MXPA96004991A - Method and apparatus to provide interact electronic program guide - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a subscription television system that transmits a plurality of television signals to a plurality of subscribers. Television signals include pay-per-view programs (purchased by features) or near-video-on-demand programs (purchased over a period of time to be viewed unlimitedly), which are provided only to the subscribers who buy the programs. It also transmits data that represent an electronic programming guide from the data provider (16). The electronic programming guide can be displayed by a subscriber's terminal at the subscriber's location. The electronic programming guide at the subscriber's location. The electronic programming guide is a grid (Figures 4A and 4B) that lists television programs by date, time and channel. A subscriber can select programs to watch or record from the electronic program guide. Moreover, the subscriber can buy pay-per-view or almost video-based programs based on the electronic programming guide.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS TO PROVIDE PROGRAMMING GUIDE * INTERACTIVE ELECTRONICS This application is a partial continuation of Application Serial Number 07 / 983,910, entitled "Subscriber Terminal With A Plug In Expansion Card", filed on December 1, 1992, and Application Serial Number 989,909, entitled "Reprogrammable Subscriber Terminal ", filed on December 1, 1992.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION A. Related Request These applications are related by subject matter to the Application with Serial Number 08 / 229,805, entitled "Subscription Television System and Terminal for * Enabling Simultaneous Display of Multiple Services "and with Application with Serial Number 08 / 229,805, entitled" System and Method for Providing Subscriber-Interactivity in a 'Television System ", both presented on April 19, 1994.

B. Technical Field This application relates to the field of subscription television systems, and more particularly, to providing an electronic program to a user of a subscription television system, and which allows the # user select programs, including pay-per-view or video on demand programs, directly from the electronic program.

C. Description of the Relevant Technique The cable television, satellite, and subscription by air systems, generally referred to in the present tense as subscription television systems, are known. Relatively recently, payment events were added to be seen as choices available in many subscription television systems. These events are available to be purchased individually for a fee. The user selects the event, and-there is a charge that is 5 levied against his account. The subscriber's equipment (usually referred to as a subscriber's terminal or an appliance terminal) then tunes the event, and performs any necessary demixing. Then the user can see the event. In order to watch a program, the subscriber must either inform his service provider that he wishes to see the program. In many systems of the prior art, this has been complicated and inconvenient for the subscriber. In the previous systems, it was necessary for the subscriber to mail a card or call the provider 5 days in advance of the event, and request that their terminal be authorized to watch the event. This required significant preparation by the subscriber. Unless the event was of very special interest to the subscriber, there was little chance that he would devote himself to that preparation. Also, these systems did not provide people who, for example, were unexpectedly at home on a given night, and wanted to watch a pay-per-view movie. Responding to the dissatisfaction about these systems, the providers have more recently offered services of # more sophisticated telephone authorization, which requires a minimum of preparation time and / or wire return authorization services. Also, so-called pay-per-view systems that allow a subscriber to select an event directly from their subscriber's terminal to see it immediately have been introduced. However, even with the systems of * authorization by sophisticated telephone or with the systems of payment by seeing by impulse, the selection of a event of payment to see has not been a simple matter. With authorization systems by telephone, the user must know a telephone number to call. Then you must enter a series of apparently meaningless numbers, indicating the selection of the program, a customer identification number, and typically, a security number of some kind. With pay-per-view payment systems, the user must often make their way through long menus, and also enter event codes and security numbers. The problem with these systems is that users are often intimidated by them. Many of the subscribers are unsophisticated, and find it difficult to remember the steps necessary to acquire the events. Other subscribers are recalcitrant and do not want to learn the complex steps required for pay-per-view operations. These users do not acquire pay-per-view events, * 0 and in accordance with the above, reduce the income of the service provider that would otherwise obtain. Moreover, these complicated systems have a degenerative effect, because subscribers get frustrated with their systems, and in the future, do not want to try new services offered by the cable company, dismissing them as too complex. As with all services »Provided on a fee basis, there is a momentum in the industry to make the acquisition of payment events to see as easy as possible. 0 Recently, some companies have begun to offer electronic television programs to be purchased by subscription television providers, who in turn provide the programs to their customers. The programs contain a listing of 5 television programs per hour and channel, and are typically displayed as a grid on the television screen. This system is shown in PCT Publication Number WO 92/04801, requested by Insight Telecast, Inc. (hereinafter "the Insight system"). That publication describes a visual display system for maneuvering a cursor through a television program. The system also describes that a subscriber can select a program to record by moving a cursor to the selected program; the system will automatically program the customer's video cartridge recorder. The Insight system provides television programming information throughout the week. That information is downloaded to a subscriber's terminal to be used by the subscriber. In accordance with the above, the subscriber's terminal must have a significant memory. In addition, most users of the guide are not looking for information a week in advance of the * broadcasting. The significant memory expense imposed by the Insight system is often not justified by the extra performance allowed by the one-week display. Also recently, so-called video-on-demand services have been introduced. These services provide a simulation of the video rental experience. One of these systems is described in Walker, United States Patent Number 5,168,353. Walker describes in column 4, lines 18-27, that a converter can be enabled to demix two channels that carry the same program at staggered intervals. This allows you to return to the same portion of the video after a pause equal to the stepped time interval. The Walker patent gives as an example a subscriber who orders a program that starts at 8:00 p.m. The converter demolishes the 8:00 display as well as the 8:15 display, so that the viewer can return to the same point of the program after a 15-minute break. However, if the characteristics of near video on demand is to compete effectively with video rental stores, it must have additional features, such as multiple pause features, rewind characteristics, and fast forward features. In addition, the subscriber must find this service friendly with the user and easy to use.

