Abstract: Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed to estimate an audience population. An example apparatus includes at least one memory; instructions in the apparatus; and processor circuitry to execute the instructions to: determine whether respective ones of respondents are associated with a characteristic; detect unique instances of the respective ones of the respondents; in response to the respective ones of the respondents being associated with the characteristic, increase a sample capture count by one; in response to detecting the unique instances of the respective ones of the respondents exhibiting the characteristic, increase a unique capture count by one; determine a seed population estimate based on the unique capture count; and determine a population estimate having the characteristic based on the sample capture count, the unique capture count, the seed population estimate, and a number of available samples.

Abstract: In one aspect, a method includes receiving a first request for first supplemental content for use by a content-presentation device in performing a first content-modification operation, receiving a second request for second supplemental content for use by a tuner device in performing a second content-modification operation. The method also includes determining that the content-presentation device is connected to the tuner device, and based at least in part on the first and second requests, determining that the first and second requests are associated with the same modifiable content-segment, and, in response to the determinations, using one or more parameters as a basis to select for performance an action from a set of actions including a first action that facilitates performance of the first content-modification operation and a second action that facilitates performance of the second content-modification operation.

Abstract: A system for navigating, exploring, and controlling immersive content and immersive advertisements provided on one or more OTT television applications using connected digital media players and/or user computing devices is presented. Immersive content and immersive advertisements are content and advertisements that can be viewed in 360 degrees so as to change the point of view and view the same content or advertisement from different angles. The user is enabled to control the playback, navigation, and exploration of the 360-degree immersive content and immersive advertisements using a digital trackpad in a downloadable 360-degree media player that can be applied as a separate application integration on a user's smartphone or other device or that can be integrated into the OTT mobile application. Other connected streaming devices can also integrate the 360-degree media player to allow for 360 degree exploration and viewing of the immersive content and immersive advertisements.

Abstract: Provided are systems, methods, and computer-program products for identifying a media content stream when the media content stream is playing an unscheduled media segment. A computing device may receive a plurality of media content streams, where at least two of the plurality of media content streams concurrently includes a same unscheduled media segment. The computing device may determine that the media display device is playing the unscheduled media segment by examining the media content available at the current time in each of the plurality of media content streams. The computing device may determine identification information from the media content included in the media content stream. The computing device may determine contextually-related content, which may be disabled while the unscheduled media segment is being played by the media display device. The computing device may display the media content stream and the contextually-related content after the unscheduled media segment has been played.

Abstract: An embodiment according to the present disclosure provides a display apparatus including a display, an audio output interface, a memory, a communication interface configured to connect to a terminal of a user, and a processor configured to output, via at least one of the display or the audio output interface, content stored in the memory or received through the communication interface, determine a position of the terminal to which the communication interface is connected, determine whether the position of the terminal is outside of a viewing area, and based on determining that the position of the terminal is outside of the viewing area, output the content to the terminal.

Abstract: A method, computer system, and a computer program product for playing a video recording that includes captions, wherein each caption includes a textual transcription of an audio portion of the video, a description of non-speech elements of the video, or both, is provided. The present invention may include rendering a video, identifying a first portion of the video that includes a first caption, and, in response to identifying the first portion of the video, estimating a second time period for a particular user to read and understand text in the first caption. The present invention may further include determining whether the second time period for the particular user to read and understand text in the first caption is greater than the first time period for rendering the first portion of the video. The present invention may lastly include pausing the video for a third time period.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, and processor-readable storage media for automated issue detection and remediation across multiple user systems using healing-as-a-service techniques are provided herein. An example computer-implemented method includes obtaining system configuration data from at least a portion of multiple user systems within a network; obtaining an alert pertaining to an issue attributed to a first of the user systems; training a machine learning model related to user system issue detection using at least a portion of the system configuration data and data related to the alert; determining user system configuration adjustments related to remedying at least a portion of the issue, by processing the data related to the alert using the trained machine learning model; automatically performing the user system configuration adjustments in connection with the first user system; and sharing, using at least one healing-as-a-service component, the trained machine learning model with the user systems in the network.

