Abstract:
A system and method for communicating media consumption activity information are disclosed. Various aspects of the present invention may support the reporting of user media requests to a server that may record information about the user and the requested media. Parameters may be established that are matched against characteristics of media selected for consumption by a user. If it is determined that a match exists, a notification of the media request may be sent. The notification may identify the user requesting the media, and characteristics of the requested media. Server software may store and share information about user media consumption with a third party.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS/INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE  
       [0001]    This application makes reference to, claims priority to, and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/478,286, entitled “Media Processing System Communicating Activity Information To Support User And User Base Profiling And Consumption Feedback” (Attorney Docket 15037US01 01041P-BP-2847), filed Jun. 13, 2003, U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 60/432,472, entitled “Personal Inter-Home Media Exchange Network” (Attorney Docket No. 14185US01 01001P-BP-2800), filed Dec. 11, 2002, and U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 60/443,894, entitled “Personal Access And Control Of Media Peripherals On A Media Exchange Network” (Attorney Docket No. 14274US01 01002P-BP-2801), filed Jan. 30, 2003, the complete subject matter of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference, in their entirety.  
         [0002]    In addition, the applicants hereby incorporate the complete subject matter herein by reference, in their entirety, of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/447,287, entitled “Media Processing System Communicating Activity Information To Support User Interaction During Media Broadcasts” (Attorney Docket No. 15039US01 01040P-BP-2846), filed Jun. 13, 2003, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/448.705, entitled “Media Exchange Network With Media Guide Interface” (Attorney Docket No. 14330US01 01018P-BP-2819), filed Feb. 18, 2003, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/457,179, entitled “Server Architecture Supporting A Personal Media Exchange Network” (Attorney Docket No. 14825US01 01015P-BP-2831), filed Mar. 25, 2003, U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. ______, entitled “Personal Inter-Home Media Exchange Network” (Attorney Docket No. 14185US02 01001P-BP-2800), filed Sep. 8, 2003, and U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. ______, entitled “Personal Access And Control Of Media Peripherals On A Media Exchange Network” (Attorney Docket No. 14274US02 01002P-BP-2801), filed Sep. 11, 2003. 
     
    
     
       FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
         [0003]    [Not Applicable] 
         SEQUENCE LISTING  
         [0004]    [Not Applicable] 
         MICROFICHE/COPYRIGHT REFERENCE  
         [0005]    [Not Applicable] 
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0006]    The popularity of recorded forms of entertainment that are rented or sold can easily be tracked by the vendors engaged in the sale or rental of the material. This measurement method is reasonably accurate, but the timeliness of the resulting statistics is poor. It can take days or weeks for the numbers to be rolled up into regional or national statistics.  
           [0007]    Consumption of program materials distributed via television, cable, or radio is monitored using a variety of means. The TV viewing habits of a majority of households is tracked using a paper viewing diary that is filled in at regular time intervals by the viewers as they view their program selections. The diaries are typically returned by regular mail to the rating service after the monitoring interval is completed. This can result in significant delays in the reporting of program viewing behavior. In addition, viewers may forget to record their viewing activity in the diary, affecting the accuracy of the results. Other households are monitored using an electronic device connected to the television set. This can provide a more accurate and timely indication of viewer behavior, but requires the installation of specialized equipment at each household to be monitored.  
           [0008]    Viewer interest in some programs may be tracked by observing viewer response to accompanying promotions, or viewer access to supplemental information on the Internet. The level of user activity at associated web pages may be an indicator of the number of program viewers and the level of user interest. This form of monitoring, however, requires the user to take specific and more demanding secondary actions apart from the viewing of the program material being tracked. The accuracy of the measured level of interest or participation is dependent upon the user making the additional effort to access the related Internet site.  
           [0009]    Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such systems with the present invention as set forth in the remainder of the present application with reference to the drawings.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    Aspects of the present invention may be found in a method of communicating activity information to support user and user base profiling and consumption feedback in a communication network. Such a method may comprise establishing at a first location, from a second location, at least one parameter related to monitoring media consumption activity of a user at the first location. It may also comprise receiving, at the first location, a media request from the user, the requested media having an associated set of pre-defined characteristics. An embodiment of the present invention may comprise determining, at the first location, whether the associated set of pre-defined characteristics matches the at least one parameter. An embodiment of the present invention may send notification of the media request to a second location, via a communication network, if the determining results in a match, and may refrain from sending a notification of the media request to the second location, via the communication network, if the determining does not result in a match.  
