Patent ID: 7769841

Claim:
A method of managing the use of media content ratings information by a media content receiver, the method comprising: communicating in-band media content for a particular program to a media content receiver of an end-user for presentation of the media content for the particular program by the media content receiver of the end-user; and communicating non-in-band media content ratings information for the particular program to the media content receiver of the end-user, the non-in-band media content ratings information for the particular program being communicated to the media content receiver of the end-user discretely from the media content for the particular program in a separate communication, wherein the media content receiver of the end-user is configured to be programmed to: block playback of the media content for the particular program that has been received by the media content receiver of the end-user according to any in-band media content ratings information for the particular program contained in the media content for the particular program, and block playback of the media content for the particular program that has been received by the media content receiver of the end-user according to the non-in-band media content ratings information for the particular program that has been received by the media content receiver of the end-user in the separate communication.