EP2087732A2 - Method and system for optimizing metadata of audio-video asset in television network - Google Patents

Method and system for optimizing metadata of audio-video asset in television network

Info

Publication number
EP2087732A2
EP2087732A2 EP07821707A EP07821707A EP2087732A2 EP 2087732 A2 EP2087732 A2 EP 2087732A2 EP 07821707 A EP07821707 A EP 07821707A EP 07821707 A EP07821707 A EP 07821707A EP 2087732 A2 EP2087732 A2 EP 2087732A2
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
asset
metadata
category
file
video
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP07821707A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Inventor
Na Li
Qiu Yan Wang
Bai Liang Zhou
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Nokia Solutions and Networks GmbH and Co KG
Original Assignee
Nokia Siemens Networks GmbH and Co KG
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Nokia Siemens Networks GmbH and Co KG filed Critical Nokia Siemens Networks GmbH and Co KG
Publication of EP2087732A2 publication Critical patent/EP2087732A2/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N7/00—Television systems
    • H04N7/16—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
    • H04N7/173—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal
    • H04N7/17309—Transmission or handling of upstream communications
    • H04N7/17318—Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/20—Servers specifically adapted for the distribution of content, e.g. VOD servers; Operations thereof
    • H04N21/25—Management operations performed by the server for facilitating the content distribution or administrating data related to end-users or client devices, e.g. end-user or client device authentication, learning user preferences for recommending movies
    • H04N21/262—Content or additional data distribution scheduling, e.g. sending additional data at off-peak times, updating software modules, calculating the carousel transmission frequency, delaying a video stream transmission, generating play-lists
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
    • H04N21/47—End-user applications
    • H04N21/472—End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content
    • H04N21/47202—End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
    • H04N21/47—End-user applications
    • H04N21/482—End-user interface for programme selection
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/80—Generation or processing of content or additional data by content creator independently of the distribution process; Content per se
    • H04N21/83—Generation or processing of protective or descriptive data associated with content; Content structuring
    • H04N21/84—Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to the technical field of network communication, and more particularly to a method and system for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network.
  • IPTV Internet Protocol Television
  • This service uses a television set or a personal computer as a display terminal, and provides digital television broadcast and video services, and broadband services such as information service, interactive community services, interactive entertainment services, electronic business services and so on, to end users via broadband networks.
  • the main characteristics of IPTV are interactive and real-time, and its system structure mainly comprises subsystems for video on demand (VOD) service, program editing, storage, authentication and fee charging, etc., and the main contents stored and transmitted are stream media files.
  • a user terminal can be either an IP set top box plus a television or a personal computer.
  • IPTV IP Television
  • the most of the contents for the video on demand are movies, and a large guantity of movie assets are provided to the end users of television networks as different VOD contents. Therefore, a asset provider not only has to provide the video information of the movies to a video on demand server to be viewed by end users, but also has to provide metadata to an IPTV service platform to allow end users to find out summary information relevant to the movies.
  • the metadata are structural data for describing, explaining, locating, or for making it easier to retrieve, use and manage information assets.
  • IPTV in order to provide a wide variety of information contents to the users, it is necessary to provide a catalog searching and navigating system for searching information, therefore a metadata file is needed for each movie asset.
  • Metadata files comprise information regarding a corresponding movie asset, such as a summary, a still-image, a director, and main actors and so on.
  • the asset providers enter a metadata file of a movie asset and the video information content file of the movie asset, and then have those files packaged and sent.
  • the hierarchy of the metadata structure of a current movie asset is shown following :
  • the title asset metadata of this movie can comprise in particular the information such as the type of the movie, the main audience group, the upload time and so on.
  • the movie asset metadata of this movie can comprise in particular a director, main actors, and a producer.
  • the still-image asset metadata of this movie can comprise a storage mode of a still-image, a still-image resolution and a still-image asset size and so on.
  • the preview asset metadata of this movie can comprise a preview asset time, a preview screen format and a preview language selection and so on.
  • TV serials onto the video on demand servers to allow the end users to order those TV serials. Since a TV serial has many episodes, the current method can only upload each episode in a TV serial to the video on demand server as a single video on demand content, i.e. generating a single package file for each episode, and this package contains the metadata file of the episode and the video information content file of the episode. For this TV serial, some information contained in the metadata file of each episode is the same. For example, the direct, the main actors and the content summary of the TV serial are the same.
  • the method of loading each episode to the video on demand server as a video on demand content will produce a large guantity of redundant data during the entire process, which not only increases the workload of the terminal asset providers who enter the information, but also reduces the efficiency of the network transmission and the information downloading speed of a set top box.
  • each episode of a TV serial is treated as a video on demand content in the same way as a movie asset
  • each episode of those TV serials is set on the terminal interface simply to allow the user to order without being grouped together, and thee is not in the system a good navigation interface available to a user for selecting a video on demand, therefore a clear summary of the TV serial is not available to the end user and there is no way to switch and select between different episodes of the same TV serial .
  • An object of the present invention is to provide a method for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, so as to solve the problems in the prior art such as producing a large guantity of redundant data, increasing the workload of terminal asset providers who enter the information and reducing the efficiency of network transmission and the information downloading speed of a set top box due to the fact that each individual audio-video asset among the audio-video assets with the common attribute is treated as a single VOD content.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a system for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, so as to solve the problems such as a large workload for the asset providers to enter the information and the low network transmission efficiency and the low information downloading speed of a set top box.
  • the present invention provides a solution as follows:
  • a method for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network comprises:
  • Said step A can comprise: defining each TV serial in the audio-video asset as a category of video on demand, wherein the common attribute of different episodes in said TV serial comprises the name of the TV serial, a summary, a total number of episodes, a director, main actors and at least part of a still-image of the TV serial.
  • Said step B can comprise:
  • Said step Bl can comprise: constructing a title asset item in the common metadata structure of the category according to the common attribute of the different audio-video assets in said category; generating a still-image asset item and a preview asset item under said title asset item; and combining said asset items together to form the common metadata structure of the category.
  • Said step B2 can comprise: constructing a title asset item for an audio-video asset in said category; generating an episode asset item of the audio-video asset, a still-image asset item of the audio-video asset and a preview asset item of the audio-video asset under said title asset item; and combining said asset items together to form the specific metadata structure of the category.
  • the process for generating the metadata file of the category according to the metadata structure of a category can comprise: generating a common part of the metadata file of the category according to said common metadata structure, and generating a specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure.
