Abstract: An approach is provided for providing custom ringback services. The approach includes prompting a user for content as part of a managed ringback service. The content is received from the user, and is set as a ringback. An identifier corresponding to the ringback is received from the user, wherein the identifier is associated with a caller.

Abstract: An interface can serve as a client-mainframe interface, enabling clients to develop applications without a need to understand mainframe processes and screen flows. Extended Tool Command Language (Tcl) can define services that can include a series of interactions with a mainframe system and service definitions can be added or updated on the interface during operation of the interface without disrupting processing. The service definitions can enable the interface to receive XML requests from a client, parse the XML requests, execute the service scripts to interact with the mainframe systems, generate the result in a XML format and send the XML file back to the client. Fundamental Mainframe Interactions (FMI) commands can interact with the mainframe systems and enable the specification of the XML structure of the request and response. The interface can provide efficient connection pooling management and connection life cycle control to improve the performance of the mainframe system interactions.

Abstract: A system for up-selling content during periods of likely viewer disinterest may include a content delivery network configured to provide media content and at least one choice of alternative content, a content viewing device, and a content processing device for interfacing the viewing device with the content delivery network. The content processing device may be configured to detect likely viewer disinterest in media content, prompt the selection of alternative content, and selectively replace the media content with the alternative content upon viewer selection. Additionally, methods for estimating a degree of likely viewer disinterest and discounting the offering price of the alternative content options are implemented by the system.

Abstract: A system for proactively troubleshooting set top box issues may include a media distribution network with a remote requesting device and a programming guide server. The programming guide server may be configured to identify a guide data retrieval profile of the requesting device, compare the guide data retrieval profile to an expected profile, and flag the requesting device for troubleshooting based on a lack of correspondence between the retrieval profile and the expected profile. Additionally methods for discovering related devices, predicting that the related devices also require troubleshooting, and limiting restorative measures to only those devices that have been confirmed to be affected by a service issue may also be implemented by the system.

Abstract: An emergency shepherd service includes at least one communications facility configured to provide communication services to at least one communication device in a service area and a notification subsystem including at least one processor and a computer readable medium with instructions. The instructions may be configured to cause the processor to receive information relevant to an affected area and identify at least one communication facility associated with the affected area based on a predetermined knowledge of a site of the communication facility. The instructions may be further configured to cause the processor to discover at least one communication device associated with the communication facility, determine that the communication device should be notified about the information, and send a message based on the information to the communication device.

Abstract: A system including a first network configured to receive IP device data from an IP device and to provide one or more IP addresses of the IP device based on the IP device data; a second network comprising: a second network location database configured to store physical location information, and a second network location server configured to receive the one or more IP addresses of the IP device from the first network, and query the second network location database to determine physical location information of the IP device based on the one or more IP addresses.

Abstract: In an exemplary method, at least one telephony attribute associated with a voice call directed from a client communication subsystem to a voice network identifier is detected. Visual content that has been predefined as being associated with the at least one telephony attribute is identified. A request for the visual content is initiated in response to the detecting step. The visual content is received, in response to the initiating step, for display at the client communication subsystem.

Abstract: A system may include a digital video recorder. The digital video recorder may provide a list of recorded television programs, receive selection of a television program in the list of television programs, and receive information identifying a segment to be filtered from the selected television program. The digital video recorder may further create a filtered television program by marking the segment as hidden or deleting the segment, where the segment is not visible when the filtered television program is played, and store the filtered television program.

Abstract: A method is provided for synchronizing data sources. The method includes receiving at least first and second data tables. The data tables have one or more mutually similar fields and one or more dissimilar fields from one another. First normalized, second normalized, and intermediate data tables are stored, each including respective first normalized, second normalized, and intermediate data table fields that each correspond to the mutually similar fields of the first and second data tables. The first normalized data table is at least partially populated with corresponding entries from the first data table and the second normalized data table is at least partially populated with corresponding entries in the second data table. Intermediate data table entries are respectively replaced with corresponding inconsistent data entries of the first and second normalized data tables. An apparatus and a computer program product for accomplishing the above method are also provided.

Abstract: A system may include a set-top box to detect a trigger and capture a first snapshot from a first television channel in response to detecting the trigger and based on a set of slideshow configuration parameters. The system may further provide the first snapshot to a display as a part of a television slideshow.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method receives a list of polygonal vertices associated with multiple polygons located in proximity to one another in a two-dimensional region and analyzes the polygonal vertices. The method automatically generates, based on the analysis, a polygonal hull that encloses the multiple polygons such that a line segment connecting any two polygonal vertices of the multiple polygons falls completely inside the generated polygonal hull. The multiple polygons may correspond to a two-dimensional geographic region. The computer-implemented method may be used for geographic regional segmentation.

Abstract: A communications device is configured to receive an input from a user device when the communications device is positioned proximate the user device. The user device includes a data store having at least an identifier. The communications device is configured to adjust at least one operational setting within the communications device upon receiving the input.

Abstract: In an exemplary method, mobile device attribute data is received from a plurality of mobile devices over a network. The mobile device attribute data includes location data representative of a plurality of geographic locations associated with the mobile devices. The method further includes selectively aggregating the mobile device attribute data and generating traffic condition data based at least in part on the mobile device attribute data. The traffic condition data is representative of at least one traffic condition. In certain embodiments, the mobile devices include mobile telephones and the network includes a mobile telephone network. In certain embodiments, the traffic condition data is real time data. In certain embodiments, at least a portion of the traffic condition data is provided for access over the network.

Abstract: A system includes a communications device configured to selectively allow communications in a plurality of communications protocols, and a router configured to receive a communications request from a user. The router may determine a preferred communications protocol from the plurality of communications protocols, based on at least a portion of the received communications request.

Abstract: A method may include receiving, by a video client, a screen capture request, determining a type of screen capture, generating screen capture type information based on a result of determining the type of screen capture, analyzing at least one of screen capture data or screen capture type information, and providing a service to a user of the video client based on the analysis of the at least one of screen capture data or screen capture type information.

Abstract: A method may provide an interactive video program to a user, receive, by a video client, audio data from a microphone based on the user's interactive speech during the interactive video program, and send, by the video client, the audio data to another device to verify at least one of that the audio data corresponds to the user or that the user completes the interactive video program.

Abstract: An approach is provided for monitoring traffic over a network link that is used to provide one or more services to one or more customers. A determination is made regarding whether a failure mode of the network link has occurred by comparing the monitored traffic to predetermined bandwidth criteria. A corrective action to be taken in response to the failure mode is selected, where selection of the corrective action to be taken is determined based on the failure mode. Further corrective actions selected iteratively from a predetermined list of successive actions are applied until the failure modes are addressed.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and a computer program product for providing web service testing are provided. The apparatus may include a processor that is configured to provide a user interface for a testing tool accessible in a distributed network architecture. The processor may also be configured to receive selections of an application(s) to be tested that is accessible in a distributed network architecture, a function(s) that is associated with the selected application and a method(s) that is associated with the selected function(s). Additionally, the processor may be configured to receive selections of a test case(s) that is associated with the selected method(s). Moreover, the processor may be configured to automatically conduct the selected test case(s).

Abstract: An approach for tagging media content (e.g., audio/video content) such that the tag call be used to access or manipulate the media content associated with the tag at a later time. A command is received from a user to request marking of the media content. A tag is automatically inserted therein based on predetermined criteria in response to the command. The media content can be accessed at a point specified by the tag.

Abstract: An approach is provided for presenting, via a set-top box, a displayable application providing content (e.g., community content) that is generated based on information corresponding to a user of the set-top box. The displayable application is overlay on video content of the set-top box.