Abstract:
There is disclosed a television apparatus for viewing group viewing statistics pertaining to groups of friends of a viewer. The television apparatus comprises a viewing statistics controller capable of receiving incoming television signals from a broadcast source and extracting from the incoming television signals viewer statistical data transmitted by the broadcast source, wherein the viewing statistics controller displays on a television screen associated with the television apparatus at least a portion of the viewer statistical data associated with a viewer group selected by a viewer operating the television apparatus.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention is directed, in general, to television broadcasting systems and, more specifically, to a system for receiving group viewing statistics from a broadcast facility and displaying the statistics to a viewer on a television set.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    After television was first widely introduced in the 1950s, television viewing quickly became a family-centered activity. More recently, however, television viewing has become much less a group activity and much more a solitary activity. This change is due in part to societal changes that have resulted in more single parent families, in which children often watch TV while the one parent works, and more two parent families in which both parents work and the children watch TV while one or both parents work. Also, a vast increase in the number of television channels available and a similar increase in the diversity of TV programming gives individuals with diverse tastes more viewing options. As a result family members often watch different programs on different televisions within the same home.  
           [0003]    However, solitary viewing of television does not give the viewer the enjoyment of a group experience, as in the case of family viewing. There is no interaction with others to complement the televised program and the viewer has no one with whom to share laughter or sadness. It would be beneficial to provide a solitary television viewer (or a small group of viewers) with some sense of a shared experience.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    To address the above-discussed deficiencies of the prior art, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a television apparatus for viewing group viewing statistics pertaining to groups of friends of a viewer. According to an advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the television apparatus comprises a viewing statistics controller capable of receiving incoming television signals from a broadcast source and extracting from the incoming television signals viewer statistical data transmitted by the broadcast source, wherein the viewing statistics controller displays on a television screen associated with the television apparatus at least a portion of the viewer statistical data associated with a viewer group selected by a viewer operating the television apparatus.  
           [0005]    According to one embodiment of the present invention, the viewing statistics controller intermittently transmits to the broadcast source viewed channel data identifying television programs viewed by the viewer.  
           [0006]    According to another embodiment of the present invention, the viewing statistics controller displays the at least a portion of the viewer statistical data in response to a command prompt entered by the viewer.  
           [0007]    According to still another embodiment of the present invention, the viewing statistics controller displays the at least a portion of the viewer statistical data periodically.  
           [0008]    According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, members of the viewer group are determined by the viewer and the viewing statistics controller transmits to the broadcast source identification data identifying the members of the viewer group.  
           [0009]    According to a further embodiment of the present invention, receipt of the identification data causes the broadcast source to monitor viewed channel data identifying television programs viewed by the members of the viewer group.  
           [0010]    According to a still further embodiment of the present invention, the viewing statistics controller comprises a graphical user interface operable to display on the television screen the at least a portion of the viewer statistical data associated with the viewer group.  
           [0011]    According to a yet further embodiment of the present invention, the viewer selects the viewer group via the graphical user interface.  
           [0012]    In one embodiment of the present invention, the television apparatus is disposed within a television set.  
           [0013]    In another embodiment of the present invention, the television apparatus is disposed within a set-top box associated with the television screen.  
           [0014]    The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of the present invention so that those skilled in the art may better understand the detailed description of the invention that follows. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be described hereinafter that form the subject of the claims of the invention. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the conception and the specific embodiment disclosed as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest form.  
           [0015]    Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases used throughout this patent document: the terms “include” and “comprise,” as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without limitation; the term “or,” is inclusive, meaning and/or; the phrases “associated with” and “associated therewith,” as well as derivatives thereof, may mean to include, be included within, interconnect with, contain, be contained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, or the like; and the term “controller” means any device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation, such a device may be implemented in hardware, firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely. In particular, a controller may comprise one or more data processors, and associated input/output devices and memory, that execute one or more application programs and/or an operating system program. Definitions for certain words and phrases are provided throughout this patent document, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that in many, if not most instances, such definitions apply to prior, as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0016]    For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and the advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like numbers designate like objects, and in which:  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 1 illustrates exemplary television broadcast system  10  according to one embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary set-top box (STB) and a television set according to one embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 3 illustrates in greater detail the exemplary set-top box according to one embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating the operation of the exemplary set-top box and broadcast facility according to one embodiment of the present invention.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0021]    [0021]FIGS. 1 through 4, discussed below, and the various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present invention in this patent document are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the invention. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present invention may be implemented in any suitably arranged set-top box (STB) and broadcast facility.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 1 illustrates exemplary television broadcast system  10  according to one embodiment of the present invention. Television broadcast system  10  comprises local broadcast facility  11 , which receives one or more digital video transport streams from each of network video sources  21 - 23 . Local broadcast facility  10  may receive these digital video transport streams from wireline communication links or from wireless communication links. For example, local broadcast facility  10  receives one or more digital video transport streams from network video source  21  via wireline communication link  31  and receives one or more digital video transport streams from network video source  22  via wireline communication link  32 .  