           [0011]    In an embodiment of the present invention, the first location may be associated with at least one of an Internet protocol (IP) address, a media access control (MAC) address, and an electronic serial number (ESN). The communication network may comprise at least one of a cable infrastructure, a satellite network infrastructure, a digital subscriber line (DSL) infrastructure, an Internet infrastructure, an intranet infrastructure, a wired infrastructure, and a wireless infrastructure, and the communication network may be the Internet. The media may comprise at least one of audio, a still image, video, real time video, and data, and consumption may comprise at least one of playing audio, displaying a still image, displaying video, and displaying data.  
           [0012]    In various embodiments of the present invention, the at least one parameter may comprises a title keyword, a subject keyword, a time period, a genre, an artist, and a media channel type. The at least one parameter may also comprise a mode, a language, information identifying the user, information indicating whether the user may be contacted, and information indicating how information related to the media request may be used. In an embodiment in accordance with the present invention, the associated set of pre-defined characteristics may comprise at least one of a title keyword, a subject keyword, a time period, a genre, an artist, a media channel type, a mode, and a language.  
           [0013]    Additional aspects of the present invention may be seen in a method of communicating activity information to support user and user base profiling and consumption feedback in a communication network. An embodiment of the present invention may comprise establishing at a first location, from a second location, at least one parameter related to monitoring media consumption activity of a user at the first location. Such a method may also comprise receiving, at the second location via the communication network, notification of a media request by the user, at the first location. The requested media may have an associated set of pre-defined characteristics matching the at least one parameter. An embodiment of the present invention may create at least one record of the media request, at the second location, and share information derived from the at least one record with a third party. The first location may be associated with at least one of an Internet protocol (IP) address, a media access control (MAC) address, and an electronic serial number (ESN), in an embodiment in accordance with the present invention.  
           [0014]    In an embodiment of the present invention, the communication network may comprise at least one of a cable infrastructure, a satellite network infrastructure, a digital subscriber line (DSL) infrastructure, an Internet infrastructure, an intranet infrastructure, a wired infrastructure, and a wireless infrastructure. The communication network may be the Internet. The media may comprise at least one of audio, a still image, video, real time video, and data, and consumption may comprise at least one of playing audio, displaying a still image, displaying video, and displaying data. In various embodiments of the present invention, the at least one parameter may comprise a title keyword, a subject keyword, a time period, a genre, an artist, a media channel type, a mode, a language, information identifying the user, information indicating whether the user may be contacted, and information indicating how information related to the media request may be used.  
           [0015]    In an embodiment in accordance with the present invention, the associated set of pre-defined characteristics may comprise at least one of a title keyword, a subject keyword, a time period, a genre, an artist, a media channel type, a mode, and a language. The third party may be at least one of a third party media provider, a third party service provider, and a third party sales provider, and the sharing may use the communication network.  
           [0016]    Yet other aspects of the present invention may be observed in a system supporting communication of activity information to support user and user base profiling and consumption feedback in a communication network. A system in accordance with the present invention may comprise a television display at a first location, and a storage for storing media, at the first location. The storage may have an associated network address. An embodiment of the present invention may comprise a user interface accessible via the television display, and the user interface may support the selection of media for consumption. Such an embodiment may also comprise set top box circuitry, at the first location, communicatively coupled to the storage to support consumption of the selected media. An embodiment of the present invention may comprise server software that receives data, via a communication network. The received data may comprise at least one of the associated network address, a user identifier, and information related to the media selected for consumption.  
           [0017]    In an embodiment in accordance with the present invention, the server may respond by storing at least a portion of the received data. The media may comprise at least one of audio, a still image, video, real time video, and data, and consumption may comprise at least one of playing audio, displaying a still image, displaying video, and displaying data. The associated network address may be one of an Internet protocol (IP) address, a media access control (MAC) address, and an electronic serial number (ESN). In an embodiment of the present invention, the communication network may comprise at least one of a cable infrastructure, a satellite network infrastructure, a digital subscriber line (DSL) infrastructure, an Internet infrastructure, an intranet infrastructure, a wired infrastructure, and a wireless infrastructure. In addition, an embodiment of the present invention may comprise server software that communicates, to the set top box circuitry, at least one parameter related to monitoring media consumption activity. The at least one parameter may comprise a title keyword, a subject keyword, a time period, a genre, an artist, a media channel type, a mode, a language, information identifying the user, information indicating whether the user may be contacted, and information indicating how information related to the media request may be used. An embodiment in accordance with the present invention may also comprise server software that shares, with a third party, information derived from the received data. The information related to media selected for consumption may comprise at least one of a title, a subject, a time period, a genre, an artist, a media channel type, a mode, a language, information identifying the user, and information indicating whether the user may be contacted.  