COMPENDIUM OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, a television system is provided that includes an electronic program guide that gives a list of programs available in the television system, including pay-per-view and video on demand programs. The user can select programs to view or record directly from the electronic program guide. The selected programs may include pay per view and video on demand programs, which can be purchased directly from the guide. Programs can be acquired without entering event or similar codes. The characteristics of almost video on demand can be acquired during finite periods of time, and also allow the functions of pause, rebounded, and fast forward. In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the program list information is obtained from a data provider that specializes in providing that information, such as Insight Telecast, Inc. Then the head end selects portions of that data to be transmitted. to the subscribers. The end-head can select portions to meet the needs of its subscribers, taking into account other factors, such as terminal costs. The head end can also reformat the data in such a way that it provides it in a more useful format to its subscribers, or add additional information of special interest to its subscribers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a block diagram of a subscription television system in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a detailed block diagram of a subscription television system in accordance with the invention. Figure 3 is a block diagram of a decoder according to the invention. Figure 4A is a screen illustrating an electronic programming guide according to the invention. Figure 4B illustrates the memory load of the subscriber terminal with electronic program guide data. Figure 5 is a screen illustrating an electronic programming guide in accordance with the invention, including the time, channel, and program enhanced data. Figure 6 is a screen illustrating an electronic programming guide that exhibits a pay-per-view event * in accordance with the invention. Figures 7 and 8 illustrate an acquisition sequence for a pay-per-view event in accordance with the invention. Figure 9 illustrates an information screen for a subscription television event in accordance with the invention. Figure 10 illustrates a list of channels for a subscription television system according to the invention. * Figure 11 illustrates a list of favorite channels for a subscription television system according to the invention. Figure 12 illustrates a confirmation screen for use with a list of favorite channels in a subscription television system in accordance with the invention. Figures 13-17A illustrate an acquisition sequence for an almost video on demand feature of a subscription television system according to the invention. Figure 17B illustrates a pause sequence for an almost video on demand feature of a subscription television system according to the invention. Figures 18 and 19 illustrate payment selection options to be viewed in a subscription television system in accordance with the invention. Figures 20 and 21 illustrate a review option of pay per view events acquired in a subscription television system in accordance with the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED MODALITIES Figure 1 shows a generalized block diagram of a subscription television system in accordance with the present invention. The system of Figure 1 is, for example, unique, and should not be construed to limit the invention. A central control center 10 orchestrates the operation of the subscription television system. The central control center 10 is often associated with the central office of a multi-service operator, and can communicate with, and control the head ends in many cities. The head end 12 provides subscription service to a local area, for example, a city or a region that includes one or more cities or towns. A subscriber terminal 14 is also shown, and it would be located in the home or in the business of a subscriber. Of course, in a typical subscription television system, there would be hundreds or thousands of these subscriber terminals. Finally, an electronic programming guide data provider 16 is shown. The electronic programming guide data provider 16 supplies information from the television programming to the head end 12. The lines connecting the central control center '10 with the end head 12 and the electronic programming guide data provider 16 with the head end 12, indicate the communication lines. Data can be communicated along these lines by any known element, including telephone networks, satellite transmissions, optical fibers, or other transmission lines, and so on. A distribution system connects the head end 12 with each terminal of the subscriber 14. Frequently, the distribution system consists of transmission lines and line extenders, but may include coaxial cables, optical fibers, uplinks and downlinks by satellite, other broadband transmission lines, and combinations thereof. Figure 2 is a more detailed diagram of the system shown in Figure 1. On the left side of the dotted line the data provider of the electronic programming guide ("EPG") 16 and the central control center 10 are shown. In the central portion of Figure 2 the head end 12 is shown in detail. Finally, in the right portion of Figure 2, a -terminal of the subscriber 14 and associated equipment (VCR 18 and television 20) is shown. In this preferred embodiment, the data provider of the electronic programming guide 16 transmits the data from the electronic satellite programming guide to the end 'head 12. This data includes the program information configured by time and channel. One of these services is offered by Insight Telecast Inc. The Insight service provides extensive listings of television programs. Operators of the television system per subscriber can acquire this data and provide it to their subscribers. The central control center 10 includes a system administrator 22 that directs to the other components of the central control center 10. An example of a system administrator 22 is the network controller of the Scientific-Atlanta System Administrator 10. The center central control 10, for example, can provide provider billing services, including billing for pay-per-view events. A billing computer 24 stores the billing information, and can also format and print invoices. Modems 26 and 38 allow data transmissions between the system administrator 22 and the head end controller ("HEC") 28. For example, authorization data can be transmitted from the system administrator 22 to the head end controller 28. The head end controller 28 formats the authorization data and transmits it to the subscriber terminals either in band via the mixers 48, 50, or 52, or out of band through the data transmitter outside of the band 54. The head end controller 28 may conveniently comprise a Scientific-Atlanta model 8658 for controlling the transmission of data streams to mixers 48, 50, 52, and the out-of-band transmitter 54. Billing data from subscribers they can be received through either the telephone processor 30 or the modem 32. The subscriber terminal 14 can transmit billing information over a telephone line directly to the telephone processor 30, or back to the cable and to the IPPV 34 RF processor, depending on its configuration. The subscriber terminal 14 may include a telephone communication module or a radio frequency communication module, which is used to transmit the billing information. If the data is sent to the IPPV RF processor 34, it is sent by the modem 36 associated with the RF processor IPPV 34 to the modem 32 associated with the system administrator 22. The system administrator 22 accumulates the billing data from the telephone processor 30 and modem 32, and provides them to billing computer 24, so that customers can be billed for their program services. Turning now to the head end 12, the data of the electronic programming guide is received by a satellite receiver 40, and is passed to the service processor of * information 42. The information service processor ("ISP") 42 may also receive text data to be transmitted to subscribers. Text data may include weather information, sports brands, messages, etc. and may be provided by an information service provider, or may be generated by the cable provider. The information service processor 42 is responsible for receiving the data from the electronic programming guide, as well as the other data, and de - ?. transmit them to subscribers. The information services processor 42 provides data to the mixers 44 and 46. Of course, the actual number of mixers to which the information services processor provides data would depend on many factors, including the amount of data to be transmitted , and the speed at which the data should be supplied and updated. The electronic programming guide and the text data are sent repetitively through the mixers. If there is only one mixer, and one batch of this data, the repetition rate will be slow. The use of more than one mixer allows the speed of data repetition to be increased. The two mixers 44 and 46 of Figure 2 are an example only. The mixers 44 and 46 place the data in band to be transmitted to the subscribers, along with the mixing of an associated television signal. The data of the electronic program guide and the text data in a preferred embodiment are placed in the vertical blanking interval, but can also be placed elsewhere in the 6MHz channel. For example, the data could be modulated in the amplitude on the sound carrier, as is known in the prior art. Here, an analog NTSC 6 MHz television signal is considered as an example, but the invention should not be limited. The television signal may be in a PAL or SECAM format, it may be digital or digitally compressed data, or it may comprise a wider bandwidth of a high definition television signal. As described herein, in-band transmission means the transmission of data within the video television channel comprising both audio and video carriers. The data can be transmitted by amplitude modulation on the sound carrier, subsequently in the current in-band audio data, or in the video signal, during the unused portions, such as the data channels of a data stream. of MPEG compressed video, or the vertical or horizontal blanking periods of an analog television signal. The electronic program guide data received by the satellite receiver 40 will often be very expensive, containing data for programs up to one or two weeks in advance. If all this data is to be transmitted to the subscriber's terminal 14, the terminal must be able to store the data in its memory. To store so much information, a significant amount of memory is required. Providing extra memory at subscriber terminals is expensive because of the hundreds or thousands of these terminals that are in a typical cable system. Frequently, customers may prefer a less expensive unit that provides only a portion of the data supplied by the electronic programming guide data provider 16, such as the following several hours. Customers can then benefit from lower cable service bills or lower purchase costs if customers are going to own the terminals. Accordingly, the information services processor 42 is provided with the capability to select only certain portions of the electronic program guide data to be transmitted to the subscribers. The information services processor 42 receives the data from the electronic programming guide, selects the portion to be transmitted to the subscribers, and passes only that portion to a mixer (44 and / or 46). By selecting only a portion of the data - provided by the data provider of the electronic programming guide 16, less data is transmitted than would otherwise be the case. Therefore, the data repetition rate is increased. Not only the information services processor 42 can select portions of the data from the electronic programming guide, but it can also add data to the local stations not covered by the data provider of the electronic programming guide 16. The processor of information services 42 can also reformat the data in such a way that it becomes more enjoyable for subscribers.

