EP2710798A1

EP2710798A1 - Method and system for automatically managing and organizing a database of lcn (logical channel number) related to television programs

Info

Publication number: EP2710798A1
Application number: EP12715155.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Paolo D'amato; Saverio Celia
Original assignee: Sisvel Technology SRL
Current assignee: Sisvel Technology SRL
Priority date: 2011-03-01
Filing date: 2012-03-01
Publication date: 2014-03-26
Also published as: ITTO20110183A1; WO2012117361A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method, an apparatus and a system for automatically managing and organizing a database of LCNs ( Logical Channel Numbers) related to radio-television programs; the method allows obtaining a hierarchic classification of the plurality of radio-Television programs on at least two levels, based on predefined logic criteria associated with a first rough numeric identification type of each channel and then, with at least one second specific type of the same channel, which may be pre-assigned during transmission or assigned in accordance with optional or manual criteria defined by the user upon reception.

Description

METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR AUTOMATICALLY MANAGING AND ORGANIZING A DATABASE OF LCN (LOGICAL CHANNEL NUMBER) RELATED TO TELEVISION PROGRAMS

DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to transmission and reception of radio-television programs, in particular to a method and a system for logically sorting radio-television channels, which properly takes into account the number that often identifies each radio-television channel and makes it easily retrievable by the user upon reception. It is known that, in order to make it easier for the user to search for a preferred radio- television channel, most radio-television signal receivers currently on the market are equipped with a system for automatically programming and storing receivable radio- television programs; such a system catalogues the programs by sorting them not according to their channel frequency, which would be difficult to remember, but according to simple logic criteria associated with the program's name and broadcaster. In addition, it is almost always possible for the user to manually reorganize the program catalogue produced automatically, in accordance with his/her individual criteria.

Analog radio-television signal receivers, which are currently being discontinued, used the so-called ATSS (Automatic Tuning and Sorting System), which is the subject of European patent no. EP 0486988, whereas modern digital radio-television signal receivers use a system based on the logical channel number (LCN), consisting of a number assigned by consortia of radio-television broadcasters to a certain program receivable in a certain geographic or catchment area.

The LCN system is a numeric code that identifies the programs being broadcast via digital terrestrial technology by the various broadcasters, and is therefore used by most of the so-called digital terrestrial radio-television receivers in order to automatically assign a predefined position in a program list to each program received, i.e. a position within a sorted sequence of radio-television programs that the receiver can tune to, which is independent of the frequency assigned to the program, of the emitting source, and of the transmission means employed. International patent application no. PCT/EPOO/10280, filed on 20th October 2000, relates to a method for placing received radio-television programs into a suitable list on the basis of indications about the geographic area involved and of information about the transmission network contained in the received signal; it uses both the unique identification service and the LCN system.

LCNs are normally managed in a digital TV receiver as follows: at installation time, the receiver scans the band and, if the user has chosen the mode: "Use LCNs", then the receiver will sort the stations according to the LCN assigned thereto by the Telecommunications Authority and transmitted within the video stream. It may happen that several stations have the same LCN: in such a case, the receiver will ask the user which station he/she wants to store into the location corresponding to said LCN, and will move the other stations to the bottom of the list.

This type of management is effective when there are relatively few conflicts. Sometimes it happens, however, that broadcasters do not like having high LCNs, because users often stop zapping at rather low LCNs. In a city like Naples, for example, all stations concentrate within the first twenty LCNs. It is clear that in cases like this the standard type of management is not effective, and it is therefore necessary to conceive new forms of management.

The object of the present invention is to overcome the above-described problems of the prior art by providing a method for automatically managing and organizing LCNs which allows creating new forms of management that are more convenient for the users.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention, which will become apparent from the following description, are achieved through a method and a system as set out in respective independent claims. Preferred embodiments and non-obvious variants of the present invention are specified in dependent claims.

It is understood that all the appended claims are an integral part of the present description.

The present invention will be described in detail below through some preferred embodiments thereof, which are only provided by way of non-limiting example with reference to the annexed drawings, wherein: Fig. 1 diagrammatically shows a possible system according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a block diagram of the system of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 diagrammatically shows the remote control device of Fig. 1 ; and

- Fig. 4 is a block diagram of the steps of the method according to the present invention.

With reference to the drawings, the following will describe and illustrate some preferred embodiments of the method and system of the present invention. It will become immediately apparent that what is described herein may be subject to innumerable variations and modifications (e.g. in shape, dimensions, arrangements and parts having equivalent functionality) without departing from the protection scope of the invention as set out in the appended claims.

