Patent Abstract:
A method can include accessing a cookie file to obtain a keyword where the cookie file is associated with a media device and scanning a stream of media content to locate the keyword within a portion of the stream of media content. The method can include generating a filtered search set by applying filtering to additional words to exclude a black listed word, where the additional words are located within a pre-determined proximity to a location corresponding to an occurrence of the keyword within the portion of the stream of media content. The method can include providing a search result based on a network search conducted using the keyword and the filtered search set.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/328,412 filed Dec. 4, 2008, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       [0002]    The present disclosure is generally related to keyword detection. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Consumers have an ever increasing amount of available content, including television, Internet, radio, gaming, and other sources. When a consumer has a particular interest, such as for a product or service, the consumer may elect a form of content that is suitable for the particular interest. For example, the consumer may conduct an Internet search to locate websites related to the particular interest or may view television programming that may be related to the particular interest. However, keyword-based searches of the Internet can limit results to the particular keywords chosen by the consumer. Television programming may provide the consumer with programming that discusses or references the consumer&#39;s particular interest, such as in a conversation between two characters of a television program. Such a conversation may present the consumer&#39;s interest in a particularly compelling or creative manner but may not present a sufficient depth of information to satisfy the consumer. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0004]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of a system to detect a keyword or a URL in a media stream; 
           [0005]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a second particular illustrative embodiment of a system to detect a keyword or a URL in a media stream; 
           [0006]      FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a third particular illustrative embodiment of a system to distribute media content; 
           [0007]      FIG. 4  is a flow diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of a method of receiving media content; 
           [0008]      FIG. 5  is a flow diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of a method of receiving media content; and 
           [0009]      FIG. 6  is a block diagram of a particular embodiment of a general computing system. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0010]    In a particular illustrative embodiment, a system is disclosed that includes a buffer configured to store received media content, a keyword module that is executable by a processor to detect an occurrence of a keyword within the multimedia content at the buffer and to identify additional words within a predetermined proximity to the keyword, and a search module that is executable by the processor to initiate a search including the identified keyword and the additional words. 
         [0011]    In a particular illustrative embodiment, a method is disclosed that includes providing a selectable link to be displayed concurrently on a same display device as media content in response to detecting a uniform resource locator (URL) within an audio portion of the media content. 
         [0012]    In a particular illustrative embodiment, a method is disclosed that includes sending a stream of media content to a media receiver, scanning the stream of media content to locate at least one designated keyword within the stream of media content, and providing a search result to be displayed concurrently with the media content. The search result contains results of a search using the identified designated keyword. 
         [0013]    In a particular illustrative embodiment, a computer-readable storage medium is disclosed that includes operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to scan a stream of media content to locate at least one keyword within a portion of the stream of media content, and operational instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to send instructions to a media receiving device to provide a search result to be displayed concurrently with the portion of the stream of the media content. The search result contains results of a search using the identified keyword. 
         [0014]    In a particular illustrative embodiment, a method is disclosed that includes receiving at least one keyword, scanning a stream of media content to identify the keyword within the stream of media content, initiating a network search of the keyword in response to identifying the keyword in the stream of media content, and sending results of the search and the media content to a media receiving device to be concurrently displayed at a single display device. 
         [0015]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , a system to detect keywords and uniform resource locators (URL) in media content is depicted and generally designated  100 . The system  100  includes a server  102  in communication with a media receiver, such as a representative set-top box device  112  via a network  108 , such as an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) access network. The set-top box device  112  is coupled to a display device  126 . In addition, a search engine  110  is in communication with the set-top box device  112  via the network  108 . The system  100  identifies occurrences of a selected keyword and provides associated information at the display device  126  concurrently with the display of the media content to a viewer. 
         [0016]    In a particular embodiment, the server  102  includes a processor  104  and the server  102  stores or has access to media content  106 . The server  102  may be configured to receive requests for the media content  106  and to initiate a stream of the media content  106  to the requestor. For example, the server  102  may be a video server, such as a server of an IPTV distribution system. In a particular embodiment, the media content  106  may include any combination of video content, audio content, closed captioning content, white space content, or other types of content. For example, the media content  106  may include media content or television content. 