           [0018]    These and other advantages, aspects and novel features of the present invention, as well as details of an illustrated embodiment thereof, will be more fully understood from the following description and drawings.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0019]    [0019]FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating a media exchange network in which an embodiment of the present invention may be practiced.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of an exemplary media exchange network in which the communication of user activity information may be used to support user and user base profiling and consumption feedback, in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 1C illustrates an activity monitor parameters screen showing an exemplary set of parameters for use by an MPS in selectively communicating user activity information in a media exchange network, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method of communicating user activity information in a media processing system in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of a first exemplary media exchange network in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of performing personal media exchange over a second exemplary media exchange network in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram of performing third-party media exchange over a third exemplary media exchange network in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 6 is an exemplary illustration of a media guide user interface in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 7 is an exemplary illustration of several instantiations of a media guide user interface of FIG. 4 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 8 is an exemplary illustration of a media guide user interface showing several options of a pushed media in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 9A is a schematic block diagram of a media processing system (MPS) interfacing to media capture peripherals in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 9B illustrates an alternative embodiment of a media processing system (MPS) in accordance with various aspects of the present invention.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a PC and an MPS interfacing to a server on a media exchange network in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 11 is a schematic block diagram of a PC interfacing to personal media capture devices and remote media storage on a media exchange network in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0033]    Certain embodiments of the present invention relate to the monitoring of consumer behavior. In particular, certain embodiments of the present invention provide for the communication of user activity information to enable the timely tracking of consumer media access behavior in a media exchange network.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating a media exchange network  100  in which an embodiment of the present invention may be practiced. The media exchange network  100  is a communication network comprising a MPS (media processing system)  102  at a 1st subscriber  101 , a MPS  106  at a 2 nd  subscriber  105 , and a PC  110  at a third subscriber  109 . The media exchange network  100  further comprises a 3 rd  party service provider  112 , a 3 rd  party sales provider  113 , and a 3 rd  party media provider  114 . Wide-area network (WAN) infrastructure  111  provides connectivity between the MPS&#39;s  102  and  106 , and the PC  110 , and permits access to 3 rd  party service provider  112 , 3 rd  party sales provider  113 , and 3 rd  party media provider  114 . In various embodiments of the present invention, the WAN infrastructure  111  may comprise, for example, cable infrastructure, a satellite network infrastructure, a digital subscriber line (DSL) infrastructure, an Internet infrastructure, an intranet infrastructure, a wired infrastructure, and a wireless infrastructure, or any combination of the above. Note that the fact that illustration of FIG. 1A shows two MPS&#39;s  102  and  106 , and a single PC  110  is not intended to represent a limitation of the present invention. The media exchange network  100  may comprise any number of MPS&#39;s and PC&#39;s without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Each of the entities within the media exchange network  100  may be identified using a network or protocol address such as, for example, an Internet protocol (IP) address, a media access control (MAC) address, and an electronic serial number (ESN).  
         [0035]    The MPS&#39;s ( 102  and  106 ) may be, for example, enhanced set-top-boxes. The MPS&#39;s ( 102  and  106 ) may each include a TV screen ( 103  and  107 ) for viewing and interacting with various user interfaces, media, data, and services that are available on the media exchange network  100  using, for example, a remote control ( 104  and  108 ). The PC  110  may include a PC monitor for viewing and interacting with various user interfaces, media, data, and services that are available on the media exchange network using, for example, a keyboard and mouse (not shown). The MPS&#39;s  102  and  106 , and the PC  110  include functional software to support interaction with the various elements of the media exchange network  100 , in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.  
         [0036]    In accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, a MPS may comprise a set-top-box (STB), a PC, or a TV with a media management system (MMS). A MMS is also known herein as a media exchange software (MES) platform.  