As reported, in a preferred embodiment, the electronic program guide data is transmitted in the vertical blanking interval of at least one of the television signals. The electronic program guide data is constantly being transmitted in the vertical blanking interval by the mixers. The mixers 44 and 46 have the memory dedicated to storing the data of the electronic programming guide. The amount of memory depends on the size of the electronic programming guide that is to be transmitted to the subscribers. If the information services processor will select only a small portion of the data from the electronic programming guide provided by the e-data provider of the electronic programming guide, for example, a few hours, then it may be sufficient a small memory, maybe 128k bytes. For larger segments, 512k bytes may be required. And for a couple of weeks of programming data, 1M bytes may be required. The information services processor periodically updates the mixer memory with the new data received from the data provider of the electronic programming guide 16. The information service processor 42 marks the data either as long-term or as short-term. term, depending on whether the data refer to a program that is going to be presented in a short time, or to a more distant one. The mixer sends out short-term data more frequently than long-term data. This is because the electronic programming guide is stored in the memory in the subscriber terminal 14, and must be updated frequently. But the subscriber terminal is not constantly tuned to the channel where the electronic programming guide data is located. As will be described later, the subscriber terminal 14 tunes in the data channel of the electronic programming guide whenever possible, to obtain updated information. By sending out short-term data very frequently, it is possible that a given subscriber terminal has precise short-term data stored therein, which is the most important data for a user of the subscriber's terminal. Long-term data is sent out less frequently. Programming changes can also be grouped with short-term data. As discussed above, the information services processor 42 can also receive text data from an information service provider, such as a capital quote service. The information services processor 42 can also generate text locally. For example, the information services processor 42 may generate messages to be transmitted to the subscribers with respect to upcoming events or service interruptions or changes. If received from an information service provider, the text data may be transmitted either as received or reformatted by the information service processor 42, and then transmitted to a mixer (44 or 46) to be transmitted to the subscribers. The information services processor 42 also passes the data to the head end controller ("HEC") 28, which controls the mixers 48, 50, and 52, and also the out-of-band data transmitter 54. The mixers 48, 50, and 52 mix the television signals, and they can also insert data in band. The out-of-band data transmitter 54 transmits data on a separate carrier, that is, not within a 6 MHz channel. In a preferred embodiment, the out-of-band carrier is at 108.2 MHz, but other carriers can also be used. out of band. The data transmitted under the control of the head end controller 28 can be, for example, demixing information. In a preferred embodiment, the data is inserted in each vertical blanking interval to indicate the type of mixture used in the next video field. Mixing systems are well known in the art. For example, mixing with synchronization suppression, video inversion mixing, etcetera, or some combination of mixing techniques that can be * use. In addition, authorization information could be transmitted; this information would authorize the reception of channels or programs. Data on unmixed channels can also be transmitted by means of data repeaters (not shown), such as a Scientific-Atlanta model 8556-100 data repeater, either as in-band audio or video data. Some of the information transmitted would be global, that is, each subscriber would obtain it. For example, the demixing information could be a global transmission. Note that only because each subscriber receives the demixed information does not mean that each subscriber terminal can demix a received signal. Rather, only the authorized subscriber terminals would be capable of demixing the received signal. On the other hand, * Data transmissions can be directed transmissions. For example, the authorization data is usually. they would direct individual subscribers. That is, when 0 is transmitted the data will have an address (for example, a serial number of the subscriber's terminal) associated with them. The managed subscriber's terminal will receive the data and will respond in accordance with the same. Other subscriber terminals will ignore the data. In addition, there may be data 5 directed to the group, which will affect groups of subscribers.

