Abstract:
A system and method for controlling an interactive media system includes generating, by a first communication system, an information signal and a display signal for display by an electronic medium, transferring the information signal by a wireless signal transfer network, receiving and processing the information signal by a server, providing, by the server, data included in the information signal to a functional network, wherein the server retrieves return data from the functional network and provides the return data to a second communication system, generating, by the second communication system, a return information signal and providing the return information signal to the wireless signal transfer network, and transferring, by the wireless signal transfer network, the return information signal to the first communication system, which generates the display signal for display on the electronic medium.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a Divisional application of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/133,960, filed on Aug. 14, 1998, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present invention generally relates to wireless information transfer and interactive manipulation of such information using an electronic medium and, more particularly, relates to sending and receiving information, e.g., messages, text, and graphics, via a wireless medium and generating and/or viewing such information through a television. 
     2. Discussion of Related Art 
     It is known that a conventional television can receive information signals through a modem connected to a telephone line or audio/video signals through a cable line. However, transmission of audio/video signals is done in one direction and sending from the television is not possible or, at least, known to be a problem. Also, sending of signals long distance across a cable wire poses several problems due to, for example, signal loss. 
     Recently, the literature, particularly U.S. Pat. No. 5,404,393 to Remillard, discloses an electronic device and method for accessing facilities and displaying associated information on A conventional television sets. Information related to available facilities and programming are downloaded to electronic devices. However, all communications are through telephone lines or through cable. The signals which are transmitted across telephone lines have a bandwidth of around 3-5 MHz. For cable transmission, especially for sending the signals from the users or viewer for pay-per view requests, frequencies are limited to about 5 to 6 MHz per channel. 
     It would be highly advantageous to provide methods and apparatus for providing wireless transfer of information and interactive capability through a conventional television for generating, editing and/or viewing such information, for example, information related to financial markets, banking applications or information related to emergency situations (e.g., V distress-calls). For instance, being able to receive, as well as send, messages related to purchasing stocks would save time. Also, in an emergency situation, the ability to generate or receive a distress message via a persons&#39; television set would save time and, as a result, likely save lives. The wireless transmission would advantageously provide global long distance access of information. For clarity of information, it would also be desirable that the wireless medium be capable of transmitting digital signals. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY 
     According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for controlling an interactive media system includes generating, by a first communication system, an information signal and a display signal for display by an electronic medium, transferring the information signal by a wireless signal transfer network from the first communication system to a server, receiving and processing the information signal by the server, providing, by the server, data included in the information signal to a functional network, wherein the server retrieves return data from the functional network in response to the data including in the information signal and provides the return data to a second communication system, generating, by the second communication system, a return information signal in response to the return data and providing the return information signal to the wireless signal transfer network, and transferring, by the wireless signal transfer network, the return information signal to the first communication system, which generates the display signal for display on the electronic medium. 
     According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a wireless information signal transfer and interactive media system includes a first communication system, operatively coupled to an electronic medium configured to display a signal, the first communication system comprising a first transceiver unit and a first data processing unit for generating at least one information signal and for generating at least one display signal for display on the electronic medium, a wireless signal transfer network, operatively coupled to the first 
     communication system, for wirelessly transferring signals including the at least one information signal, a second communication system operatively coupled to the wireless transfer network, comprising a second transceiver unit and a second data processing unit for receiving and processing the at least one information signal, and a server, operatively coupled to the second communication system, for receiving and processing the at least one information signal and providing data included in the information signal to a functional network, wherein the server retrieves return data from the functional network and provides the return data to the second communication system, the second communication system generating at least one return information signal and providing the at least one return information signal to the wireless signal transfer network, the wireless signal transfer network wirelessly transferring the at least one return information signal to the first communication system, which generates the at least one display signal for display on the electronic medium. 