  • the step of generating the common part of the metadata file of the category according to the common metadata structure comprises: generating a title asset metadata containing the name of the category, a total number of episodes, a director and main actors according to a title asset item in the common metadata structure; generating a still-image asset file according to a still-image asset item in the common metadata structure, wherein the still-image asset file comprises still-image asset metadata containing a still-image storage mode, a still-image resolution and a still-image asset size, and a still-image content metadata containing a link address of the still-image content; generating a preview asset file of the category according to a preview asset item in the common metadata structure, wherein the preview asset file comprises preview asset metadata containing a preview asset time, a preview screen format and a preview language selection, and a preview content metadata containing a link address of the preview video content; and combining the metadata generated according to the common metadata structure to form the common part of the metadata file of the category.
  • the step of generating the specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure comprises: generating a title asset metadata containing a name and the number of episodes of one audio-video asset according to a title asset item in the specific metadata structure; generating an episode asset file of one audio-video asset according to an episode asset item of the audio- video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said episode asset file comprises episode asset metadata containing the type of said audio-video asset, a receiving language selection and a receiving screen format, and episode content metadata containing a link address of the episode asset content; generating a still-image asset file of one audio-video asset according to a still-image asset item of the audio- video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said still-image asset file comprises still-image asset metadata containing a still-image storage mode, a still- image resolution and the still-image asset size, and still-image content metadata containing a link address of the still-image content; generating a preview asset file of one audio-video asset according to a preview asset item of the audio
  • the method can further comprise: D. sending the metadata files of the category by said asset management system to a network television service platform, and sending the audio-video asset files of the category to a video on demand server;
  • Said step F can comprise: selecting by the user one of the categories displayed on the terminal navigation interface, so as to enter an interface of the category of the audio-video assets; and selecting to receive one audio-video content of the category linked to the video on demand server on said interface of the audio-video asset.
  • the present invention provides a system for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, comprising : a category defining module for defining audio-video assets with a common attribute as a VOD category; a metadata structure extending module connected to the category defining module, for combining a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by a specific attribute to form a metadata structure of the category; and a file generating module connected with the metadata structure extending module, for generating a metadata file of the category according to said metadata structure and packaging said metadata file and a content file of the audio-video asset in the category to generate a general file to be sent to an external asset management module.
  • Said metadata structure extending module can comprise: a common metadata constructing module connected to a metadata structure integrating module, for extracting a common attribute in said one category so as to construct the common metadata structure of the category; a specific metadata constructing module connected to the metadata structure integrating module, for constructing the specific metadata structure according to specific attributes of the different audio-video assets in said one category; and the metadata structure integrating module for combining the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure to form the metadata structure of the category.
  • Said file generating module can comprise: a common file generating module connected with a general file generating module, for generating a common part of a metadata file of the category according to said common metadata structure; a specific file generating module connected with the general file generating module, for generating a specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure; and the general file generating module for packaging said metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset metadata in the category to generate a general file, and sending the file to the external asset management module .
  • the system can further comprise: an asset management module connected to the file generating module, for sending the metadata files of the category to a television network service platform and at the same time sending the audio-video asset file of the category to a video on demand server; and a terminal downloading and linking module connected with the asset management module, for downloading the metadata file of the category from the television network service platform and for linking to the audio-video asset file of the category on the video on demand server according to the metadata file.
  • an asset management module connected to the file generating module, for sending the metadata files of the category to a television network service platform and at the same time sending the audio-video asset file of the category to a video on demand server
  • a terminal downloading and linking module connected with the asset management module, for downloading the metadata file of the category from the television network service platform and for linking to the audio-video asset file of the category on the video on demand server according to the metadata file.
  • the audio-video assets with a common attribute are treated as a complete entity by redefining the metadata structure, wherein the metadata of common information of each audio-video asset are described once, and the specific metadata of information of each audio-video asset are described separately, thereby a large guantity of redundant data generated in the metadata file can be avoided, so that not only the workload of terminal asset providers to enter the information can be reduced, but also the efficiency of the network transmission and the information downloading speed of a set top box can be increased at the same time.
  • This method significantly increases the processing efficiency of the system, and reduces the burden of the network transmission .
  • a user terminal interface is redesigned for the defined metadata file to allow a user to select and switch conveniently between programs to be received via a friendly terminal navigation interface, without scrounging a program to be received in an ocean of audio-video assets.
  • Fig.l is a flowchart of the present invention.
  • Fig.2 is a flowchart of a perfected embodiment of the method according to the present invention.
  • Fig.3 is a flowchart for obtaining the audio-video asset metadata by a user terminal according to the present invention.
  • Fig.4 is a block diagram of a perfected embodiment of the system according to the present invention.
  • the core concept of the present invention is that: by defining audio-video assets with a common attribute as a VOD category, extending the metadata structure of a category according to the attribute of this category, generating the metadata file of this category according to the extended metadata structure, and then packaging the metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset in the category to form a general file, the optimization of the metadata of the audio-video assets in a television network is achieved.
  • the method according to the present invention is as follows:
  • Step 110 the audio-video assets with a common attribute are defined as a VOD category.
  • VOD assets have common attributes, such as a TV serial containing many episodes or a series of documentaries with a common subject and so on.
  • a TV serial much of the information in each episode are the same, such as the director, the main actors, the content summary of the serial and so on, therefore the audio-video assets with the common attribute are treated as a VOD category.
  • Step 120 the metadata structure of this category is extended according to the attribute of this category.
  • a common metadata structure of the category is constructed by extracting the common attribute of the defined category. Particularly, a title asset item of the category is constructed according to the common attribute of the category, and then a still-image asset item and a preview asset item of the category are generated under the title asset item of the category, and those asset items are combined to form the common metadata structure of the category; the specific metadata structure of the category is constructed according to the specific attribute structure of the different audio-video assets of the category.
  • the title asset item for an audio-video asset in the category is constructed, an episode asset item of the audio-video asset metadata, a still-image asset item of the episode and a preview asset item of the episode are generated under the title asset item, and then those assets are combined to form the specific metadata structure of the category, and finally the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure are combined to form the metadata structure of this category.
  • Step 130 a metadata file of this category is generated according to the metadata structure of this category, and the metadata file and the audio-video asset file of this category are packaged to generate a general file for sending to the external asset management system.
  • the common part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the common metadata structure, and a specific part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the specific metadata structure; particularly, a title asset file, a still-image asset file and a preview asset file are generated respectively according to the still-image asset item and the preview asset item; and a title asset file, an episode asset file, a still-image asset file and a preview asset file of the audio-video asset metadata are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the episode asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of one audio-video asset in the specific metadata structure.
  • the metadata file of the category generated as described above and the content file of the audio-video asset in this category are packaged and then stored in a general file, and the general file is sent to the external asset management system.
