Real Time Bit Rate Switching for Internet Protocol Television

Abstract

A method, apparatus and computer program product are provided for delivering television programming to a subscriber. In one aspect the method includes receiving one or more channels of program content, and encoding each channel a plurality of times, each time at a different rate producing multiple rate encoded signals for each channel. The method can further include transmitting the multiple rate encoded signals to a central office over a network, determining an available bandwidth of a downstream link to a subscriber and a current bit rate available for transmission to the subscriber. The method can further include selecting a best available bit rate from the multiple rate encoded signals for a requested channel and transmitting the selected rate encoded signal to the subscriber.

Description

BACKGROUNDThe following disclosure relates to network communication.Delivery of broadcast television signals has advanced over the years from classical over-air delivery channels to cable, satellite, and telephone delivery systems. As the delivery mechanisms have changed, so have the challenges in delivering the content efficiently to the consumers. Delivery of the content is constrained by resources of the delivery systems including bandwidth limitations of the communication channels used. As content has expanded to include pay-per-view services, digital music and a myriad of new channel offerings, the challenges to the delivery systems to provide such content efficiently have grown. Relatively recently, additional system level pressure has been added due to the demand from the consumer for higher quality content delivery (e.g., high definition television, HDTV).Most delivery systems have inherent bandwidth limitations that limit the amount of content that can be delivered. The ban...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

Implementations can include one or more of the following advantages. A delivery system is provided for offering Telco operators an ability to use there existing, advanced network to offer high quality video and audio services in an optimal manner without compromising their inherent bandwidth constraints. The delivery system provided maximizes the bandwidth available to the consumer (e.g., to the home) based upon the bit rates consumed by each television subscriber in the consumer environment. Unlike a conventional broadcast system that broadcasts all channels at a consistent rate, the delivery system proposed will selectively deliver different rate content to the consumer. In the proposed delivery system, a central distribution location will broadcast content at a plurality of fixed rates to local central office distribution centers. The central office distribution centers are responsible for understanding specific consumer need, and selectively transmitting particular rate content to the individual consumer, and in one implementation, at a highest bit rate based on available bandwidth to the consumer.

Problems solved by technology

As the delivery mechanisms have changed, so have the challenges in delivering the content efficiently to the consumers.

Delivery of the content is constrained by resources of the delivery systems including bandwidth limitations of the communication channels used.

As content has expanded to include pay-per-view services, digital music and a myriad of new channel offerings, the challenges to the delivery systems to provide such content efficiently have grown.

Most delivery systems have inherent bandwidth limitations that limit the amount of content that can be delivered.

The bandwidth limitations can be resource dependent or channel dependent, in that limitations may exist in each end of the delivery system at a transmit or receive side (e.g., finite amount of data that is able to be transmitted or received by the transmitting or receiving devices), or in the communication channel itself (e.g., bandwidth at a given frequency for broadcast, or downlink bandwidth provided in a digital subscriber line (DSL) system).

The Telco System has inherent bandwidth limitations in the amount of data that can be delivered over the copper paths prevalent in the system.

These limitations have limited the effectiveness of using the Telco System to deliver high bandwidth content over the existing system.

Further consumer applications that necessitate even more bandwidth, for example watching and recording different channels, have made the Telco System less desirable overall as a delivery mechanism.

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