Patent ID: 7269836

Claim:
Remultiplexer apparatus for processing multimedia input streams comprising: a demultiplexer component for demultiplexing program streams; at least one input buffer for receiving an input stream comprising more than one program, each program having a plurality of program components each having an associated packet identifier (PID), said at least one input buffer comprising: an identifier for identifying a program component based on the PID for the program component; a determining means for determining whether an identified program component is to be included unaltered in a remultiplexer output stream, is to be dropped, or is to be copied for further processing; a packet replacement component for marking packets in the input stream containing program component content not to be included in the remultiplexer output stream as idle packets thereby producing a modified input stream whereby said packet replacement component changes only the PID for each packet in the input stream containing program component content not to be included in the remultiplexer output stream to indicate that the packet is an idle packet which can be replaced; and a buffer for providing said modified input stream for output, for discarding program components to be dropped, and for copying program components to be further processed; a multiplexer for multiplexing local program components for inclusion in said remultiplexer output stream into a multiplexed stream; and a combiner for combining said multiplexed stream with said modified input stream to produce said remultiplexer output stream.