Patent Publication Number: US-2013254812-A1

Title: Iptv radio device using low-bandwidth connection

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to an IPTV radio device, and more specifically, to the IPTV radio device targeting a low-bandwidth area. 
     2. Background 
     The Internet as a global network for delivery of content is increasing in popularity due to a number of technical advancements in broadband Internet connectivity such as 3G and 4G, which creates both opportunities and challenges to content and service providers. Marketing research shows that the growth of Internet television (e.g., Internet Protocol television (IPTV)) will be in the developing countries such as China and India. However, network infrastructures in these developing countries are limited and undeveloped, and are unable to deliver quality content that require high bandwidth to customers. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one implementation, a method of providing audio services to an Internet television device using a low-bandwidth Internet connection is disclosed. The method includes: configuring the Internet television device to operate and receive audio services using a low-bandwidth Internet connection; presenting a list of authorized services on a display of the Internet television device; receiving a search word for desired services, searching using the search word and aggregating search results, and presenting a playlist of services and stations obtained from the search results based on user&#39;s playback history and device&#39;s modular capabilities, when the desired services are not in the list of authorized or recommended services; enabling a customer to select a service from the list of authorized services or playlist of services and stations; and generating and streaming audio portion of the selected service to the Internet television device. 
     In another implementation, a system of providing audio services to an Internet television device using a low-bandwidth Internet connection is disclosed. The system includes: a processor configured to present a list of authorized services on a display of the Internet television device, the processor to receive a search word for desired services, search using the search word and aggregate search results, and present a playlist of services and stations obtained from the search results, when the desired services are not in the list of authorized services, wherein a customer using the Internet television device is enabled to select a service from the list of authorized services or playlist of services and stations; a content and service converter configured to generate audio portion of the selected service; and a streaming unit configured to stream the generated audio portion to the Internet television device. 
     In another implementation, a non-transitory storage medium storing a computer program to provide audio services to an Internet television device using a low-bandwidth Internet connection is disclosed. The computer program includes executable instructions that cause a computer to: present a list of authorized or recommended services on a display of the Internet television device; receive a search word for desired services, search using the search word and aggregate search results, and present a playlist of services and stations obtained from the search results, when the desired services are not in the list of authorized or recommended services; enable a customer to select a service from the list of recommended services or playlist of services and stations; and generate and stream audio portion of the selected service to the Internet television device. 
     Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art after reviewing the following detailed description and accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a functional block diagram of a server including a content and service converter in accordance with one implementation of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a flowchart illustrating a method of providing audio services to an IPTV radio device using a low-bandwidth Internet connection in accordance with one implementation of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3A  illustrates a representation of a computer system and a user. 
         FIG. 3B  is a functional block diagram illustrating the computer system hosting a low bandwidth (LBW) streaming service. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Certain implementations as disclosed herein describe apparatus, methods, and systems for an Internet Protocol television (IPTV) device targeting the low-bandwidth area. After reading this description it will become apparent how to implement the invention in various implementations and applications. Although various implementations of the present invention will be described herein, it is understood that these implementations are presented by way of example only, and not limitation. As such, this detailed description of various implementations should not be construed to limit the scope or breadth of the present invention. 
     As described above, marketing research shows that the IPTV will grow most in popularity in the developing countries such as China and India. However, network infrastructures in these developing countries are limited and undeveloped, and are unable to deliver quality content that require high bandwidth to customers. Accordingly, an IPTV device configured to target the bandwidth range that is supported by these developing countries can be desirable. 
     In one implementation, an IPTV radio device is configured to target the bandwidth range that is supported by the developing countries so that it can appeal to the local consumers. The IPTV radio device is configured to target low bandwidth areas where the delivery of high resolution video is not possible. As an example, an average bandwidth in China and India is between 0.8 to 1 Mbits/sec, whereas an average bandwidth needed to play a high-definition movie is 6 Mbits/sec. Thus, the IPTV radio device is configured as a modular, low-bandwidth audio device featuring, for example, a small display/user interface of three text lines. The radio can also communicate via the customer&#39;s low bandwidth Internet connection to retrieve local, regional, and worldwide services including streaming and on-demand services such as the Bravia Internet Video Link (BIVL) system. In the case of this low-bandwidth IPTV radio device, the streaming and on-demand services are geared toward audio and text-to-speech services. 
     To create a customer loyalty experience, the product is built modular. Thus, hardware modules can be added to the hardware platform system as new features become available. For example, when a Voice-over-IP (VoIP) service is introduced to the IPTV radio, a customer only needs to buy a compatible microphone and update the radio&#39;s firmware to recognize the microphone&#39;s driver. That is, the customer can enjoy new features without having to purchase a new IPTV radio device. 
