WO2002073965A1

WO2002073965A1 - Interactive multimedia system

Info

Publication number: WO2002073965A1
Application number: PCT/EP2002/002480
Authority: WO
Inventors: Johan Sjoblom; Sami Niinisalo; Ari Hovila; Atte Leppala
Original assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget Lm Ericsson (Publ)
Priority date: 2001-03-14
Filing date: 2002-03-04
Publication date: 2002-09-19
Also published as: GB2371126B; GB2371126A; GB0106236D0

Abstract

A method of providing interactive content to a user of a computer terminal 7, wherein said content includes an executable component which the terminal 7 is unable to execute. The method comprises transferring said content from a source 5,6 to a central server 10 over a first network connection 8. The executable component is extracted from the content, and executed at the central server 10. The results are translated into a format which can be used by the computer device 7, and are forwarded to the computer terminal 7 over a second network connection 9.

Description

INTERACTIVE MULTIMEDIA SYSTEM

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to interactive multi-media and in particular, though not necessarily, to a method and apparatus for enabling text and multimedia data to be exchanged between individual viewers and a television broadcaster.

Background to the Invention

There exists a demand amongst television viewers, broadcasters, and advertisers for interactive television (iTV). Interactive television will allow individual viewers to participate in television shows, for example as contestants in a game show, without having to attend the studio where the show is being produced, and will allow viewers to request and receive tailored supplementary information (which may be multimedia data) which it is not possible to provide via a conventional terrestrial, satellite, or cable broadcast. Using iTV, broadcasters and advertisers will be able to expand the range of available services, tapping into and collecting information from niche markets.

Interactive television is available today to a very limited extent. One approach is to broadcast multiple channels of information for each broadcast programme. The channels are decoded by a set top box, and the user may select one or more of the channels for viewing. Using this method, it is possible for example to allow a viewer to select one of several possible camera angles during a televised football match. Another approach requires the provision of a set top box which is connected to the viewer's telephone line. A viewer's selection (or other data) is returned via the phone line to a central server of the television broadcaster. Data may be returned to the viewer via the same phone line or via the broadcast channel.

A problem with both of the above approaches is that they require the use of a set top box. The penetration of such set top boxes is, and is likely to remain, low. Furthermore, a method which relies upon a set top box tends not to be viewer specific. For example, it is not possible for several viewers of the same television to interact differently with a given programme. A potential solution is provided by the use of mobile wireless terminals such as mobile telephones, communicators, and PDAs with wireless connectivity, to provide the interactive functionality. For example, whilst a television program is viewed on a television, viewers may receive and send interactive content using their wireless terminals.

Statement of the Invention

Whilst the use of mobile terminals in this way has many advantage, the level of interactivity which is made available is limited by the capabilities of the mobile terminals. Although the power and capabilities of mobile terminals has been increasing, and will increase still further with the introduction of third generation mobile technology (UMTS/3GPP), it can be expected that the power of mobile terminals will continue to lag behind that of set top boxes and the like for many years to come.

It can be expected that television broadcasters will want to transmit interactive content in a single format, regardless of the fact that viewers may use different devices, e.g. set top boxes and mobile terminals, for viewing and responding to the interactive content. For example, the format may be comprise Java applets in which case the receiving device should be capable of executing Java. Alternatively, the format may contain xlets (specified for set top boxes), in which case the devices should be capable of executing xlets. However, at least in the foreseeable future, the majority of mobile devices are unlikely to have such capabilities. To overcome this limitation, broadcasters may have to transmit interactive content simultaneously in several different formats.

This problem is not limited to iTN, and arises whenever interactive content, comprising for example Java applets, is to be viewed and responded to on a user device. This content may originate from a standard web server. The limitations of mobile wireless terminals typically mean that content providers must make their content available in two different formats, one for viewing on Java enabled devices and one for viewing on non- Java enabled terminals. It is an object of the present invention to overcome or at least mitigate the above noted disadvantages of existing apparatus and methods for delivering interactive content to users. This and other objects are achieved by providing a server in the transmission path between a source of interactive content and user devices which is capable of translating executable components of the content into a form which can be used by the terminals. The server is also capable of handling responses received from user devices and, if necessary, translating these into a form for transmission to the source.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of providing interactive content to a user of a computer terminal, wherein said content includes an executable component which the terminal is unable to execute, the method comprising: transferring said content from a source to a server over a first network connection; extracting the executable component from the content; executing the component at the server, and translating the results of the execution into a format which can be used by the computer device; and forwarding the translated results from the server to the computer terminal over a second network connection.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, said computer terminal is a mobile wireless device coupled to a mobile telecommunications network. The server is a central server and is located in the mobile telecommunications network, and may be coupled to the content source via the Internet. The content source may be a web server.

The executable component may be a Java applet, Java-TN-API xlet, or i-Appli as defined by ΝTT DoCoMo and Sun Microsystems. Of course, the executable component may be any component where the execution format is known. One only needs to know the interface specification of the platform or operating system which is capable of executing the given executable component. For example, there are existmg Windows binary APIs available which are capable of running Microsoft Windows applications in environments others than Microsoft Windows. If this is available even normal windows programs can be transformed into markup language and can therefore be used in a browser enabled terminal. Following execution of the interactive component (e.g. Java applet or xlet) at the server, the results may be translated into html or wml format for transmission to the computer terminal.