         [0023]    Local broadcast facility  11  also comprises base transceiver stations  34  and  35 , which wirelessly transmit one or more digital video transport streams from network video source  23  to local broadcast facility  11 . In an exemplary embodiment, network video source  23  may transmit the digital video transport streams via communication line  33  to base transceiver station  34 , which is part of a local multipoint distribution system (LMDS) network. In an LMDS network, a microwave link is used to transmit the digital video transport stream from base transceiver station  34  to base transceiver station  35 .  
         [0024]    Local broadcast facility  11  transmits the digital video transport streams to subscriber locations  41 - 43 , which may include both private residences and business locations. If local broadcast facility  11  is part of a cable television system, local broadcast facility  11  may transmit one or more outbound digital video transport streams to subscriber locations  41  and  42  via communication wireline  51 . Communication wireline  52  carries one or more outbound digital video transport streams from local broadcast facility  11  to transmitter  43 , which wirelessly transmits the outbound digital video transport streams to subscriber location  43 .  
         [0025]    Each of the digital video transport streams received by and transmitted by local broadcast facility are carried in a 6 MHz broadcast channel. A transport stream usually contains several virtual channels, with each virtual channel containing a program. The program carried in a virtual channel is what a viewer sees on a signal television channel, such as a movie, a newscast, and a weather channel. Normally, each virtual channel is allocated a fixed bandwidth, such as 3 Megabits per second (Mbps).  
         [0026]    Local broadcast facility  11  also comprises viewed channel monitor  60  and viewer data base (DB)  70 , which stores group lists  71  and viewer list  72 . Viewed channel monitor  60  communicates bidirectionally with associated monitoring apparatuses in set-top boxes in subscriber locations in order to gather viewing statistics from each viewer and to distribute group viewing statistics to each viewer. All viewer profile information gathered from individual viewers is stored in viewer list  72 , including the TV program that each viewer is currently viewing. Group lists  71  comprises a listing of N groups of viewers, including data identifying each viewer in each of the N groups. As described below in greater detail, viewers may be put into different groups according to a wide variety of criteria.  
         [0027]    In the descriptions of the present invention that follow, the associated subscriber monitoring apparatus that communicates bidirectionally with viewed channel monitor  60  is implemented in a set-top box that functions as a disk-based video recorder. Those skilled in the art will understand that this is by way of example only and should not be construed so as to limit the scope of the present invention. In alternate embodiments of the present invention, the subscriber monitoring apparatus may be implemented in a television set, in a conventional video cassette recorder (VCR), in a cable TV converter box, or in a satellite dish control box.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 2 illustrates exemplary set-top box (STB)  150  and television set  105  according to one embodiment of the present invention. Set-top box  150  receives incoming television signals from local broadcast facility  11 , which may be a cable television service provider (Cable Co.) or an Internet service provider (ISP) and transmits a viewer-selected channel to television set  105 .  
         [0029]    In RECORD mode, set-top box  150  may demodulate an incoming radio frequency (RF) television signal to produce a baseband video signal that is recorded and stored on a storage medium within or connected to set-top box  150 . In PLAY mode, set-top box  150  reads a stored baseband video signal (i.e., program) selected by the user from the storage medium and transmits it to television set  105 .  
         [0030]    For example, if set-top box  150  is a disk drive-based device, such as a ReplayTV™ recorder or a TiVo™ recorder, set-top box  150  stores and retrieves the incoming television signals to and from a computer magnetic hard disk (rather than a magnetic cassette tape). In still other embodiments, set-top box  150  may store and retrieve from a local read/write (R/W) digital versatile disk (DVD) or R/W CD-ROM. Thus, the local storage medium may be fixed (i.e., hard disk drive) or removable (i.e., DVD, CD-ROM).  
         [0031]    Set-top box  150  comprises infrared (IR) sensor  160  that receives commands (such as Channel Up, Channel Down, Volume Up, Volume Down, Record, Play, Fast Forward (FF), Reverse, and the like) from a remote control device operated by the viewer. Television set  105  is a conventional television comprising screen  110 , infrared (IR) sensor  115 , and one or more manual controls  120  (indicated by a dotted line). IR sensor  115  also receives commands (such as volume up, volume down, power ON/OFF) from a remote control device operated by the viewer.  