         [0037]    A MMS comprises a software platform operating on at least one processor to provide certain functionality including user interface functionality, distributed storage functionality, and networking functionality. For example, a MMS may provide control of media peripheral devices, status monitoring of media peripheral devices, and inter-home MPS routing selection, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0038]    For example, the MPS&#39;s ( 102  and  106 ) and the PC  110  comprise a media exchange software (MES) platform  116 . Further details of a media exchange software platform are provided below with respect to FIG. 3. The MES platform  116  on the MPS  102 , and similarly the MES platforms on MPS  106  and PC  110 , support personalized views of media channels and the set up of new media channels on the media exchange network  100 . For example, the MES platform  116  provides a format, displayed on a monitor of the MPS  102 , known as a media guide user interface, or “channel view”, to allow a user to set up a personalized view of the media guide user interface using a remote control  104 . An example media guide user interface is described in U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/448,705, entitled “Media Exchange Network With Media Guide Interface” (Attorney Docket No. 14330US01 01018P-BP-2819), filed Feb. 18, 2003, the complete subject matter of which is hereby incorporate herein in its entire. The MES platform  116  also provides the functionality for a user of the MPS  102  to set up one or more media channels in his personalized view.  
         [0039]    In general, the MPS&#39;s  102  and  106  and the PC  110  each include a media exchange software (MES) platform and a networking component for connectivity. The MES platform provides multiple capabilities including media “push” capability, media “access” capability, media channel construction/selection, image sequence selection, text and voice overlay, channel and program naming, inter-home routing selection, authorship and media rights management, shared inter-home media experience, billing service, and an integrated media guide interface with a TV channel guide look-and-feel.  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of an exemplary media exchange network  120  in which the communication of user activity information may be used to support user and user base profiling and consumption feedback, in accordance with the present invention. Similar to the media exchange network  100  of FIG. 1A, the media exchange network  120  of FIG. 1B comprises a MPS  122  at a 1st subscriber  121 , a MPS  126  at a 2 nd  subscriber  125 , and a PC  139  at a third subscriber  130 . The media exchange network  120  further comprises a 3 rd  party service provider  132 , a 3 rd  party sales provider  133 , and a 3 rd  party media provider  134 . The wide-area network (WAN) infrastructure  131  provides connectivity between the MPS&#39;s  122 ,  126  and the PC  139 , and permits access to 3 rd  party service provider  132 , 3 rd  party sales provider  133 , and 3 rd  party media provider  134 . It should be noted that although the illustration of FIG. 1B shows a particular complement of MPS&#39;s and PC&#39;s, this does not represent a limitation of the present invention.  
         [0041]    As in the exemplary media exchange network of FIG. 1A, the MPS&#39;s ( 122  and  126 ) may be, for example, enhanced set-top-boxes and may each include a TV screen ( 123  and  128 ) and a remote control ( 124  and  129 ). The PC  139  may include a PC monitor, a keyboard, and mouse. The MPS&#39;s  122  and  126 , and the PC  139  include functional software to support interaction with the various elements of the media exchange network  120 , in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.  
         [0042]    In addition to the elements described above, the media exchange network of FIG. 1B comprises a 3 rd  party monitoring service  138 . The 3 rd  party monitoring service  138  is connected to the WAN infrastructure  131 , which provides connectivity to the MPS&#39;s  122 ,  126  of the 1 st  and 2 nd  subscribers  121 ,  126 , the PC  139  of the 3 rd  subscriber  130 , the 3 rd  party service provider  132 , the 3 rd  party sales provider  133 , and the 3 rd  party media provider  134 . Exemplary functionality of 3 rd  party monitoring service  138  is described in detail below.  
         [0043]    In the exemplary media exchange network  120  of FIG. 1B, each activity by a media exchange network  120  user entity that results in the consumption of media channel content, such as the media channels exposed by 3 rd  party service provider  132 , 3 rd  party sales provider  133 , or 3 rd  party media provider  134 , initiates the transmission of activity information to the 3 rd  party monitoring service  138 . It is a function of 3 rd  party monitoring service  138  to process the activity information from subscriber terminals such as, for example, the MPS&#39;s  122 ,  126  or the PC  139  of FIG. 1B, for later use by those organizations that may have interest in media channel access and consumption. Examples of such organizations include, for example, vendors who advertise or promote products or services, producers or distributors of media channel programming, and rating service companies such as A. C. Nielsen and J. D. Edwards.  
         [0044]    The following example illustrates the process by which user activity information is generated and collected, with reference to FIG. 1B. In FIG. 1B, the 1 st  subscriber  121  selects one of the media channels listed on their personal media guide user interface, as displayed on the TV screen  123  of the MPS  122 . For the purposes of this example, let us assume that the selected media channel was exposed by the 3 rd  party media provider  134 . This selection may be performed using, for example, the remote control  124 . The act of selecting a media channel for consumption may cause the MPS  122  to compare characteristics of the selected media channel, and other factors, to a set of activity monitor parameters, the details of which are described below with respect to FIG. 1C. If the characteristics of the selected media channel and other factors such as, for example, the time-of-day or date, fit within the activity monitor parameters, the MPS  122  transmits activity information  125  to a designated destination via media exchange network  120 . The activity information  125 , the activity information  140  from the activity of the 2 nd  subscriber  126 , and the activity information  131  from the 3 rd  subscriber  130  are delivered via WAN infrastructure  131  to 3 rd  party monitoring service  138  as part of activity information stream  137 . The 3 rd  party monitoring service  138  processes the incoming activity information stream  137 , and transmits the processed activity information  135  to the 3 rd  party media provider  134 .  