In particular, Fig. 1 shows a schematic drawing of a system 1 according to the invention, which substantially comprises a remote control device 2 (shown herein as a common remote control) operatively connected to at least one receiving device 9 (which is shown herein as a television set, but may of course be any other device suitable for this purpose, such as a set top box, a video recorder, a decoder, etc.).

With reference to Fig. 2, there is shown a block diagram of the main components of the system according to the invention. First of all, it comprises a remote control device 2, which may advantageously comprise: at least one first central processing unit (CPU) 3, operatively connected to actuating means 5 and to transmitting means 7, which are adapted to transmit to the at least one receiving device 9 the control signals actuated by the actuating means 5 and processed and prepared for transmission by the central processing unit 3. The central processing unit 3 is also connected to at least one first memory 11 containing data necessary for the normal operation of the remote control device.

It should be noted that the actuating means consist herein of one or more keys or other switching elements (wheel or mouse) of the control device 2, through which the user can select a channel for viewing. This selection may usually occur in two ways:

- by direct call, i.e. by dialling the corresponding LCN (e.g. key "7" for channel "LA7", whose LCN is 7, or keys "1" and "0" for channel "Cielo", whose LCN is 10); - by zapping, i.e. by switching to viewing the channel in the program table having the next higher LCN (after pressing key "P+") or the next lower LCN (after pressing key "P-")

The lower part of Fig. 2 illustrates a block diagram of the components of the receiving device 9 used by the invention, i.e.: at least one second central processing unit (CPU) 14, operatively connected to receiving means 16 adapted to receive control signals transmitted by the remote control device 2; and at least one second memory 18, operatively connected to the central processing unit 14 and containing data necessary for implementing the method of the invention (e.g. the LCN database 20, which will be described later on).

In the following description of a preferred but non-limiting embodiment of the present invention, reference will be made, without any limitation whatsoever, to a system 1 consisting of a remote control device 2 operatively connected to a television set 9, as shown in Fig. 1. In this case, the actuating means 5 consist of a key (or two or a plurality of keys, depending on the application) of said remote control device. It is obvious that this is just one of the possible practical implementations of the inventive device.

In fact, the inventive idea derives in general from the observation that it is actually preferable that some television stations (also referred to herein, without distinction, as television channels) have the same LCN and are therefore accessible by pressing the same key or the same combination of keys of the remote control device 2. Reference will now be made to Fig. 3. For example, it is logical that the stations: La7, Rete7, Italia7, Europa7, since their names include the number "7", can be accessed by pressing the key "7" 15 on the remote control device 2. There are also stations connected to a "main" station, such as La7+1 (i.e. La7 delayed by one hour), La7D, La73D, La7 mosaico, La7 on demand, which even more logically should be accessible by pressing the actuating element or key "7" 15 belonging to the actuating means 5. By the way, it must be reminded that LCN means: "Logical Channel Number". The same applies to other broadcasters including a numeric reference in their names: for example, "Quarta (Fourth) Rete" and "Rete 4" are both characterized by a logical association with number 4. In conclusion, while the current station database is a one-level database, it would be convenient to have a station database 20 having two or more levels (indicated in general as "n" levels), i.e. that the stations can be accessed in two or more ("n") steps, the first one allowing access to the first level (e.g. all stations including the number "7" or the string "sette" (seven) in their names), and the second one and any additional steps allowing to choose the desired station from the group of stations selected at the first level. Said steps of creating a multilevel LCN database (to be stored into the receiver 9), of accessing the various levels through a suitably sent control signal, of displaying the desired channel list on the screen of the receiver 9 and, finally, of selecting the preferred channel for final viewing, are steps that can be easily managed through suitable software present in the inventive system 1 (in the receiver 9 or in the remote control device 2), which will not be described herein any further because it can be created without difficulty by any man skilled in the art.

From a regulatory standpoint, three cases may arise: 1) full control, wherein the Telecommunications Authority assigns both LCN levels (or, more in general, the "n" LCN levels); 2) partial control, wherein said Authority assigns only the first LCN level; 3) full liberty, wherein it is left up to the forces on the free market to find an acceptable equilibrium. In Italy, the attempt at managing LCNs through a one-level database, decided by the Telecommunications Authority, appears to have failed, so that the trend may be towards a situation of full liberty, which in this case would be neither positive nor optimal.

