUTION OF AN IP-BASED (58) Field of Classification Search MULTIMEDA CHANNEL TO NON-P None ENABLED DEVICES See application file for complete search history. (71) Applicant: Broadcom Corporation, Irvine, CA (56) References Cited (US) U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS (72) Inventors: Wade Keith Wan, Orange, CA (US); 6,466,543 B1 * 10/2002 Aoki ....................... HO4L 47.10 Rajesh Shankarrao Mamidwar, San 370,230 Diego, CA (US) 8,751,679 B2 * 6/2014 McHugh .......... HO4N 21,23439 TO9,219 (73) Assignee: Broadcom Corporation, Irvine, CA 2004/01858.64 A1* 9, 2004 Balachandran ....... HO4W 28, 22 455,4522 (US) 2005/0047442 A1* 3/2005 Volpe ............... HO4L 12,28O1 370/480 (*) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this 2009/0208006 A1* 8, 2009 Candelore .......... HO4N 21/2347 patent is extended or adjusted under 35 380/200 U.S.C. 154(b) by 479 days. 2010/0205049 A1* 8/2010 Long ...................... G06Q 30/02 TO5, 14.35 (21) Appl. No.: 13/931,756 (Continued) (22) Filed: Jun. 28, 2013 Primary Examiner — Joshua Joo (74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm — McDermott Will & (65) Prior Publication Data Emery LLP US 2014/0351383 A1 Nov. 27, 2014 (57) ABSTRACT An apparatus and method for converting an IP-based mul Related U.S. Application Data timedia channel and distributing the channel to a plurality of (60) Provisional application No. 61/826,473, filed on May non-IP enabled devices based on the channel's popularity 22, 2013. among the devices. The apparatus identifies a plurality of multimedia channels requested by a group of devices, and (51) Int. Cl. determines a data rate for providing each channel to the G06F 5/16 (2006.01) devices based on a popularity of each channel among the G06F 9/00 (2011.01) devices. The apparatus uses an adaptive bit rate (ABR) client H04L (2/825 (2013.01) to receive content segments for a respective one of the H04L 29/06 (2006.01) multimedia channels from an ABR server at a source data G06O 10/08 (2012.01) rate aligned with a determined data rate for providing the G06O 50/22 (2012.01) respective multimedia channel. The content segments are (52) U.S. Cl. received at the source data rate, and converted by the CPC ......... G06F 19/3456 (2013.01); G06Q 10/083 apparatus to a continuous digital content stream. The appa (2013.01); G06Q 10/087 (2013.01); G06O ratus then provides the continuous digital content stream to 50/22 (2013.01); H04L 47/25 (2013.01); one or more of the devices at the determined data rate. H04L 65/4084 (2013.01); H04L 65/605 (2013.01) 20 Claims, 4 Drawing Sheets Channeviewing cewice X. v. - 14 - 101 Channel viewing - ; eyte 03 r ARAccess f Point wAN, Docsis / -X- w Content Delivery Network Gateway Unit 305 - Y. AER Certi Channel viewing . is IP stream to OAM evice corvette: X.. 2 ^: afss: US 9,477,814 B2 Page 2 (56) References Cited 2013/O121261 A1* 5, 2013 Yao ..................... HO4W 72,085 370,329 U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS 2013, O246578 A1* 9, 2013 Moreman ........... HO4L 67,2842 TO9,219 2011/0310941 A1* 12/2011 Kenington .......... HO4W 88,085 2014/OO20037 A1* 1, 2014 Hybertson ......... HO4N 21/2365 375,220 725/109 2012/0047230 A1* 2/2012 Begen ................. HO4L 65,4092 2014/OO95729 A1* 4, 2014 Ma ........................ HO4L 65,608 TO9,219 TO9,231 2012/0311177 A1* 12/2012 Visharam ................ G06F 15/16 2014/0237522 A1* 8, 2014 Rothschild ........... HO4N 21,236 TO9,233 725/88 2013/009 1249 A1* 4/2013 McHugh ......... HO4N 21,23439 TO9,219 * cited by examiner U.S. Patent Oct. 25, 2016 Sheet 1 of 4 US 9,477,814 B2 Channel viewing device ABR Certi Channel viewing P Strea to CA device Cowester F.G. 1 U.S. Patent Oct. 25, 2016 Sheet 2 of 4 US 9,477,814 B2 2O Identify a plurality of multimedia channels requested by a group of devices 2O2 Determine a data rate for providing each multimedia channel to the group of devices based on a popularity of each multimedia channel among the group of devices 2O3 Select to receive content segments for a respective one of the mutimedia channes from a content source at a source data rate aligned with a determined data rate for providing the respective multimedia channel 204 Receive the content segments from the Content source at the Source data rate 2O5 Convert the content segments to a continuous digital Content streat 2O6 Provide the continuous digital Content stream to one of more devices in the group of devices at the data rate for providing the respective multimedia channel FIG. 2 U.S. Patent Oct. 25, 2016 Sheet 3 of 4 US 9,477,814 B2 A Decode Viewing Conveter Device (Television) Multicast (MC) \ Streans : N VoD Unicast (UC). - \ Stears \– 34 Broadband AW UC Stears." Woden fanscodes -...-...--...-...--...-...-...-. O. : Streas" N ^ N Y---------------------------y-...---------------N- 305 - N. 306 U.S. Patent Oct. 25, 2016 Sheet 4 of 4 US 9,477,814 B2 402 404 406 St. System S. Orage Memory interface 4.08 input ROM PrOCessor Device Network interface interface 410 412 44 416 F.G. 4 US 9,477,814 B2 1. 2 DISTRIBUTION OF AN P-BASED viewing other channels, and the data rate for providing the MULTIMEDA CHANNEL TO NON-P respective multimedia channel may decrease in response a ENABLED DEVICES decrease in the number of devices requesting or viewing the multimedia channel relative to a number of devices request The present application claims the benefit of priority ing or viewing other channels. under 35 U.S.C. S 119 from U.S. Provisional Patent Appli Selecting to receive the content segments at a source data cation Ser. No. 61/826,473 entitled “Popularity-Based Dis rate may comprise identifying a plurality of stream profiles tribution of an IP-Based Multimedia Channel to Non-IP advertised by an ABR server, each stream profile for receiv Enabled Devices.” filed on May 22, 2013, the disclosure of ing the content segments for the respective multimedia which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for 10 channel at a different data rate, and selecting a stream profile all purposes. corresponding to the source data rate based on the deter mined data rate for providing the respective multimedia BACKGROUND channel. In this regard, the stream profile may be selected based on a maximum source data rate that can be transcoded Hotels and other complexes may include one or more 15 to the determined data rate without generating more than a multi-tuner set top boxes (STBs) that provide cable televi predetermined amount of delay between when the content sion services to multiple local viewing devices (e.g., cable segments are received from the content source and con ready televisions) in different rooms. Generally, these local verted to the continuous digital content stream. viewing devices may include hardware for requesting chan Additionally or in the alternative, receiving the content nel feeds using quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), segments from the content source at the Source data rate may but may not have the ability to consume IP-related streaming comprise sending one or more HTTP requests to the ABR services. Accordingly, a multi-tuner STB may broadcast server, each HTTP request being for a respective local Some channels to all devices, and provide other channels to content segment, and receiving the received source content Some devices in response to individualized requests from segments from the ABR server according to the HTTP those devices, all using QAM. The multi-tuner STB may 25 requests. Converting the content segments into a continuous further monitor what streams the devices are receiving. digital content stream may comprise removing content head ers from each of the content segments and coalescing the SUMMARY content segments. The method may further comprise moni toring available bandwidth for receiving content segments The Subject technology provides a system and method for 30 for the plurality of multimedia channels from the ABR converting an IP-based multimedia channel and distributing server, and adjusting a determined data rate for providing the channel to a plurality of non-IP enabled devices based on one or more of the plurality of multimedia channels in the channel's popularity among the devices. The method response to a change in the available bandwidth. may comprise identifying a plurality of multimedia channels In another aspect, a machine-readable medium may have requested by a group of devices, determining a data rate for 35 instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause a providing each multimedia channel to the group of devices machine to perform a method. Accordingly, the method may based on a popularity of each multimedia channel among the comprise receiving a first plurality of content segments group of devices, selecting to receive content segments for associated with a first multimedia channel and a second a respective one of the multimedia channels from a content plurality of content segments associated with a second Source at a source data rate aligned with a determined data 40 multimedia channel, each of the first and second pluralities rate for providing the respective multimedia channel, receiv of content segments being received at a data rate selected ing the content segments from the content source at the from a respective set of data rates advertised by the remote Source data rate, converting the content segments to a data source, converting the first and second plurality content continuous digital content stream, and providing the con segments to first and second continuous multimedia streams tinuous digital content stream to one or more devices in the 45 for a plurality of local viewing devices, determining a first group of devices at the determined data rate for providing number of local viewing devices that have requested to view the respective multimedia channel.