Abstract: In some embodiments a content delivery system for controlling media content provided by at least one media device for media consumption by at least one consumer is described. In an embodiment the system comprises at least one sensor for sensing body data of the at least one consumer, a receiver for receiving sensed body data from the sensor, a data store storing media content for selection, at least one media device for outputting said selected content to said at least one consumer, and at least one processor configured to query said data store and control the selection of said media content based at least in part on the sensed body data, and control the output of said selected media content to said at least one media device. The sensed body data may indicate the mood or emotional state of the consumer.

Abstract: There is disclosed a method of establishing a communication link between first and second devices, the method comprising: receiving a link request from a first device with a first unique identifier; allocating a media content from multiple media content to the first unique identifier; sending the media content to the first device; receiving a media identifier from a second device with a second unique identifier; comparing the media identifier and the media content, and in dependence on identifying a match, transmitting the first unique identifier to the second device and the second unique identifier to the first device, whereby the first and second device can establish a communication link based on the exchanged first and second unique identifiers.

Abstract: The invention relates to a computer guard system for controlling delivery of encrypted media assets in a service which governs the delivery of a set of media assets to a group of authorized users comprising: an administrator interface configured to receive configuration data from an administrator to define at least one environment defining how media assets in that service are to be delivered to authorized users, wherein the configuration data defines, for each environment, (a) multiple DRM technologies for decrypting the same asset at multiple end user platforms, each DRM technology being associated with its own set of default license properties; (b) at least one software plug-in to be instantiated to perform a verification method to verify if an end user request for delivery of an asset is valid; a store for holding defined environments with respective environment identifiers; a key server module having an interface connectable to an encryption module and configured to: exchange (i) an asset identifier, whic

Abstract: Disclosed is a content delivery system of networked computer systems, the content delivery system for effecting transmission of media assets to a user device having an output interface available to a user, the media asset being transmitted as a media stream for outputting to the user while the media stream is still being received at the user device. The content delivery system comprises a first computer system operated by a first operator and a second computer system operated by a second operator. Each of the first and second computer systems is configured to execute a respective instance of contract software for effecting the transmission of the media asset to the user device as the media stream. The contract software embodies a contract between the first operator and the second operator defining permitted interactions of their computer systems.

Abstract: There is disclosed a computer system for analysing content, comprising: a detection module connected to receive at least one piece of digital content, the detection module being operable to access a set of compliance rules and compare the received at least one piece of digital content with the set of compliance rules, the detection module further being configured to generate an alert if the result of the analysis indicates a breach of at least one of the rules; a moderator module connected to receive the alert, the moderator module configured to enable output to a moderator based only on the piece of digital content which caused the alert to be generated, whereby the moderator can assess a modification to be made to the piece of content which caused the alert to be generated.

Abstract: In one embodiment, there is a content delivery system comprising: a communication network; a media component configured to transmit media content and associated metadata to user devices; a store holding permission vouchers for users of the system; an auxiliary content management component configured to: receive a request for auxiliary content insertion information from a user device, the request comprising an identifier of a user of the user device and an identifier of desired media content; access said store to determine permission for consumption of the desired media content in a resource constrained playout mode at the device based on at least one permission voucher for the user; generate auxiliary content insertion information based on the identifier of the user, the identifier of the desired media content and the at least one permission voucher; and transmit the generated auxiliary content insertion information to the user device.

Abstract: There is described a multimedia processing method comprising: identifying a start and end time ranges in an input multimedia stream; comparing said ranges to an alternate multimedia stream of the same program for regions of similarity; and defining time ranges as representing chapter regions responsive to the content of both streams within the time ranges having high similarities.

Abstract: In the following, a content delivery system delivers a modified version of a media asset to a current content consuming user. Control information identifying a desired attribute of the modified version of the asset is received from the current content consuming user. The media asset is modified based on the control information and audience reaction data associated with the media asset and generated by analyzing at least a previous content consuming user's reactions to the media asset while the media asset was supplied to a media output device of the previous content consuming user.

Abstract: There is disclosed a technique of associating device activity to a broadcast programme, comprising: receiving a model for a broadcast programme identifying portions of content and portions of breaks in the content; monitoring, via a client software module running on users' mobile devices, said device's active or inactive states; receiving an activity stream of a user device; comparing the activity stream to the model of the broadcast programme to identify a correlation between them; inferring a user of the user device as watching the broadcast programme based on a level of the correlation.

Abstract: In the following, a content delivery system delivers a modified version of a media asset to a current content consuming user. Control information identifying a desired attribute of the modified version of the asset is received from the current content consuming user. The media asset is modified based on the control information and audience reaction data associated with the media asset and generated by analyzing at least a previous content consuming user's reactions to the media asset while the media asset was supplied to a media output device of the previous content consuming user.