The invention therefore provides a method which is based upon a two-level or multilevel LCN database 20 (contained in the receiver 9), the second level containing second-level LCNs grouped under a respective first-level LCN present in the said database 20, and so on for the next levels, which are respectively grouped in relation to the next higher level. In the specific case of two-level LCNs, the second-level LCNs are defined by the order in which they are stored and presented to the user, when the hierarchically higher LCN under which they have been grouped is selected. Of course, this also applies to any LCNs of a level other than the second one.

It should be noted that the invention is also applicable to the case of perfect compliance with the LCNs defined by the competent Authorities, in that they may come in conflict for various reasons. Within the national territory, especially in the proximity of regional borders, it may happen that television signals of the same channel are received simultaneously with at least a part of the programs diversified by region: for example, channel "RAI3 TGR Piemonte" and channel "RAD TGR Lombardia". It is logical for a user that these two channels, both having the same LCN 3, are accessible by pressing the same key "3" on the remote control device.

Likewise, in transnational border areas it is possible that a television receiver apparatus receives different channels being broadcast with the same LCN; for example, RAI 1 and FR 1 (the first Italian channel and the first French channel, respectively), RAI 2 and RSI LA2 (the second Italian channel and the second Swiss channel in Italian, respectively), and so forth.

It is possible that the same television signal is received multiple times over different transmission means in so-called hybrid receivers, which can receive television signals via cable (DVB-C or TCP/IP signals) and/or air (DVB-T signals received through a terrestrial antenna) and/or satellite (DVB-S signals received through a satellite antenna).

Last but not least, there are receivers capable of receiving television signals being received with different transmission standards, like dual-tuner (analog and digital) receivers or receivers capable of receiving digital signals of different generations (e.g. DVB-S and DVB-S2, DVB-T and DVB-T2, etc.).

In all the last three cases mentioned above, it may happen that multiple instances of some television channels are received, and the user may want to associate these channels with the same remote control key. The invention disclosed herein is advantageously applicable to all these cases without any distinction.

It should be noted that the term "LCN" is used within the scope of this patent in a wholly general manner and with a broader meaning than that with which it is generally used in the technical literature. Herein, LCN generally means the program number logically associated, whether by a user or by a broadcaster, with a certain television channel, which is somehow associated with a key or a combination of keys to be pressed in order to select a channel for viewing. In the invention disclosed herein, said selection may occur by means of a mechanism providing for successive levels that allows the channels in the program list to be managed with a flexible method, apparatus and system in such a way that they can be reorganized according to the user's preferences.

The various preferred embodiments of the invention differ in what happens on the receiver 9 side. In all cases, by dialling the (first-level) LCN on the remote control device 2, the first station having that LCN will be accessed: for example, by pressing the key "7" (key 15 in Fig. 3), one gains access to the first station having the first-level LCN "7", and having therefore the second-level LCN equal to 1.

Then a second-level choice must be made. With reference to the above example and to Fig. 3, one possible solution is to browse the next stations "7" by pressing several times the key "7" 15. In other words, by pressing the key "7" 15 more times, all stations with the LCN "7" will be selected cyclically. Of course, these stations are generally presented by the receiver in the order in which they were found and stored when scanning the band while configuring the receiver 9, i.e. in the order of their reception frequency.

This solution is not very effective when the first-level LCN is a two-digit number. To overcome this drawback, it is possible to associate the browsing of stations having the same first-level LCN with the pressing of the key "P+" 25' and of the key "P-" 25". There are two possibilities: either the remote control 2 includes two (or n, in the case of an n-level database) pairs of keys "P2+" 26' and "P2-" 26", one for browsing the first-level LCNs and the other for browsing the second-level LCNs (which may even not be transmitted, if the Telecommunications Authority gives up normalizing the second level), or the current situation is maintained, with just one pair of keys 25. Within the frame of the solutions with two pairs of keys 25 and 26, other variants may be conceived: for example, for browsing the second level, there may be only the key "P2+" 26', i.e. the stations cannot be browsed backwards; after having repeatedly pressed the key "P2+" 26' and browsed in succession all the stations with the desired first-level LCN, by pressing again the same key 26' one will cyclically return to the first stations in the list.

When the solution with only one pair of keys 25 is adopted, the following should occur: by pressing the key "P+" 25', the stations with the previously selected LCN will be browsed first, followed by those with the next LCN. The same will apply to the key "P-" 25".