The outputs of the mixers 44, 46, 48, 50, 52 and the out-of-band data transmitter 54 are passed to any necessary processing equipment, such as signal processors, modulators, and combiners. These elements are indicated in general as block 56, and do not form a part of the present invention. A distribution system 58 leads to a subscriber terminal 14. At the subscriber's location, there is a subscriber terminal 14. At the subscriber's location, # the subscriber's terminal 14 connects to the subscriber's video equipment, including, for example, a video cartridge recorder 18 and a television 20. Multiple subscriber terminals 14 can be located in a room with several television receivers 20 Figure 3 is a detailed block diagram of the decoder. Referring to Figure 3, a detailed block diagram of one of the subscriber terminals will now be described. The broadband television signal from the signal distribution system 58 is received at the converter up / down input or tuner 100. Conventionally, the up / down converter 100 may include an input filter, such as a diplexer, to separate the 108.2 MHz out-of-band signal and the broadband television signal. More than one tuner (not shown) can be provided to provide, for example, image-in-picture services or observe / record modes. An out-of-band data receiver 150 is coupled to the tuner 100 to receive the separate out-of-band data. The up / down converter 100 can be tuned to a previously determined channel to receive the video and in-band audio data when it is not in use. The channel can be determined previously from the system administrator 22, and, by means of one of the transmission methods of # 0 data described herein, the previously determined channel identification can be stored in the subscriber terminal 14. When in use, the up / down converter 100 is tuned in accordance with a channel 5 selected by a subscriber per means of a user interface having an infrared (IR) receiver 124, a remote control 126, and a keypad of the terminal 122. The up / down converter 100 uses an assured phase cycle under the control of a control of tuning 102, 0 to convert the predetermined or previously determined radio frequency channel signal to an intermediate frequency signal of 45.75 MHz. A multi-function control circuit (MCC) 104 is linked to the converter up / down 100 through a bidirectional link, 5 with the control of the tuner 102. The multi-function control circuit 104 is preferably an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) that combines many control functions of the subscriber terminal and data handling in a single packet. . Of course, the specific integrated circuit of the application can include any combination of individual control circuits. Alternatively or in addition, other control circuitry may be used, for example, a microprocessor. The bidirectional link may include a line to tune and a return line for the feedback control of the tuning process. A feedback signal for automatic gain control and one for automatic frequency control to the up / down converter 100 are transmitted through the filters 101, 103, respectively, from a video demodulator. A filter, for example, a SAW filter 106, filters the intermediate frequency channel signal to separate the signal in the separate video and audio portions for processing. The video portion is demodulated and mixed by the video demodulator and demixer 109 under the control of the demixer controller 110 of the multi-function control circuit 104. For example, the video demodulator 109 can perform the synchronization restoration (one de-mixed form of the video signal) for the synchronization suppression mixture. Then the signal * video passes through a bandpass filter 130 to a screen display control 132, where reverse video inversion (demixing) takes place, if necessary. The demixing of the video portion, be it synchronization suppression, synchronization inversion, video line inversion, etc., is under the control of the demixer controller 110 of the multi-function control circuit 104. The demixer controller 110 provides the necessary timing signals, the levels of the inversion axis, and whether the video is inverted or not, to the visual display control on screen 132, and supplies the necessary timing pulses, restoration levels, and identification synchronization, for 5 is restored in the video demodulator 109. The demixer controller 110 receives this demixing information either from the pulses as in-band audio data, or from the data modulated in the video during the vertical blanking interval. . 0 On the other line, the audio signal is converted from the intermediate frequency carrier of 41.25 MHz to the intermodulation frequency of 4.5 MHz by a synchronous detector 105. The feedback for the automatic gain control of the detector 105 is supplied from the 5 output of the bandpass filter 131. Then the audio signal can be demodulated by a frequency modulated demodulator 119. An amplitude modulation detector 111 performs pulse detection to recover the in-band audio data, which is modulated in its amplitude on the audio carrier. The received in-band pulses are supplied to a bandwidth audio data decoder 117 of the multi-function control circuit 104 to be processed after being configured by the pulse configurator 115. The in-band data, except for the data of the $ 0 demix, are stored in DRAM 137 to be placed in buffer zone. The control of the demixer 104 gives access to the data of the demixing directly for the operation of the video demixing. The volume control of the audio signal is made under the control of a volume control 41 and the microprocessor 128, as described in the Patent of the • ^^ United States of America Number 5,054,071, incorporated herein by reference. After volume control, the audio signal is passed through a 0 low pass filter 123 and a mute switch 125. The output of the mute switch 125 is applied to a modulator 142. The multi-control circuit functions 104 receives the video signal after demodulation and demixing, and detects the in-band video data from the VBI of the signal with a VBI detector. The in-band video data is transmitted at a frequency of the order of the known teletext systems, such as 4.0 megabits per second. However, the invention should not be considered limited in this respect. A data clock provides an appropriate sampling frequency higher than the Nyquist velocity according to well-known techniques. The VBI 129 data decoder stores the data in the DRAM 137 before being processed by the microprocessor. The * 0 additional details of the VBI data decoder can be found in the Application Serial Number 08 / 229,805, which is expressly incorporated herein by reference. In addition, the time of day is transmitted by the head end, and it is stored - in the DRAM 137. For example, global transmissions of the time of day can be presented periodically, based on the rules of the Satellite time as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,994,908, the teaching of which is incorporated herein by reference. Therefore, the microprocessor 128 has access to the data indicating the current time. Visual display control 132 selectively generates visual displays of characters and on-screen graphics instead of, or superimposed on, the video signal. For example, the information stored in the DRAM 137 by the VBI 129 data decoder can be read in the on-screen visual display control, and is used to generate on-screen characters and / or graphics. The modulator 142 combines the video signal from the display display control output 132, and the audio signal from the output of the muting control circuit 125, and converts the combined signal to the channel frequency selected by the microprocessor 128, such as channel 3/4 for NTSC. The combined and demodulated signal is supplied as a radio frequency output to a television receiver in a well known manner. A control microprocessor 128 controls the overall operation of the subscriber terminal 14. The subscriber communicates with, and controls, the microprocessor 128, through an interactive user interface with a visual display on the screen. The user interface includes the keyboard 122 on the front panel of the subscriber terminal 14, and the remote control 126 which generates subscriber control signals to change the tuning, volume level control, feature selection, and the like . These subscriber commands are decoded by a browser and input control 148 of the multifunction control circuit 104. The remote infrared receiver 124 of the user interface receives the commands from the infrared remote control or other remote control 126, as is well known in the art, and provides commands to * microprocessor 128. The user interface may additionally include a visual display, for example, a 4-digit 7-segment light-emitting diode visual display, displaying the numbers of the tuned channel and diagnostics. When the keyboard 122 or the remote control 126 is used to select a command, the microprocessor 128 operates to execute the command. The subscriber's terminal W 0 interacts with the subscriber providing numerous visual displays on the screen, which assists in the operation of the terminal. The visual displays on the screen provide information and warnings to guide the subscriber through many of the complex features of the terminal. For example, on-screen visual display can implement a menu page structure to provide screen-by-screen instructions for using the subscriber's terminal and its features. The control of the demixer 110 of the multi-function control circuit 104 uses the retrieved demixing data to generate appropriate control signals, for example, inversion and equalization control, restoration or synchronization regeneration for demixing, or otherwise restoration of the input baseband television signal. A secure microprocessor 136 determines whether the demixer control 110 of the multi-function control circuit 104 performs demixing on a particular channel, or what form of demixing is required at a particular time, by interpreting the authorization and control data. downloaded from the system administrator 22 (by any of the three data transmission schemes discussed herein, out-of-band, in-band audio, or in-band video) into the internal non-volatile memory (NVM) of the device. The non-volatile memory of the secure microprocessor 136 stores insurance data, for example, authorization data, mixed channel data, some terminal configuration data, and other required data. The control processor 128 operates by executing a control program that is preferably partially stored in a read memory only internal to the processor, and is partially stored in a non-volatile memory, such as the Flash EPROM 134. On-board clocks are provided. to put the different elements of the circuits of the terminal clock. In addition, the control program of the microprocessor 128 can also reside in the non-volatile memory of an expansion card 138. The microprocessor 128 communicates with the non-volatile memory 134, 138, by means of a memory bus 141 which has data, address, and control lines. The microprocessor 128 also controls the data ders 117, 129, and 146, the volume control 41, the display display control 132, and the control of the tuner 102, the control of the demixer 110, and the browser and control of the the input key 148 by means of commands through the multi-function control circuit 104 and the bus of the control processor (CMB) 131. The microprocessor 128 directly controls the mute switch 125 and the selection of the output frequency of the modulator 142. The microprocessor 128 includes an additional capacity for further communications of auxiliary devices and control through a data port 140. For example, the data port can accommodate an infrared group for control of the video cartridge recorder by means of an on-screen menu, an additional subscriber terminal for a double tuner operation, or the connection with a subscriber terminal digital video iptor. The subscriber terminal 14 can receive blinking and global data, other text data, and demixer data transmitted from the head end 12 via the vertical blanking (VBI) range in band. In an alternative way or in addition, steerable and global data can be transmitted in a separate out-of-band data carrier, if an out-of-band receiver is provided. The memory control 112 allows data coming from the three data decoders 117, 129, and 146 to be placed in a volatile memory, for example, the DRAM 137. There, access can be given by the control microprocessor 128 through bus bar means of the control processor 131. The multi-function control circuit 104 also distributes control instructions from the control microprocessor 128 to other parts * r ^ ^ - of the multi-function control circuit 104, to provide the operation of the remainder of the subscriber terminal 14. The multi-function control circuit 104 is additionally connected to a secure microprocessor busbar (SMB) 143, which allows communications between the insurance microprocessor 136 and another 5 portions of the subscriber terminal 14. The bus of the insurance microprocessor 143 is further coupled with the expansion card 138 to provide renewable security. The memory control 112 and the microprocessor interfaces of the multi-function control circuit 104 are the central communication facility for the control microprocessor 128 and the secure microprocessor 136. The memory control 112 receives requests from the microprocessors 128. , 136 and other controls and 5 data decoders to write to memory or read from memory. Resolves contentions for memory transfers, giving priority to real-time applications and microprocessors, and programs the data flow. The microprocessors 128, 136 communicate through internal registers of the multi-function control circuit 104 with the memory control 112 and other portions of the multifunction control circuit 104. The expansion card 138 may be a printed card containing memory and / or components of > ß ^ Secure microprocessor, which can be inserted into a connector 200. The connector 200 can be configured in such a way that, when it receives the expansion card 138, the expansion card is flush with the top cover. The connector 200 electrically extends the memory bus of the control microprocessor 141 and the bus of the insurance microprocessor 143 to the expansion card 138. The expansion card 138 may provide additional program or data memory, renewed security, or any other application supported by the microprocessors 128, 136. In addition, circuitry coupled with the microprocessor 126 may be provided to detect whether the expansion card is installed or not. Accordingly, the subscriber terminal 14 can be controlled in accordance with the information contained in the expansion card 138 when it is installed, and according to the internal software when the expansion card 138 is not installed. Additional details with respect to the expansion card 138 can be obtained in the United States of America Patent Application Serial Number 07 / 983,910, entitled "Subscriber Terminal with Plug in Expansion Card", which is incorporated herein by reference. The subscriber terminal may optionally include a pay-per-view pay module (IPPV) of the telephone type 252 or the RF-IPPV type 154. Alternatively, the reverse line information may be transmitted via a link optical. The pay-per-view pay module allows subscribers to request authorization from their subscriber terminal to receive payment events such as pay-per-view events or near video on demand (NVOD) transactions, store data associated with the acquisition of the event in the non-volatile memory of the insurance microprocessor 136, and then transmitting the data to the system administrator 22 by means of the telephone return line or the return line of radio frequency by means of the signal distribution system. In addition, the information of "interactive television" can be transmitted to the system administrator 22 by means of the radio frequency or pay per view module by telephone pulse, or another transmission of the reverse line. In this case, the subscriber's terminal can receive information that defines a menu, which can be displayed immediately. When the user responds to a menu warning, the resulting information can be transmitted immediately as return data. For example, the user can respond to a group by entering information on the keyboard. The results of the group can be determined at the head end, and subsequently reported to the subscriber's terminals. Additional details regarding interactive television can be obtained in the United States of America Patent Application Serial Number 08 / 229,717, filed concurrently with the present, and expressly incorporated herein by reference. Figure 4 shows a screen of the electronic programming guide provided in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The electronic programming guide is produced by the subscriber terminal 14 from the data stored in its memory. The memory and the memory control circuit were described with respect to Figure 3. The electronic programming guide can be activated and displayed from the subscriber's terminal or from a remote control, such as remote control 126 of Figure 3. For example, a switch on the remote control 126 may be labeled as "Programming Guide", or the electronic programming guide may be selected from a menu provided by the subscriber's terminal 14.

