Media playlist management and viewing remote control

Abstract

According to this invention, a user may capture a media link on any PC and perform this capture function at any physical location, then save the media link in a playlist, and subsequently play the media located at the media link on a TV server. The TV server may be controlled from a local device—typically a PC or a handheld remote control. Playlists may be maintained on a Web playlist function. Software on a local controller device can then select a media link from a Web playlist through the Internet, and the Web playlist function can then pass that link to a local TV server, thus avoiding the need for the controller device and the TV server to communicate through a LAN. Additionally, a playlist may include targeted advertisements shown physically adjacent to related playlist items.

Description

CLAIM OF PRIORITY[0001]This application claims the benefit and priority of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61 / 003,363, filed on Nov. 16, 2007, and entitled “MEDIA PLAYLIST MANAGEMENT AND VIEWING REMOTE CONTROL,” by inventors Joseph A. Zott, Samuel W. Beal, and Robert Osann, Jr., and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60 / 901,671, filed on Feb. 13, 2007, and entitled “REMOTE CONTROL FOR VIDEO MEDIA SERVERS,” by inventors Robert Osann, Jr. and Samuel W. Beal, both of said applications commonly assigned with the present application and incorporated herein by reference.COPYRIGHT NOTICE[0002]A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED AP...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0022]According to this invention, a user may capture a media link on any PC and perform this capture function at any physical location, then save the media link in a playlist, and play the media located at the media link on a TV server, while controlling

Problems solved by technology

It is known to connect a computer to a TV set in order to watch Web media, however it is difficult to control such a system within the typical scenario for TV watching where the viewer is sitting on a couch or chair some distance from the TV.

While a wireless keyboard and mouse can enable the user to control the TV from a distance, it can be very difficult to view a Web browser display on a TV.

This scenario also causes the viewer to surf the Web on their family's primary TV, disrupting the family's normal TV program viewing.

This issue of disrupting the family's normal TV program viewing was the primary cause of the failure of the “Web TV” product offered by Microsoft in the 1990s.

This application did not, however, address the issue of capturing Web media links and consolidating those links into a “playlist” for viewing at a later time, including different methods for using those media links to remotely control a TV server.

Some Web media viewing solutions implement methodologies that require the use of a handheld remote control to locate Web media, and as such are typically not suitable for Web searching since they lack alphanumeric input capability.

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