  • This general file comprises the content file of the category and the metadata file of the category, wherein the metadata file comprises the common part of the metadata file generated according to the common metadata structure and the specific part of the metadata file generated according to the specific metadata structure .
  • Step 140 the external asset management system sends the received general file.
  • the external asset management system After having received the general file, the external asset management system sends the metadata file of the category in the general file to the network television service platform, and at the same time sends the audio- video asset file of the category in the general file to the video on demand server.
  • Step 150 the user terminal downloads the metadata file .
  • the user terminal can download the metadata file of the category from the television network service platform, for example, by a set top box.
  • Step 160 the user receives the VOD audio-video contents .
  • the user selects by a terminal interface navigation linked to the video server to receive the audio-video asset file. Particularly, the user selects a category from the categories displayed on the terminal navigation interface, accesses the audio-video asset interface of that category, and selects in the audio-video asset interface one audio-video content linked to the video server in the category.
  • Figure 2 is a flowchart of the perfected embodiment of the method according to the present invention, and this embodiment is described by way of an example as a TV serial among the videos on demand.
  • Step 210 a TV serial is defined as a video on demand category.
  • a TV serial is defined as a video on demand category, particularly, a TV serial with 40 episodes « ⁇ » is defined in the present embodiment as a video on demand category .
  • Step 220 the metadata structure of the serial is constructed.
  • a common attribute of the defined category is extracted to form a common metadata structure of the category.
  • a title asset item of the serial is constructed according to the common attribute of this serial, then a still-image asset item and a preview asset item of the serial are generated under the title asset item of the serial, and those asset items are combined to form the common metadata structure of the serial;
  • a specific metadata structure of the category is constructed according to the specific attribute of different audio-video assets in the category.
  • the title asset item for the audio-video asset of each episode in the serial is constructed, an episode asset item of the episode, a still-image asset item of the episode and a preview asset item of the episode are generated under the title asset item of the episode, and then those assets are combined to form the specific metadata structure of the serial; and finally the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure are combined to form the metadata structure of this serial.
  • Step 230 the metadata file of the serial is generated according to the metadata structure.
  • a title asset file, a still-image asset file and a preview asset file are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of the common metadata structure.
  • the title asset metadata are generated, comprising the total number of episode - 40, the name of the TV serial - xxx, the director of the serial - director A, the main actor of the serial - actor B, the total time of the serial: 1800 minutes, etc.;
  • general still-image asset metadata of the serial are generated, comprising a still-image explanation, a still-image pixel - 320x240 etc., and the still-image content metadata comprising a still-image content link address;
  • the preview asset item general preview asset metadata of the serial are generated, comprising the time of the preview fragment - 10 minutes, the language of the preview fragment Chinese, the stream guantity of the preview fragment and so on, and the preview content metadata
  • a title asset file, an episode asset file, a still- image asset file and a preview asset file of the episode are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the episode asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of one episode in the specific metadata structure.
  • the title asset metadata of the first of the 40 episodes are generated, comprising the name of the episode - the first episode, the identifier of the episode - 1, the time of the episode - 45 minutes and so on;
  • the episode asset item of the first episode the episode asset metadata of the first episode are generated, comprising the main actor of the episode, the language of the episode, the video type of the episode and so on, and the episode content metadata comprising a link address of the episode asset video content;
  • the still-image asset item of the first episode the still- image asset metadata of the first episode are generated, comprising a still-image explanation, a still-image pixel
  • the preview asset metadata of the first episode are generated, comprising the time of the preview fragment - 5 minutes, the language of the preview fragment
  • the stream guantity of the preview fragment and so on and the preview content metadata comprising a link address of the preview video content. Then the title asset files, the episode asset files, the still-image asset files and the preview asset files of the second to the fortieth episodes are generated in succession, and the metadata of the above 40 episodes form the specific part of the metadata file of the serial.
  • Step 240 the metadata file and the video content file of the serial are packaged to generate a general file for sending to the external asset management system.
  • the metadata file of the category generated as described above and the video content files of the audio- video assets in this category are packaged and then stored in a general file, and in this embodiment, it is by way of example of the TV serial « ⁇ » with 40 episodes.
  • This general file comprises the video content files of the serial, wherein the video content files in particular comprises the video content files of each of the 40 episodes, the preview file of each episode, the still- image file of each episode, the general preview file of the serial and the general still-image file of the serial; and the metadata file of the serial, which comprises in particular the common part of the metadata file generated according to the common metadata structure and the specific part of the metadata file generated according to the specific metadata structure.
  • Step 250 the metadata file and the video asset file in the general file of the serial are sent separately by the external asset management system.
  • the general file of the serial is sent to the external asset management system, and the video asset file of the serial is sent to the video on demand server by the external asset management system.
  • the video asset file comprises the general preview video content of the serial, the still-image of the serial, the video content of each episode and the still-image of each episode; and at the same time the metadata file of the serial is sent to the television network service platform by the external asset management system.
  • Step 260 the metadata file of the serial is downloaded by a user terminal.
  • the common part of the metadata file of the serial and the specific part of the serial are downloaded from the television network service platform by a set top box at the user terminal, and by the link address of the episode video content in the specific part of the episode content metadata, it is linked to the video content corresponding to the episode on the video on demand server.
  • the set top box When the user wishes to view the next episode, there is no need for the set top box to download the common part of the metadata file of the serial from the network television service platform, only the specific part of the serial needs to be downloaded, and this is by linking to the video content corresponding to the episode on the video on demand server. In this way, it is not necessary for the common part of the metadata file of the serial to be downloaded every time, so the speed for downloading by the set top box is increased, and the downloaded redundant data is reduced.
  • Step 270 the user views a selected TV serial.
  • the user views the selected video asset linked to the video server.
  • Step 310 after starting, enter a VOD navigation interface to select a category.
  • the terminal navigation interface According to the common parts of the metadata files of the VOD categories, display the names of the categories on the terminal navigation interface, and a category to be view can be browsed for its content summary, preview fragment, still-image, etc., and the user can select one of the categories based on his desire and access a next navigation interface.
  • Step 320 select an audio-video asset of the category in the category interface.
  • the names of all audio-video assets in the category are displayed on the interface, and the content summary, the preview fragment and still-image and so on of a audio-video asset to be received can be browsed, and the user can select one audio-video asset to be received.
  • Step 330 buy and receive a selected audio-video asset.
  • the user can make payment and receive the audio-video asset, or receive the audio-video asset again by a selection button, or receive a preceding or a following audio-video asset by the selection button.