         [0045]    [0045]FIG. 1C illustrates an activity monitor parameters screen  150  showing an exemplary set of parameters for use by an MPS in selectively communicating user activity information in a media exchange network, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The activity monitor parameters screen  150  of FIG. 1C comprises a monitored user(s) parameter  151 , a media channel type(s) parameter  153 , an information recipient parameter  155 , a contact allowed parameter  157 , and an activity reporting parameter  158 , and their respective sub-menus  152 ,  154 ,  156 ,  162 , and  159 . Although the illustration of FIG. 1C shows only five parameters, the present invention is not limited in this regard. An embodiment of the present invention may employ a greater, a lesser, or a completely different complement of parameters in controlling the sharing of activity information in a media exchange network, without departing from the spirit of the present invention. In the illustration of FIG. 1C, the monitored user(s) parameter  151  has been set to “Dad, Mom” so that the media channel consumption of users “Dad” and “Mom” will be monitored. An additional qualifier, the media channel type(s) parameter  153 , has been set to “Shopping, Sports, Music”, to restrict monitoring to accesses of media channels of type “Shopping”, “Sports”, and “Music”. As a result, access to media channels of types other than, for example, “Science” and “Financial”, will not be monitored. The identify user parameter  157  has been set to “No”, indicating that user identifiable activity information should not be sent to the entity identified by the information recipient parameter  155 .  
         [0046]    The information recipient parameter  155  has been set to a value of “3 rd  party monitoring service”, specifying that any activity information gathered by the MPS or PC will be sent to the “3 rd  party monitoring service”  138 . Finally, the activity reporting parameter  158  has been set to “Aggregate-only”, stipulating that the data is to be distributed or used by the information recipient  155  only in the aggregate.  
         [0047]    [0047]FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method of communicating user activity information in a media processing system in accordance with the present invention. Although the following discussion refers to a MPS such as the MPS&#39;s  102  or  106  of FIG. 1A, FIG. 2 applies equally to a PC, such the PC  110  of FIG. 1A. The method illustrated in FIG. 2 begins after the user has powered up the MPS and has entered their access code. The user then proceeds to select a media channel for consumption (block  201 ). Following receipt of the user selection, the MPS compares the characteristics of the selected media channel to the values of the corresponding activity monitor parameters (block  202 ). If the characteristics of the selected media channel and user-specific information do not match (block  203 ), no user activity information will be communicated, and the user media channel consumption activity proceeds normally (block  204 ). If the characteristics of the selected media channel do match, information on the selected media channel and the user are sent to the recipient designated in the activity monitor parameters (block  205 ).  
         [0048]    A major challenge is to be able to transfer and share many different types of digital media, data, and services between one device/location and another with ease while being able to index, manage, and store the digital media and data.  
         [0049]    For example, it is desirable to be able to distribute and store many types of digital media in a PC and/or television environment in a user-friendly manner without requiring many different types of software applications and/or unique and dedicated interfaces. Any networking issues or other technical issues should be transparent to the users. It is also desirable to take advantage of existing hardware infrastructure, as much as possible, when providing such capability.  
         [0050]    In an embodiment of the present invention, a media exchange network is provided that enables many types of digital media, data, and/or services to be stored, indexed, viewed, searched for, pushed from one user to another, and requested by users, using a media guide user interface. The media exchange network also allows a user to construct personal media channels that comprise his personal digital media (e.g., captured digital pictures, digital video, digital audio, etc.), request that third-party media channels be constructed from third-party digital media, and access the media channels pushed to him by other users on the media exchange network.  
         [0051]    PC&#39;s may be used but are not required to interface to the media exchange network for the purpose of exchanging digital media, data, and services. Instead, set-top-boxes or integrated MPS&#39;s (media processing systems) may be used with the media exchange network to perform all of the previously described media exchange functions using a remote control with a television screen.  