         [0017]    In a particular embodiment, the search engine  110  may be configured to receive requests for network searches and to return results of searches performed in response to the requests. For example, the search engine  110  may receive a request including one or more keywords, and may initiate an Internet search using the one or more received keywords. In addition, the search engine  110  may generate a list of one or more web sites or other resources matching the requested keywords, and provide a reply to the sender of the request. 
         [0018]    In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device  112  includes a processor  118  coupled to a memory  124 . The set-top box device  112  also includes a buffer  116  that is configured to store media content received by the network interface  114 . The set-top box device  112  is configured to receive media content via the network  108 , to buffer the content using the buffer  116 , to decode and process the media content using the processor  118 , and to provide the decoded and processed media content to display at the display device  126 . 
         [0019]    In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device  112  includes a keyword module  122  that is executable by the processor  118  to detect an occurrence of the identified keyword  132  in the media content. In a particular embodiment, the keyword module  122  may be configured to access media content stored at the buffer  116  and to identify additional words within a pre-determined proximity to the identified keyword  132  detected at the buffer  116 . For example, in a particular embodiment, a user may select or determine one or more user selected keywords  132  that are stored at the memory  124 . The keyword module  122  may be configured to perpetually scan media content that is buffered at the buffer  116  and to determine occurrences of one or more of the user selected keywords  132  at the buffer  116 . In a particular embodiment, the keyword module  122  may be configured to search through a white space area of the media content or a closed-captioned portion of the media content. In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device  112  includes a speech recognition engine  138  and the keyword module  122  may be configured to search through the audio portion of the media content by using a speech recognition engine  138 . In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device may include a black list  134  and the black list  134  may include a default, or user specified terms that the search module  120  may use to generate a search query using the processed data. For ease of explanation, reference will be made to a single user selected keyword  134 . However, it should be understood that systems and methods of the present disclosure may operate using more than one selected keyword  134  may be used. In a particular embodiment, selected keyword  134  may be provided by a user, a content provider, and/or a service provider. 
         [0020]    In a particular embodiment, the keyword module  122  may search the buffer for one or more keywords  132  that may identify a URL, such as a generic top-level domain (gTLD) (e.g., .biz, .com, .info, .name, .net, .org, .pro). Once the keyword  132  is detected, in the media content, the keyword module  122  may be configured to access media content stored at the buffer  116  and to identify the word immediately preceding or succeeding the identified keyword  132  to create a URL. As another example, the keyword  132  may be “www” or “http://” and when the keyword module  122  detects the keyword  132 , immediately following words are obtained from buffer  116  to create a URL. The URL may be included in a hypertext transfer protocol (http) request to access a web site or the URL may be sent to the search module  120  that may initiate and send a search request to the search engine  110 . 
         [0021]    In a particular embodiment, the search module  120  is executable by the processor  118  to initiate an Internet search in response to a detection of an identified keyword  132  by the keyword module  122 . For example, the search module  120  may be responsive to the keyword module  122  and, upon detection of the identified keyword  132 , the search module  120  may initiate and send a search request to the search engine  110 . The search module  120  may further be configured to receive search results from the search engine  110 , and to prepare the search result for display at the display device  126 . 
         [0022]    In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device  112  is configured to display the search results  128  concurrently with displaying the media content  130  that includes the identified keyword  132  that triggered the search. As a result, a viewer of the display device  126  may be able to view the media content  130  and when a selected keyword is detected in the media content, to view a display of search results  128  concurrently at the display device  126 . In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device  112  includes a history of search results  136 . The history of search results  136  may be accessible by a user to view search results  128  after the media content  130  has been viewed. 