     According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for controlling an interactive media system includes generating, by a first communication system operatively coupled to an electronic medium configured to display a signal, at least one information signal, wherein the first communication system comprises a first transceiver unit and a first data processing unit, generating, by the first communication system, at least one display signal for display by the electronic medium, transferring signals, by a wireless signal transfer network operatively coupled to the first communication system, the signals including the at least one information signal, receiving and processing the at least one information signal by a server, operatively coupled to a second communication system, wherein the second communication system is operatively coupled to the wireless transfer network and comprises a second transceiver unit and a second data processing unit, providing, by the server, data included in the information signal to a functional network, wherein the server retrieves return data from the functional network and provides the return data to the second communication system, generating, by the second communication system, at least one return information signal and providing the at least one return information signal to the wireless signal transfer network, and transferring, by the wireless signal transfer network, the at least one return information signal to the first communication system, which generates the at least one display signal for display on the electronic medium. 
     As will be described in detail below, the present invention provides easy access across long distances to remote locations without the use of telephone lines or cables. Therein lies one of the advantages of the present invention, that is, being able to send and receive messages over long distances within the country, as well as globally. 
     As described above, an important need exists for clear, long distance transmission to and from a user in cooperation with interactive television services. The present invention preferably satisfies this and other needs by the use of satellite transmission with an uplink satellite frequency range of around 6-12 Ghz. In addition, the invention preferably takes full advantage of on-chip integrated circuit technology where CPU and memories and information processing circuitry are mounted on integrated circuitry inside the set-top box. Standard television medium is used to display text, messages and graphics, etc. 
     These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become A apparent from the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments thereof, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which the same reference numerals are used throughout the various figures to designate same or similar components. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a wireless information transfer and interactive television system according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a communication unit according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a satellite transceiver according to one embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIGS. 4A through 4D  are exemplary views of user-interactive windows generated according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , a block diagram of a wireless information transfer and interactive television system  100  according to the present invention is shown. In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the system  100  includes a television set  102 . It is to be appreciated that the television set  102  is a conventional television set capable of receiving display signal(s) (including text, graphics, etc.) formed according to the invention. It is to be further appreciated that the television set may have an additional port for receiving the display signal; however, display of the signal is accomplished in a conventional manner, that is, in a known manner in which other display signals may be processed and displayed by the television set. Alternatively, the display signal formed according to the present invention may be combined (e.g., superimposed) with a conventional television signal that the television set receives at its television signal port. In any case, processing and display of the display signal of the invention on the television screen is accomplished in a conventional manner and, as such, is not further discussed herein. 
     The television set  102  is operatively coupled to a communication unit  104 . As will be explained in the context of  FIG. 2 , the communication unit  104 , preferably in the form of a set-top box unit, provides information and display signal generating, editing and displaying functions in cooperation with a remote keyboard device ( 214  in  FIG. 2 ). The communication unit  104  is operatively coupled to a satellite network  106 . The satellite network  106  includes a plurality of satellite transceivers, e.g., transceivers  106 A, in communication with each other via one or more satellites  106 B. The satellite transceiver  106 A will be explained later in the context of  FIG. 3 . The satellite network itself may be a satellite communication network used for various commercial applications or a dedicated satellite network. However, it should be understood that while the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the context of  FIG. 1  includes satellite communication, other forms of wireless communication may be employed by the invention. 
     Nonetheless, the communication unit  104  coupled to the users&#39; television set  102  is operatively coupled to the satellite transceiver  106 A. The satellite transceiver  106 A is in communication with the remote satellite transceiver  106 A via the satellite  106 B. Another 
     communication unit  104  (remote communication unit), identical to the communication unit coupled to the television set  102 , is operatively coupled to the remote satellite transceiver  106 A and provides similar functions as the other communication unit. The remote communication unit  104  is also operatively coupled to a network sever  110 . It is to be understood that the network server is a digital computer capable of coordinating data requests and messages generated in accordance with the invention. The server  110  is shown as being operatively coupled to a wide area network  112  such as the Internet; however, the server  110  may alternatively be coupled to a local area network. 