  • Step 340 after having completed the reception, it is selected whether to exit the interface, if not, to return the step 310, if yes, the process ends.
  • FIG. 4 A block diagram of the preferred embodiment of the system according to the present invention is shown in figure 4 : the system comprises: a category defining module 410, a metadata structure extending module 420, a file generating module 430, an asset management module 440 and a terminal downloading and linking module 450.
  • the category defining module 410 is used to define audio-video asset with a common attribute as a VOD category;
  • the metadata structure extending module 420 is connected to the category defining module 410 and used to combine a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by specific attributes in the category to form a metadata structure of the category;
  • the file generating module 430 is connected to the metadata structure extending module420 and used to generate a metadata file of the category according to the metadata structure, and it packages the metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset in the category to form a general file and send the same to an external asset management module; particularly the common part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the common metadata structure and the specific part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the specific metadata structure, and the generated metadata file of a category and the content file of the audio-video asset of the category are packaged and stored in a general file;
  • the asset management module 440 is used to send the metadata files of the category to a television network service platform and send
  • the metadata structure extending module 420 comprises: a common metadata construction module connected with a metadata structure integrating module, for extracting common attributes from one category to construct the common metadata structure. Particularly, the title asset item of the category is constructed according to the common attribute of the category, and then the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of the category are generated under the title asset item of the category, and the asset items are combined to form the common metadata structure of the category; a specific metadata construction module 422 is connected to the metadata structure integrating module and used to construct the specific metadata structure according to specific attributes of the different audio-video assets in the category.
  • the title asset item of one audio- video asset in the category is constructed, an episode asset item of the audio-video asset, a still-image asset item of the episode and a preview asset item of the episode are generated under the title asset item, and the asset items are combined together to form the specific metadata structure of the category; the metadata structure integrating module 423 is used to combine the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure together to form the metadata structure of the category.
  • the file generating module 430 comprises: a common file generating module 431 connected to the general file generating module, for generating a common part of the category of metadata files according to the common metadata structure. Particularly, a title asset metadata, a still-image asset metadata and a preview asset metadata are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item in the common metadata structure; a specific file generating module 432 is connected to the general file generating module and used to generate the specific part of the metadata file of the category according to the specific metadata structure, so as to generate a title asset metadata, a episode asset metadata, a still-image asset item and a preview asset metadata of the audio-video asset metadata respectively according to the title asset item, the episode asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of one audio-video asset in the specific metadata structure; a general file generating module 433 is used to package said metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset in the category to generate a general file, and to send the file to an external asset management module
  • a set of audio-video assets such as a set of programs concerned in the present invention can be a category of programs by a certain composer, such as the ninth Symphony by Beethoven and so on.
  • the method and system of the present invention have significantly optimized the metadata of relevant audio-video assets, so as to make the process of VOD more rationalized.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Multimedia (AREA)
  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Databases & Information Systems (AREA)
  • Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
  • Two-Way Televisions, Distribution Of Moving Picture Or The Like (AREA)

Abstract

The present invention discloses a method and system for optimizing audio-video asset metadata in a television network. Said method comprises: defining at least one audio-video asset with a common attribute as a VOD category; combining a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by a specific attribute in the category to form the metadata structure of the category; and generating a metadata file of the category according to said metadata structure, and then packaging the metadata file and an audio-video asset file in the category to generate a general file for sending to an external asset management system. The system of the present invention comprises: a module for defining categories, a module for extending metadata structures and a module generating files. The method and system of the present invention can avoid generating a large amount of redundant data in a metadata file, reduce the workload of a terminal asset provider for information input, and at the same time enhance the transmission efficiency in a network and the information downloading speed of a set top box.

Description

Method and System for Optimizing Metadata of Audio-video Asset in Television Network
Technical Field
The present invention relates to the technical field of network communication, and more particularly to a method and system for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network.
Background Art
Network Television (IPTV, Internet Protocol Television) means a television broadcasting service based on the IP protocol. This service uses a television set or a personal computer as a display terminal, and provides digital television broadcast and video services, and broadband services such as information service, interactive community services, interactive entertainment services, electronic business services and so on, to end users via broadband networks. The main characteristics of IPTV are interactive and real-time, and its system structure mainly comprises subsystems for video on demand (VOD) service, program editing, storage, authentication and fee charging, etc., and the main contents stored and transmitted are stream media files. A user terminal can be either an IP set top box plus a television or a personal computer.
In the current IPTV, the most of the contents for the video on demand are movies, and a large guantity of movie assets are provided to the end users of television networks as different VOD contents. Therefore, a asset provider not only has to provide the video information of the movies to a video on demand server to be viewed by end users, but also has to provide metadata to an IPTV service platform to allow end users to find out summary information relevant to the movies. The metadata are structural data for describing, explaining, locating, or for making it easier to retrieve, use and manage information assets. In IPTV, in order to provide a wide variety of information contents to the users, it is necessary to provide a catalog searching and navigating system for searching information, therefore a metadata file is needed for each movie asset. Those metadata files comprise information regarding a corresponding movie asset, such as a summary, a still-image, a director, and main actors and so on. In current IPTV systems, the asset providers enter a metadata file of a movie asset and the video information content file of the movie asset, and then have those files packaged and sent. The hierarchy of the metadata structure of a current movie asset is shown following :
I package metadata
+ -- title asset
I I title asset metadata
I + -- movie asset
I I movie asset metadata
I I movie asset content
I + --still-image asset
I I box cover asset metadata
I I box cover asset content
I + --preview asset
I I preview asset metadata
I I preview asset content
In which the title asset metadata of this movie can comprise in particular the information such as the type of the movie, the main audience group, the upload time and so on. The movie asset metadata of this movie can comprise in particular a director, main actors, and a producer. The still-image asset metadata of this movie can comprise a storage mode of a still-image, a still-image resolution and a still-image asset size and so on. The preview asset metadata of this movie can comprise a preview asset time, a preview screen format and a preview language selection and so on.
Nowadays, more and more asset providers include TV serials onto the video on demand servers to allow the end users to order those TV serials. Since a TV serial has many episodes, the current method can only upload each episode in a TV serial to the video on demand server as a single video on demand content, i.e. generating a single package file for each episode, and this package contains the metadata file of the episode and the video information content file of the episode. For this TV serial, some information contained in the metadata file of each episode is the same. For example, the direct, the main actors and the content summary of the TV serial are the same. Therefore, the method of loading each episode to the video on demand server as a video on demand content will produce a large guantity of redundant data during the entire process, which not only increases the workload of the terminal asset providers who enter the information, but also reduces the efficiency of the network transmission and the information downloading speed of a set top box.