In addition, the keypad 122 of terminal 14 can also be used to activate the programming guide. Horizontally indicated in block 60 are the date and time bars. Channel selections appear vertically on the left side of the screen. Of course, the configuration of the channels and the hours could be inverted in an alternative mode. For example, in block 62 is HBO, which is channel 15 in the figure. The name of a television program is associated 0 with each time bar and channel bar. For example, associated with the time bar at 7:30 p.m. and channel 14, is "The Island of Gilligans", shown in block 64. The channels on the left side of the electronic programming guide are configured in a numerical order from top to bottom 5. When the electronic program guide feature is activated for the first time, the display will show the % current channel tuned, for example, in the third channel bar from above, with corresponding program descriptions highlighted to indicate a cursor. The 0 description will include the title, and may include other information, such as the rating or an indication that the program is subtitled. For example, block 66 provides all this information. The time bars initially displayed, for example, will be the bar that starts at the last bar of 30 minutes or one hour, and the next three bars of 30 minutes. Of course, the defaults described are only exemplary, and others may be used in accordance with the invention. The remote control 126 will have the cursor address keys "UP," "DOWN," "LEFT," and "RIGHT," or dates that represent these addresses. These keys move the cursor around the electronic programming guide. The cursor moves in increments of 30 minutes and one channel. # 0 The current placement of the cursor is indicated by an enhanced program in that location. Cursor placement can also be indicated by highlighting the selected channel and time at the cursor location. See Figure 5, for example, where the cursor is over "Jake and el- Gordo" and the WAGA channel 5 4 is highlighted along with the start time of 9:00. When the cursor reaches the edge of the screen, the entire screen # A bar is changed each time a direction key is pressed to search for information not visible on the screen. Movement similar to movement within a sheet of 0 computation of a computer. When the subscriber reaches the last available time bar, the cursor will no longer move in that direction. The terminal could arrange for the cursor to go back to the first time bar at the end, but this is not required, and may even be confusing to the user. However, in the # preferred mode, the cursor returns from the highest channel to the lowest channel, and vice versa. This allows the viewer to reach a channel of choice more quickly using the cursor keys. In addition, the direct input of the channel is supported in the electronic programming guide mode. The direct entry of the channel moves the window to display information about the channel that the user selects, and places the cursor on that channel. However, the terminal does not tune that channel unless the user selects it # 10 by pressing the "SELECT" key on the remote control 126. In addition, when the cursor is located on a program, the user can request more information about the program by activating the "INFO" key on his remote control. This will open a window that < give additional information about the program, if that information is available. The information could include lists of guest stars or a summary of the program. When the cursor left or right arrow keys are held down, the screen increases twice in 30-minute steps, and then goes to a "fast mode". In quick mode, the screen changes in increments of 2 hours, four times per second, but only the time and date bar is updated. The programming cells are left empty until the subscriber releases the key, at which point, they are filled with the relevant programming information. The fast mode gives an effective speed of 8 hours per second. When the cursor is moved vertically from a large time block to a smaller time block, the cursor remains in the same time block. When the course is about a feature that the user would like to see, then a "SELECT" switch is activated, and that channel is tuned. In an alternative way, the "SELECT" switch can send the user to a menu that allows him to either watch the program or record it. If the view option is selected, the channel is tuned. If the record option is selected, the terminal will program the video cartridge recorder 18 to record the program, or at least it will be programmed to turn on and tune the appropriate channel when the program is available. You can also select payment events to watch from the electronic program guide. Referring to Figure 5 again, pay-per-view events are available on channel 5. Pay-per-view events do not need to be dedicated to a particular channel, but, in this example, channel 5 is dedicated to pay-per-view programs. The pay per view event shown is "Terminator 2". Note that simply using the selection key to tune that station will not make it possible to see, since the program is mixed. Rather, the user must buy the program. The user places the cursor on the program, then activates a "BUY" key. It may be preferred that the user confirm their choice by activating the "BUY" button again to avoid accidental purchases. The user may also have to enter a security number to make this purchase. The user can select if this feature is activated. For users with children, nannies, etc., in the home, the security number feature can be activated. For those who want to simply schedule, it can be disabled. Figures 6-8 illustrate the selection of pay per view from the viewing guide. Figure 6 shows an enhanced pay-per-view ("PPV") selection. Note in this figure that the pay per view selection is on a white background, while the unselected bars are on a gray background. In Figure 5, the background for the slots selected was black. Any method which indicates the selection and which falls within the scope of the invention may be employed. From this point, the user will press "BUY" to acquire "Terminator 2". Then preferably the user would be asked to confirm the selection by pressing "BUY" again. If the user has the security number feature activated, then a screen will appear as shown in Figure 7. The user will be asked to enter his security number. If it is inserted correctly, the screen in Figure 8 will appear indicating that the order has been placed. If the user has not selected the security number feature, then after the "BUY" key is pressed to confirm the purchase, the screen in Figure 8 will appear. The user can then wait for the event to begin. At the appropriate time, the subscriber terminal will tune the acquired event. Or the user can see other programs until the event starts. If the user selects to see other programs until the event starts, a message will alert the user that the event has started and that he should tune it. In an alternative way, the terminal can automatically tune the event when it starts. Now more details of the electronic programming guide and its associated characteristics will be described. As discussed above, the electronic programming guide allows a subscriber to see a schedule list for the following several hours. The actual number of hours depends on the amount of memory installed. The information of the electronic programming guide is downloaded from the head end by means of data transactions, and stored in the RAM. Of course, since programs are constantly being shown, this original data reaches * update quickly. Accordingly, update data is constantly being sent to the terminal on a data channel of the electronic programming guide. Even when referenced as a data channel of the electronic programming guide, the channel need not be limited to data from the electronic programming guide. In fact, it contains video, placing the updated data of the electronic programming guide in the start-up interval? vertical white. The subscriber terminal tunes into the data channel of the electronic programming guide whenever possible. For example, when the terminal is turned off, it enters a shutdown mode, and tunes to a default channel, called the "off" channel. However, the terminal frequently tunes back to the channel of the electronic program guide for updated information. In '! ^ K a preferred mode, the data channel of the electronic program guide is tuned every 30 minutes to obtain updates. After the update, it returns to the tuning channel. Therefore, as the programs are displayed, the memory assigned to their lists is replaced with data with respect to future programs. In a similar way, during the menu operations, the terminal can tune the channels data from the electronic program guide for an * update. Of course, when the user enters the electronic programming guide mode, the terminal automatically tunes the data channels of the electronic programming guide to update its memory. The data displayed by the electronic programming guide can be varied according to the requirements of the system. However, it must be remembered that these data are stored in the memory of the terminal? subscriber. Therefore, the more information is given about a specific program, the less will be the number of programs that can be described with a given memory size. Terminals with as little memory as 250 k bytes, will display a few hours of programming, while those with 1M bytes will give two days of programming. With 4M bytes of 5 memory, you can store up to two weeks of programming. As discussed earlier, large memories add 3? P - * - cost to the system. However, video cartridge recorder programming options will be less useful, unless at least one or two weeks of programming is available in the electronic program guide, since most video cartridge recorders are available. They have a 7 or 14 day timer. Some description of the storage and updating of the electronic programming guide data is necessary to have a full appreciation of the invention. The electronic program guide data sent by the mixers (or data repeaters) are marked to indicate the date, time, and channel with which they are associated. This data is received by the subscriber's terminal. When the subscriber's terminal receives the data corresponding to the current day and half an hour, it begins to store that data in its memory for all the channels. Then the subscriber's terminal receives and stores data for the next half-hour bar for that day and for all channels. This continues until the subscriber terminal exhausts the memory allocated for the electronic programming guide. Subsequent data from the electronic programming guide for future hours are ignored. Accordingly, decoders with different memory sizes can be accommodated in the same system. If a subscriber terminal has 256k bytes of memory, and can only store a few hours of the electronic program guide, the terminal stores that amount and ignores the rest. On the other hand, if the terminal 'includes 4M bytes of data, you can store up to that data. Referring to Figure 4B, the update process is shown. First, the data in the direction of arrow 68 is stored because the data corresponds to the current time and date. The data is stored for all channels for that time and date. In other words, the whole column below "7:00 P.M." it is stored in memory. Then the data of the time bar of 7:30 p.m. in memory, as indicated by arrow 70. 'This process continues until the memory of the assigned subscriber terminal is filled for storage of the electronic programming guide. The amount of memory allocated for the storage of the electronic programming guide depends, of course, on the total memory available at the subscriber's terminal. The system administrator 22, by means of the head end controller 28, in a preferred embodiment, initiates the transmission of data directed to the group, for groups of subscriber terminals, indicating the amount of memory that must be assigned to the terminals of the guide. electronic programming by means of mixers, data repeaters, or out-of-band transmitters. Each wt group of subscriber terminals contains subscriber terminals of a given memory size. Accordingly, the groups will each receive data that will instruct them to assign the appropriate amount of data to the electronic programming guide, the amount of which will depend on the memory available at the terminals of the receiving group. Still another limitation on the electronic programming guide is the number of characters that will fit in a grid bar of the electrical programming guide. For example, in the preferred embodiment, 30-minute displays should be described in 18 characters or less, that is, two lines of 9 characters each. For exhibitions of one hour or more, up to 38 characters can be used, two lines of 19 characters. The number of characters available for a one-hour display is slightly greater than double the number available for a 30-minute display, because the bar that separates the 30-minute displays can be used for additional data characters. Also, the background of the electronic program guide can be selected to indicate a topic. For example, all west series could be on a blue background, all sports on a red background. The use of these categories also allows the terminal to provide a list of categories. For example, the terminal can display all sporting events for a given day. In a preferred embodiment, the categories are configured in a tree structure. Therefore, when you select to see which sports programs are going to be displayed on a given day, the user could receive another menu, one that offers to show separate lists for baseball, football, hockey, and so on. Note that each category must be defined in memory, as well as the tree structure. These are downloaded to the terminal through global communication, and stored in the non-volatile memory.