         [0023]    During operation, a user of the set-top box device  112  may select the user identified keyword  132  to be used by the keyword module  122 . For example, the user may select or otherwise designate a keyword such as “cars” or “AT&amp;T U-verse SM ”. Once the user identified keyword  132  is designated by the user, the keyword  132  is stored in the memory  124  for access by the keyword module  122 . After designating the user identified keyword  132 , the user of the set-top box device  112  may engage in viewing media content. For example, the user may select one or more television channels to view at the display device  126 . In response to a request from the user to tune to one or more channels, the set-top box device  112  may generate and send a request to the server  102 . In response, the server  102  initiates a stream of media content to the set-top box device  112  via the network  108 . 
         [0024]    As the media content is received at the set-top box device  112 , the media content may be buffered at the buffer  116 . The buffer  116  may temporarily store the media content, and the keyword module  122  may be executed by the processor  118  to search through an audio portion of the media content at the buffer  116 . In a particular embodiment, the keyword module  122  may be configured to search through a white space area of the media content, a closed-captioned portion of the media content, or the audio portion of the media content, such as by using the speech recognition engine  138 . 
         [0025]    When the keyword module  122  detects an occurrence of the identified keyword  132  in the media content stored at the buffer  116 , the keyword module  122  may detect or to locate additional words in the media content within a pre-determined region or range of the identified keyword  132 . For example, the keyword module  122  may be configured to identify words or other terms used in the media content within ten words in advance of or following the occurrence of the identified keyword  132 . In a particular embodiment, the user can select the region or range of the additional words from the identified keyword  132 . In a particular embodiment, if the user identified keyword  132  is part of a URL, the keyword module  122  may be configured to detect of locate additional words that will complete the URL. For example, if the identified keyword  132  is a top-level domain identifier such as .com, then the keyword module  122  is configured to search the buffer  116  or otherwise detect the or locate the word preceding to the word “.com” to complete and generate the URL. In a particular embodiment, detecting the URL includes the keyword module  122  configured to search the audio portion of the media stream with speech recognition engine  138  to identify an occurrence of a top-level domain identifier in the audio portion of the media stream. 
         [0026]    After detecting the keyword  132  and one or more additional words in proximity to the keyword  132 , the keyword module  122  may provide the keyword  132  and the identified additional words to the search module  120 . The search module  120  may receive the keyword  132  and the additional words, and may process the received words prior to generating a search. For example, the search module  120  may remove terms that may not provide significant context to the keyword  132 , such as prepositions (e.g., “of”, “to”, “in”, “for”, and “on”) and may further process the received terms by comparison against the black list  134 . In a particular embodiment, the black list  134  may include a default or user specified terms that the search module  120  may use to generate a search query using the processed data. 
         [0027]    The search query may be sent via the network interface  116  to the search engine  110 . In response, the search engine  110  may conduct a network search such as an Internet search, and may send the search results to the set-top box device  112 . In a particular embodiment, if the user identified keyword  132  is part of a URL, the set-top box  112  may generate a http request to access the web address identified by the URL. The set-top box device  112  may process the search results  128  or the http request result to be displayed concurrently with the media content  130 , for at least a temporary, pre-determined period of time. For example, the search result  128  may be displayed via an overlay that may be displayed for a short period of time, such as one second, two seconds, or some other duration. In a particular embodiment, the duration is user defined and customizable. 
         [0028]    In addition, a history of search results  136  may be stored at the memory  124 . The history of search results  136  may be accessible by a user to view search results  128  after the media content  130  has been viewed. For example, a user may elect not to interact with the search results  128  while watching the media content  130 , such as a television show, and may instead elect to view the history  136  of search results after the television show is over. In a particular embodiment, the search results  128  may include information and may further include selectable links. 
         [0029]    By enabling a user of the set-top box device  112  to select keywords of interest to the user, the system  100  enables a near real-time display of additional pertinent information to a viewer of media content in a manner that is relevant to the display of the media content  130 . Therefore, a user may be able to, in conjunction with a television show providing a keyword in the audio, view search results including that keyword and contextual words of the media content, for interaction with a further viewing by the user. Hence, a user&#39;s enjoyment of a viewing experience may be enhanced. 