         [0032]    It should be noted that set-top box  150  is not limited to receiving a particular type of incoming television signal from a particular type of source. As noted above, the external source may be a cable service provider, a conventional RF broadcast antenna, a satellite dish, or an Internet connection. Thus, the incoming signal may be a digital signal, an analog signal, or Internet protocol (IP) packets.  
         [0033]    However, for the purposes of simplicity and clarity in explaining the principles of the present invention, the descriptions that follow shall generally be directed to an embodiment in which set-top box  150  receives incoming television signals (analog and/or digital) from a cable service provider. Nonetheless, those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present invention may readily be adapted for use with wireless broadcast television signals, an incoming stream of IP packets containing MPEG data, and the like.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 3 illustrates exemplary set-top box  150  in greater detail according to one embodiment of the present invention. Set-top box  150  comprises IR sensor  160 , video processor  210 , MPEG2 encoder  220 , hard disk drive  230 , MPEG2 decoder/NTSC encoder  240 , video recorder (VR) controller  250 , video buffer  260 , and viewing statistics controller  270 . In an advantageous embodiment of the present invention, viewing statistics controller  270  comprises a data processor and an associated memory that stores graphical user interface  271  and user profile data  272 . VR controller  250  directs the overall operation of set-top box  150 , including View mode, Record mode, Play mode, Fast Forward (FF) mode, Reverse mode, among others.  
         [0035]    In View mode, VR controller  250  causes the incoming television signal from the cable service provider to be demodulated and processed by video processor  210  and transmitted to television set  105 , without storing or retrieving from hard disk drive  230 . Video processor  210 , which may be, for example, a TriMedia (TM)  1100  media processor, contains radio frequency (RF) front-end circuitry for receiving incoming television signals from the cable service provider, tuning to a user-selected channel, and converting the selected RF signal to a baseband television signal (e.g., super video signal) suitable for display on television set  105 . Video processor  210  also is capable of receiving a conventional NTSC signal from MPEG2 decoder/NTSC encoder  240  (after buffering in video buffer  260 ) during Play mode and transmitting baseband television signal (e.g., super video signal) to television set  105 .  
         [0036]    In Record mode, VR controller  250  causes the incoming television signal to be stored on hard disk drive  230 . Under the control of VR controller  250 , MPEG2 encoder  220  receives the incoming television signal from the cable service provider and converts the received RF signal to MPEG-2 format for storage on hard disk drive  230 . Alternatively, if set-top box  150  is coupled to a source that is transmitting MPEG-2 data, the incoming MPEG-2 data may bypass MPEG2 encoder  220  and be stored directly on hard disk drive  230 . In Play mode, VR controller  250  directs hard disk drive  230  to stream the stored television signal (i.e., program) to MPEG2 decoder/NTSC encoder  240 , which converts the MPEG2 data from hard disk drive  230  to, for example, a super video (S-Video) signal that is buffered in video buffer  260  before video processor  210  transmits it to television set  105 .  
         [0037]    It should be noted that the choice of the MPEG2 standard for MPEG2 encoder  220  and MPEG2 decoder/NTSC encoder  240  is by way of illustration only. In alternate embodiments of the present invention, the MPEG encoder and decoder may comply with one or more of the MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, and MPEG-7 standards.  
         [0038]    For the purposes of this application and the claims that follow, hard disk drive  230  is defined to include any mass storage device that is both readable and writable, including conventional magnetic disk drives and optical disk drives for read/write digital versatile disks (DVD-RW), re-writable CD-ROMs, VCR tapes and the like. In fact, hard disk drive  230  need not be fixed in the conventional sense that is permanently embedded in set-top box  150 . Rather, hard disk drive  230  includes any mass storage device that is dedicated to set-top box  150  for the purpose of storing recorded video programs. Thus, hard disk drive  230  may include an attached peripheral drive or removable disk drives (whether embedded or attached), such as a juke box device that holds read/write DVDs or re-writable CD-ROMs. Furthermore, in an advantageous embodiment of the present invention, hard disk drive  230  may include external mass storage devices that set-top box  150  may access and control via a network connection (e.g., Internet protocol (IP) connection), including, for example, a disk drive in the user&#39;s home personal computer (PC) or a disk drive on a server at the user&#39;s Internet service provider (ISP).  
         [0039]    Viewing statistics controller  270  communicates bidirectionally with video processor  210  and viewed channel monitor  60  in local broadcast facility  11 . Group viewing statistics of other viewers are transmitted from viewed channel monitor  60  to viewing statistics controller  270 . The viewing information related to the viewer operating set-top box  150  is transmitted from viewing statistics controller  270  to viewed channel monitor  60  in local broadcast facility  11 .  
