Patents Assigned to Starsight Telecast, Inc.
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Patent number: 6469753Abstract: A system and method for displaying an electronic program schedule guide is provided. The system has areas for displaying program schedule information. In addition, the system also has areas that may be used for advertising programs, products or services. In another embodiment, the system has areas for displaying messages to the user.Type: GrantFiled: April 30, 1997Date of Patent: October 22, 2002Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Brian Lee Klosterman, Steven Schein
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Patent number: 6460181Abstract: The availability of a new information service is publicized by displaying an icon in an EPG when the presence of a new information service is detected. A list of new services is then displayed responsive to a user command. When one of the new services is selected from the list, a description of the selected new service is displayed instead of the list.Type: GrantFiled: December 29, 1998Date of Patent: October 1, 2002Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventor: Daniel B. Donnelly
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Patent number: 6453471Abstract: A preview system activated from an on-screen programming guide displays a video preview of a selected particular program on the display screen. The video preview is displayed on less than the full screen so that the video can be highly-compressed to save bandwidth.Type: GrantFiled: March 3, 1997Date of Patent: September 17, 2002Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventor: Brian Lee Klosterman
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Publication number: 20020116712Abstract: An improved television guide system. According to one embodiment of the invention, television guide information is provided that includes multiple occurrences of a single show. The guide system of the present invention allows the user to identify a show and, thereafter, identify when the identified show will be played again. Accordingly, the user may more easily select shows for viewing or recordation.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 22, 2002Publication date: August 22, 2002Applicant: StarSight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven M. Schein, David P. Warden, Molly K. King, Theresa A. Alba, Robert E. Russman
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Publication number: 20020092017Abstract: The present invention provides methods and systems to substitute alternative video and/or audio signals and/or graphics and/or text to be displayed on the viewer's television display monitor for the video and/or audio signals that would otherwise be displayed according to the channel to which the viewer has tuned the television set. One aspect of the present invention provides methods and systems to replace and/or modify the advertisements that can be seen and heard by the television viewer.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 27, 2001Publication date: July 11, 2002Applicant: StarSight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Brian L. Klosterman, Douglas B. Macrae
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Patent number: 6412110Abstract: A television schedule system and method for displaying television schedule information on a television screen includes a program guide having a schedule information area that depicts the programs that are being presented on each channel at each time during the day. An input device allows the viewer to move a pointer over different interactive areas of the guide and the function performed when the area is activated is displayed in a contextual help window. Various control glyphs provide for recursive interaction with the guide. Additionally, a video window is interactive and provides tuning functions.Type: GrantFiled: November 17, 1999Date of Patent: June 25, 2002Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven Michael Schein, Jim Leftwich, David M. Folker, Keith Hunwick
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Patent number: 6388714Abstract: The present invention provides systems and methods for providing television schedule and/or listing information to a viewer, and for allowing the viewer to link, search, select and interact with information in a remote database, e.g., a database on the internet. The television schedule and/or listing information can be displayed on a variety of viewer interfaces, such as televisions screens, computer monitors, PCTV screens and the like. The television schedule and/or listing information may be stored on the viewer's computer, television, PCTV, or a remote server (e.g., a website), or the television schedule and/or listing information may be downloaded from a remote database to the viewer's computer, television or PCTV.Type: GrantFiled: April 11, 1997Date of Patent: May 14, 2002Assignee: Starsight Telecast INCInventors: Steven M. Schein, Sean A. O'Brien, Brian L. Klosterman, Kenneth A. Milnes
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Patent number: 6341374Abstract: An improved television guide system. According to one embodiment of the invention, television guide information is provided that includes multiple occurrences of a single show. The guide system of the present invention allows the user to identify a show and, thereafter, identify when the identified show will be played again. Accordingly, the user may more easily select shows for viewing or recordation.Type: GrantFiled: April 24, 2001Date of Patent: January 22, 2002Assignee: Starsight Telecast. Inc.Inventors: Steven M. Schein, David P. Warden, Molly K. King, Theresa A. Alba, Robert E. Russman