         [0030]      FIG. 2  depicts a stream of media content  200  that may be received at the set-top box device  112  of  FIG. 1 . The stream of media content  200  contains a video portion  202 , an audio portion  204 , a white space portion  206  and a closed-captioned portion  208 . The video portion  202  contains the video content, if any, in the stream of media content  200 . The audio portion  204  contains the audio content, if any, in the stream of media content  200 . The white space portion  206  contains the white space content, if any, in the stream of media content  200 . The closed-captioned portion  208  contains the closed-caption content, if any, in the stream of media content  200 . The stream of media content  200  is depicted as comprising a first segment  220 , a second segment  222 , and a third segment  224 . The segments  220 - 224  may represent portions of the media content encoded to be delivered via a payload of a data packet in a packet stream and recorded in a buffer of a media receiver such as the one in  FIG. 1 . The packets may be sent and/or received sequentially or otherwise may be asynchronous. 
         [0031]    In a particular embodiment, the audio portion  204  may be scanned by the keyword module  122  using the speech recognition engine  138  to detect the keyword  132 . Once the keyword  132  is detected, keyword module  122  may use the buffer  116  to locate words proximate to the user identified keyword  132  in the stream of media content  200 . For example, if the user identified keyword  132  is the word “AT&amp;T U-verse”, search module  120 , using buffer  116 , may use words identified in preceding section  212  that are preceding the user identified keyword  132  in a search. Alternatively, the search module  120 , using the buffer  116 , may use the words identified in the succeeding section  214  that are succeeding the user identified keyword  132  in a search. In a particular embodiment, the search module  120  may use the words both preceding and succeeding the user identified keyword  132  in a search. In a particular embodiment, the search module  120  may scan the white space  206  of the stream of media content  200  to determine the presence of keyword  132 . In another particular embodiment, search module  120  may scan closed-captioned portion  208  of the media content  106 . 
         [0032]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , a system to detect keywords and uniform resource locators (URL) in media content is depicted and generally designated  300 . The system  300  includes a server  302  in communication with a media receiver, such as a representative set-top box device  320  via a network  318 , such as an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) access network. The set-top box device  320  is coupled to a display device  326 . In addition, a search engine  316  is in communication with the server  302  via the network  318 . 
         [0033]    The server  302  is configured to detect the occurrences of an identified keyword  330  and to provide associated information to the set-top box device  320  to be displayed at the display device  326  concurrently with the display of media content. In a particular embodiment, the server  302  contains a buffer  306  that is configured to store or have access to media content  332  received by a network interface  304 . The server  302  may be configured to receive requests for the media content  332  and to initiate a stream of the media content  332  to the requestor. For example, the server  302  may be a video server, such as a server of an IPTV distribution system. In a particular embodiment, the media content  332  may include any combination of video content, audio content, closed captioning content, white space content, or other types of content. For example, the media content  332  may include media content or television content. 
         [0034]    In a particular embodiment, the server  302  includes a processor  308  coupled to a memory  310 . In a particular embodiment, the server  302  includes a keyword module  312  that is executable by the processor  308  to detect an occurrence of the identified keyword  330 . For example, the keyword module  312  may be configured to access media content stored at the buffer  306  and to identify additional words within a pre-determined proximity to the identified keyword  330  detected at the buffer  306 . For example, in a particular embodiment, a user may identify, select, or otherwise determine one or more user selected keywords  330  that are stored at the memory  310  or in the cookie  324  at the set-top box  320 . If the user identified keyword  330  is stored in a cookie  324  at the set-top box  320 , then the keyword module  312  can access the cookie  324  via the network  318 . For ease of explanation, reference will be made to only one user identified keyword  330 . However, it should be understood that more than one user identified keyword  330  may be used. 