         [0040]    Under control of GUI program  271 , viewing statistics controller  270  displays overlay window  190  on screen  110  of television set  105 . Viewing statistics are displayed in window  190  in response to a viewer prompt entered via a remote control. Also, viewer profile data entered by a viewer using a remote control appears in window  190  and is stored by viewing statistics controller  270  in user profile  272 . Viewing statistics controller  270  also transmits (uploads) the viewer profile data stored in user profile  272  of each viewer to viewed channel monitor  60  for storage in viewer list  72 .  
         [0041]    During the course of routine operation, viewing statistics controller  270  monitors the viewer selected channels being processed by video processor  210  and transmits the selected channel information to viewed channel monitor  60 . The selected channel information is likewise stored in viewer list  72 , thereby maintaining a real-time listing of the television programs (i.e., channels) being watched by each of the viewers in viewer list  72 . Whenever the group viewing statistics of a selected group in groups lists  71  are transmitted to viewing statistics controller  270 , the viewing statistics for each viewer in the selected group are retrieved from viewer list  72  and downloaded to viewing statistics controller  270  for subsequent display by GUI program  271  in window  190 .  
         [0042]    Viewing statistics controller  270  and viewed channel monitor  60  provide a unique apparatus and method that allows viewers who are viewing a television program alone or in very small numbers to feel a connection with other people who are also viewing the television program. The present invention enables a viewer to see what TV programs his or her friends are watching, to check the popularity of all TV programs that are currently being broadcast, to sort shows by their viewing popularity, and to check the popularity of a recorded program before they begin viewing.  
         [0043]    There are a number of ways that the viewing information can be transmitted to viewing statistics controller  270 . In one embodiment, content providers (i.e., broadcasters) can add the viewer statistics into the broadcast stream or via a secondary channel (i.e., Internet connection) coupled to set-top box  150 . In the illustrated embodiment in FIG. 1, a service provider (i.e., the cable company) provides the viewer statistics to viewers. Also, a third-party provider may ask viewers to subscribe. These methods could be done in total or by channel, by program, by location, by area of interest, and the like. Data for subscribed viewers could be sent back to individual viewers.  
         [0044]    Viewers may interact with viewing statistics controller  270  and viewed channel monitor  60  using a number of different methods. These methods may be active simultaneously. According to an “anonymous viewing” method, a first viewer may observe how many other viewers are currently watching a program, but the first viewer does not know the identities of the other viewers. This would protect the identity of the first viewer, as well. More specifically, each viewer can see how many people have watched a certain program to date, how many people have seen a particular episode, how many people are watching the series, how many people are interested in the statistics of the viewed program.  
         [0045]    According to a “group viewing” method, a viewer is able to see how many of the friends of the viewer are watching specific programs. This is of particular interest to teenagers, who often are more interested in watching programs that their friends watch than in watching shows they specifically find interesting. A viewer may use an avatar (i.e., and alias or screen name) to shield his or her identity. The viewer discloses his or her avatar only to members of his or her group. The viewer can also sort and search, keeping the avatars of their closest friends on top.  
         [0046]    According to a “special interest viewing” method, a viewer may be a member of one or more groups formed around different topics, similar to Internet boards. One obvious topic of interest would be the specific show viewers are watching. Viewers could see the different screen names or avatars of the other viewers. The viewers could then try to make personal connections by asking questions and hoping someone responds. This is similar to Internet chat groups.  
         [0047]    The viewer statistics could be displayed in a variety of manners in window  190 . The easiest is numerical data indicating the total number of viewers. In addition, the viewer statistics could appear as a percentage of all viewer statistics (e.g.,  10 % of all viewers are watching a certain show) or could appear abstracted as a graph. A viewer could sort through different shows based on the following exemplary criteria:  
         [0048]    1. Most popular ten shows currently being broadcast  
         [0049]    2. Most popular shows that were on last week  
         [0050]    3. Most popular shows this season, year, etc.  
         [0051]    4. Most popular show that user watches  
         [0052]    5. Most popular show that a specific username/avatar watches  
         [0053]    6. Viewing history of user/avatar  
         [0054]    [0054]FIG. 4 depicts flow diagram  400 , which illustrates the operation of exemplary set-top box  150  and broadcast facility  300  according to one embodiment of the present invention. Initially, viewed channel monitor  60  receives from viewing statistics controller  270  viewer profile data entered by the viewer (process step  405 ). Thereafter, during television viewing, viewing statistics controller  270  intermittently sends viewed channel data to viewed channel monitor  60  and receives viewing statistics from viewed channel monitor  60  (process step  410 ). Periodically, or in response to a viewer remote control prompt, viewing statistics controller  270  displays selected viewing statistics in pop-up window  190  of television screen  110  (process step  415 ).  
         [0055]    Although the present invention has been described in detail, those skilled in the art should understand that they can make various changes, substitutions and alterations herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest form.