Patent ID: 8666941

Claim:
A method for storing user input information for a plurality of disparate interactive television applications executed by a set-top-box disposed at a user location, the user input information comprising common user input information shared by the disparate interactive television applications executed by the set-top-box and other user input information, said method comprising the steps of: providing a shared data repository remote from the user location, the shared data repository for storing a user record including the user input information and other user records including further user input information associated with a plurality of other users; determining a portion of the user record for replication consisting of the common user input information shared by the disparate interactive television applications; providing a local data repository in the set-top-box storing the replicated portion of the user record; providing a registration application on the set-top-box at said user location, the registration application for collecting the user input information and for storing only common user input information in said local data repository, and for replicating changes to said user input information into the associated user record stored at the shared data repository; and providing an application programming interface (API) on the set-top-box, each API for interfacing with the interactive television applications on the set-top-box; wherein the interactive television applications search for and retrieve the common user input information from the associated local data repository via the API, and retrieve the other user input information not stored in the local data repository from the shared data repository; and wherein the interactive television applications include a user interface that directs the user to the registration application when additional common user input information is required by any of the interactive television applications.