Patent ID: 8650600

Claim:
A set top/back box comprising: a housing; one or more wireless transceivers located within the housing, the one or more wireless transceivers operable to communicate with a proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device; a television input and a television output secured in the housing, the television input and the television output for receiving content from a source in a lodging environment and forwarding content to a television; a processor coupled to the one or more wireless transceivers and the television input and the television output; a memory accessible to the processor, the memory including processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to: specify a search operation to identify the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, wherein the search operation utilizes the at least one or more wireless transceivers to wirelessly identify the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, establish a pairing between the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device and the set top/back box, send formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions to the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions are operable to provide a parallel experience related to the content on the television, provide instructions for virtual buttons on a touch screen display associated with the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, the virtual buttons being associated with a particular amenity, receive and process virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, and send a command to the particular amenity; a configuration profile associated with the memory and processor-executable instructions that enables the set-top box to control a plurality of proximate amenities in a multi-room environment, the plurality of proximate amenities including the particular amenity, the plurality of proximate amenities being associated with a user's stay in the lodging environment; the configuration profile, for each amenity of the plurality of amenities, including instructions for virtual buttons on a touch screen display, and instructions for associating virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the touch screen display with commands; and wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale an image on the television to a first portion of the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that selectively display one or more sets of virtual buttons on a second portion of the touch screen display, the one or more sets of virtual buttons corresponding to the plurality of amenities.