         [0035]    In a particular embodiment, the identified keyword  330  is not user identified but instead is pre-determined For example, keyword module  312  may contain a list of pre-determined keywords that the user cannot change. In a particular embodiment, the user can change the pre-determined keywords. For example, the user may be able to add to the list of keywords or delete keywords from the list. In a particular embodiment, the pre-determined keywords may be updated on a regular basis. 
         [0036]    The keyword module  312  may be configured to perpetually scan media content that is buffered at the buffer  306  and to determine occurrences of one or more of the selected keywords  330  at the buffer  306 . In a particular embodiment, the server  302  includes a filter module  334 . In a particular embodiment, the filter module  334  may remove terms that may not provide significant context to the identified keyword  330 , allow terms that do provide significant context to the identified keyword  330 , or include default or specified terms that the search module  314  may use to generate a search query using the processed data. 
         [0037]    In a particular embodiment, the search module  314  includes executable instructions that are executable by the processor  308  to initiate an Internet search in response to a detection of the user identified keyword  330 . For example, the search module  314  may be responsive to the keyword module  312  and, upon detection of the user identified keyword  330 , the search module  314  may initiate and send a search request to the search engine  316 . The search module  314  may further be configured to receive a search result from the search engine  316 , and to prepare the search results for display at the display device  326 . 
         [0038]    In a particular embodiment a link or display on the display device  326  is presented upon detection of the identified keyword  330 . For example, during a football game, if a player&#39;s name is detected, such as Brett Favre, and the words “Brett Favre” are selected keywords  330 , then a link or display on the display device  326  is presented to provide more information about Brett Favre. For example, the link may be a link to access Brett Favre&#39;s statistics or his biography. In another example, during a newscast, a reporter may reference a city or country and if the referenced city or country is an identified keyword  330 , then a link or display on the display device  326  is presented to the user to provide more information about the referenced city or country. 
         [0039]    In a particular embodiment, the search module  314  includes executable instructions that are executable by the processor  308  to present an advertisement in response to the detection of the identified keyword  330 . The advertisement may be a link or a display at the display device  326 . For example, the identified keyword  330  may be the words “cellphone” and upon detection of the words “cell phone” the user is presented with a link to a web site for information about a particular cell phone service provider or an advertisement for a particular cell phone service provider is displayed at the display device  326 . 
         [0040]    In a particular embodiment, the search engine  316  may be configured to receive requests for network searches and to return results of searches performed in response to the request. For example, the search engine  316  may receive a request including one or more keywords, and may initiate an Internet search using the one or more received keywords. In addition, the search engine  316  may generate a list of one or more web sites or other resources matching the requested keywords, and provide a reply to the sender of the request. 
         [0041]    In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device  320  includes a network interface  322  coupled to a processor  336  and a memory  340 . The memory  340  includes a cookie  324  and a history of the search results  338 . The set-top box device  320  is configured to receive media content via the network  318 , to decode and process the media content using processor  336 , and provide the decoded and processed media content to display at the display device  326 . 
         [0042]    In a particular embodiment, the set-top box device  320  is configured to receive search results from the  302  and to display the search results  328  concurrently with displaying the media content  350  that includes the identified keyword  330  that generated the search. As a result, a viewer of the display device  326  may be able to view the media content  350  and when the identified keyword  330  is detected in the media content  350 , to view a display of search results  328  concurrently at the display device  326 . 
         [0043]    A user of the set-top box device  320  may select a keyword such as “cars” or “AT&amp;T U-verse”. Once the user defined keyword  330  is selected by the user, the cookie  324  stores the user identified keyword  330  for access by the keyword module  312  via network  318 . After selecting the user selected keyword  320 , the user may engage in viewing the media content  350 . For example, the user may select one or more television channels to view at the display device  326 . In response to a request from the user to receive one or more channels, the set-top box device  326  may generate and send a request to the server  302 . In response, the server  302  accesses the user generated keyword  330  and initiates a stream of the media content  332  to the server  302 . As the media content  332  is received at the server  302 , the media content may be buffered at the buffer  306 . The buffer  306  may temporarily store the media content, and the keyword module  312  may be executed by the processor  308  to search through an audio portion of the media content at the buffer  306 . In a particular embodiment, the keyword module  312  may be configured to search through a white space area of the media content, a closed-captioned portion of the media content, or the audio portion of the media content, such as by using a speech recognition engine  342  similar to the speech recognition engine  138  shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         [0044]    When the keyword module  312  detects an occurrence of the identified keyword  330  in the media content stored at the buffer  306 , the keyword module  312  may further be configured to detect or to locate additional words in the media content within a pre-determined region or range of the selected keywords  324 . For example, the keyword module  312  may be configured to identify words or other terms used in the media content within ten words in advance of or following the occurrence of the user identified keyword  330 . 