In the prior art user terminal interface, since each episode of a TV serial is treated as a video on demand content in the same way as a movie asset, each episode of those TV serials is set on the terminal interface simply to allow the user to order without being grouped together, and thee is not in the system a good navigation interface available to a user for selecting a video on demand, therefore a clear summary of the TV serial is not available to the end user and there is no way to switch and select between different episodes of the same TV serial .
Summary of the Invention
An object of the present invention is to provide a method for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, so as to solve the problems in the prior art such as producing a large guantity of redundant data, increasing the workload of terminal asset providers who enter the information and reducing the efficiency of network transmission and the information downloading speed of a set top box due to the fact that each individual audio-video asset among the audio-video assets with the common attribute is treated as a single VOD content.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a system for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, so as to solve the problems such as a large workload for the asset providers to enter the information and the low network transmission efficiency and the low information downloading speed of a set top box.
In order to solve the above technologic problems, the present invention provides a solution as follows:
A method for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, said method comprises:
A. defining at least one audio-video asset with a common attribute as a VOD category;
B. combining a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by a specific attribute in the category to form a metadata structure of the category; and
C. generating a metadata file of the category according to said metadata structure, and packaging the metadata file and an audio-video asset file in the category to generate a general file for sending to an external asset management system.
Said step A can comprise: defining each TV serial in the audio-video asset as a category of video on demand, wherein the common attribute of different episodes in said TV serial comprises the name of the TV serial, a summary, a total number of episodes, a director, main actors and at least part of a still-image of the TV serial.
Said step B can comprise:
Bl . constructing the common metadata structure according to the common attribute of different audio-video assets in the category;
B2. constructing the specific metadata structure according to the specific attribute of different audio- video assets in the category; and
B3. combining said common metadata structure with said specific metadata structure to form the metadata structure of the category.
Said step Bl can comprise: constructing a title asset item in the common metadata structure of the category according to the common attribute of the different audio-video assets in said category; generating a still-image asset item and a preview asset item under said title asset item; and combining said asset items together to form the common metadata structure of the category.
Said step B2 can comprise: constructing a title asset item for an audio-video asset in said category; generating an episode asset item of the audio-video asset, a still-image asset item of the audio-video asset and a preview asset item of the audio-video asset under said title asset item; and combining said asset items together to form the specific metadata structure of the category.
In said step C the process for generating the metadata file of the category according to the metadata structure of a category can comprise: generating a common part of the metadata file of the category according to said common metadata structure, and generating a specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure.
The step of generating the common part of the metadata file of the category according to the common metadata structure comprises: generating a title asset metadata containing the name of the category, a total number of episodes, a director and main actors according to a title asset item in the common metadata structure; generating a still-image asset file according to a still-image asset item in the common metadata structure, wherein the still-image asset file comprises still-image asset metadata containing a still-image storage mode, a still-image resolution and a still-image asset size, and a still-image content metadata containing a link address of the still-image content; generating a preview asset file of the category according to a preview asset item in the common metadata structure, wherein the preview asset file comprises preview asset metadata containing a preview asset time, a preview screen format and a preview language selection, and a preview content metadata containing a link address of the preview video content; and combining the metadata generated according to the common metadata structure to form the common part of the metadata file of the category. The step of generating the specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure comprises: generating a title asset metadata containing a name and the number of episodes of one audio-video asset according to a title asset item in the specific metadata structure; generating an episode asset file of one audio-video asset according to an episode asset item of the audio- video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said episode asset file comprises episode asset metadata containing the type of said audio-video asset, a receiving language selection and a receiving screen format, and episode content metadata containing a link address of the episode asset content; generating a still-image asset file of one audio-video asset according to a still-image asset item of the audio- video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said still-image asset file comprises still-image asset metadata containing a still-image storage mode, a still- image resolution and the still-image asset size, and still-image content metadata containing a link address of the still-image content; generating a preview asset file of one audio-video asset according to a preview asset item of the audio-video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said preview asset file comprises preview asset metadata containing a preview asset time, a preview screen format and a preview language selection, and preview content metadata containing a link address of the preview asset content; and combining the metadata which are generated according to the specific metadata structure to construct the specific part of the metadata file of said category.
The method can further comprise: D. sending the metadata files of the category by said asset management system to a network television service platform, and sending the audio-video asset files of the category to a video on demand server;
E. downloading by a user terminal the metadata files of the category from the television network service platform, and according to the metadata files linking to the audio- video asset files of the category on the video on demand server; and
F. selecting to receive the audio-video asset linked to the video on demand server by a user under the navigation on a terminal interface.
Said step F can comprise: selecting by the user one of the categories displayed on the terminal navigation interface, so as to enter an interface of the category of the audio-video assets; and selecting to receive one audio-video content of the category linked to the video on demand server on said interface of the audio-video asset.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the present invention provides a system for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, comprising : a category defining module for defining audio-video assets with a common attribute as a VOD category; a metadata structure extending module connected to the category defining module, for combining a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by a specific attribute to form a metadata structure of the category; and a file generating module connected with the metadata structure extending module, for generating a metadata file of the category according to said metadata structure and packaging said metadata file and a content file of the audio-video asset in the category to generate a general file to be sent to an external asset management module.
Said metadata structure extending module can comprise: a common metadata constructing module connected to a metadata structure integrating module, for extracting a common attribute in said one category so as to construct the common metadata structure of the category; a specific metadata constructing module connected to the metadata structure integrating module, for constructing the specific metadata structure according to specific attributes of the different audio-video assets in said one category; and the metadata structure integrating module for combining the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure to form the metadata structure of the category.
Said file generating module can comprise: a common file generating module connected with a general file generating module, for generating a common part of a metadata file of the category according to said common metadata structure; a specific file generating module connected with the general file generating module, for generating a specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure; and the general file generating module for packaging said metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset metadata in the category to generate a general file, and sending the file to the external asset management module .
The system can further comprise: an asset management module connected to the file generating module, for sending the metadata files of the category to a television network service platform and at the same time sending the audio-video asset file of the category to a video on demand server; and a terminal downloading and linking module connected with the asset management module, for downloading the metadata file of the category from the television network service platform and for linking to the audio-video asset file of the category on the video on demand server according to the metadata file.
According to the technologic solution provided by the present invention, there are following advantages and features in the present invention.
In the present invention, the audio-video assets with a common attribute are treated as a complete entity by redefining the metadata structure, wherein the metadata of common information of each audio-video asset are described once, and the specific metadata of information of each audio-video asset are described separately, thereby a large guantity of redundant data generated in the metadata file can be avoided, so that not only the workload of terminal asset providers to enter the information can be reduced, but also the efficiency of the network transmission and the information downloading speed of a set top box can be increased at the same time. This method significantly increases the processing efficiency of the system, and reduces the burden of the network transmission .
