Patent ID: 9641901
Date: 2017-05-02
CPC Classifications: H04N

Claim:
1. A method for displaying an electronic program guide (EPG), comprising the steps of: (A) receiving broadcasting signals; (B) collecting broadcasting program information from received broadcasting signals; (C) acquiring information of currently-broadcast programs from the broadcasting program information; (D) forming an EPG which includes one or more page screens each having a plurality of program name display regions, wherein the program name display regions are classified according to preset classification criteria and texts each including a part of the name of a current-broadcast program (hereinafter, referred to as ‘current program names’) are listed in each of the classified program name display regions; (E) displaying a page screen through a display unit; (F) moving a focus on the program names arranged on the page screen in four directions according to a user manipulation; and (G) displaying information on a current program name corresponding to the focus on a separate region of the page screen, wherein the step (B) comprises the step of acquiring information on a program which is to be broadcast after the currently-broadcast program, and the step (C) comprises the step of arranging a text including a part of the name of a next program (hereinafter, referred to as ‘next program name’) such that the next program name is associated with the current program name, when a finish time of the currently-broadcast program falls within a preset reference time from the present time, wherein the step (E) comprises the step of displaying an identification symbol on the page screen, the identification symbol indicating the order of a current page screen among the entire page screens forming the EPG, and the step (F) comprises the steps of: when the movement of the focus based on the user manipulation is performed toward the outside of the page screen in the left or right direction, displaying a previous page screen or next page screen; and reflecting the change in the order of the current page screen, which is caused by the page movement, into the identification symbol, and displaying the identification symbol on the page screen, wherein the step (F) comprises the step of maintaining the position of the focus on the entire screen, when the movement of the page screen is performed, wherein the step (G) comprises the step of displaying a lasting time and a remaining time of a broadcasting program corresponding to the current program name where the focus is positioned, by using a graph, wherein the step (C) comprises the step of vertically dividing the page screen into the plurality of program name display regions, and vertically arranging the classification criteria and the current program names in the respective program name display regions to form the EPG, further comprising the steps of: when a broadcasting program corresponding to the current program name was watched and is not yet finished, displaying a snapshot image of a last watched frame of the broadcasting program with the current program name; and when the broadcasting program is finished, removing the snapshot image of the last watched frame from the page screen.