As briefly described in the above, additional information may be described on "information" screens, which may be associated with each program. In each information screen, in a preferred embodiment, 135 description characters can be stored. That is, three lines of 45 characters each. In this mode, in a preferred embodiment, the user is offered three options: 1) acquire, 2) record, and 3) view. If the user selects the "acquire" option, the sequence shown in Figures 7 and 8 is presented. That is, the user must confirm the acquisition and enter the security number, if that option is activated. Figure 9 shows an "information" screen. If the "see" option is selected, the channel is tuned. If the user selects "record" option, a recording sequence is presented. A remote video cartridge recorder can be activated by data port 140 (Figure 3). Of course, if the event is a pay-per-view event, a purchase sequence must be presented before you can actually record or watch the show. For example, if the "view" option is selected, the subscriber's terminal can tune the channel and display it mixed, or see a free forecast for a previously determined short time. 0 the user can be informed that he can buy the event and a sequence of purchase is offered, or he is simply informed that he must buy the event before he can see it or record it. The "record" option activates a recording sequence. The sequence establishes the terminal to be activated in the appropriate channel at an appropriate time. The terminal can also set the user's video cartridge recorder using known techniques, or in a less sophisticated mode, the user can simply be reminded to set the timer of their 0 video cartridge recorder. Associated with the electronic programming guide, there is a list of channels. The channel list shows each available channel in the system by channel number and a program identifier. The program identifier (PID) 5 is a three or four character identifier for each channel of the subscription television system. Each channel ^^^ has a program identification assigned. Some program identifications are fixed in the ROM of the microprocessor 128 (Figure 3); others can be downloaded to 0 non-volatile memory (NVM) 134 (Figure 3). In a preferred embodiment, 44 channels are listed at the same time. If there are more than 44 channels, a "plus" command appears, and allows the user to see another channel page. Figure 10 is an example of this channel listing. 5 As cable systems have more and more channels, electronic observation guides become more complex. If the cable system has 100 or more channels, the viewer may find the maneuver through the guide problematic. This is especially true for viewers who can usually spend most of their free time watching only a small number of the available channels. For these viewers, a guide to favorite channels is available. The guide of favorite channels is similar to the electronic programming guide, * except that it lists only a subset of the available channels. From a menu, the user can define a list of their favorite channels. For example, the user could select the 10 channels he sees most frequently as his favorite channels. When -the guide of favorite channels is activated, only the programming that appears on those channels in the grid form is shown. The ^^^, using the smaller guide is often faster and easier for the viewers. Of course, if you do not crave the user about these channels, the user can enter the electronic programming guide to obtain a complete list. The list of favorite channels is completely selectable by the user. You can add or delete channels at will. The list of favorite channels can be used for other purposes as well. For example, by providing a "FAVORITE" key, the user can tune in sequence each of their selected favorite channels to see what is being displayed in each one, deriving the other channels (not favorites). Since in most television networks per subscriber there are channels that do not have attractiveness for a given subscriber, the feature of favorite channels allows the subscriber to avoid appearing those channels that complicate their system unnecessarily. Figure 11 shows the screen that allows a user to view and change their favorite channels. Favorite channels are shown with asterisks next to them. To add a channel to the list of favorite channels, the user highlights the channel to be added by using cursor movement keys, and then activates the "SELECT" switch. To delete a channel from the list of favorite channels, the user highlights a favorite channel, and presses the "SELECT" switch, which suppresses the channel. The user can also activate the "CLEAR" switch, and delete all favorite channels, thus allowing the user to "start over" to select favorite channels. To avoid accidental erasures, the user can be asked to confirm their choice to delete all favorite channels, as shown in Figure 12. More recently, television providers per subscriber have tried to compete more effectively with rental operations. of video offering a service called "almost video on demand". Consumers enjoy the experience of video rental for a number of reasons. Once the tape is rented, it can be used without restriction for a period of time, typically 24 hours. During that time, the user can pause the tape, stop it, and reassume it later, re-record it to play a portion of the program again, or fast forward it to skip portions that do not interest the viewer. On the other hand, with normal pay-per-view programs or other television programs, the user has no control over the feature. In a system of almost video on demand, a characteristic is shown on several channels, the sample moving on each channel of each other sample for a specified time increment or multiple thereof. Accordingly, the system can approximate a video tape rental experience by allowing a subscriber to tune into other samples of the feature. For example, if the subscriber wants to replay the last scene, his terminal will tune the channel that shows the feature an increment of time before the exhibition is being viewed. Consider a two-hour movie. If 12 channels of the film are assigned, then the different displays can be separated in 10-minute increments. Therefore, if the subscriber wants to simulate a re-bouncing function, he can tune back to the next subsequent exhibition, which will be 10 minutes before the current position. In a similar way, if you want to pause, you can press a "PAUSE" button, which will allow you to have a 10-minute pause, and then tune to the next subsequent show, which will be in the same position of the characteristic as it was when the pause was executed. To execute a fast forward, the terminal tunes to the previous 0 display that is 10 minutes ahead of the previously tuned display. Of course, all movement is presented in 10-minute increments; therefore, the experience is not exactly like a tape rental, which allows for complete freedom to pause, re-start, and fast-forward. However, the characteristic allows having a close simulation of a * rental of videotape without the inconvenience of renting and returning the videotape. In a way very similar to a videotape, the user has the option to 'buy the 0 feature for 1 day, 2 days or more. During that time, you can see the feature you want. The "BACK" and "FWD" fast forward buttons can be used repeatedly to move multiple increments forward or backward. In addition, these buttons allow 5 to return. To press the "back" button near the # beginning of the movie, it is brought to a point near the end of the movie. To press the "FWD" button near the end of the movie, it is taken to the beginning of the movie. To conserve bandwidth, larger time increments between displays can be used. For example, with a two-hour movie, only 6 channels will be required if 20-minute increments are used. But increases of 20 minutes can be annoying for subscribers. * 0 Referring now to Figures 13-17A, the video-on-demand service is illustrated. Figure 13 shows a pay-per-view screen that allows the user to select the duration in which he would like to access the feature. The user selects the time period, 5 and then instructs him to select a start time for the program. Figure 14 shows three selections: 1) the * current display with an indication of how much the user will be lost if he selects this display, 2) the next display, or 3) a future display. If user 0 selects the current or next display, he can be instructed to enter his "access number" if this feature has been activated. This screen is shown in Figure 15. If you select a future display, the user will be given the display shown in Figure 16, and will be asked to choose a future display. Future exhibitions are listed, and the user highlights the one of their choice, and presses the "SELECT" key. Then a confirmation screen will appear as shown in Figure 17A. The screen will confirm which purchase was made, in such a way that the subscriber can verify what he bought. At the selected moment, a sequence will appear indicating that "Terminator 2" will be displayed on Channel "XX", or optionally, the subscriber's terminal can automatically tune to the channel where the event is appearing. 0 The "PAUSE" screen is shown in Figure 17B. The "PAUSE" screen is useful because it gives the user freedom to either re-start the movie in the same exhibition he is watching and lose a portion of the movie or wait for the next show. If only the pause feature was activated a minute or two, for example, to allow the viewer to take a quick phone call, the viewer may prefer to miss the minute or two of the movie rather than wait for the next show. However, if the pause has continued longer, the 'spectator 0 will likewise wait for the next exhibition to begin. At that time, the tuner in the subscriber terminal will automatically tune the appropriate channel to allow the user to resume from the point where the pause was activated. The tuning operation is under the control 5 of the control microprocessor 128 (Figure 3). In a similar manner, when the "BACK" and "FWD" keys are operated, the control microprocessor 128 will cause the next subsequent or subsequent subsequent display to be tuned. Although the previous discussion focused on video-on-demand programs, another subject matter can also be acquired in an almost video-on-demand format, that is, over a period of time. For example, electronic games could be downloaded from the head end, and the subscriber would be allowed to play them during a 1 40 limited time period. The user could buy the games for a selected period of time. This feature is described in greater detail in the Application Serial Number 08 / 229,717, filed concurrently with the present, and expressly incorporated herein by reference reference. Although an advantage of the present invention is that * The user can acquire payment events to see from the electronic programming guide, this is not the only method of acquiring the events. Whenever you see a program, the user can activate the "MENU" command. A "MAIN MENU" will appear. The preferable "MAIN MENU" has a "PAY TO SEE" option. Also, the remote control can have a "PAY TO SEE" key. Whenever the "PAY TO SEE" option is activated (through the menu or key), a submenu of payment to see appears. This menu is shown in Figure 18. The menu is configured by categories of pay-per-view events. In addition, the menu allows the user to review their pay-per-view selections. If the user chooses a category, a screen similar to the one shown in Figure 19 appears. The user can select an event by highlighting it by using the cursor direction keys, and pressing "SELECT". The user can also use F the commands "NEXT PAGE" and "PREVIOUS PAGE", to move backwards and forwards in the menu. If the user collects a pay-per-view program, then the purchase sequence illustrated in Figures 7 and 8 will begin. If the feature is an almost video-on-demand event, then the purchase sequence illustrated in Figure 5 will begin. 17A. If in the menu of Figure 18, the user selects * "CHECK YOUR PURCHASES", a screen similar to the one shown in Figure 20 will appear, if there are currently paid payment events. The user can cancel a payment event 0 to see that previously purchased, but have not seen. In a similar way, the viewer can return to a shopping screen such as the one shown in Figure 18, to acquire additional programs. If the viewer has not acquired pay-per-view events, then a screen for that effect will appear, as shown in Figure 21. Information about pay-per-view events and near-demand-acquired video events is stored in the memory of the subscriber's terminal, and can be accessed through the microprocessor 128 on demand. In addition, although payment events to be viewed have been described in the context of simple features, eg, movies, other variations are possible and fall within the scope of the present invention. For example, a given channel, e.g., HBO, could be available to be purchased for a selected period of time, e.g., a weekend, as described in Application Serial Number 07 / 896,582, entitled "Method and Apparatus for Providing Periodic Subscription Television Services ", filed on June 10, 1992 and expressly incorporated herein by reference. Although the invention has been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, the invention is limited in scope only by the claims. Furthermore, any application or patent cited herein must be construed to be incorporated by reference with respect to any subject matter that is considered essential to the present disclosure.

