Method and apparatus for supporting services via a set-top box

US8671434B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc. · US

Inventors

• Balamuralidhar Maddali · Chennai, IN
• T. Sahaya George · Poonamallee, IN
• Sivasankari Venkataramamoorthy · Chennai, IN
• Varaprasad Meka · Savanuru, IN
• Thalha Yasir Refaye · Chennai, IN
• RajKumar Panneerselvam · Chennai, IN
• Raju Ramakrishnan · Bengaluru, IN
• Madankanth Lanka · Darsi, IN
• Naman Patel · Sayla, IN
• Abhishek Malhotra · Hyderabad, IN
• Chaitanya Kumar Behara · Darsi, IN
• Anil Kumar Yanamandra · Hyderabad, IN

Key dates

• Filing date: Jul 8, 2010
• Grant date: Mar 11, 2014
• Expiry date: Apr 8, 2031

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H04N21/4788
• WIPO field: Audio-visual technology
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

An approach is provided for supporting messaging services via a set-top box. A set-top box establishes communications with a user device. The set-top box receives a message from the user device, and stores the message for inclusion in a messaging log. The set-top box presents content of the messaging log via a display coupled to the set-top box. According to one embodiment, the set-top box receives network address information of the user device, maps the network address information to location information, and retrieves information from a data repository based on the location information. In another embodiment, the user device acquires information about a program being experience by a user via the set-top box, and generates a message to provide presence status information to a social network service based on the program information.