Abstract: A method to provide secure delivery of a manifest file for use in playback of a video signal on a video player. The method includes establishing a connection with the video player, wherein the connection has a session identifier identifying the connection with the video player, receiving a request from the video player for the video signal, wherein the video signal is associated with the manifest file created for the video signal, customizing, using the session identifier identifying the connection with the video player, the manifest file created for the video player to provide a customized manifest file that is unique to the video player, the customized manifest file to be used in playback of the video signal on the video player, encrypting the customized manifest file using a manifest encryption key which is based on the session identifier identifying the connection with the video player, and transmitting the encrypted manifest file to the video player.

Abstract: One variation of a method includes: rendering a home screen of an ad stream viewed on a display of a streaming device accessed by a user, the home screen including an image player located in a first subregion of the home screen and a set of icons selectable by the user, each icon corresponding to a video advertisement loaded within the image player; in response to detecting a first user input proximal a first icon, reconfiguring the image player to a second subregion of the home screen and triggering playback of a first video advertisement within the image player; and, during playback of the first video advertisement, in response to receiving a second user input proximal the first icon, reconfiguring the image player to a third subregion of the home screen, activating an audio stream corresponding to the first video advertisement, and continuing playback of the first video advertisement.

Abstract: System and methods are described to determining a recommendation for a user based on changes in objects detected on a network-connected surface. The system receives, from the network-connected surface, a plurality of object identifiers for a plurality of physically inanimate objects of different types detected on the network-connected surface, wherein the object identifiers indicate a positioning of each object; determines, based on the object identifiers, a first arrangement of the plurality of physically inanimate objects; detects one or more changes in the plurality of object identifiers, wherein the one or more changes correspond to one or more changes in positioning from the first arrangement; in response to detecting the one or more changes, determines a second arrangement of the plurality of physically inanimate objects; and generates a content recommendation based on the second arrangement.

Abstract: The invention is relates to systems and methods for high dynamic range (HDR) image capture and video processing in mobile devices. Aspects of the invention include a mobile device, such as a smartphone or digital mobile camera, including at least two image sensors fixed in a co-planar arrangement to a substrate and an optical splitting system configured to reflect at least about 90% of incident light received through an aperture of the mobile device onto the co-planar image sensors, to thereby capture a HDR image. In some embodiments, greater than about 95% of the incident light received through the aperture of the device is reflected onto the image sensors.

Abstract: A method and system for controlling dynamic content modification such as dynamic advertisement insertion. An example method includes detecting presence of an emergency-alert audio tone in a media stream accessible to a media client, and responsively causing the media client to abandon a dynamic content modification, such as to forgo a planned dynamic content modification or to discontinue an in-progress dynamic content modification. This method could occur while the media client is processing a given media stream for presentation, and the method could include detecting presence of the emergency-alert audio tone in the given media stream or alternatively in another media stream accessible to the media client. And in the latter case, the method could further involve causing the media client to switch from processing the given media stream for presentation to instead processing the other media stream for presentation, which could facilitate presenting of an associated emergency alert.

Abstract: Techniques are described for automated operations involving capturing and analyzing information from an interior of a house, building or other structure, for use in generating and providing a representation of that interior. Such techniques may include using a user's mobile device to capture visual data from multiple viewing locations (e.g., video captured while the mobile device is rotated for some or all of a full 360 degree rotation at each viewing location) within multiple rooms, capturing data linking the multiple viewing locations, analyzing each viewing location's visual data to create a panorama image from that viewing location, analyzing the linking data to determine relative positions/directions between at least some viewing locations, creating inter-panorama links in the panoramas to each of one or more other panoramas based on such determined positions/directions, and providing information to display multiple linked panorama images to represent the interior.