Claims (48)

1. A television system per subscriber for supplying television signals to a plurality of subscribers, this subscription television system comprising: an electronic programming guide that F lists a plurality of television programs by date, 0 hour, and channel in a grid format, including this plurality of television programs at least one of a pay-per-view program and an almost video-on-demand program, and another television program, having the format of grid slots that identify the programs of 5 television; first and second transmission elements, the first transmission element being for transmitting the television signals comprising the plurality of television programs to the subscribers in a range 0 of television channels, also transmitting the first transmission element to the subscribers. subscribers the electronic programming guide; a subscriber terminal for receiving television signals, and for providing television signals to a user of the subscription television system, including the subscriber's terminal: elements for displaying the electronic programming guide in the grid format, and to provide a cursor for highlighting the slots to identify the television programs, the cursor being activated by a remote control; first and second selection elements, being the first selection element to directly select the television programs from the displayed programming guide, highlighting the bar of the television program, including the first selection element an element to acquire directly, after that the user enhances that bar of television, the at least one of the programs of payment to see or of casi- video on demand to 5 from the guide of electronic programming, by means of the activation of the bar of television enhanced by means of the # remote control; and a tuning element connected to the visual display element for tuning the enhanced television program.

2. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the subscriber's terminal includes an item to provide at least one of a pay-per-view program and an almost video-on-demand program to the subscriber in response to a purchase of the ^^^ - television program through the first selection element.

3. A subscription television system according to claim 2, wherein the item to be provided includes a storage element for storing an indication that that television program has been purchased.

4. A subscription television system according to claim 3, wherein the second transmission element 0 in the subscriber terminal transmits the content of the storage element to a billing computer.

5. A subscription television system according to claim 4, wherein the second transmission element 5 at the subscriber terminal transmits the. content of the storage element on a network * Telephone to the billing computer.

6. A subscription television system according to claim 4, wherein the second transmission element 0 in the subscriber terminal transmits the content of the storage element to the billing computer on a transmission line.

7. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the first transmission element 5 receives the data from the electronic programming guide from an electronic programming guide data provider, and selects a portion of this data. of the electronic programming guide to be transmitted to the subscriber as the electronic programming guide.

8. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the first transmission element receives the data from the electronic programming guide from an electronic programming guide data provider, and complements this data with data ^ 10 locally generated to form the electronic programming guide transmitted to the subscriber.

9. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the subscriber's terminal provides the second selection element for 15 select a subset of the channels provided by the subscription television system, including the * subscriber terminal an element to display only a portion of the electronic program guide corresponding to the programs that appear in that subset of channels.

10. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the electronic programming guide is transmitted to the subscribers by inserting data representing the electronic programming guide into the television signals.

11. A subscription television system according to claim 10, wherein the electronic programming guide is transmitted to the subscriber by inserting the data into the vertical blanking intervals present in the television signals.

12. A subscription television system according to claim 10, wherein the electronic programming guide is transmitted to the subscriber by modulating the amplitude of the data on at least one FF audio carrier associated with television signals.

13. A subscription television according to claim 1, wherein the programming guide is transmitted to the subscriber by modulating this data on an out-of-band carrier to be transmitted to the subscribers.

14. A subscription television system according to claim 11, wherein the terminal of the ? Subscriber includes an element to remove the inserted data in the vertical blanking intervals, and store this data in a memory element in the terminal 20 of the subscriber, wherein the element for displaying the electronic programming guide includes an element for reading the data from the memory element and displaying this data.

15. A subscription television system according to claim 12, wherein the terminal of the The subscriber includes an element for demodulating the modulated data on the at least one audio carrier, and storing this data in the memory element in the subscriber's terminal, wherein the element for displaying the electronic programming guide includes an element for reading. the data from the memory element and display this data.

16. A subscription television system according to claim 13, wherein the subscriber terminal includes an element for demodulating the modulated data on the out-of-band carrier, and storing these data on the memory element in the terminal of the subscriber. subscriber, wherein the element for displaying the electronic programming guide includes an element for reading the data from the memory element and displaying this data.

17. A subscriber terminal to receive signals 15 television comprising a plurality of television programs, and an electronic programming guide, starting * from a subscription television provider, at least one of the television programs being one of a pay-per-view program or an almost video-on-demand program 20 provided only to the subscribers who purchase that program, the subscriber's terminal comprising: elements for displaying the electronic programming guide that lists the television programs by date, time, and television channel in a grid format that 25 has bars that identify television programs, including at least one of the pay-per-view program or the near-demand video television program; first and second selection elements, being the first selection element to select. directly the television programs from the programming guide displayed, by highlighting the bar of the television program, including the first element of selection an element to buy directly, after enhancing that television bar, the least one of the pay-per-view program and the almost video-on-demand program , from the electronic programming guide.

