Patent ID: 8392945

Claim:
A method executable by a video services receiver in a video services broadcasting system to provide access to events by a customer associated with the video services receiver, the method comprising: receiving, at the video services receiver, system-wide service information (SI) that comprises a Network Information Table (NIT), a Service Description Table (SDT), and an Event Information Table (EIT), the EIT including system-wide event-level blackout descriptors with blackout information for events, and the blackout descriptors comprising alternative event identifiers for events, wherein the SI is globally received by all video services receivers in the video services broadcasting system, each blackout descriptor includes a specified field for its respective alternative event identifier, each alternative event identifier is a string of bits in the specified field, an alternative event identifier value of zero indicates that the respective event is a singular event that is only available on one service, wherein each event referred to in the SI has a corresponding alternative event identifier, and wherein all events that share the same content have the same nonzero alternative event identifier value; receiving, at the video services receiver, an identification of a first event on a first service receivable by the video services receiver, the first event corresponding to a first presentation of content; obtaining, by the video services receiver, an alternative event identifier for the first event by processing the blackout descriptors in the EIT; using the alternative event identifier for the first event to search for alternative events receivable by the video services receiver, each of the alternative events corresponding to a second presentation of the same content presented in the first presentation, wherein searching for the alternative events comprises matching the alternative event identifier for the first event to at least one candidate alternative event identifier for candidate events on services supported by the video services receiver to obtain matching events; thereafter, the video services receiver checking whether the blackout descriptors in the EIT indicate a blackout for any of the matching events; and thereafter, the video services receiver generating an alternative event notification for the customer, the alternative event notification indicating availability of at least one of the matching events that is not subject to blackouts, for access by the customer on the video services receiver, and the video services receiver denying access to any of the matching events subject to a blackout.