     It is to be understood that the specific functions of the server  110  depend on the applications with which the system  100  of the invention are employed. For instance, if a user of the system  100  is interested in retrieving financial data, the server  110  would receive such a request as generated at the user station and then search the network to which it is connected for the requested information. In the case that the server  110  is connected to the Internet, the user may, for example, direct a particular request to a financial web site by selecting the appropriate web address from a menu on his television screen. The server  110  uses the Q address and the request and retrieves the information on the Internet. The server  110  then provides the information to the remote communication unit  104  for transmission through the satellite network  106  back to the user station. Also, e-mail messages may be generated on the television set and transferred to a mail server on the Internet. Also, return e-mail may be received in a similar manner. It is to be appreciated that the internal architecture of the server  110  is not critical to the invention and, as such, the server  110  may be configured as an appropriately programmed general purpose digital computer capable of operating as a server with a central processing unit (CPU) coupled to RAM, ROM, a mass storage memory E device, and input/output devices via a computer bus. In addition, in a further embodiment, the server  110  is preferably coupled to a paging system  114  which is in communication with a plurality of wireless pagers, such as pager  116 . Still further, in yet another embodiment, the server  110  is preferably coupled to an emergency response network  118  (e.g., 911 operator) which, as mentioned, provides the user with the ability to send a distress message to emergency personnel (e.g., police, tire, medical) in order to provide needed assistance to the user. It is to be appreciated that the server  110  is preferably connected to each of the 1 various application-specific service networks via conventional modems over telephone lines. As is known, the Internet  112  is comprised of various functional servers with modems with which the server  110  can communicate with using its own internal modem. For example, in case of e-mail, the server  110  communicates with a mail server on the Internet. Likewise, in the paging system ( 114 ) embodiment and the emergency response network ( 118 ) embodiment, each system also has a server with a modem for communicating with the server  110 . 
     Preferably, the communication unit  104  at the user station is in the form of a set-top box and is mounted on top of or next to the television set  102 . As will be explained, the user generates signals which may include, for example, messages, e-mail, graphics, video and ¤ audio at the user station. The signals are provided to the satellite transceiver  106 A which transmits them across the satellite network, via the satellite  106 B, to the remote satellite 
     transceiver  106 A which is tuned to the satellite  106 B. Another communication unit  104  connected to the remote satellite transceiver  106 A transmits the signals to the server  110  which in turn delivers them to the Internet  112 , the pager  116 , or the emergency response network  118 . 
     The process of transmitting info illation back to the user station from the Internet  112  or the pager  116  is as follows. The server  110  receives such information from the network  112  or A the pager  116  and provides the information to the communication unit  104  connected thereto. Return information from the emergency response network  118  is also handled in the same manner. The communication unit  104  generates the signal to be transmitted to the user and provides the signal to the satellite transceiver  106 A which transmits the information signal through the satellite network  106  to the user station transceiver  106 A. The signal received by the user station transceiver  106 A is provided to the communication unit  104  connected thereto which then processes the signal and provides the information to the television set  102  for display thereon to the user. As will be explained, other signals may be transmitted by the transceiver  106 A or received for display by the television set  102 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , an embodiment of a communication unit  104  for providing the interactive television functions of the invention is shown. The communication unit  104  includes a computer bus  202  for operatively coupling a central processing unit (CPU)  204  with a mass storage device  205 , an input/output (I/O) controller  208 , a graphics controller  216 , and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC)  220 . The CPU  204  has its own RAM coupled thereto, i.e., SRAM  206 . The mass storage device serves as a larger memory storage facility for the processes performed by the CPU  204 . An audio detector  210 , an infrared detector  212 , and an LED indicator  213  are operatively coupled to the I/O controller  208 . A remote keyboard unit  214  is in wireless communication with the audio and infrared detectors  210  and  212 . The graphics controller  216  is operatively coupled to its own RAM, i.e., VRAM  218 . The DAC  220  is preferably operatively coupled to a signal combiner  201  which is operatively coupled to the transceiver  106 A and to the television set  102 . 
     The CPU  204  controls the overall operations of the communication unit  104 . The CPU communicates with the I/O controller  208 , the graphics controller  216  and the DAC  220  over 1 the computer bus  202 . Operation of the communication unit  104  will now follow. 