Abstract: Systems and methods for presenting custom navigation options are described herein. In some embodiments, the media guidance application displays a first portion of a media asset, and receives a user selection of an entity depicted within the portion. The media guidance application identifies a playlist of media asset portions associated with the entity, and generates for display a transport bar associated with the entity comprising an indicator identifying the entity and only one or more regions associated with the playlist of media asset portions. The media guidance application then receives a second user selection, and generates for display a second portion of the media asset associated with the entity in response. In some embodiments, the media guidance application identifies the playlist by searching a custom presentation database for entries associated with the entity, and retrieves the playlist from the identified entry.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to a CATV & MoCA® device, such as a RF signal amplifier. The RF signal amplifier includes a RF input port to receive signals from, and transmit signals to, a service provider. The RF input port is connected to an active communication path with a downstream signal amplifier leading to an input of a resistive splitter network. The resistive splitter network has plural interconnected resistors, which split the amplified signal received at the input of the resistive splitter network and provide the signal to plural “CATV & MoCA®” output ports. Upstream CATV signals received by the “CATV & MoCA®” output ports are combined by the resistive splitter network and sent to the RF input port to be transmitted to the service provider. MoCA® signals received by any one of the “CATV & MoCA®” output ports are carried by the resistive splitter network to the other “CATV & MoCA®” output ports, and potentially to other “MoCA® only” ports of the RF signal amplifier.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method of using Linear, DVR, and VOD video viewing activity data as input to a data translation processor which prepares that viewing activity for more efficient downstream processing by translating detailed values to aggregated values according to analyst defined translation rules in preparation for ingestion by a MapReduce Framework with the result that the MapReduce Framework needs to process less data in order to create analytical studies of second-by-second viewing activity for program, channel, house, device, viewer, demographic, and geographic attributes. The source data may be extracted from a database defined according to the Cable Television Laboratories, Inc. Media Measurement Data Model defined in “Audience Data Measurement Specification” as “OpenCable™ Specifications, Audience Measurement, Audience Measurement Data Specification” document OC-SP-AMD-101-130502 or any similar format.

Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for generating a video stream for followers of an influencer during a session. The method includes capturing video images of an environment of the influencer, wherein the environment includes the influencer viewing an online content channel. The method includes detecting surface parameters in the environment and processing the surface parameters to identify three-dimensional features associated with the surface parameter. The method includes identifying a follower that is viewing the influencer. The method includes generating an overlay image for at least one of the surface parameters, the overlay image is configured for dynamic contouring to the identified three-dimensional features during the session. The overlay image is selected based on a profile of the follower so that the video stream received by the follower when viewing the influencer is customized based on the profile of the follower.

Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to determining that a wireless device associated with one user account is proximate to a computing device associated with another user account. In response to determining the proximity of the two devices, one or more of the devices may receive merged access to permissions and/or content associated with the two user accounts. In response to determining that the wireless device is not proximate to the computing device, the devices may no longer receive merged access to permissions and/or content associated with the two user accounts.

Abstract: A companion device interoperating with a broadcast reception device for receiving a broadcast signal, can include a communication device configured to connect the companion device with the broadcast reception device, in which the broadcast signal includes emergency alert information and service information for a broadcast service, and the service information includes service identification information for identifying the broadcast service and name information of the broadcast service, and the emergency alert information and the service information are carried in Internet Protocol (IP) packets having a same IP address; and a controller configured to receive the emergency alert information from the broadcast reception device, the emergency alert information including identifier information for the emergency alert information, category information of the emergency alert information, and priority information for the emergency alert information, and the controller receiving information for components of the broadc

Abstract: “Binge watching” of multiple episodes of a program is improved by the player device automatically skipping repeated portions of the program. Opening and closing credit scenes, for example, can be automatically skipped to thereby allow the viewer to progress through the entire season of programming at an even faster rate than was previously thought possible. Programming to be skipped may be identified by detecting audio or other digital fingerprints in the content itself, for example. Content to be skipped may be identified to the playback device according to presentation time stamp (PTS) or other time markers.