SECURE TRANSACTION THROUGH A TELEVISION
The present disclosure involves a method of conducting a transaction through a television. A request is received from a user who is viewing content displayed on a television (TV) via a data stream. The request pertains to buying a physical or virtual good that is associated with the content. An availability of the physical or virtual good is communicated to the user at a predetermined trigger point in the data stream. The request is received via a TV network. The user is authenticated based on data entered by the user through the TV. The request is granted in response to the authenticating.
1 . An apparatus comprising a non-transitory, tangible machine-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program contains machine-readable instructions that when executed electronically by processors, perform:
receiving, from a user who is viewing content displayed on a display device via a data stream, a request to buy a physical or virtual good that is associated with the content, wherein an availability of the physical or virtual good is communicated to the user at a predetermined trigger point in the data stream, and wherein the request is received via a television (TV) network;
authenticating the user based on data entered by the user through the display device; and
granting the request in response to the authenticating.
2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a communication of the availability of the physical or virtual good is performed without active user participation.
3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the data stream is in an Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) specification.
4 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the physical good visually appears in the content.
5 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the display device is a TV that includes a set top box.
6 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the receiving and the authenticating are performed in response to the user's interaction with the display device via a remote control.
7 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the content is a TV show or movie.
8 . A method of conducting a transaction through a television, comprising: receiving, from a user who is viewing content displayed on a television (TV) via a data stream, a request to buy a physical or virtual good that is associated with the content, wherein an availability of the physical or virtual good is communicated to the user at a predetermined trigger point in the data stream, and wherein the request is received via a TV network;
authenticating the user based on data entered by the user through the TV; and
granting the request in response to the authenticating.
9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein a communication of the availability of the physical or virtual good is performed without active user participation.
10 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the data stream is in an Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) specification.
11 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the physical good visually appears in the content.
12 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the TV includes a set top box.
13 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the receiving and the authenticating are performed in response to the user's interaction with the TV via a remote control.
14 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the content is a TV show or movie.
15 . A system for conducting a transaction, comprising:
a television (TV) configured to:
display content via a data stream; and
communicate, to a user who is viewing the content, a purchasing availability of a physical or virtual good that is associated with the content and, wherein the TV communicates the purchasing availability at a predetermined trigger point in the data stream; and
a set top box coupled to the TV, wherein the set top box is configured to:
facilitate authentication of the user based on data entered by the user through the TV; and
granting the request in response to the user being authenticated.
16 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the TV communicates the purchasing availability without requiring active user participation.
17 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the data stream is in an Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) specification.
18 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the physical good visually appears in the content.
19 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the request is received in response to the user's interaction with the TV via a remote control.
20 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the content is a TV show or movie.