         [0045]    After detecting the identified keyword  330  and optionally one or more additional words in proximity to the identified keyword  330 , the keyword module  312  may provide the identified keyword  330  and the identified additional words to the search module  314 . The search module  314  may receive the identified keyword  330  and the additional words, and may process the received words prior to generating a search. For example, the search module  314  may remove terms that may not provide significant context to the user identified keyword  330 , such as prepositions (e.g., “of”, “to”, “in”, “for”, and “on”), may include terms that might provide significant context to the user identified keyword  330 , and may further process the received terms by comparison against a filter module  334 . In a particular embodiment, the filter module  334  may include default or user specified terms that the search module  314  may use to generate a search query using the processed data. 
         [0046]    The search query may be sent via the network interface  304  to the search engine  316 . In response, the search engine  316  may conduct a network search such as an Internet search, and may send the search results to the network interface  322  of the set-top box device  320 . In response, the set-top box device  320  may process the search results  328  to be displayed concurrently with the media content  350 , for at least a temporary, pre-determined period of time. For example, the search result  328  may be displayed via an overlay that may be displayed for a short period of time, such as five seconds, ten seconds,  30  seconds, or some other duration. In a particular embodiment, the display time is customizable and set by the user of the set-top box device  320 . 
         [0047]    In addition, a history of search results  338  may be stored at the set-top box  320 . The history of search results  338  may be accessible by a user to view the search results  328  after the media content  350  has been viewed. For example, a user may elect not to interact with the search results  328  while watching the media content  350 , such as a television show, and may instead elect to view the history of the search results  338  after the television show is over. In a particular embodiment, the search results  328  may include information and may further include selectable links. 
         [0048]    By enabling a user of the set-top box device  320  to select keywords of interest to the user, the system  300  enables a near real-time display of additional pertinent information to a viewer of media content in a manner that is relevant to the display of the media content  350 . Therefore, a user may be able to, in conjunction with a television show providing a keyword in the audio, view search results including that keyword and contextual words of the media content, for interaction with a further viewing by the user. Hence, a user&#39;s enjoyment of a viewing experience may be enhanced. 
         [0049]    Although the media receivers of both  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2  are depicted as set-top boxes, in other embodiments they may be: PDA, cell phones, mobile phones, gaming devices, or other similar devices. Also, modules may be the hardware, software, or firmware. In addition, the buffer  306  may be in the network  318  and server  302  may contain the history of the search results  338 . 
         [0050]      FIG. 4  is a flow diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of a method of identifying a selected keyword in a media stream. A media stream is sent to a receiver in response to a request for the media from the receiver, at  402 . In a particular embodiment, the receiver may be a set-top box such as the set-top box device  112  of  FIG. 1  or the set-top box device  320  of  FIG. 3 . Moving to  404 , the media stream is scanned for a selected keyword. In a particular embodiment, the user selected keyword may be stored in the memory  124  or in a cookie  324  and the keyword module  122  scans the media stream for an occurrence of the user selected keyword. In a particular embodiment, the cookie  324  is access in response to a request from the receiver to provide the media stream. 
