IP Library Granted Patent US 11,277,656
Granted Patent B2
US 11,277,656 · App. 17/166,306 · Granted Mar 15, 2022

Methods and systems for providing relevant season series recording functionality

Inventors: Alexander William Liston (Menlo Park, CA); Kenichiro Tanaka (Menlo Park, CA)
Assignee: ROVI Guides, Inc.
H04N21/4312G06F3/0482G06F9/4451G06F9/451G06F21/00G06F21/10G06F21/629H04N21/4221H04N21/42204H04N21/431H04N21/4334H04N21/441H04N21/44204H04N21/44222H04N21/458H04N21/4532H04N21/4667H04N21/4668H04N21/47H04N21/4755H04N21/47214H04N21/4826H04N21/8405H04N21/8586G06F3/04817G06F3/04845
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,277,656
App. No.
17/166,306
Granted
Mar 15, 2022
Kind
B2
Abstract

Systems and methods are provided herein for scheduling a season recording. A series is provided to a user device, the series having a plurality of sequential seasons, and each season having a plurality of episodes. A request for recording the series is received from the user. In response, a last episode of the series watched by the user is identified. A relevant season of the plurality of seasons is then determined, such that the relevant season precedes another season of the plurality of seasons and includes the last episode watched by the user. Then, episodes of the relevant season that follow the last episode watched by the user are scheduled for recording, such that episodes of a season that precedes the relevant season are not scheduled for recording.

Claims (58)

1. A method comprising:

receiving a request to store a season of a series, wherein the series comprises a plurality of seasons;

detecting an indication that a last consumed episode of the series belongs to a relevant season of the plurality of seasons that precedes another season of the plurality of seasons;

identifying a plurality of available episodes of the series that are available for storage;

automatically scheduling storage of episodes of the plurality of available episodes of the series that belong to the relevant season and follow the episode identified by the indication, wherein the automatic scheduling excludes scheduling for storage episodes of a season that precedes the relevant season and excludes scheduling for storage episodes of the relevant season that precede the episode identified by the indication; and

storing all episodes scheduled for storage.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the storing comprises storing at least a portion of an episode of the series using a local storage device.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the storing comprises storing at least a portion of an episode of the series using a network storage device.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the storing comprises storing at least a portion of an episode of the series using a cloud storage device.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

the automatic scheduling excludes scheduling for storage episodes of a season that follows the given relevant season.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

maintaining a list of episodes of the series that have been consumed; and

determining which episodes of the episodes of the series that were consumed is the latest in the series;

wherein the indication indicates the determined episode.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

determining whether all episodes of the relevant season that follow the episode identified by the indication are stored; and

in response to determining that all episodes of the relevant season that follow the episode identified by the indication are stored, providing a completion notification to the user.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

determining whether any episode of the relevant season that follows the episode identified by the indication is not available for storage; and

in response to determining that at least one episode of the relevant series that follows the episode identified by the indication is not available for storage:

determining that the at least one episode of the relevant series is available for over-the-top (OTT) streaming; and

providing a notification to the user, the notification comprising a hyperlink for streaming the at least one episode of the relevant series via at least one over the top (OTT) streaming service.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein determining that the at least one episode of the relevant series is available for OTT streaming comprises:

accessing a profile of a user to determine when the user has a subscription to the at least one OTT streaming service.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising monitoring a content availability schedule.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein monitoring the content availability schedule comprises:

accessing a profile of a user to determine when the user has a subscription that allows for storage of a plurality of available episodes of the series.

12. A system comprising:

memory; and

control circuitry configured to:

receive a request to store a season of a series, wherein the series comprises a plurality of seasons;

detect an indication that a last consumed episode of the series belongs to a relevant season of the plurality of seasons that precedes another season of the plurality of seasons;

identify a plurality of available episodes of the series that are available for storage;

automatically schedule storage of episodes of the plurality of available episodes of the series that belong to the relevant season and follow the episode identified by the indication, wherein the automatic scheduling excludes scheduling for storage episodes of a season that precedes the relevant season and excludes scheduling for storage episodes of the relevant season that precede the episode identified by the indication; and

store all episodes scheduled for storage.

13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry configured to store is further configured to store at least a portion of an episode of the series using a local storage device.

14. The system of claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry configured to store is further configured to store at least a portion of an episode of the series using a network storage device.

15. The system of claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry configured to store is further configured to store at least a portion of an episode of the series using a cloud storage device.

16. The system of claim 12 , wherein:

the automatic scheduling excludes scheduling for storage episodes of a season that follows the given relevant season.

17. The system of claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry is further configured to:

maintain a list of episodes of the series that have been consumed; and

determine which episodes of the episodes of the series that were consumed is the latest in the series;

wherein the indication indicates the determined episode.

18. The system of claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry is further configured to:

determine whether all episodes of the relevant season that follow the episode identified by the indication are stored; and

in response to determining that all episodes of the relevant season that follow the episode identified by the indication are stored, provide a completion notification to the user.

19. The system of claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry is further configured to:

determine whether any episode of the relevant season that follows the episode identified by the indication is not available for storage; and

in response to determining that at least one episode of the relevant series that follows the episode identified by the indication is not available for storage:

determine that the at least one episode of the relevant series is available for over-the-top (OTT) streaming; and

provide a notification to the user, the notification comprising a hyperlink for streaming the at least one episode of the relevant series via at least one over the top (OTT) streaming service.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein the control circuitry configured to determine that the at least one episode of the relevant series is available for OTT streaming is further configured to:

access a profile of a user to determine when the user has a subscription to the at least one OTT streaming service.

21. The system of claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry is further configured to monitor a content availability schedule.

22. The system of claim 21 , wherein the control circuitry configured to monitor the content availability schedule is further configured to:

access a profile of a user to determine when the user has a subscription that allows for storage of a plurality of available episodes of the series.

Assignments (3)
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Oct 3, 2024
From: ROVI GUIDES, INC.
To: ADEIA GUIDES INC.
Reel/Frame 069112/0430 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 19, 2023
From: ADEIA GUIDES INC.; ADEIA MEDIA HOLDINGS LLC; ADEIA MEDIA SOLUTIONS INC.; ADEIA SEMICONDUCTOR BONDING TECHNOLOGIES INC.; ADEIA SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS LLC; ADEIA SEMICONDUCTOR TECHNOLOGIES LLC
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 063707/0884 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 3, 2021
From: LISTON, ALEXANDER WILLIAM; TANAKA, KENICHIRO
To: ROVI GUIDES, INC.
Reel/Frame 055135/0065 →
Continuity (5)
Continuation 16807425 · Mar 3, 2020
Continuation 15857183 · Dec 28, 2017
Provisional Application 62558328 · Sep 13, 2017
Provisional Application 62441897 · Jan 3, 2017
Related Publication 20210185383A1 · Jun 17, 2021
Cited By (1)
US 12,250,425