     The remote keyboard  214  is used to invoke menu-driven windows  103  on the screen of the television set  102  for the user to be able to generate and edit messages and view information received from the server  110 . The menu-driven windows  103  are generated from the display signals provided from the communication unit  104  to the television set  102 . As mentioned, similar to any display signal presented independently to the television or combined (e.g., superimposed) on a standard television signal (via signal combiner  221 ), the display signals (which may include, for example, text and graphics) of the invention are processed and displayed by the television in a conventional manner, Also, the actual layout and content of the menu-driven windows are specific to the application with which the user is using the 1 system, e.g., e-mail, paging, financial market tracking or analysis, emergency message generation, etc. Examples of menu-driven windows will be explained in the context of  FIGS. 4A through 4D . 
     The remote keyboard  214  preferably includes a keyboard portion  214 A and a speaker phone portion  214 B. The keyboard portion  214 A is similar to a conventional keyboard, that is, it preferably includes standard alphanumeric characters and function keys, e.g., similar to a standard QWERTY keyboard. Menus are activated using the keyboard and the messages are typed in. For receipt of audio uttered by a user, there is a speaker phone portion  214 B provided. As mentioned, a conventional trackball may also be included as part of the keyboard portion  214 A. In such case, the movement of the trackball by the user corresponds to the movement of an on-screen cursor. The user can then click on icons in the menus in order to control functions and make selections. Messages, control information, and audio are detected by the infrared detector and audio detector, respectively. The keyboard portion  214 A includes an infrared transmitter  215  for transmitting the keystrokes or movements performed by the user on the keyboard to the infrared detector  212 . The infrared detector  212  then provides the information to the I/O controller  208  which then converts the T information to digital form and sends the information to the CPU  204  via bus  202 . Any data manipulation and instruction fetches are controlled by the CPU  204  in cooperation with an associated cache memory (SRAM  206 ). The instructions are passed to the graphic controller  216  via bus  202  which essentially controls the generation of the display signals and display of the menu-driven windows  103  on the television set  102 . The VRAM  218  serves as a main memory of the graphic controller  216  and is used to store the pixels of the menu-driven windows  103 , as well as colors, if needed. The output of the graphic controller  216  is then converted from a digital signal to an analog signal which is then subsequently displayed on the television set  102 . 
     As mentioned, the present invention also preferably includes audio capability. The user utters messages, rather than typing them, and the uttered messages are picked up by the speaker phone portion  214 B of the remote keyboard unit and transmitted to the audio detector  210  via RF transmitter  217 . The audio detector  210  provides the audio to the I/O controller  208  which converts the signal into digital form and sends it to the CPU  204  via bus  202 . The CPU  204  then sends the audio data to the graphics controller  216  which generates text from the data and displays the text message in the appropriate places in the menu driven windows  103  displayed on the television set  102 . 
     When a signal is received from the satellite transceiver  106 A, as will be explained, the CPU  204  instructs the I/O controller  208  to illuminate the LED indicator  213 _to inform the user that requested and/or new information has been received. 
     Furthermore, the CPU  204  of the remote communication unit  104  is operatively coupled to the server  110  (i.e., the CPU of the server  110 ). In this way, the CPU 4204  transmits the users request or message, received on the satellite network, to the server so that the server  110  may process the request or message and access the network  112 , the pager system  114 , or the emergency response network  118 . Likewise, the requested information or a return message is provided to the CPU of the server  110 , which then passes it on to the CPU  204  of the remote communication unit  104 . The CPU  204  then passes the information to the transceiver  106 A for transmission back to the user station. 
     It is to be appreciated that the remote communication unit  104 , connected to the server  110 , preferably includes identical components as the communication unit at the user station so it can also be connected to a television set to display menu-driven windows, if desired. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , an embodiment of a satellite transceiver  106 A according to the invention is shown. The satellite transceiver  106 A includes a signal transmission portion and a signal reception portion. The signal transmission portion includes a PCM converter  222   1  and a delta encoder  224  operatively coupled to a multiplexer (MUX)  228 . The MUX  228  is operatively coupled to an encoder  230 , which is operatively coupled to a modulator  232 . The modulator  232  is operatively coupled to an up-converter (U/C)  234 , which is operatively coupled to a high power amplifier (HPA)  236 . The HPA  236  is operatively coupled to an ortho coupler  238 , which is operatively coupled to an antenna  239 . 