When the LCN database has more than two levels, it may be necessary to employ as many pairs of keys as the number of levels.

As an alternative to the solutions using one key, one pair of keys or n pairs of keys, especially when the database levels are more than two, one may adopt solutions equipped with a wheel or mouse for continuously browsing the various channel lists in order to select the desired one.

As a further alternative, the various channels may be displayed in groups and selected through menu displays obtainable by actuating means 5 under control of suitable software, which, being within reach of any man skilled in the art, will not be described in detail herein.

As a further improvement, the present invention allows to solve the situation wherein the user wants to rearrange the television channels having the same first-level LCN because he/she considers unlogical the random order (dictated by the transmission frequency) in which the stations are being presented.

The user can thus be allowed to rearrange the stations with the same first-level LCN in the order considered to be the most "logical" or convenient one. Normally all ATSS systems offer a manual station sorting function, but there is no instance of application of the same principle to two-levels LCNs. It can be implemented through a software routine stored in the memory 18 and executable by the processing unit 14 of the receiving device 9.

Thanks to the two-level configuration of the database 20 and to the possibility of accessing a group of second-level LCNs by starting from the "parent" first-level LCN, the invention can also be used by the broadcaster, who can transmit the value of the second-level LCN linked to the respective first-level LCN.

The invention also includes a solution wherein the value of the second-level LCN is not transmitted or not even defined (in practice, it is defined by the user when rearranging the stations).

In summary, with reference to Fig. 4, the inventive method for automatically managing and organizing a database 20 of Logical Channel Numbers (LCN), related to television program channels selectable for viewing by a user, comprises the steps of:

providing (SI) a database 20 of LCNs constituted by a plurality (n) of record levels, the n-th-level LCN records, if present, being grouped into groups belonging to a respective one of the (n-l)-th-level LCN records;

- assigning (S2) to each channel a first numeric identification type as a first- level LCN stored in said database 20;

assigning to the same channel a second numeric identification type as a second-level LCN linked to the already assigned first-level LCN;

if n > 2, assigning (S3) to the same channel an n-th numeric identification type as an n-th-level LCN linked to the already assigned (n-l)-th-level LCN;

so as to offer the user the possibility of:

selecting (S4) a channel for viewing by starting from its own first-level LCN; if the first-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, selecting (S5) the desired channel for viewing by using the related second-level LCN;

- if n > 2, and if the (n-l)-th-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, selecting (S6) the desired channel for viewing by using the related n-th-level LCN. The preferred solution, as described above, is of course the one with 2 levels (n = 2), for which the inventive method consists of the following steps:

providing (SI) an LCN database 20 constituted by two levels of LCN records, i.e. a first level of LCN records and a second level of LCN records, the second-level LCN records being grouped into groups belonging to a respective one of the first-level LCN records;

assigning (S2) to each channel a first numeric identification type as a first- level LCN stored in said database 20;

- assigning to the same channel a second numeric identification type as a second-level LCN linked to the already assigned first-level LCN;

so as to offer the user the possibility of:

selecting (S4) each channel for viewing by starting from its own first-level LCN; and

- if the first-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, selecting (S5) the desired channel for viewing by using the related second-level LCN. The previously described system 1 is therefore adapted to implement the above method for automatically managing and organizing the LCN database 20 as follows:

- the second memory 18 contains the LCN database 20 with n record levels, the n-th- level LCN records, if present, being grouped into groups belonging to a respective one of the (n- 1 )-th-level LCN records;

- each channel is assigned a first numeric identification type as a first-level LCN stored in the database 20;

- each channel is assigned a second numeric identification type as a second-level LCN linked to the already assigned first-level LCN;

- if n > 2, each channel is assigned an n-th numeric identification type as an n-th level LCN linked to the already assigned (n-l)-th- level LCN;

- the second central processing unit 14 is adapted to select each channel for viewing, upon input from the actuating means 5, by starting from its own first- level LCN as entered through the actuating means 5;

- if the first-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, the second central processing unit 14 is adapted to select the desired channel for viewing, upon input from the actuating means 5, by using the related second-level LCN as entered through the actuating means 5;

- if n > 2, and if the (n-l)-th-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, the second central processing unit 14 is adapted to select the desired channel for viewing, upon input from the actuating means 5, by using the related n-th-level LCN as entered through the actuating means 5.

Furthermore, in the inventive device 9 the second central processing unit 14 can execute a software routine for manually rearranging the stations having the same first- level LCN.