In one embodiment of the invention, the interactive content is associated with a television broadcast, and is in a format to be used by an interactive TV or set-top-box for a TV, e.g. the content is a DNB-MHP digi-TN stream. The source of the interactive content may be a server, synchronised to the broadcast signal.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided apparatus for providing interactive content to a user of a computer device, wherein said content includes an executable component which the terminal is unable to execute, the apparatus comprising: input means for receiving said content from a source via a first network connection; processing means for extracting the executable component from the content, executing the component, and translating the results of the execution into a format which can be used by the computer device; and output means coupled to said computer device via a second network and arranged to forward the translated results to the computer terminal.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 illustrates schematically a system for providing interactive content to a television viewer; and

Figure 2 is a flow diagram showing the main steps involved in providing interactive content in the system of Figure 1.

Detailed Description of a Preferred Embodiment

There is illustrated in Figure 1 a system for providing interactive television. A television corporation 1 broadcasts programmes on a number of different terrestrial television channels from a central studio or studios 2 using a set of transmitters 3. Televisions 4 receive the broadcast channels in the usual manner.

The interactive component of television viewing is facilitated by providing an information server 5 which is coupled to the broadcasting studios to receive the broadcast signals (the server may be provided by one or more computers). The broadcast signals contain programme triggers which indicate the beginning and end of a programme (including commercials) and possibly the identity of broadcast programmes. Triggers may also occur during a programme to indicate a specific event. The server 5 is coupled to a database 6 which stores a set of information for each programme to be broadcast (e.g. in a given week). The server 5 retrieves information from the database 6 according to the triggers contained in the broadcast signals. The broadcast signal coming from the studio 2 is in the form of a standard DNB-MHP or similar decodable interactive TV stream.

A television viewer wishing to participate in an interactive broadcast must be in possession of a wireless device 7 such as a mobile telephone, communicator, or PDA. For the purpose of illustration, the wireless device 7 is assumed to have functionality for accessing the Internet 8 via a mobile telecommunication access network 9 to which the terminal user subscribes - more particularly, internet access is facilitated by an IP gateway 10 of the access network 9. Conventional mobile phone networks (e.g. GSM) may have this Internet access functionality. However, Internet access is currently being greatly enhanced by the introduction of services such as GPRS and new networks such as UMTS.

The viewer will select on the mobile terminal 7 the www address (URL) of the television channel (or programme) which he or she is currently viewing. This address may be displayed on the television screen and/or may be pre-programmed into the terminal 7. The selected URL identifies a location at the information server 5. The request for information is sent to the server 5 via the IP gateway 10 and the Internet 8. The content at the specified location changes dynamically according to the programme triggers contained in the television signals received by the server 5 from the studio 2. The server 5 detects an executable xlet component in the DNB-MHP stream. The xlet is forwarded to a mediator server which executes the xlet. The results of the execution are then converted into a format which can be used by the terminal 7, for example wml (wireless markup language) or html (hypertext markup language).

The xlet may present information in the form of graphical user interface elements such as buttons, lists and input fields. These graphical elements would normally be shown on the TV screen by a set top box executing the xlet. In this system however the graphical elements are executed in the mediator server and shown from there as a normal browsing application onto the terminal 7. The choices made by the television viewer on the terminal 7 are sent back to the mediator server and processed there as a normal part of the xlet execution. The mediator server is performing a virtual set top box function, that is, it is executing the same xlet for multiple viewers. The mediator server can be physically be incorporated into the information server 5 or it can be a separate server.

By including certain information in the headers of HTTP (and WAP) pages it is possible to force proxies which may be present in the transmission route between the server 5 and the terminal 7 (and at the terminal 7 itself) not to store these pages in their respective caches. This means that requested pages are always obtained from the information server 5, ensuring that the pages are always "fresh".

It will be appreciated that various modifications may be made to the above described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, the mediator may be implemented in a set-top-box having an IP connection (e.g. via a telephone line) to the information server of the broadcaster. The wireless device may be a "smart" TV remote control which communicates with the set-to-box via a radio or infra-red link (e.g. using the Bluetooth™) protocol.

Claims

1. A method of providing interactive content to a user of a computer terminal, wherein said content includes an executable component which the terminal is unable to execute, the method comprising: transferring said content from a source to a server over a first network connection; extracting the executable component from the content; executing the component at the server, and translating the results of the execution into a format which can be used by the computer device; and forwarding the translated results from the server to the computer tenninal over a second network connection.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said computer terminal is a mobile wireless device coupled to a mobile telecommunications network.

3. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the said server and the said computer terminal communicate using Internet Protocol (IP).

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein said server is implemented in a set-top- box connected to the content source via the first network connection.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the set-top-box and the computer terminal communicate over a radio, infrared or cable connection.

6. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said server and said computer terminal communicate via a phone line.

7. A method according to claim 2 or to any one of claims 3 to 6 when appended to claim 2, wherein the server is located in the mobile telecommunications network and is coupled to the content source via the Internet.

8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the executable component is a Java applet, i-Appli application, xlet or any other executable component where the execution interface is known.

9. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein following execution of the interactive component at the server, the results are translated into html or wml or other markup language format for transmission to the computer terminal.

10. A method according to claim 9 and comprising processing choices and inputs sent from the said computer terminal, at the server as a part of the execution of the executable component.

11. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the interactive content is associated with a television broadcast, and is in a format to be used by an interactive TV or set-top-box for a TV.

12. A method according to claim 11, wherein the content is a DNB-MHP digi-TN stream.

13. Apparatus for providing interactive content to a user of a computer terminal, wherein said content includes an executable component which the terminal is unable to execute, the apparatus comprising: input means for receiving said content from a source via a first network connection; processing means for extracting the executable component from the content, executing the component, and translating the results of the execution into a format which can be used by the computer terminal; and output means coupled to said computer terminal via a second network and arranged to forward the translated results to the computer terminal.

14. An apparatus as in claim 13 and comprising input means coupled to said computer terminal via a second network for receiving input data from said computer terminal, and processing means for processing the input data as a normal part of the interactive component execution process.