     The signal reception portion also includes the antenna  239  operatively coupled to a low noise amplifier (LNA)  240 . The LNA  240  is operatively coupled to a down-converter (D/C)  242 , which is operatively coupled to a demodulator  244 . The demodulator  244  is operatively coupled to a decoder  246 , which is operatively coupled to a demultiplexer (DEMUX)  248 . The DEMUX  248  is operatively coupled to a PCM conversion unit  250  and a delta decoder  252 . The antenna  239  is in communication with one or more satellites  106 B in the satellite network  106 . 
     Further, the transmission portion of the transceiver  106 A is operatively coupled to the communication unit  104  via the CPU  204  of the communication unit and, as such, the CPU  204  provides data  226  to the transmission portion for transmission to a remote station (e.g., sever  110 ). Likewise, the CPU  204  is operatively coupled to the reception portion of the 0 transceiver  106 A and, as such, receives data  254  from the reception portion for processing and display on the television set  102 . 
     The operation of the transmission portion of the satellite transceiver  106 A will now be described. Data  226  is provided from the CPU  204  of the communication unit  104  to the transceiver  106 A. This data is in digital form and represents the information (e.g., request or message) which the user wishes to be sent to the server  110 . In addition, other external analog data signals may be passed through a baseband processor (not shown) which can digitize the signals, if necessary, and which can combine the signal with any other inputs to form a digital stream. Alternatively, analog-to-digital conversion of such other external signals may be accomplished via a pulse code modulation (PCM) unit  222  or a delta encoder  224 . 
     If data is also provided by the PCM unit  222  and/or the delta encoder  224 , the MUX  228  multiplexes (i.e., selects) the signals from the PCM unit  222 , and/or the delta encoder  224 , and the data  226  from the CPU  204 . If only data  226  is present, then the data  226  is passed through the MUX  228 . Nonetheless, the output of the MUX  228  is encoded by the encoder  230 . The encoded digital signal is then modulated by the modulator  232 . The modulator  232  transforms the signal to a suitable format for transmission. The modulator output is normally centered around 70-140 MHZ. In a digital modulator, input bits are used to modulate amplitude, frequency or phase of the carrier, either individually or in combination. This determines the power and bandwidth efficiency of the modulation technique. The modulator output is then translated to a radio frequency (RF) output by up-converter (U/C)  234  via linear translation. The output is amplified by high power amplifier (HPA)  236  depending on the power requirement in the uplink. Generally, these uplink frequencies are in the range of about 6-12 GHz. The antenna  239  is connected to the HPA  236  via ortho coupler  238 . The ortho coupler  238  allows the simultaneous use of the antenna for transmission and reception of signals. The signal is then transmitted by the antenna  239  to satellite  106 B. 
     The operation of the reception portion of the satellite transceiver  106 A will now be described. The low noise amplifier (LNA)  240  receives a wideband signal from the satellite_via the antenna  239  and the ortho coupler  238 . The LNA  240  amplifies the wideband signal received from the satellite. The low noise amplified signal is then down converted by frequency down converter (D/C)  242 . Corresponding downlinks for commercial•communications are about 4 to 12 GHz. The signal is then demodulated by demodulator  244  in a manner preferably complementary to the modulation technique of modulator  232 . The signal is then decoded by decoder  246  in a manner preferably complementary to the encoding technique of encoder  230 . The DEMUX then demultiplexes the signal, if necessary (i.e., if other signals are present with the information signal returned from the sever  110 ). The other signals may then be provided to the PCM conversion unit  250  and/or to the delta decoder  252 , which respectively perform digital-to-analog conversion of respective analog signals received from the DEMUX  248 . The analog signals are then preferably provided to the communication unit  104 , where the combiner unit  221  combines the signals with the signal output from the DAC  220  and then provides the combined signal to the television set  102 . 