Also, the value of the second-level LCN linked to the respective first-level LCN can be transmitted by a broadcaster to the device 9. The same applies to the n-th-Ievel LCN. As an alternative, the receiving device 9 may comprise means allowing the user to manually rearrange the second-level LCNs which are not being transmitted by a broadcaster. As a further alternative, the receiving device 9 may comprise means allowing the user to manually rearrange the second-level LCNs which have not been previously defined.

Some preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described herein; of course, it will be immediately apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be subject to many variations and modifications functionally equivalent to those described herein, which will still fall within the protection scope of the invention as set out in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for automatically managing and organizing a database (20) of Logical Channel Numbers, or LCNs, related to television program channels selectable for viewing by a user, comprising the steps of:

providing (SI) a database (20) of LCNs constituted by a plurality (n) of record levels, the n-th-level LCN records, if present, being grouped into groups belonging to a respective one of the (n-l)-th-level LCN records;

assigning (S2) to each channel a first numeric identification type as a first- level LCN stored in said database (20);

so as to offer the user the possibility of:

selecting (S4) a channel for viewing by starting from its own first-level LCN; - if the first-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, selecting (S5) the desired channel for viewing by using the related second-level LCN;

if n > 2, and if the (n-l)-th-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, selecting (S6) the desired channel for viewing by using the related n-th-level LCN.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said LCNs of at least one of said first, second, ..., n-th levels are pre-assigned during transmission to each channel.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said second, n-th-level LCNs is assigned to each channel upon finding the channel when tuning, and is linked to the first-level LCN assigned to the respective channel.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said second, n-th-level LCNs can be manually assigned to each channel by the user and can be linked to the first-level LCN assigned to the respective channel.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the selection of the desired channel occurs by pressing a related key (15) of a device (2), preferably a remote control device, associated with a first-level LCN, any further pressing of the same key (15) selecting in succession possible channels having the same first-level LCN, the selection of any further channels occurring according to the second, n-th-level LCN assigned to the channel.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the selection of the desired channel occurs by pressing a key (25) of a first pair of keys ("P+" 25', "P-" 25") of a remote control device (2), preferably a remote control device, associated with a first-level LCN, wherein by pressing a key (26) of a second pair of keys ("P+" 26', "P-" 26") of the same remote control device (2) one selects in succession any further channels having the same first-level LCN, the selection of the further possible channels occurring according to the second, n-th-level LCN assigned to the channel by pressing a key of a possible third, ... n-th pair of keys of the same remote control device (2).

7. A method according to claim 1, wherein the selection of the desired channel occurs by pressing a key (25) of a first pair of keys ("P+" 25', "P-" 25") of a remote control device (2), preferably a remote control, associated with a first-level LCN, wherein by pressing a key ("P+" 25') of the first pair of keys of the same remote control (2) one selects in succession any further channels having the same first-level LCN, the selection of the possible further channels occurring according to the second, n-th- level LCN assigned to the channel by further pressing the key of the first pair of keys of the same control device (2).

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein the selection of the desired channel occurs by pressing a key (25) of a pair of keys ("P+" 25', "P-" 25") of a remote control device

(2), preferably a remote control, associated with a first-level LCN, wherein by pressing the same key (25) of the pair of keys ("P+" 25', "P-" 25") one selects in succession any further channels having the same first-level LCN, the selection of the possible further channels occurring according to the second, n-th-level LCN assigned to the channel.

9. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises the step of manually rearranging the stations with the same first-level LCN.

10. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises the step of manually rearranging by a user the second-level LCNs which are not being transmitted by a broadcaster.

11. A method according to claim 1 , characterized in that it further comprises the step of manually rearranging by a user the second-level LCNs which have not been previously defined.

12. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the steps of selecting the channels for viewing are carried out through a menu.