Furthermore, in the present invention, a user terminal interface is redesigned for the defined metadata file to allow a user to select and switch conveniently between programs to be received via a friendly terminal navigation interface, without scrounging a program to be received in an ocean of audio-video assets. Description of the accompanying drawings
Fig.l is a flowchart of the present invention;
Fig.2 is a flowchart of a perfected embodiment of the method according to the present invention;
Fig.3 is a flowchart for obtaining the audio-video asset metadata by a user terminal according to the present invention; and
Fig.4 is a block diagram of a perfected embodiment of the system according to the present invention.
Practical Embodiments
The core concept of the present invention is that: by defining audio-video assets with a common attribute as a VOD category, extending the metadata structure of a category according to the attribute of this category, generating the metadata file of this category according to the extended metadata structure, and then packaging the metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset in the category to form a general file, the optimization of the metadata of the audio-video assets in a television network is achieved.
Hereinafter, for better understanding by those skilled in the art, the present invention is further described with reference to the figures.
As shown in figure 1, the method according to the present invention is as follows:
Step 110: the audio-video assets with a common attribute are defined as a VOD category.
Among the huge guantity of VOD assets, many of the audio-video assets have common attributes, such as a TV serial containing many episodes or a series of documentaries with a common subject and so on. For a TV serial, much of the information in each episode are the same, such as the director, the main actors, the content summary of the serial and so on, therefore the audio-video assets with the common attribute are treated as a VOD category.
Step 120: the metadata structure of this category is extended according to the attribute of this category.
A common metadata structure of the category is constructed by extracting the common attribute of the defined category. Particularly, a title asset item of the category is constructed according to the common attribute of the category, and then a still-image asset item and a preview asset item of the category are generated under the title asset item of the category, and those asset items are combined to form the common metadata structure of the category; the specific metadata structure of the category is constructed according to the specific attribute structure of the different audio-video assets of the category. Particularly, the title asset item for an audio-video asset in the category is constructed, an episode asset item of the audio-video asset metadata, a still-image asset item of the episode and a preview asset item of the episode are generated under the title asset item, and then those assets are combined to form the specific metadata structure of the category, and finally the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure are combined to form the metadata structure of this category.
Step 130: a metadata file of this category is generated according to the metadata structure of this category, and the metadata file and the audio-video asset file of this category are packaged to generate a general file for sending to the external asset management system. The common part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the common metadata structure, and a specific part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the specific metadata structure; particularly, a title asset file, a still-image asset file and a preview asset file are generated respectively according to the still-image asset item and the preview asset item; and a title asset file, an episode asset file, a still-image asset file and a preview asset file of the audio-video asset metadata are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the episode asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of one audio-video asset in the specific metadata structure.
The metadata file of the category generated as described above and the content file of the audio-video asset in this category are packaged and then stored in a general file, and the general file is sent to the external asset management system. This general file comprises the content file of the category and the metadata file of the category, wherein the metadata file comprises the common part of the metadata file generated according to the common metadata structure and the specific part of the metadata file generated according to the specific metadata structure .
Step 140: the external asset management system sends the received general file.
After having received the general file, the external asset management system sends the metadata file of the category in the general file to the network television service platform, and at the same time sends the audio- video asset file of the category in the general file to the video on demand server.
Step 150: the user terminal downloads the metadata file .
The user terminal can download the metadata file of the category from the television network service platform, for example, by a set top box.
Step 160: the user receives the VOD audio-video contents .
The user selects by a terminal interface navigation linked to the video server to receive the audio-video asset file. Particularly, the user selects a category from the categories displayed on the terminal navigation interface, accesses the audio-video asset interface of that category, and selects in the audio-video asset interface one audio-video content linked to the video server in the category.
Figure 2 is a flowchart of the perfected embodiment of the method according to the present invention, and this embodiment is described by way of an example as a TV serial among the videos on demand.
Step 210: a TV serial is defined as a video on demand category.
Among the huge guantity of currently available video on demand assets, many audio-video assets have the common attributes, such as a TV serial containing many episodes or a series of documentaries with a common subject and so on. Much of the information contained in those audio- video assets with common attributes are the same, as to a TV serial, the director, the main actors, the content summary and so on of each episode are the same, therefore a TV serial is defined as a video on demand category, particularly, a TV serial with 40 episodes «χχχ» is defined in the present embodiment as a video on demand category .
Step 220: the metadata structure of the serial is constructed.
A common attribute of the defined category is extracted to form a common metadata structure of the category. Particularly, a title asset item of the serial is constructed according to the common attribute of this serial, then a still-image asset item and a preview asset item of the serial are generated under the title asset item of the serial, and those asset items are combined to form the common metadata structure of the serial; a specific metadata structure of the category is constructed according to the specific attribute of different audio-video assets in the category. Particularly, the title asset item for the audio-video asset of each episode in the serial is constructed, an episode asset item of the episode, a still-image asset item of the episode and a preview asset item of the episode are generated under the title asset item of the episode, and then those assets are combined to form the specific metadata structure of the serial; and finally the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure are combined to form the metadata structure of this serial.
Step 230: the metadata file of the serial is generated according to the metadata structure.
A title asset file, a still-image asset file and a preview asset file are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of the common metadata structure. Particularly, taking the TV serial «χχχ» as an example, according to the title asset item in the common metadata structure the title asset metadata are generated, comprising the total number of episode - 40, the name of the TV serial - xxx, the director of the serial - director A, the main actor of the serial - actor B, the total time of the serial: 1800 minutes, etc.; according to the still- image asset item general still-image asset metadata of the serial are generated, comprising a still-image explanation, a still-image pixel - 320x240 etc., and the still-image content metadata comprising a still-image content link address; and according to the preview asset item general preview asset metadata of the serial are generated, comprising the time of the preview fragment - 10 minutes, the language of the preview fragment Chinese, the stream guantity of the preview fragment and so on, and the preview content metadata comprising a link address for the preview video content. Those metadata form the common part of the metadata file of the TV serial «χχχ», and this part of the metadata comprise the common attribute of each of the 40 episodes.