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Patent number: 6323911Abstract: A television schedule system and method for displaying television schedule information on a television screen includes a program guide having a schedule information area that depicts the programs that are being presented on each channel at each time during the day. An input device allows the viewer to browse through the schedule information area and/or obtain more information about programs of particular interest. In one aspect, the viewer may watch a program on the currently-tuned channel, while browsing through the other channels on a portion of the television screen. In another aspect, the viewer may watch programs currently being shown on the television, while he or she browses through the program guide. In yet another aspect, the system includes a database, a processor and associated software for automatically customizing the television schedule guide to an individual viewer or a group of viewers, e.g., a family, to facilitate use of the television schedule.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 1997Date of Patent: November 27, 2001Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven M. Schein, James J. Leftwich, David M. Folker, Keith Hunwick, Theresa Alba, Molly K. King
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Publication number: 20010027562Abstract: An improved television guide system. According to one embodiment of the invention, television guide information is provided that includes multiple occurrences of a single show. The guide system of the present invention allows the user to identify a show and, thereafter, identify when the identified show will be played again. Accordingly, the user may more easily select shows for viewing or recordation.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 24, 2001Publication date: October 4, 2001Applicant: StarSight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven M. Schein, David P. Warden, Molly K. King, Theresa A. Alba, Robert E. Russman
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Publication number: 20010014976Abstract: Television schedule information transmission and utilization systems transmit TV schedule data and associated network control messages provided by computer as packets via the Video Blanking Interval (VBI) lines in the TV signal from various television program providers. This data is acquired by regional data processing systems and forwarded by the regional data processing systems to subscriber units and used to construct an internal database. This internal database can be accessed by the subscriber unit to display a TV schedule for the channels that are received by the user's TV.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 19, 2000Publication date: August 16, 2001Applicant: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: John H. Roop, Alan R. Ebright, Jeffrey J. Kochy, David P. Warden, Konstantine Sokolik, Giambattista A. Alegiani
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Patent number: 6247176Abstract: An improved television guide system. According to one embodiment of the invention, television guide information is provided that includes multiple occurrences of a single show. The guide system of the present invention allows the user to identify a show and, thereafter, identify when the identified show will be played again. Accordingly, the user may more easily select shows for viewing or recordation.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 1999Date of Patent: June 12, 2001Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven M. Schein, David P. Warden, Molly K. King, Theresa A. Alba, Robert E. Russman
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Patent number: 6216265Abstract: Television schedule information transmission and utilization systems (50A-50D) transmit TV schedule data and associated network control messages provided by computer (54) as packets via the Video Blanking Interval (VBI) lines in the TV signal from various television program providers (51). This data is acquired by regional data processing systems and forwarded by the regional data processing systems to subscriber units (52) and used to construct an internal database. This intern database can be accessed by the subscriber unit (52) to display a TV schedule for the channels that are received by the user's TV.Type: GrantFiled: June 11, 1998Date of Patent: April 10, 2001Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: John H. Roop, Alan R. Ebright, Jeffrey J. Kochy, David P. Warden, Konstantine Sokolik, Giambattista A. Alegiani
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Patent number: 6167188Abstract: Screen (10) for a user interface of a television schedule system and process consists of an array (24) of irregular cells (26), which vary in length, corresponding to different television program lengths of one half hour to one-and-one half hours or more. The array is arranged as three columns (28) of one-half hour in duration, and twelve rows (30) of program listings. Some of the program listings overlap two or more of the columns (28) because of their length. Because of the widely varying length of the cells (26), if a conventional cursor used to select a cell location were to simply step from one cell to another, the result would be abrupt changes in the screen (10) as the cursor moved from a cell (26) of several hours length to an adjacent cell in the same row. An effective way of taming the motion is to assume that behind every array (24) is an underlying array of regular cells. By restricting cursor movements to the regular cells, abrupt screen changes will be avoided.Type: GrantFiled: March 26, 1999Date of Patent: December 26, 2000Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Patrick Young, John H. Roop, Alan R. Ebright, Michael W. Faber, David Anderson