         [0051]    At decision  406 , a determination is made whether or not the selected keyword was identified. If the selected keyword was not identified, then the media stream is scanned again, at  404 . Otherwise, if the selected keyword is detected, then additional words proximate to the selected keyword are identified at  408 . For example, a buffer, such as the buffer  116  of  FIG. 1 , may temporarily store the media content contained in the media stream, and the keyword module  122  may be executed by the processor  118  to search through the media content to locate additional words proximate to the user selected keyword. 
         [0052]    Continuing to  410 , in a particular embodiment, a network search is performed of the user selected keyword and the additional words. If additional words proximate to the user defined keyword were not detected, then only a network search of the user selected keyword may be performed. Advancing to  412 , the results of the network search are displayed concurrently with the media content on a single display device. Proceeding to  414 , a history of the search results may be stored and may be accessible by a user to view the search results in response to a request by the user. 
         [0053]      FIG. 5  is a flow diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of a method of identifying a URL in media content. A media stream is scanned to determine if a URL is present in the media content contained in the media stream, at  502 . For example, the keyword module  122  of  FIG. 1  may scan the media stream to determine if a URL is present in the media content contained in the media stream. At decision  504 , a determination is made whether or not a URL is present in the media content. If a URL is not contained in the stream of media content, the stream of media content is scanned again, at  502 . Otherwise, advancing to  506 , if a URL is identified, then a selectable link is displayed on the same device as the media content is displayed. For example, the set-top box device  112  of  FIG. 1  may process the URL to be displayed concurrently with the media content. Continuing to  508 , in a particular embodiment, a history of the displayed link that was displayed is stored and may be retrieved later in response to a user&#39;s request. For example, the history of search results  136  of  FIG. 1  may store the results in memory  124  where the results may be accessible in response to a user&#39;s request. 
         [0054]    Although the particular embodiments of the above-described methods have been presented in a particular sequence, it should be understood that the sequences are presented for illustrative purposes, and that in other embodiments the methods may be performed in a number of alternative sequences. In addition, other embodiments can have more or less steps than depicted. 
         [0055]    Referring to  FIG. 6 , an illustrative embodiment of a general computer system is shown and is designated  600 . The computer system  600  can include a set of instructions that can be executed to cause the computer system  600  to perform any one or more of the methods or computer based functions disclosed herein. The computer system  600  can operate as a standalone device or can be connected, e.g., using a network, to other computer systems or peripheral devices, such as the systems and electronic devices shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3 . For example, the computer system  600  may be included in the server  102 , search engine  110 , or set-top box device  112  of  FIG. 1 , or the server  302 , search engine  316 , or the set-top box device  320  of  FIG. 3 , or any combination thereof. 
         [0056]    In a networked deployment, the computer system can operate in the capacity of a server or as a client user computer in a server-client user network environment, or as a peer computer system in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The computer system  600  can also be implemented as or incorporated into various devices, such as a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile device, a palmtop computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a communications device, a wireless telephone, a land-line telephone, a control system, a camera, a scanner, a facsimile machine, a printer, a pager, a personal trusted device, a web appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any other machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. In a particular embodiment, the computer system  600  can be implemented using electronic devices that provide voice, video or data communication. Further, while a single computer system  600  is illustrated, the term “system” shall also be taken to include any collection of systems or sub-systems that individually or jointly execute a set, or multiple sets, of instructions to perform one or more computer functions. 
         [0057]    As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , the computer system  600  can include a processor  602 , e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), or both. Moreover, the computer system  600  can include a main memory  604  and a static memory  606 , that can communicate with each other via a bus  608 . As shown, the computer system  600  can further include a video display unit  610 , such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), a flat panel display, a solid state display, or projection television. Additionally, the computer system  600  can include an input device  612 , such as a keyboard, and a cursor control device  614 , such as a mouse. The computer system  600  can also include a disk drive unit  616 , a signal generation device  618 , such as a speaker or remote control, and a network interface device  620 . 