         [0052]    Current set-top-boxes may be software enhanced to create a MPS that provides full media exchange network interfacing and functionality via a TV screen with a TV guide look-and-feel. PC&#39;s may be software enhanced as well and provide the same TV guide look-and-feel. Therefore, the media exchange network supports both PC&#39;s and MPS&#39;s in a similar manner. Alternatively, a fully integrated MPS may be designed from the ground up, having full MPS capability.  
         [0053]    In the case of an MPS configuration, the user takes advantage of his remote control and TV screen to use the media exchange network. In the case of a PC configuration, the user takes advantage of his keyboard and/or mouse to use the media exchange network.  
         [0054]    An MPS or enhanced PC is effectively a storage and distribution platform for the exchange of personal and third party digital media, data, and services as well as for bringing the conventional television channels to a user&#39;s home. An MPS and/or PC connects to the media exchange network via an existing communication infrastructure which may include cable, DSL, satellite, etc. The connection to the communication infrastructure may be hard-wired or wireless.  
         [0055]    The media exchange network allows users to effectively become their own broadcasters from their own homes by creating their own media channels and pushing those media channels to other authorized users on the media exchange network, such as friends and family members.  
         [0056]    [0056]FIG. 3 comprises a media exchange network  300  for exchanging and sharing digital media, data, and services in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The media exchange network  300  is a secure, closed network environment that is only accessible to pre-defined users and service providers. The media exchange network of FIG. 3 comprises a first PC  301  and a first media processing system (MPS)  302  at a user&#39;s home  303 , a communication infrastructure  304 , external processing hardware support  305 , remote media storage  306 , a second PC  307  at a remote location  308  such as an office, and a second MPS  309  at a parent&#39;s home  310 .  
         [0057]    The PC&#39;s  301  and  307  and the MPS&#39;s  302  and  309  each include a media exchange software (MES) platform  311  and a networking component  312  for connectivity. The MES platform  311  provides multiple capabilities including media “push” capability, media “access” capability, media channel construction/selection, image sequence selection, text and voice overlay, channel and program naming, inter-home routing selection, authorship and media rights management, shared inter-home media experience, billing service, and an integrated media guide interface providing a TV channel guide look-and-feel.  
         [0058]    The external processing hardware support  305  comprises at least one server such as a centralized internet server, a peer-to-peer server, or cable head end. The server may alternatively be distributed over various hosts or remote PC&#39;s. The MES platform  311  may also reside on the external processing hardware support server  305 . The remote media storage  306  may comprise uses media storage and distribution systems  313  and/or third party media storage and distribution systems  314 .  
         [0059]    The communication infrastructure  304  may comprise at least one of internet infrastructure, satellite infrastructure, cable infrastructure, dial-up infrastructure, cellular infrastructure, XDSL infrastructure, optical infrastructure, or some other infrastructure. The communication infrastructure  304  links the user&#39;s home  303 , parent&#39;s home  310 , remote media storage  306 , and remote location office  308  to each other (i.e., the communication infrastructure  304  links all users and service providers of the media exchange network  300 ).  
         [0060]    The various functions  315  of the media exchange network  300  comprise generating personal network associations, personal storage management, media capture device support, security/authentication/authorization support, authorship tracking and billing and address registration and maintenance. These media exchange management functions  315  may be distributed over various parts of the media exchange network  300 . For example, the personal network associations and personal storage management functions may be integrated in the PC  301  at the user&#39;s home  303 .  
         [0061]    [0061]FIG. 4 illustrates an example of personal media exchange over a media exchange network  400  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In step  1 , the media exchange software (MES) platform  401  is used to construct personal media channels on a PC  402  by a user at “my house”  403 . For example, with various media stored on the PC  402  such as digital pictures  404 , videos  405 , and music  406 , the MES platform  401  allows the digital media to be organized by a user into several channels having a media guide user interface  407  on the PC  402 .  
         [0062]    In step  2 , the user at “my house”  403  pushes a media channel  408  (e.g., “Joe&#39;s Music”) to “brother&#39;s house”  409  and pushes two media channels  410  and  411  (e.g., “Vacation Video” and “Kid&#39;s Pictures”) to “Mom&#39;s house”  412  via a peer-to-peer server  413  over the internet-based media exchange network  400 . “Brother&#39;s house”  409  includes a first MPS  414  connected to the media exchange network  400 . “Mom&#39;s house”  412  includes a second MPS  415  connected to the media exchange network  400 . The MPS&#39;s  414  and  415  also provide a media guide user interface  407 .  
         [0063]    In step  3 , brother and/or Mom access the pushed media channels via their respective media processing systems (MPS&#39;s)  414  and  415  using their respective MPS TV screens and remote controls.  