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Patent number: 6151059Abstract: A television schedule system and method for displaying television schedule information on a television screen includes a program guide having a schedule information area that depicts the programs that are being presented on each channel at each time during the day. An input device allows the viewer to move a pointer over different interactive areas of the guide and the function performed when the area is activated is displayed in a contextual help window. Various control glyphs provide for recursive interaction with the guide. Additionally, a video window is interactive and provides tuning functions.Type: GrantFiled: August 5, 1997Date of Patent: November 21, 2000Assignee: StarSight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven Michael Schein, Jim Leftwich, David M. Folker, Keith Hunwick
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Patent number: 6144401Abstract: The present invention is directed to a television schedule system with a user interface which allows a user to control access to television programs by time, rating, content, and/or channel. Furthermore, the user may set a limit on pay-per-view (PPV) spending to limit the purchase of PPV programs.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 1999Date of Patent: November 7, 2000Assignee: StarSight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Marcy Casement, Andrew Burgess, David Folker
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Patent number: 6133909Abstract: A system and method for obtaining information from an electronic program guide is provided. The electronic program guide can be provided by a television system, a set-top box, a VCR, or a computer system. The interactive system allows the user to quickly identify programs which may be of particular interest, thereby avoiding the necessity of searching through the entire program guide. In one embodiment, after the user identifies a specific program as a favorite, the system asks the user a series of questions in order to identify the particular characteristics of the program which makes it a favorite. Based upon the user's responses, the system identifies all programs which contain the desired characteristics. In another embodiment, whenever the user watches a program the interactive system, operating in the background, searches for and marks all programs which may be of interest to the user.Type: GrantFiled: June 12, 1997Date of Patent: October 17, 2000Assignee: StarSight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven Michael Schein, James Jay Leftwich
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Patent number: 6118492Abstract: A system and method for displaying a simplified electronic program schedule guide on a user's television monitor is provided. In one embodiment, the program schedule guide is abbreviated to include only the programs currently available for viewing on a subset of the available channels. In another embodiment, the program guide screen visually distinguishes between programs for the convenience of the viewer.Type: GrantFiled: June 27, 1997Date of Patent: September 12, 2000Assignee: Starsight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Kenneth A. Milnes, Steven M. Schein
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Patent number: 6078348Abstract: A system and method for displaying an electronic program schedule guide is provided. The system has areas for displaying program schedule information. In addition, the system also has areas that may be used for displaying movie listings. The system has enhanced recording capabilities, including extending recording time, automatically rescheduling recording, and the like. Finally, the system has features which simplify the setup and installation procedures.Type: GrantFiled: June 16, 1997Date of Patent: June 20, 2000Assignee: StarSight Telecast Inc.Inventors: Brian L. Klosterman, Sean A. O'Brien, Kenneth A. Milnes, Steven M. Schein, Donald Metzger, Todd Blake, Gordon Chang, David Warden
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Patent number: 6075575Abstract: A remote control device 2 for navigating and interacting with a television schedule information system that is displayed, for example, on the viewer's television screen. The remote control device comprises a casing 4, a local controller 20 for scrolling a movable cursor 110 within an individual screen area or window on the television screen and a global controller 22 for moving the cursor between adjacent screen areas. The local controller includes a rolling cylinder 24 for vertical scrolling and a pair of buttons 32, 34 on either side of the cylinder for horizontal scrolling. The local and global controllers allow viewers to quickly and efficiently browse through the television guide, perform various actions, such as selecting or activating items, and interact with services related to the television programs without having to remove their eyes from the television.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 1997Date of Patent: June 13, 2000Assignee: StarSight Telecast, Inc.Inventors: Steven M. Schein, James J. Leftwich, David M. Folker, Keith Hunwick, Theresa Alba, Molly K. King