Abstract: A system and method of cache replacement for streaming multimedia is provided. A network system includes a content provider connected to local service providers via an interactive distribution network, such as the Internet. The local service providers facilitate delivery of the content from the content provider to multiple subscribers. For each of the data blocks which make up the multimedia stream requested by a subscriber, the local service provider receiving the request determines whether the request can be serviced locally or whether the requested data blocks must be retrieved from the content provider. In the case where the portion of the requested stream must be retrieved from the content provider, the local service provider attempts to cache the requested blocks in its local cache in addition to streaming the data blocks to the requesting subscriber.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for enhancing existing caching systems to better support streaming media over the Internet and other public network system are disclosed herein. By using helpers inside the network, which operate as caching and streaming agents, existing caching techniques are enhanced to better support streaming media over the Internet. The helpers serve to implement several methods specifically designed to support streaming media, including proxy caching, client request aggregation which describes the use of memory and disk resources at the helpers, and data transfer rate control to reduce start-up latency. The method and apparatus advantageously reduces server and network loads by employing the above methods to overcome arrival time and range heterogeneity in client requests thereby improving the quality perceived by end users.

Abstract: Additional context-specific information is made available to a user at a client machine as the user at a client makes a request and retrieves information from a content provider on the Web. Such additional information is either generated or separately retrieved based on an analysis of the content of the response from a content provider to a request from the client and, optionally, the original request from the client. If this analysis indicates that additional context-specific information is needed, the original response from the content provider is provided to the client with an indication that such additional context-specific information is available.

Abstract: A content delivery system for a content provider that comprises at least two content delivery servers for delivering contents, a preference database for storing an estimated distance between each of the at least two content delivery servers and a client, and a content provider domain name server for mapping the name of the content provider to the at least two content delivery servers and selecting one of the content delivery servers to deliver the content, that has a shortest estimated distance to the client in the preference database.

Abstract: A system and method of cache replacement for streaming multimedia is provided. A network system includes a content provider connected to local service providers via an interactive distribution network, such as the Internet. The local service providers facilitate delivery of the content from the content provider to multiple subscribers. For each of the data blocks which make up the multimedia stream requested by a subscriber, the local service provider receiving the request determines whether the request can be serviced locally or whether the requested data blocks must be retrieved from the content provider. In the case where the portion of the requested stream must be retrieved from the content provider, the local service provider attempts to cache the requested blocks in its local cache in addition to streaming the data blocks to the requesting subscriber.

Abstract: A scalable system and method for locating a closest server in response to a client request via an interactive distribution network, such as the Internet, are provided. A closest content server is defined as having the least round trip time for responding to a client request. The system including a plurality of content servers; and a local server in communication with a plurality of clients, the local server acting as a proxy for communicating client requests from clients to a redirection server. Client network distance and load information is periodically collected at each content server in the network from clients communicating with each of the respective content servers. The redirection server periodically aggregates the network distance and load information from each content server to create client clusters from both current and previously aggregated network distance and load information. Each client cluster represents a division or partition of the total IP address space.