     The IPTV radio device allows customers in the developing countries to listen to a broad range of Internet radio stations, audio portions of the television stations, and converted text-to-speech of the print services using the low bandwidth Internet connection. The radio software allows the customers to favorite their radio stations/audio services; create their own stations in their own language (virtually unlimited); and receive recommended or featured radio stations/audio services through the current search and recommendation system of the streaming and on-demand services. In countries such as India and China, there are many languages and dialects spoken, so a customized language has a significant appeal. 
     In one implementation, the starter audio service package of the IPTV radio device can be provided for free with or without advertising supported. However, premium audio services can be introduced later based on demand. For example, in India, a sport audio service package for cricket can be offered as a premium audio service available on the IPTV radio device. 
     In another implementation, a method of using the IPTV radio device to target the low-bandwidth area for audio services is described. The method includes turning on the IPTV radio and connecting the radio device to the Internet. Once the radio device is connected to the Internet, it launches a streaming and on-demand service (hereinafter referred to as “the BIVL service”) such as the BIVL system. In response, a list of authorized services is returned and displayed to the customer on a simple 3-line user interface in the local language. In one implementation, an authorized service is a service for which the BIVL service has an existing relationship with that service&#39;s provider and the device has authenticated credentials to access it. The list of services can include recommended or featured services from radio stations, television stations, and print services. The customer then selects a service to listen to from the list of authorized services. 
     The BIVL service provides the service selected by the customer (from the list of authorized services) differently depending on the type of service selected. That is, if the customer has selected a radio station, the BIVL service streams or downloads the broadcast of the radio station. If the customer has selected a television station, the BIVL service streams or downloads the audio portion of the television broadcast. In one implementation, to extract the audio portion of the television broadcast, the BIVL service can separate the audio track from one or more video content in near real-time. In another implementation, to extract the audio portion of the television broadcast, the BIVL service can separate the audio track from one or more video content at a scheduled time. In another implementation, the audio track may already be available in a separate file. Thus, the BIVL service can just provide the online address (e.g., URN or URL) of the audio track to the IPTV radio device. The BIVL service can also provide a subtitle track in a specific language, since the video content usually contains the subtitle track. In a further implementation, the audio portion is generated by extracting the audio portion from a television broadcast in near real-time or at schedule time, e.g. 7 AM for Morning News. Otherwise, if the customer has selected a print service (e.g., a newspaper or magazine), the BIVL service first converts the text of the print service to speech in near real-time, and streams or downloads the speech to the IPTV radio device. Furthermore, if the customer has selected a print service (e.g., a newspaper or magazine), the BIVL service first converts the text of the print service to speech at a scheduled time, and streams or downloads the speech to the IPTV radio device. 
     In addition or as an alternative to the authorized services, the BIVL service also enables the customer to search for services entering a search word (e.g., “cricket” to find services and stations that provide cricket games) into a search and recommendation system of the BIVL service. The BIVL service aggregates all data matching the search word in that region/country and creates a playlist of services and stations based on the user&#39;s playback history and modular device capabilities, e.g., compatible microphone, local-networked speakers, etc. 
       FIG. 1  is a functional block diagram of a server  100  including a content and service converter  110  in accordance with one implementation of the present invention. In the illustrated implementation of  FIG. 1 , the server  100 , which is in communication with a client device  150  and a content and service provider  160 , also includes a processor  140 , a streaming unit  120 , and storage  130 . In one implementation, the server  100  is configured as the BIVL service to provide streaming and on-demand services accessible through a client device. The client device  150  can be configured as the IPTV radio device which enables customers in the developing countries to listen to a broad range of Internet radio stations, audio portions of the television stations, and converted text-to-speech of the print services using the low bandwidth Internet connection. 
     The server  100  provides the service selected by the client device  150  differently depending on the type of service selected. That is, if the client device  150  selects a radio station, the processor  140  of the server  100  streams or downloads the broadcast of the radio station. If the client device  150  selects a television station, the content/service converter  110  of the server  100  extracts the audio portion of the television broadcast by separating the audio track from one or more video content. The separated audio portion is then sent to the streaming unit  120  to be streamed or downloaded to the client device  150 . In case the audio track is available in a separate file, that file can be streamed or downloaded by the streaming unit  120 , or the server  100  may provide the online address of the file to the client device  150 . The server  100  can also provide a subtitle track in a specific language to the client device  150 , since the video content usually contains the subtitle track. Otherwise, if the client device  150  has selected a print service (e.g., a newspaper or magazine), the content/service converter  110  first converts the text of the print service to speech, and sends the speech to the streaming unit  120  for streaming or downloading to the client device  150 . 