A title asset file, an episode asset file, a still- image asset file and a preview asset file of the episode are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the episode asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of one episode in the specific metadata structure. Particularly, taking the TV serial «χχχ» as an example, according to the title asset item of the first episode the title asset metadata of the first of the 40 episodes are generated, comprising the name of the episode - the first episode, the identifier of the episode - 1, the time of the episode - 45 minutes and so on; according to the episode asset item of the first episode the episode asset metadata of the first episode are generated, comprising the main actor of the episode, the language of the episode, the video type of the episode and so on, and the episode content metadata comprising a link address of the episode asset video content; according to the still-image asset item of the first episode the still- image asset metadata of the first episode are generated, comprising a still-image explanation, a still-image pixel
- 320x240 of the episode and so on, and the still-image content metadata comprising a link address of the still- image content; and according to the preview asset item of the first episode the preview asset metadata of the first episode are generated, comprising the time of the preview fragment - 5 minutes, the language of the preview fragment
- Chinese, the stream guantity of the preview fragment and so on, and the preview content metadata comprising a link address of the preview video content. Then the title asset files, the episode asset files, the still-image asset files and the preview asset files of the second to the fortieth episodes are generated in succession, and the metadata of the above 40 episodes form the specific part of the metadata file of the serial.
Step 240: the metadata file and the video content file of the serial are packaged to generate a general file for sending to the external asset management system.
The metadata file of the category generated as described above and the video content files of the audio- video assets in this category are packaged and then stored in a general file, and in this embodiment, it is by way of example of the TV serial «χχχ» with 40 episodes. This general file comprises the video content files of the serial, wherein the video content files in particular comprises the video content files of each of the 40 episodes, the preview file of each episode, the still- image file of each episode, the general preview file of the serial and the general still-image file of the serial; and the metadata file of the serial, which comprises in particular the common part of the metadata file generated according to the common metadata structure and the specific part of the metadata file generated according to the specific metadata structure. Step 250: the metadata file and the video asset file in the general file of the serial are sent separately by the external asset management system.
The general file of the serial is sent to the external asset management system, and the video asset file of the serial is sent to the video on demand server by the external asset management system. The video asset file comprises the general preview video content of the serial, the still-image of the serial, the video content of each episode and the still-image of each episode; and at the same time the metadata file of the serial is sent to the television network service platform by the external asset management system.
Step 260: the metadata file of the serial is downloaded by a user terminal.
When a user selects to view one episode of the serial, the common part of the metadata file of the serial and the specific part of the serial are downloaded from the television network service platform by a set top box at the user terminal, and by the link address of the episode video content in the specific part of the episode content metadata, it is linked to the video content corresponding to the episode on the video on demand server. When the user wishes to view the next episode, there is no need for the set top box to download the common part of the metadata file of the serial from the network television service platform, only the specific part of the serial needs to be downloaded, and this is by linking to the video content corresponding to the episode on the video on demand server. In this way, it is not necessary for the common part of the metadata file of the serial to be downloaded every time, so the speed for downloading by the set top box is increased, and the downloaded redundant data is reduced.
Step 270: the user views a selected TV serial.
By way of the terminal navigation interface on a TV set or a computer the user views the selected video asset linked to the video server.
The procedure for obtaining the audio-video asset metadata from the user terminal according to the present invention is shown as in figure 3:
Step 310: after starting, enter a VOD navigation interface to select a category.
According to the common parts of the metadata files of the VOD categories, display the names of the categories on the terminal navigation interface, and a category to be view can be browsed for its content summary, preview fragment, still-image, etc., and the user can select one of the categories based on his desire and access a next navigation interface.
Step 320: select an audio-video asset of the category in the category interface.
In the selected category navigation interface, according to the specific part of the metadata file in this category, the names of all audio-video assets in the category are displayed on the interface, and the content summary, the preview fragment and still-image and so on of a audio-video asset to be received can be browsed, and the user can select one audio-video asset to be received.
Step 330: buy and receive a selected audio-video asset.
After having selected the audio-video asset metadata to be received, the user can make payment and receive the audio-video asset, or receive the audio-video asset again by a selection button, or receive a preceding or a following audio-video asset by the selection button.
Step 340: after having completed the reception, it is selected whether to exit the interface, if not, to return the step 310, if yes, the process ends.
A block diagram of the preferred embodiment of the system according to the present invention is shown in figure 4 : the system comprises: a category defining module 410, a metadata structure extending module 420, a file generating module 430, an asset management module 440 and a terminal downloading and linking module 450. Wherein the category defining module 410 is used to define audio-video asset with a common attribute as a VOD category; the metadata structure extending module 420 is connected to the category defining module 410 and used to combine a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by specific attributes in the category to form a metadata structure of the category; the file generating module 430 is connected to the metadata structure extending module420 and used to generate a metadata file of the category according to the metadata structure, and it packages the metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset in the category to form a general file and send the same to an external asset management module; particularly the common part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the common metadata structure and the specific part of the metadata file of the category is generated according to the specific metadata structure, and the generated metadata file of a category and the content file of the audio-video asset of the category are packaged and stored in a general file; the asset management module 440 is used to send the metadata files of the category to a television network service platform and send the audio-video asset file of the category to a video on demand server; and the terminal download link module 450 is used to download the metadata files of the category from the television network service platform and is linked to the audio-video asset file of the category on the video on demand server through the metadata file.
The metadata structure extending module 420 comprises: a common metadata construction module connected with a metadata structure integrating module, for extracting common attributes from one category to construct the common metadata structure. Particularly, the title asset item of the category is constructed according to the common attribute of the category, and then the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of the category are generated under the title asset item of the category, and the asset items are combined to form the common metadata structure of the category; a specific metadata construction module 422 is connected to the metadata structure integrating module and used to construct the specific metadata structure according to specific attributes of the different audio-video assets in the category. Particularly the title asset item of one audio- video asset in the category is constructed, an episode asset item of the audio-video asset, a still-image asset item of the episode and a preview asset item of the episode are generated under the title asset item, and the asset items are combined together to form the specific metadata structure of the category; the metadata structure integrating module 423 is used to combine the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure together to form the metadata structure of the category.
The file generating module 430 comprises: a common file generating module 431 connected to the general file generating module, for generating a common part of the category of metadata files according to the common metadata structure. Particularly, a title asset metadata, a still-image asset metadata and a preview asset metadata are generated respectively according to the title asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item in the common metadata structure; a specific file generating module 432 is connected to the general file generating module and used to generate the specific part of the metadata file of the category according to the specific metadata structure, so as to generate a title asset metadata, a episode asset metadata, a still-image asset item and a preview asset metadata of the audio-video asset metadata respectively according to the title asset item, the episode asset item, the still-image asset item and the preview asset item of one audio-video asset in the specific metadata structure; a general file generating module 433 is used to package said metadata file and the content file of the audio-video asset in the category to generate a general file, and to send the file to an external asset management module.
