Avalanche control for video on demand session setup

Abstract

A technique for managing session setup requests involves operating in a normal mode when the arrival rate of session setup requests is below a normal transition boundary, and transitioning from the normal mode to a coalescing mode when the arrival rate of session setup requests rises above a coalescing transition boundary. In the normal mode, the session manager processes each of the session setup requests individually; whereas in the coalescing mode, multiple session setup requests are batched and processed collectively. The session manager may be transitioned from the normal mode to the coalescing mode when the session setup request arrival rate rises above a coalescing transition boundary, and the session manager may be transitioned from the coalescing mode to the normal mode when the session setup request arrival rate falls below a normal transition boundary.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application is entitled to the benefit of provisional U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 655,328, filed Feb. 23, 2005, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. [0002] This application is related to the co-filed application entitled “QUICK SESSION SETUP FOR VIDEO ON DEMAND WITH INFORMATION CACHING” having Application Ser. No. ______, filed Feb. 23, 2006.FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0003] The invention relates generally to interactive video services via digital video networks, and more particularly to systems and methods for processing requests for video on demand sessions. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0004] Providers of television-based entertainment are attempting to expand the range of services that they offer to subscribers in order to increase revenues. In addition to television content such as that found on and conventional cable networks, some providers also offer interactive video services, such...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The patent describes a technique for managing session setup requests in a video-on-demand system. The system operates in two modes: a normal mode and a coalescing mode. In the normal mode, each session setup request is processed individually, while in the coalescing mode, multiple session setup requests are processed collectively. This allows for streamlined processing of avalanches or bursts of session setup requests, preventing delays in providing VOD sessions to clients. The technical effect of this technique is improved efficiency and speed in managing session setup requests."

Problems solved by technology

It is possible to provide streaming VOD services over a wide area network (WAN) to service a fairly large community or geographic area, however, the responsiveness to the subscriber may be reduced to unacceptable levels.

This in turn can induce session setup delays of a second or more.

Furthermore, in certain situations many clients may request the establishment of a VOD session at approximately the same time, which results in a high volume or “avalanche” of session setup requests.

A burst or sudden increase in the volume of session setup requests can overload equipment involved in session setup, thereby delaying the creation of some of the requested VOD sessions.

For some VOD applications, such as network personal video recorder (NPVR), delay in processing session setup requests is unacceptable.

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