       FIG. 2  is a flowchart  200  illustrating a method of providing audio services to an IPTV radio device using a low-bandwidth Internet connection in accordance with one implementation of the present invention. The IPTV radio device is configured, at box  210 , to operate and receive audio services using a low-bandwidth Internet connection. In practice, the IPTV radio device is configured to operate within the bandwidth range that is supported by the developing countries where the delivery of high resolution video is not possible. Thus, the IPTV radio device is configured as a modular, low-bandwidth audio device featuring, for example, a small display/user interface of three text lines. The IPTV radio device allows customers in the developing countries to listen to a broad range of Internet radio stations, audio portions of the television stations, and converted text-to-speech of the print services using the low bandwidth Internet connection. 
     Once the IPTV radio device is connected to the Internet through the low-bandwidth connection, a list of authorized services is presented, at box  220 , on a display of the IPTV radio device. The list of authorized services can include recommended or featured services from radio stations, television stations, and print services. In addition or as an alternative to presenting a list of recommended services, a customer is enabled to search for services by entering a search word into the IPTV radio device, at box  230 . Search results matching the search word in that region/country are then aggregated, at box  240 , and a playlist of services and stations is created, at box  250 . The customer then selects a service, at box  260 , from the list of authorized services or the playlist. 
     If the customer selects a television station, at box  260 , audio portion of the television broadcast is extracted in near real-time, at box  270 . If the customer selects a print service (e.g., a newspaper or magazine), the text of the print service is converted in near real-time, at box  280 , to speech. The audio service is then streamed or downloaded, at box  290 . 
       FIG. 3A  illustrates a representation of a computer system  300  and a user  302 . In one implementation, the computer system can be configured as a server (e.g., reference  100  in  FIG. 1 ) to provide the BIVL service to an IPTV radio device. 
       FIG. 3B  is a functional block diagram illustrating the computer system  300  hosting a low bandwidth (LBW) streaming service  390 . The controller  310  is a programmable processor and controls the operation of the computer system  300  and its components. The controller  310  loads instructions (e.g., in the form of a computer program) from the memory  320  or an embedded controller memory (not shown) and executes these instructions to control the system. In its execution, the controller  310  provides the low bandwidth (LBW) streaming service  390  as a software system (running on the server  100  of  FIG. 1 ). Alternatively, this service can be implemented as separate hardware components in the controller  310  or the computer system  300 . 
     Memory  320  stores data temporarily for use by the other components of the computer system  300 . In one implementation, memory  320  is implemented as RAM. In one implementation, memory  320  also includes long-term or permanent memory, such as flash memory and/or ROM. 
     Non-transitory storage  330  stores data for use by other components of the computer system  300 , such as for storing data used by the low bandwidth (LBW) streaming service  390 . In one implementation, storage  330  is a hard disk drive. 
     The media device  340  receives removable media and reads and/or writes data to the inserted media. In one implementation, for example, the media device  340  is an optical disc drive. 
     The user interface  350  includes components for accepting user input from the user  302  and presenting information to the user  302 . In one implementation, the user interface  350  includes a keyboard, a mouse, audio speakers, and a display. The controller  310  uses input from the user  302  to adjust the operation of the computer system  300 . 
     The I/O interface  360  includes one or more I/O ports to connect to corresponding I/O devices, such as external storage or supplemental devices (e.g., a printer or a PDA). In one implementation, the ports of the I/O interface  360  include ports such as: USB ports, PCMCIA ports, serial ports, and/or parallel ports. In another implementation, the I/O interface  360  includes a wireless interface for communication with external devices wirelessly. 
     The network interface  370  includes a wired and/or wireless network connection, such as an RJ-45 or “Wi-Fi” interface (including, but not limited to 302.11) supporting an Ethernet connection. 
     The computer system  300  includes additional hardware and software typical of computer systems (e.g., power, cooling, operating system), though these components are not specifically shown in  FIG. 3B  for simplicity. In other implementations, different configurations of the computer system can be used (e.g., different bus or storage configurations or a multi-processor configuration). 
     The above description of the disclosed implementations is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the invention. Various modifications to these implementations will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles described herein can be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Accordingly, additional implementations and variations are also within the scope of the invention. For example, although the specification focuses on x, x. Further, it is to be understood that the description and drawings presented herein are representative of the subject matter which is broadly contemplated by the present invention. It is further understood that the scope of the present invention fully encompasses other implementations that may become obvious to those skilled in the art and that the scope of the present invention is accordingly limited by nothing other than the appended claims.