         [0064]    [0064]FIG. 5 illustrates an example of third-party media exchange over a media exchange network  500  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In step  1 , a PC-initiated third-party request is made by a first party  501  via an internet-based media exchange network  500  using a media guide user interface  502  on a PC  503 . In step  2 , an anonymous delivery of the requested third-party channel  504  is made to a second party  505  via the internet-based media exchange network  500 . In step  3 , the second party  505  accesses the third-party channel  504  using a media guide user interface  506  on a TV screen  507  that is integrated into an MPS  508 .  
         [0065]    Similarly, in step A, an MPS-initiated third-party request is made by a second party  505  via an internet-based media exchange network  500  using a media guide user interface  506  on a TV screen  507  using a remote control  509 . The second party  505  may key in a code, using his remote control  509 , that is correlated to a commercial or some other third party broadcast media. In step B, an anonymous delivery of the requested third-party channel  504  is made to a first party  501  via the internet-based media exchange network  500 . In step C, the first party  501  accesses the third-party channel  504  using a media guide user interface  502  on a PC  503 .  
         [0066]    [0066]FIG. 6 illustrates a media guide user interface  600  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The media guide user interface  600  may be displayed on a TV screen  608  and controlled by a remote control device  609 . Also, the media guide user interface  600  may be displayed on a PC monitor and controlled by a keyboard or mouse.  
         [0067]    The media guide user interface  600  may be configured not only for conventional TV channels but also for personal media channels  601  that are constructed by a user of a media exchange network, friend&#39;s and family&#39;s media channels  602  constructed by friends and family, and third party channels  603  that are constructed by third parties either upon request by a user of a media exchange network or based on a profile of a user.  
         [0068]    The personal media channels  601  may include, for example, a “family vacations channel”, a “kid&#39;s sports channel”, a “my life channel”, a “son&#39;s life channel”, a “my music channel”, and a “kid&#39;s music channel”. The friends and family media channels  602  may include, for example, a “brother&#39;s channel”, a “Mom&#39;s channel”, and a “friend&#39;s channel”. The third party media channels  603  may include, for example, a “Sears Fall sale channel” and a “car commercials channel”.  
         [0069]    Each media channel may correspond to a schedule  604  showing, for example, a week  605  and a year  606 . For example, under the “kid&#39;s sports channel”, Ty&#39;s soccer game could be scheduled to be viewed on Tuesday of the current week  605  and current year  606 . For each media channel, a sub-menu  607  allows for selection of certain control and access functions such as “play”, “send to list”, “send to archive”, “confirm receipt”, “view”, “purchase”, and “profile”.  
         [0070]    [0070]FIG. 7 illustrates possible multiple instantiations of a media guide user interface  700  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The media guide user interface  700  may be viewed with a schedule having formats of, for example, “month, year”, “week#, year”, “day, week#”, or “hour, day”.  
         [0071]    Referring to FIG. 8, a user of a media exchange network may push a media channel (e.g., “Vacation in Alaska Video”) to a friend who is on the same media exchange network. The media guide user interface  800  may give the friend several options  801  for how to accept and download the pushed media in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0072]    For example, a first, most expensive option  803  may be “Express Delivery” which would deliver the pushed media to the friend in 18 minutes using queuing and cost $1.20, for example. The pushed media may be stored in a file in an MPEG 2 format that was recorded at a rate of 4 Mbps, for example. Queuing comprises buffering and delivering a previous part of the media and then buffering and delivering a next part of the media. For example, a first six minutes of the “Vacation in Alaska Video” may be buffered and delivered first, then a second six minutes may be buffered and delivered next, and so on until the entire media is delivered.  
         [0073]    A second, less expensive option  802  may be “Normal Delivery” which would deliver the pushed media in 2 hours and 13 minutes without queuing and cost $0.59, for example. The pushed media may be stored in a file in an MPEG 2 format that was recorded at a rate of 1.5 Mbps, for example.  
         [0074]    A third, least expensive option  804  may be “Overnight Delivery” which would deliver the pushed media by the next morning and cost only $0.05, for example. The pushed media may be stored in a file in an MPEG 2 format that was recorded at a rate of 19 Mbps and stored on a server, for example.  
         [0075]    [0075]FIG. 9A illustrates the detailed elements of a media processing system (MPS)  900  and media capture devices  901  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The media capture devices  901  may comprise audio, video, and image players, such as digital cameras, digital camcorders, and MP3 players, that each include a temporary storage area  902  and a communication interface  903  such as, for example, a USB interface or a wireless interface. The media capture devices  901  have the capability to interface to an MPS and a PC.  