13. An apparatus for receiving television channels (9), adapted to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

14. A system (1) for automatically managing and organizing a database (20) of Logical Channel Numbers, or LCNs, related to television program channels, said system (1) comprising at least one remote control device (2) operatively connected to at least one receiving device (9), wherein:

- said remote control device (2) can send selection commands for viewing a television channel by activating actuating means (5);

- said receiving device (9) comprises: at least one central processing unit, or CPU (14), operatively connected to receiving means (16) adapted to receive control signals transmitted by said remote control device (2); and at least one memory (18) operatively connected to said central processing unit (14);

characterized in that:

- said memory (18) contains a database (20) of LCNs, composed of a plurality (n) of record levels, the n-th-level LCN records, if present, being grouped into groups belonging to a respective one of the (n-l)-th-level LCN records;

- each channel is assigned a first numeric identification type as a first-level LCN stored in said database (20);

- if n > 2, each channel is assigned an n-th numeric identification type as an n-th-level LCN linked to the already assigned (n-l)-th- level LCN;

- said second central processing unit (14) is adapted to select said channel for viewing, upon receiving said selection commands, by starting from its own first-level LCN as entered through activation of the actuating means (5);

- if the first-level LCN is identical for more than one channel, said second central processing unit (14) is adapted to select the desired channel for viewing, upon input from said actuating means (5), by using the related second-level LCN as entered through said actuating means (5);

- if n > 2, and if the (n-l)-th- level LCN is identical for more than one channel, said second central processing unit (14) is adapted to select the desired channel for viewing, upon input from said actuating means (5), by using the related n-th-level LCN as entered through said actuating means (5).

15. A system (1) according to claim 14, characterized in that said system (1) is constituted by a remote control device (2) operatively connected to at least one television receiver (9), and said actuating means (5) comprise at least one key (15, 25', 25", 26', 26") of said remote control device (2).

16. A system (1) according to claim 15, characterized in that the selection of the desired channel for viewing occurs by pressing a related key (5) of the remote control device (2) associated with a first- level LCN, any further pressing of the same key (15, 25', 25", 26', 26") selecting in succession any further channels having the same first- level LCN, the selection of the possible further channels occurring according to the second, n-th-level LCN assigned to the channel by further pressing the same key (15, 25', 25", 26', 26").

17. A system (1) according to claim 15, characterized in that the selection of the desired channel occurs by pressing a key (25) of a first pair of keys ("Ρ+"25', "P-" 25") of the remote control device (2) associated with a first-level LCN, wherein by pressing a key (26) of a second pair of keys ("P2+" 26', "P2-" 26") of the same remote control (2) one selects in succession any further channels having the same first-level LCN, the selection of the possible further channels occurring according to the second, ..., n-th-level LCN assigned to the channel by pressing a key of a possible third, ... n- th pair of keys of the same remote control device (2).

18. A system (1) according to claim 15, characterized in that the selection of the desired channel for viewing occurs by pressing a key (25) of a first pair of keys ("P+" 25', "P-" 25") of the remote control device (2) associated with a first-level LCN, wherein by pressing a second key ("P2+" 26') of the same remote control device (2) one selects in succession any further channels having the same first-level LCN, the selection of the possible further channels occurring according to the second, n-th- level LCN assigned to the channel.

19. A system (1) according to claim 15, characterized in that the selection of the desired channel occurs by pressing a key (25) of a pair of keys ("P+" 25', "P-" 25") of the remote control device (2) associated with a first-level LCN, any further pressing of the same key (25) of the pair of keys ("P+" 25', "P-" 25") selecting in succession any further channels having the same first-level LCN, the selection of the possible further channels occurring according to the second, n-th-level LCN assigned to the channel.

20. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 19, characterized in that said central processing unit (14) is adapted to perform a routine that allows manually rearranging the stations with the same first-level LCN.

21. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 20, characterized in that the value of the second-level LCN linked to the respective first-level LCN is entered into the television signal transmitted by the broadcaster.

22. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 21, characterized in that said receiving device (9) comprises means allowing the user to manually rearrange the second-level LCNs which are not being transmitted by a broadcaster.

23. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 22, characterized in that said receiving device (9) comprises means allowing the user to manually rearrange the second-level LCNs which have not been previously defined.

24. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 23, characterized in that said remote control device (2) is equipped with as many pairs of keys (25', 25"; 26', 26") as the levels of the LCN database.

25. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 24, characterized in that said remote control device (2) is equipped with at least one wheel-type element or mouse for continuously browsing the various lists of channels assigned to a certain LCN level in order to select the desired one.

26. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 25, characterized in that said central processing unit (14) is adapted to process typical graphic element means to generate menu-type displays for a grouped display of the various channels assigned to a certain LCN level and for choosing among the channels displayed therein.

27. A system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 26, characterized in that said remote control device (2) is equipped with at least one central processing unit (CPU) (3) operatively connected to actuating means (5) and to transmitting means (7) adapted to transmit to the at least one receiving device (9) the control signals actuated by the actuating means (5) and processed and prepared for transmission by the central processing unit 3.