         [0058]    In a particular embodiment, as depicted in  FIG. 6 , the disk drive unit  616  can include a computer-readable medium  622  in which one or more sets of instructions  624 , e.g. software, can be embedded. Further, the instructions  624  can embody one or more of the methods or logic as described herein. In a particular embodiment, the instructions  624  can reside completely, or at least partially, within the main memory  604 , the static memory  606 , and/or within the processor  602  during execution by the computer system  600 . The main memory  604  and the processor  602  also can include computer-readable media. 
         [0059]    In an alternative embodiment, dedicated hardware implementations, such as application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays and other hardware devices, can be constructed to implement one or more of the methods described herein. Applications that can include the apparatus and systems of various embodiments can broadly include a variety of electronic and computer systems. One or more embodiments described herein can implement functions using two or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with related control and data signals that can be communicated between and through the modules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Accordingly, the present system encompasses software, firmware, and hardware implementations. 
         [0060]    In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, the methods described herein can be implemented by software programs executable by a computer system. Further, in an exemplary, non-limited embodiment, implementations can include distributed processing, component/object distributed processing, and parallel processing. Alternatively, virtual computer system processing can be constructed to implement one or more of the methods or functionality as described herein. 
         [0061]    The present disclosure contemplates a computer-readable medium that includes instructions  624  or receives and executes instructions  624  responsive to a propagated signal, so that a device connected to a network  626  can communicate voice, video or data over the network  626 . Further, the instructions  624  can be transmitted or received over the network  626  via the network interface device  620 . 
         [0062]    While the computer-readable medium is shown to be a single medium, the term “computer-readable medium” includes a single medium or multiple media, such as a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers that store one or more sets of instructions. The term “computer-readable medium” shall also include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by a processor or that cause a computer system to perform any one or more of the methods or operations disclosed herein. 
         [0063]    In a particular non-limiting, exemplary embodiment, the computer-readable medium can include a solid-state memory such as a memory card or other package that houses one or more non-volatile read-only memories. Further, the computer-readable medium can be a random access memory or other volatile re-writable memory. Additionally, the computer-readable medium can include a magneto-optical or optical medium, such as a disk or tapes or other storage device to capture carrier wave signals such as a signal communicated over a transmission medium. A digital file attachment to an e-mail or other self-contained information archive or set of archives can be considered equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more of a computer-readable medium and other equivalents and successor media, in which data or instructions can be stored. 
         [0064]    Although the present specification describes components and functions that can be implemented in particular embodiments with reference to particular standards and protocols, the invention is not limited to such standards and protocols. For example, standards for Internet and other packet switched network transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP) represent examples of the state of the art. Such standards are periodically superseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentially the same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards and protocols having the same or similar functions as those disclosed herein are considered equivalents thereof. 
         [0065]    The illustrations of the embodiments described herein are intended to provide a general understanding of the structure of the various embodiments. The illustrations are not intended to serve as a complete description of all of the elements and features of apparatus and systems that utilize the structures or methods described herein. Many other embodiments can be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the disclosure. Other embodiments can be utilized and derived from the disclosure, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Additionally, the illustrations are merely representational and can not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions within the illustrations can be exaggerated, while other proportions can be minimized Accordingly, the disclosure and the figures are to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. 
         [0066]    One or more embodiments of the disclosure can be referred to herein, individually and/or collectively, by the term “invention” merely for convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of this application to any particular invention or inventive concept. Moreover, although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any subsequent arrangement designed to achieve the same or similar purpose can be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all subsequent adaptations or variations of various embodiments. Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the description. 
         [0067]    The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, various features can be grouped together or described in a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter can be directed to less than all of the features of any of the disclosed embodiments. Thus, the following claims are incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as defining separately claimed subject matter. 
         [0068]    The above-disclosed subject matter is to be considered illustrative, and not restrictive, and the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications, enhancements, and other embodiments that fall within the true scope of the present invention. Thus, to the maximum extent allowed by law, the scope of the present invention is to be determined by the broadest permissible interpretation of the following claims and their equivalents, and shall not be restricted or limited by the foregoing detailed description.

Technology Classification (CPC): 6