Patent ID: 8191094
Filing Date: 2012-05-29
Classification: H04H

Abstract:
1. A method of facilitating channel selection, comprising: receiving at a content player device one or more cumulative channel-filter inputs, each cumulative channel-filter input mapped to both a number and a letter; in response to receiving a first of the one or more cumulative channel-filter inputs, overlaying by the content player device a filtered channel list with currently playing video content, the filtered channel list including content currently available for viewing and content that is not currently available for viewing but is available for future viewing, the filtered channel list including channels having a channel number at least partially matched by one or more numbers to which the cumulative channel-filter inputs are mapped, channels having a channel name at least partially matched by one or more letters to which the cumulative channel-filter inputs are mapped, and channels having a program name at least partially matched by one or more letters to which the cumulative channel-filter inputs are mapped; in response to receiving each of the one or more cumulative channel-filter inputs, progressively filtering the filtered channel list to include only channels identified by the cumulative channel-filter inputs received; visually emphasizing in the filtered channel list the appearance of filtered letters or numbers at least partially matching a filtered channel number, channel name, or program name relative to the appearance of letters or numbers in the filtered channel list that do not match the filtered channel number, channel name, or program name; automatically playing or recording content from a channel after the filtered channel list is narrowed to only that channel, the content being automatically played without receiving further user selections if that content is currently available for viewing, and the content being automatically recorded when available without receiving further user selections if that content is not currently available for viewing but is available for future viewing; wherein the filtered channel list includes: a number list of channels having a channel number that matches the one or more cumulative channel-filter input; a name list of channels having a channel name that matches the one or more cumulative channel-filter inputs; a current list of channels having a current program that matches the one or more cumulative channel-filter inputs, and the number list, the name list, and the current list are each shown separately and simultaneously in the filtered channel list.