Abstract: A computer implemented method for detecting user engagement with auxiliary content consumed by a user at a viewing device, the method comprising, at the viewing device generating requests for auxiliary content associated with media content selected by the user to be consumed; receiving auxiliary content from an auxiliary content store and playing out the auxiliary content to the user; displaying at least one user engagement element associated with the auxiliary content, the user engagement element defining an expected user activity; generating user engagement data based on the engagement of a user with the user engagement element in accordance with the expected user activity, and formulating a message to be transmitted to an auxiliary content controller, the messaging including a user identifier and the user engagement data.

Abstract: Disclosed is a computer-implemented method of triggering an instance of companion software to perform an expected action related to a piece of media content during a delivery of that media content by a media device to a content consuming user, the method comprising: the instance of the companion software receiving a synchronization signal transmitted when, in delivering the media content, the media device reaches a reference point in the media content, wherein the synchronisation signal conveys a time instant of that reference point; measuring a current elapsed time from the time instant of the reference point; accessing computer storage holding an association of the expected action with a time instant of a trigger point in the media content; and triggering the expected action when the current elapsed time substantially matches the time instant of the trigger point.

Abstract: There is disclosed a system for providing streaming services, the system comprising: a plurality of users each for generating a stream of an event on a connection of a public network; and a server configured to: receive a plurality of the generated streams on connections of the public network; determine content for at least one output stream in dependence on one or more of: the content received on the input streams, the content requested by a viewer, and the user profiles of the contributors; and output the at least one output stream on a connection of a public network, at least one user for receiving the at least one output stream on a connection of the public network.

Abstract: In one embodiment, there is a content delivery system comprising: a communication network; a media component configured to transmit media content and associated metadata to user devices; a store holding permission vouchers for users of the system; an auxiliary content management component configured to: receive a request for auxiliary content insertion information from a user device, the request comprising an identifier of a user of the user device and an identifier of desired media content; access said store to determine permission for consumption of the desired media content in a resource constrained playout mode at the device based on at least one permission voucher for the user; generate auxiliary content insertion information based on the identifier of the user, the identifier of the desired media content and the at least one permission voucher; and transmit the generated auxiliary content insertion information to the user device.

Abstract: In one embodiment there is disclosed a content delivery system comprising: a communications network; a media component connected to the communications network, the media component configured to deliver media content for playout at a user device; an auxiliary content component connected to the communications network for providing auxiliary content for playout at a user device; an engagement monitoring component configured to monitor user engagement with auxiliary content played out at the user device; a storage component which holds engagement monitoring data in association with user identifiers; a content control module configured to receive, from a user device, a request for auxiliary content to be inserted in a playout session for playout at the user device, and selectively control delivery of the auxiliary content based on the engagement monitoring data associated with a user identifier for the user device.

Abstract: A computer device for providing recommendations to a user device associated with a user, the computer device comprising: a controller for maintaining an asset list, configured to receive notification of a new asset, and in dependence thereon to: determine if the asset is perishable; and in dependence on the asset being perishable: update the asset list to include the perishable asset; allocate a weighting to the perishable asset; and adjust the weighting of the perishable asset based on its perishability over time.

Abstract: A content delivery system comprising: a receiving module for receiving a media asset in a received format; a transcoder configured to transcode the asset to provide a predetermined number of transcoded versions of the asset in at least one consumption format; a data store for storing the predetermined number of transcoded versions; a transmitting module coupled to said data store and configured to retrieve one of the predetermined number of transcoded versions from the data store and transmit the retrieved transcoded version to a media consuming device in response to detecting selection of the media asset by a content consumer associated with the device; a media asset duplication module configured, in response to detecting transmission of each transcoded version of the predetermined number of transcoded versions to respective one or more media consuming devices, to create a duplicate of the transcoded version and store the duplicate in the data store.

Abstract: There is disclosed a computer device for generating a recommendation message to a user device, the computer device including a processor configured to: receive a context for a user of the user device; and select at least one recommendation for the user in dependence on the context, wherein the at least one recommendation varies in dependence on the context, such that a first at least one recommendation for a user in a first context is different from a second at least one recommendation for the same user in a second context.

Abstract: Methods and systems for a disabled user compliant video player for an end-to-end streaming web video solution affording accessibility for disabled users, including blind users and those with partial or poor vision, colorblind users, deaf users and those limited to only keyboard/voice input. Another embodiment of the present invention is directed to systems and methods for real-time creation and modification of specialized media players, to be used as stand-alone applications or as embedded data display applications.

Abstract: A search technology generates recommendations with minimal user data and participation, and provides better interpretation of user data, such as popularity, thus obtaining breadth and quality in recommendations. It is sensitive to the semantic content of natural language terms and lets users briefly describe the intended recipient (i.e., interests, eccentricities, previously successful gifts). Based on that input, the recommendation software system and method determines the meaning of the entered terms and creatively discover connections to gift recommendations from the vast array of possibilities. The user may then make a selection from these recommendations. The search/recommendation engine allows the user to find gifts through connections that are not limited to previously available information on the Internet. Thus, interests can be connected to buying behavior by relating terms to respective items.