Method and system for communicating descriptive data in a television broadcast system

1. A method comprising:

communicating a video signal and a broadcast audio signal to a receiving device, said video signal comprising a time code associated therewith;

generating a digital data signal in digital packets that comprise a digital packet header portion, a time code trigger and a text descriptive portion that comprises text description data corresponding to a description of the video signal;

communicating the digital data signal to the receiving device;

converting the text description data to a first audio signal;

combining the first audio signal with the broadcast audio signal associated with the video signal to form a combined audio signal when a time code of the video signal corresponding to the trigger is reached;

converting the combined audio signal into a first audible signal at a display device associated with the receiving device.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein generating a data signal comprises generating the data signal at a headend.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising converting the broadcast audio signal to an unencoded audio signal in an audio decoder of the receiving device.

4. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein communicating the data signal comprises multiplexing the data signal, the video signal and the broadcast audio signal to form a multiplexed signal and communicating the multiplexed signal to the receiving device.

5. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein communicating the text description data comprises communicating the data signal, the video signal and the first audio signal to the receiving device through a satellite.

6. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein converting the text description data to the first audio signal comprises converting the text description data to the first audio signal in a speech-to-text converter coupled to the receiving device.

7. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising communicating closed caption data to the receiving device in a first closed caption data stream and wherein communicating text description data comprises communicating text description data in a second closed caption data stream.

8. A system comprising:

a receiving device receiving a video signal and a broadcast audio signal, said video signal comprising a time dode associated therewith;

said receiving device receiving a digital data signal having a digital packet header portion, a time code trigger and a descriptive text portion, said descriptive text portion comprising text description data corresponding to a description of the video signal;

a text-to-speech converter associated with the receiving device converting the descriptive text portion to a first audio signal;

a summation module combining the first audio signal with the broadcast audio signal at the time code corresponding to the time code trigger to form a combined audio signal; and

a display device in communication with the summation module converting the combined audio signal to an audible signal.

9. The system as recited in claim 8 further comprising a time code reader reading the time code associated with the video signal.

10. The system as recited in claim 9 further comprising a headend communicating the text description data to the receiving device.

11. The system as recited in claim 10 wherein the headend generates the descriptive text portion.

12. The system as recited in claim 10 wherein the headend comprises a multiplexer multiplexing the descriptive text portion, a video signal and the broadcast audio signal to form a multiplexed signal, said headend communicating the multiplexed signal to the receiving device.

13. The system as recited in claim 10 wherein the headend communicates the descriptive text portion to the receiving device in a closed caption data stream.

14. The system as recited in claim 8 further comprising a satellite communicating the data signal with the descriptive text portion, the video signal and the first audio signal to the receiving device.

15. The system as recited in claim 8 wherein the text-to-speech converter is separate from and coupled to the receiving device.

16. The system as recited in claim 8 wherein the receiving device comprises the text-to-speech converter.