     Alternatively, the other signals may be provided directly to the television set  102 , while the output of the DAC  220  is separately input to the television set  102 , in which case, 1 the combiner  221  would not be necessary. It is to be appreciated that such other signals may be separate television signals received by the satellite network  106  for display on the television set  102 . As mentioned, regardless of whether there are any additional signals received by the transceiver  106 A, the information signal is output from the DEMUX  248  as data  254  and n provided to the CPU  204  of the communication unit  104 . In the communication unit  104 , the digital signal is then processed by the CPU  204  and stored in the hard disk  205  or SRAM  206 . Once the signal is received the LED indicator  213  on the communication unit illuminates. The CPU  204  then provides the appropriate information to the graphics controller  216  which, in response, generates the appropriate display signals. The user then views the received messages and/or information on the screen of the television set  102  in cooperation with the remote keyboard unit  214  and the application-specific menu-driven functions. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 4A through 4D , some examples of application-specific menu-driven windows are illustrated. As mentioned, these windows are generated on the television set  102  in response to the display signals generated by the communication unit  104 . The user uses the remote keyboard  214  to activate desired windows, enter data, and make selections. When a user is presented with options on the user menu ( FIG. 4A ), each of the options open up into a sub-menu containing information and selection options specific to the subject matter of that sub-menu. The selections and data entered by the user in accordance with the sub-menu are processed by the CPU  204  which creates the information signal(s) to go to the server  110  for further execution. For example, in the menu window shown in  FIG. 4A , when a user clicks on the icon “E-MAIL”, the window shown in  FIG. 4B  is displayed on the television set  102 . In this window, the user may enter e-mail related information such as the e-mail address to which the e-mail is to be sent, any additional e-mail addresses to be copied, and the text of the e-mail message. Based on the information that the user fills out, a message string such as: “e-mail suchi at xyz.com. This is a test.” is created by the CPU  204  of the communication unit  104  and sent to the server  110  as an information signal. The server  110  executes the e-mail function. That is, the server  110  connects to a mail server facility (e.g., via respective internal modems therein over a telephone line) and forwards the e-mail message in accordance with the mail server to the Internet  12  according to the e-mail address specified in the message string. Of course, return e-mail messages, when received, are displayed in this window. 
     Similarly, if the user clicks on the “PAGER” icon in the user menu ( FIG. 4A ), then the paging sub-menu, shown in  FIG. 4C , is displayed on the television set  102 . The user then enters a pager identification number (PIN) of the person to be paged, the paging company or service to be used, and the message. From this information, the CPU  204  generates a string such as: “page 01234567 xyz company Bring home milk.” The string is sent to the server  110  which contacts (dials) the paging company server (via respective internal modems over a telephone line) and submits the PIN and message to the paging system. The paging server then sends out a page signal via its own wireless network (e.g., satellite network) to the intended recipient. If the recipient responds from their pager back to the paging system, the paging server dials server  110  and dispatches the return message. The return message is sent back to the user station for display on the television set in this window. Thus, two way messaging is accomplished. 
     Still further, when the user clicks on the “FINANCIAL INFO” icon in the user menu ( FIG. 4A ), a financial information window, as shown in  FIG. 4D , is displayed on the television set  102 . The window shown in  FIG. 4D  is a stock transaction window. However, similar windows for other financial market transactions may be generated according to the invention (e.g., mutual funds, banking, etc.). The window provides the 1 user with information pertaining to stocks and provides the user with the ability to perform transactions, such as selecting a broker, and buying or selling a particular stock. Similar to the above examples, a message string is generated and sent to server  110  which then connects with the appropriate financial web site to provide two-way communication. Return information may also be displayed to the user in this window. 
     It is to be appreciated that given the above examples, one of ordinary skill in the art will contemplate examples of distress message windows displayable upon clicking on the “DISTRESS MESSAGE” icon in the user menu of  FIG. 4A . Also, in one embodiment of the invention, rather than display any particular window, the CPU  204  generates a predetermined distress message when the user clicks on the “DISTRESS MESSAGE” icon. For example, the message could be a general call to 911 for emergency service. As explained, the request signal is transmitted to the server  110  which dials the 911 service (i.e., emergency response network  118 ). Also, return messages or inquiries could be sent Aback to the user station, in which case an appropriate message window would be displayed n on the television set allowing the user to read the return message and, if necessary, respond thereto. 
     Although illustrative embodiments of the present invention have been described herein with Q reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various other changes and modifications may be affected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention.