Abstract: A transcoder that converts text-based computer software instructions or code intended for use by a presentation engine into a binary code adapted for use by a constrained function presentation engine.

Abstract: In a broadcast digital video network, Internet HTML Web page data is formatted to fit within a standard MPEG-2 data packet structure, and multiplexed along with other MPEG-2 digital video signals for transport within a multiple channel digital video system. The headend server broadcasts a rotating carousel comprising an ensemble of Web pages in HTML format containing both broadcast Web pages and simulcast Web pages and a control map permitting the viewer to navigate among the HTML Web pages. The control map containing the locations of the HTML Web pages in the rotating carousel that correspond to broadcast Web pages and the locations of the HTML Web pages that correspond to broadcast Web pages. The control map is updated and rebroadcast for each broadcast video program, thereby synchronizing the simulcast Web pages to the digital video programs.

Abstract: The invention provides an improved method and system for interactive broadcast and web information browsing. In embodiments of the invention, web information is presented in conjunction with a broadcast television image, either at an edge of the image screen or overlaid with the image screen in an opaque, transparent or translucent image. The presented web information is fully interactive and can be interacted with by the user using all known features of interactive web presentation.

Abstract: The invention provides a method and system for receiving incoming information from multiple information sources, both interactive and passive, and for engagingly presenting that information to a recipient on a presentation interface. The system includes a “background” element, which interacts with interactive information sources and receives from passive information sources, and determines whether information from those sources is likely to be interesting to the recipient, possibly using one information source to determine priority for another. The system also includes a “foreground” element, which presents information to the recipient when active, but not when inactive.

Abstract: Various embodiments of the invention provide increased speed and decreased computer processing for playing and navigating multimedia content by using two types of data objects for displaying the multimedia content. The first data object type includes rendered multimedia content data. The second data object type provides semantic content corresponding to the rendered multimedia content. The storage medium in which these two types of data objects are contained is referred to as a rendered cache. The semantic content can include locations, sizes, shapes, and target universal resource identifiers of hyperlinks, multimedia element timing, and other content play instructions. The very fast play of content stored in the rendered cache is due to the elimination of the steps of laying out the content, rendering the content, and generating the semantic representation of the content. These steps are required each time the content is played after retrieval from a conventional cache.

Abstract: Various embodiments of the invention provide increased speed and decreased computer processing for playing and navigating multimedia content by using two types of data objects for displaying the multimedia content. The first data object type includes rendered multimedia content data for a rendered cache, or rendering instructions for a paint stream cache or a layout cache. The paint stream cache and layout cache can take advantage of increased client processing capabilities. The second data object type provides semantic content corresponding to the rendered multimedia content. The storage medium in which these two types of data objects are contained is referred to as a rendered cache. The semantic content can include locations, sizes, shapes, and target universal resource identifiers of hyperlinks, multimedia element timing, and other content play instructions.

Abstract: An inventive client/server system provides a platform for cable system operators to deliver a full range of sophisticated new products to cable television subscribers. Preferably a middleware solution, the information platform provides a flexible, versatile, and adaptable Internet-centric platform that network operators can use to deploy interactive television applications. The information platform mediates the communication between an abundance of Web-based content and the television set. Content and applications are written entirely in industry standard HTML and Java. Traditional television programming is integrated with Web content using TV-specific extensions to HTML and Java. Applications can be loaded from the network, from carousels, or from file systems, such as flash memory or EEPROM. The information platform consists of client-side middleware integrated with a native electronic program guide application.

Abstract: A method and system for providing, in a television system, the combination, transmission, and reception of multiple video presentations over a single channel of a television distribution system. Presentations may be concurrently broadcast for viewing by many users, as well as interactively requested for display by many (potentially a thousand or more) individual users. A presentation consists of a sequence of images which reproduce a full motion, reduced motion, or a still image video presentation for the user when displayed. The signal is transmitted in a standard television format, and consists of a sequence of video images from the various presentations being transmitted. A user terminal receiving the transmitted signal is selectably operable to display one of the multiple transmitted presentations with accompanying audio. The terminal identifies the video images of the selected presentation, stores and displays the images on an associated television receiver.

Abstract: An MPEG-2 digital TV headend and settop box includes a method and apparatus for enabling the presentation of electronic program guide (EPG) information. Television program guide information is downloaded from a source of television programming data to the headend of the TV broadcast system. The downloaded EPG data is translated into a plurality of HTML Web pages, which are continuously transmitted as a rotating data carousel in an MPEG-2 data stream. The digital TV settop box further includes a general-purpose web browser responsive to viewer commands to select and display a selected web page from the rotating carousel of HTML web pages. The digital TV settop further includes a data cache for downloading and storing partial HTML web page EPG information in advance, which reduces the necessary bandwidth allocated for the EPG information, and allows the settop box to quickly display the basic information for a channel related program guide.

Abstract: Systems and methods are described for preparing multimedia data using digital video data compression. Various embodiments of the invention use pre-rendering and encoding techniques that format the video image data into fat macroblocks. The fat macroblocks include header information that identifies the beginning locations of strips of macroblocks representing slices of the image, and of the macroblocks disposed within the strips. The header information enables macroblocks disposed in a strip of fat macroblocks to be individually addressed thereby providing transmission bandwidth, data processing, and data storage advantages for preparing and transmitting data for updating video images including less than full screen motion. The advantages are achieved in part because updates only require that the first macroblock of each strip of macroblocks be transmitted.

Abstract: The invention provides a method and system for receiving incoming information from multiple information sources, both interactive and passive, and for engagingly presenting that information to a recipient on a presentation interface. The system includes a “background” element, which interacts with interactive information sources and receives from passive information sources, and determines whether information from those sources is likely to be interesting to the recipient, possibly using one information so source to determine priority for another. The system also includes a “foreground” element, which presents information to the recipient when active, but not when inactive.

Abstract: A system provides for tracking the behavior of television viewers and Internet browsers while protecting the privacy of the user. The level of privacy is under control of the user. In one embodiment, an arbitrary anonymous identifier is assigned to the user. The selection of a new arbitrary anonymous identifier is under the control of the user. In a second embodiment, a private anonymous identifier is based on a user entered password. The user history data is stored on a history server using the private anonymous identifier. An authentication server is provided to validate the private anonymous identifier before transferring the user history data to the history server.

Abstract: The invention provides an improved method and system for interactive broadcast and web information browsing. In embodiments of the invention, web information is presented in conjunction with a broadcast television image, either at an edge of the image screen or overlaid with the image screen in an opaque, transparent or translucent image. The presented web information is fully interactive and can be interacted with by the user using all known features of interactive web presentation.

Abstract: The invention provides an improved method and system for presenting television signals, including anti-aliasing of text with respect to a background. The background color is determined relatively locally for each element to be anti-aliased, and text or other graphics overlaid on that background are anti-aliased with respect to each relatively local background color. Also, anti-aliasing can be applied to blur text and graphics more vertically than horizontally to reduce flicker, and to blur chrominance more than luminance to reduce cross-chrominance artifacts resulting from Y/C separation. Similar techniques may be used for filtering images in addition to anti-aliasing text characters.

Abstract: A video on demand (VOD) gateway allows multiple incompatible and non-interoperable VOD systems to function as a single unified VOD system. A VOD gateway system includes a VOD asset gateway, a VOD session gateway, a VOD transaction gateway and a generic VOD client software program. The generic VOD client software resides in a CATV set-top box. The VOD asset gateway at the headend aggregates video inventory from multiple VOD vendor's equipment. The VOD session gateway at the headend translates a subscriber request in a generic protocol for VOD program into the proprietary protocol for a specific VOD system. The VOD transaction gateway at the headend aggregates transactions from multiple VOD vendor's equipment. In an alternate embodiment, a VOD gateway permits operators of multiple CATV systems to use multiple incompatible and non-interoperable VOD systems in each of a plurality of separate CATV systems.

Abstract: Two-way digital media devices typically store digital identifying data that identify the user to providers of content and interactive data. In the case of a Web browser of a personal computer, the digital identity is stored in the form of a plurality of cookies that are used by respective web sites to personalize the web site experience for each particular user. When a user is at a different computer, the digital identifying data is not available. In addition, other types of interactive devices, such as CATV settop boxes, cell phones, PDAs and the like, may not have enough non-volatile memory (persistent storage) to store the digital identifying data. In order to provide users with a portable digital identity, a digital identity server is provided as a server node on the Internet, which retrieves digital identifying data and downloads such digital identifying data to any device upon request.

Abstract: The invention provides an improved method and system for security information acquisition. A relatively small amount of nonvolatile storage at the client consumer electronic device is used to obtain a chain of trusted root certificates, thus providing each client consumer electronic device with a trustable technique for access to secure communication. The trusted root certificates are provided by one or more TSIPs (trusted security information providers), and are chained together so that a current root certificate can be obtained by the client consumer electronic device, even using an expired root certificate. The client consumer electronic device uses a current root certificate to obtain a SIO (security information object) from the TSIP. The SIO includes information regarding at least one trusted entity, such as a one or more trusted entity certificates, and other trust information.

Abstract: A one-way broadcasting system comprises a headend system architecture adapted to receive data from the Internet and transmit the data through a digital TV network to receivers, a mapping function for mapping the Internet data to MPEG streams, a combining function for combining the Internet data streams with digital video streams, a broadcast function for broadcasting Web content to users throughout the one way network; a linking function for linking the Internet data with digital video channels; and a navigation function for navigating broadcast data in the one way network.

Abstract: Internet access is provided over a digital cable television system using Internet protocol (IP) over MPEG digital video. Simultaneous Internet access and TV viewing is provided by an IP over MPEG-2 video system with channel tracking. Whenever a video channel change is detected, the viewer's Internet connection is routed from one video channel to another video channel so that the Internet connection is dynamically routed and tracks the channel changes made by the viewer. Additionally, if there is no available data carrying capacity in the video channel selected by the viewer (a “busy” condition), the Internet connection is routed to an out-of-band frequency. The Internet connection tracks the channel changes made by the viewer using a single tuner/digital MPEG decoder in the CATV settop box.

Abstract: A system for enhancing the display of World Wide Web pages combined with television video signals on a TV screen includes enhanced display modes. In a first embodiment, the viewer controls the transparency of a Picture-In-Picture image (PIP). A PIP image that normally covers up a part of the background image is made transparent so that the user can view the background image through the PIP image. Using transparency control, two same size images are simultaneously viewed whereby a full size background image and a full size foreground image simultaneously occupy the full television video screen. In a second embodiment of enhanced display of television video and World Wide Web graphics, a television video Picture-In-Graphics (PIG) image is imbedded as an object in an HTML Web page. When the HTML Web page is displayed as a background image and scrolled (or panned), the television video PIG image scrolls along with the HTML Web page background image.