         [0076]    The MPS  900  comprises a media processing unit (MPU)  904 , remote user interface(s)  905 , and a TV screen  918  to provide integrated media processing capability and indirect user interface capability. The remote user interfaces  905  may comprise a voice or keyed remote control  906 , keyboards and pads  907 , a remote PC access interface  908 , and a remote media system access interface  909  (i.e., providing access from another MPS).  
         [0077]    The media processing unit (MPU)  904  comprises TV and radio tuners  910  for image and audio consumption, communications interfaces  911 , channel processing  912  (creating, storing, indexing, viewing), storage  913 , media players  914  (CD, DVD, Tape, PVR, MP3), an integrated user interface  915  (to provide a TV channel guide look-and-feel), networking components  916  to provide client functions such as consumption (billing), authorization (e.g., using digital certificates and digital ID&#39;s), registration, security, and connectivity. In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the networking components  916  may include a distributed server element  917  that is part of a distributed server.  
         [0078]    [0078]FIG. 9B illustrates an alternative embodiment of a media processing system (MPS)  920  in accordance with various aspects of the present invention. The MPS  920  is essentially an enhanced set-top-box for viewing and interacting with various user interfaces, media, data, and services that are available on the media exchange network using, for example, a remote control. The MPS  920  comprises a media peripheral  921 , a MMS (media management system)  922 , and a broadband communication interface  923 .  
         [0079]    The media peripheral  921  may include a TV (television), a PC (personal computer), and media players (e.g., a CD player, a DVD player, a tape player, and a MP3 player) for video, image, and audio consumption of broadcast and/or personal channels. The broadband communication interface  923  may include internal modems (e.g., a cable modem or DSL modem) or other interface devices in order to communicate with, for example, a cable or satellite headend.  
         [0080]    The MMS  922  includes a software platform to provide functionality including media “push” capability, media “access” capability, media channel construction/selection, image sequence selection, text and voice overlay, channel and program naming, inter-home routing selection, authorship and media rights management, shared inter-home media experience, billing service, and a media guide user interface providing an integrated TV channel guide look-and-feel.  
         [0081]    [0081]FIG. 10 illustrates connectivity between a PC  1000 , an MPS  1001 , and external processing hardware  1002  (e.g., a server) in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The PC  1000  and MPS  1001  include networking components  1003  to provide client functions such as consumption (billing), authorization, registration, security, and connectivity. Alternatively, the PC  1000  and MPS  1001  may include a distributed server element  1004  that is part of a distributed server.  
         [0082]    The PC  1000  and MPS  1001  connect to the external processing hardware  1002  via wired or wireless connections. The external processing hardware  1002  comprises a distributed server or peer-to-peer server. The external processing hardware  1002  also comprises communication interfaces  1005  (e.g., cable interfaces, optical interfaces, etc.) and a media exchange software (MES) platform  1006 . The MES platform  1006  in the external processing hardware  1002  allows for communication with the PC  1000  and MPS  1001  which may also use the same MES platform  1006 . The external processing hardware  1002  also includes networking server components  1007  to provide the similar client functions such as consumption (billing), authorization, registration, security, and connectivity at the server side.  
         [0083]    [0083]FIG. 11 illustrates connectivity between a PC  1100 , remote media storage  1101 , and personal media capture devices  1102  when the PC  1100  is used as the primary distributor of digital media such as in the case of PC-to-PC operation, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The personal media capture devices  1102  and remote media storage  1101  connect to the PC  1100  via a wireless or wired connection. The remote media storage  1101  provides user media storage and distribution  1103  as well as third party media storage and distribution  1104 . The personal media capture devices  1102  provide temporary storage  1114  and communication interfaces  1115 .  
         [0084]    Viewing is done using a PC monitor  1105  instead of a television screen. The PC  1100  may include storage  1106 , TV/radio tuners  1107  for media consumption, media players  1108 , and communication interfaces  1109  and user interfaces  1110  similar to those for the MPS of FIG. 9A. The PC  1100  includes a media exchange software (MES) platform  1111  that provides channel construction capability  1112  and networking capability  1113 . The channel construction capability  1112  allows third party and personal media access, sequencing, editing, media overlays and inserts, billing, scheduling, and addressing.  
         [0085]    Various embodiment of the present invention include a system and method that provide for the communication of user activity information to support user and user base profiling and consumption in a media exchange network.  
         [0086]    While the invention has been described with reference to certain embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from its scope. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.