Electronic program guide with hyperlinks to target resources
US6631523B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 2, 1998 |
| Grant date | Oct 7, 2003 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 23, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04N21/8586
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An interactive entertainment system has a program provider which distributes video content programs to multiple subscribers over a distribution network. Each subscriber has a user interface unit which receives the digital video program and converts it for display on a television, monitor, or other display unit. The user interface unit has a processor and memory. An electronic programming guide (EPG) resides in the memory and is executable on the processor to organize programming information that is descriptive of the programs supplied over the interactive entertainment system. The EPG supports a user interface (UI) which visually correlates programs titles to scheduled viewing times. A hyperlink browser also resides in memory and is executable on the processor. One or more hyperlinks, which reference target resources containing interactive content related to the video programs, are integrated as part of the EPG UI. The hyperlinks can be placed in the program tiles, channel tiles, or description area, and can be situated alone or embedded within other text. When a viewer activates a hyperlink within the EPG, the user interface unit launches the browser to activate the target resourc…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.