The method and system according to the present invention are described above by way of a TV serial. In addition, a set of audio-video assets such as a set of programs concerned in the present invention can be a category of programs by a certain composer, such as the ninth Symphony by Beethoven and so on.
The method and system of the present invention have significantly optimized the metadata of relevant audio- video assets, so as to make the process of VOD more rationalized.

Claims

Claims
l.A method for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, characterized by comprising :
A. defining at least one audio-video asset with a common attribute as a VOD category;
B. combining a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by a specific attribute in the category to form a metadata structure of the category; and
C. generating a metadata file of the category according to said metadata structure, and packaging the metadata file and an audio-video asset file in the category to generate a general file for sending to an external asset management system.
2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, said step A comprises: defining each TV serial in the audio-video asset as a category of video on demand, wherein the common attribute of different episodes in said TV serial comprises the name of the TV serial, a summary, a total number of episodes, a director, main actors and at least part of a still-image of the TV serial.
3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, said step B comprises:
Bl . constructing the common metadata structure according to the common attribute of different audio- video assets in the category;
B2. constructing the specific metadata structure according to the specific attribute of different audio- video assets in the category; and
B3. combining said common metadata structure with said specific metadata structure to form the metadata structure of the category.
4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, said step Bl comprises: constructing a title asset item in the common metadata structure of the category according to the common attribute of the different audio-video assets in said category; generating a still-image asset item and a preview asset item under said title asset item; and combining said asset items together to form the common metadata structure of the category.
5. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, said step B2 comprises: constructing a title asset item for an audio-video asset in said category; generating an episode asset item of the audio-video asset, a still-image asset item of the audio-video asset and a preview asset item of the audio-video asset under said title asset item; and combining said asset items together to form the specific metadata structure of the category.
6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, in said step C the process for generating the metadata file of the category according to the metadata structure of a category comprises: generating a common part of the metadata file of the category according to said common metadata structure, and generating a specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure .
7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, the step of generating the common part of the metadata file of the category according to the common metadata structure comprises: generating a title asset metadata containing the name of the category, a total number of episodes, a director and main actors according to a title asset item in the common metadata structure; generating a still-image asset file according to a still-image asset item in the common metadata structure, wherein the still-image asset file comprises still-image asset metadata containing a still-image storage mode, a still-image resolution and a still- image asset size, and a still-image content metadata containing a link address of the still-image content; generating a preview asset file of the category according to a preview asset item in the common metadata structure, wherein the preview asset file comprises preview asset metadata containing a preview asset time, a preview screen format and a preview language selection, and a preview content metadata containing a link address of the preview video content; and combining the metadata generated according to the common metadata structure to form the common part of the metadata file of the category.
The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, the step of generating the specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure comprises: generating a title asset metadata containing a name and the number of episodes of one audio-video asset according to a title asset item in the specific metadata structure; generating an episode asset file of one audio-video asset according to an episode asset item of the audio- video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said episode asset file comprises episode asset metadata containing the type of said audio-video asset, a receiving language selection and a receiving screen format, and episode content metadata containing a link address of the episode asset content; generating a still-image asset file of one audio- video asset according to a still-image asset item of the audio-video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said still-image asset file comprises still-image asset metadata containing a still-image storage mode, a still-image resolution and the still-image asset size, and still-image content metadata containing a link address of the still-image content; generating a preview asset file of one audio-video asset according to a preview asset item of the audio- video asset in the specific metadata structure, wherein said preview asset file comprises preview asset metadata containing a preview asset time, a preview screen format and a preview language selection, and preview content metadata containing a link address of the preview asset content; and combining the metadata which are generated according to the specific metadata structure to construct the specific part of the metadata file of said category.
The method according to any one of claim 1 to 8, characterized by further comprising:
D. sending the metadata files of the category by said asset management system to a network television service platform, and sending the audio-video asset files of the category to a video on demand server;
E. downloading by a user terminal the metadata files of the category from the television network service platform, and according to the metadata files linking to the audio-video asset files of the category on the video on demand server; and
F. selecting to receive the audio-video asset linked to the video on demand server by a user under the navigation on a terminal interface.
10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, said step F comprises: selecting by the user one of the categories displayed on the terminal navigation interface, so as to enter an interface of the category of the audio- video assets; and selecting on said interface of the audio-video asset to receive one audio-video content of the category linked to the video on demand server.
11. A system for optimizing metadata of an audio-video asset in a television network, characterized by comprising : a category defining module for defining audio-video assets with a common attribute as a VOD category; a metadata structure extending module connected to the category defining module, for combining a common metadata structure constructed by the common attribute with a specific metadata structure constructed by a specific attribute to form a metadata structure of the category; and a file generating module connected with the metadata structure extending module, for generating a metadata file of the category according to said metadata structure and packaging said metadata file and a content file of the audio-video asset in the category to generate a general file to be sent to an external asset management module.
12. The system according to claim 11, characterized in that, said metadata structure extending module comprises : a common metadata constructing module connected to a metadata structure integrating module, for extracting a common attribute in said one category so as to construct the common metadata structure of the category; a specific metadata constructing module connected to the metadata structure integrating module, for constructing the specific metadata structure according to specific attributes of the different audio-video assets in said one category; and the metadata structure integrating module for combining the common metadata structure and the specific metadata structure to form the metadata structure of the category.
13. The system according to claim 11, characterized in that, said file generating module comprises: a common file generating module connected with a general file generating module, for generating a common part of a metadata file of the category according to said common metadata structure; a specific file generating module connected with the general file generating module, for generating a specific part of the metadata file of the category according to said specific metadata structure; and the general file generating module for packaging said metadata file and the content file of the audio- video asset metadata in the category to generate a general file, and sending the file to the external asset management module.
14. The system according to claim 11, characterized by further comprising: an asset management module connected to the file generating module, for sending the metadata files of the category to a television network service platform and at the same time sending the audio-video asset file of the category to a video on demand server; and a terminal downloading and linking module connected with the asset management module, for downloading the metadata file of the category from the television network service platform and for linking to the audio- video asset file of the category on the video on demand server according to the metadata file.
EP07821707A 2006-11-01 2007-10-23 Method and system for optimizing metadata of audio-video asset in television network Withdrawn EP2087732A2 (en)

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CNA200610143278XA CN101175197A (en) 2006-11-01 2006-11-01 Method and system for optimizing audio-video resource metadata in network TV
PCT/EP2007/061343 WO2008052908A2 (en) 2006-11-01 2007-10-23 Method and system for optimizing metadata of audio-video asset in television network

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