18. A subscriber terminal according to claim 17, which further includes an element to provide one of a pay-per-view program and an almost video-on demand program to the user, in response to the user purchasing that program at through the first selection element.

19. A subscriber terminal according to claim 18, wherein the item to be provided includes a storage element for storing an indication that that program has been purchased through the first selection element.

20. A subscriber terminal according to claim 19, wherein the subscriber terminal includes a transmission element for transmitting the contents of the storage element to a billing computer. # associated with the subscription television provider.

21. A subscriber terminal according to claim 20, wherein the transmitting element in the subscriber's terminal transmits the content of the storage element over a telephone network.

22. A subscriber terminal according to claim 20, wherein the transmitting element in the subscriber terminal transmits the content of the storage element to the billing computer through a transmission line.

23. A subscriber terminal according to claim 17, wherein the second selection element selects a subset of the channels provided by the subscription television system, including the subscriber terminal an element for displaying only a portion of the directory of electronic programming that corresponds to the programs that appear in that subset of channels.

24. A subscriber terminal according to claim 17, wherein the electronic programming guide is transmitted to the subscribers by inserting data representing the electronic programming guide into the vertical blanking intervals present in the signals of the subscriber. television, including the subscriber's terminal elements to remove the data inserted in S5 the vertical blanking intervals, and store this data in the memory element of the subscriber's terminal, where the element to display the electronic programming guide includes an element to read the data from the memory element and display this data.

25. A subscription television system according to claim 17, wherein the data representing the electronic programming guide is transmitted * to the subscribers by amplitude modulation of these 0 data on at least one audio carrier associated with those television signals, further including the subscription terminal elements for demodulating this modulated data on the at least one audio carrier, and storing this data in the memory element of the subscriber terminal, wherein the element for displaying the electronic programming rip guide includes an element for reading the data from the memory and displaying this data.

26. A subscription television system according to claim 17, wherein the programming guide is transmitted to the subscribers by modulating the data representing the electronic programming guide on an out-of-band carrier to be transmitted to these subscribers. subscribers, further including the subscriber terminal elements for demodulating the modulated data on the out-of-band carrier and storing this data in the memory element of the subscriber's terminal, # wherein the element for displaying the electronic programming guide includes an element for reading the data from the memory and displaying this data.

27. The method for selecting one of a pay per view program and an almost video on demand program in a subscription television system, which includes the following steps: displaying an electronic programming guide 1 f0 transmitted by a subscription television provider, where the programming guide lists the television programs by date, time, and television channel in a grid format that has bars to identify the television programs, including -at least one of a 15 pay-per-view television program or almost video on demand; use a user interface to directly select and purchase the pay-per-view or near-demand video program from the user guide 20 electronic programming.

28. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the element for transmitting the electronic programming guide to the subscribers includes an element for transmitting the data. 25 which represent the electronic programming guide marked to indicate the date, time, and channel to which the data belongs.

29. A subscription television system according to claim 28, wherein the subscriber's terminal receives the dialed data to indicate the date, time, and channel to which the data belongs, and uploading this data into the memory associated with that date, time, and channel.

30. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the item for transmitting the electronic programming guide to the subscribers includes an element for marking this data as short-term data or long-term data, depending on the difference between the current time and date and the time and date to which the data belong, the difference being in the date and 15 current hours and the date and time associated with the short-term data shorter than the difference associated with the long-term data, and transmitting the item to transmit the electronic programming guide the short-term data more frequently than the data from long term.

31. A subscriber terminal according to claim 17, wherein the data representing the electronic programming guide is transmitted in sequence to the subscribers, and includes data marks to indicate the date, time, and channel to which they belong. the data, and receiving 25 the subscriber terminal data marks to indicate the date, time, and channel to which the data belongs, and load this data into the memory within the subscriber's terminal associated with that date, time and channel.

32. A subscription television system according to claim 1, wherein the grid comprises: horizontal bars indicating the date and time, vertical bars indicating the television channel, where the associated television program is indicated with a corresponding horizontal time bar and a vertical television channel bar.

33. A method for supplying television signals to a plurality of subscribers of a television system. 15 television by subscription, and selecting a television program, which comprises the steps of: ^ F transmitting television signals to the subscribers on a plurality of television channels, wherein the television signals comprise a plurality of television channels. 20 television programs, and also transmit an electronic programming guide to subscribers; receiving the television signals through a subscriber's terminal, and providing the television signals to a user of the television system by subscription; electronic programming in a grid format, where the grid format has bars to identify television programs, and display a cursor where the cursor moves around the programming guide and highlights the television program bars, activating this cursor using a remote control; list the plurality of television programs by date, time, and channel in the grid format, on the electronic programming guide, including the plurality of television programs at least one of a pay-per-view television program and almost video on demand, and another television program; select television programs directly from the programming guide displayed by highlighting the bar of the television program; and purchase, by activating the enhanced bar by means of the remote control, after the user enhances the bar of the television program; at least one of the pay-per-view program and the almost video-on-demand program directly from the electronic programming guide.

34. The method according to claim 33, which further comprises the step of: providing minus one of the program of # pay-per-view television or of almost video on demand to the subscriber in response to a purchase of that television program .

35. The method according to claim 34, which also includes the step of: storing an indication that the television program has been purchased.

36. The method according to claim 35, which further comprises the step of: # 10 transmitting the stored content to a billing computer.

37. The method according to claim 36, which further comprises the step of: transmitting the stored content on a 15 telephone network to the billing computer.

38. The method according to claim 36, which further comprises the step of: transmitting the stored content to the billing computer over a transmission line.

39. The method according to claim 33, wherein the step of transmitting the television signals and the electronic programming guide further comprises the steps of: receiving the data from the programming guide 25 electronic from an electronic program guide data provider; and selecting a portion of the data from the electronic programming guide to be transmitted to subscribers as the electronic programming guide.

40. The method according to claim 33, wherein the step of transmitting television signals and passing the electronic program guide further comprises the steps of: receiving the electronic program guide data from a data provider of data. electronic programming guide; and supplement this data with locally generated data to form the electronic programming guide transmitted to subscribers.

41. The method according to claim 33, further comprising the steps of: selecting a subset of the channels provided by the subscription television system; and displaying only a portion of the electronic program guide corresponding to the programs appearing in that subset of channels.

42. The method according to claim 33, wherein the step of transmitting the electronic programming guide further comprises the step of: representing the electronic programming guide in the television signals.

43. The method according to claim 42, wherein the step of transmitting the electronic programming guide further comprises the step of: inserting this data into the vertical intervals present in the television signals.

44. The method according to claim 42, wherein the step of transmitting the electronic programming guide further comprises the step of: modulating the amplitude of the data on at least one audio carrier associated with the television signals.

45. The method according to claim 33, wherein the step of transmitting the electronic programming guide further comprises the step of: modulating the data on an out-of-band carrier to be transmitted to the subscribers.

46. The method according to claim 43, which further comprises the steps of: removing the data inserted in the vertical blanking intervals; storing this data in the memory of the subscriber's terminal, where the step of displaying this electronic programming guide also includes the steps of: * reading the data from the memory; and display this data.

47. The method according to claim 44, further comprising the steps of: demodulating the modulated data on the at least one audio carrier; storing this data in the memory of the subscriber's terminal, wherein the step of displaying the electronic programming guide further comprises the steps of: 0 reading the data from the memory; and display this data.

48. The method according to claim 45, further comprising the steps of: demodulating the modulated data on the out-of-band carrier; storing this data in the memory of the subscriber's terminal, wherein the step of displaying the electronic programming guide further comprises the steps of: reading the data from the memory; and 0 display this data, -