Live Broadcast Seek Bar Control via Event-Driven Instructions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional streaming platforms lack the ability to control access to live media broadcasts, particularly for pre-show, post-show, technical difficulties, and paid content, as they allow indiscriminate scrubbing through all received portions of a live media broadcast, which can be undesirable for content creators.
Innovation Solution
A system that communicates live events to client media players using existing communication channels, generating instructions to modify the user interface and behaviors, such as making specific content unseekable or highlighting highlights, and controlling playback actions based on detected events during a live media broadcast.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional streaming platforms make all received portions of live media broadcast available for backward scrubbing, then viewers can access any portion of the broadcast, but content creators lose control over access to specific content such as pre-show, post-show, technical difficulties, and paid content
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the live media broadcast into distinct portions with different access permissions. The content delivery server divides the broadcast stream into segments (pre-show, main broadcast, post-show, paid content) and applies different seekability settings to each segment, allowing viewers to scrub through permitted portions while blocking access to restricted portions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different quality properties (seekable vs. unseekable) to different portions of the same media broadcast. The content delivery server modifies the seek bar functionality locally for specific time ranges or content segments, enabling fine-grained control over which portions are accessible via scrubbing and which are not.
2Ease of operation
If the seek bar allows backward scrubbing through all received portions, then viewers can skip to any point in the broadcast, but this prevents content creators from ensuring paid content is viewed in its entirety
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a localized restriction to the seek bar functionality for specific portions of the broadcast containing paid content. The content delivery server identifies paid content segments and modifies the seek bar to prevent backward scrubbing into these segments, while maintaining normal scrubbing functionality for non-paid portions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent preemptively blocks backward scrubbing access to paid content portions before viewers can attempt to skip them. The content delivery server pre-configures the seek bar restrictions for paid content segments, preventing the harmful action (skipping paid content) before it can occur.
3Productivity
If the media player provides uninterrupted playback of live broadcast, then viewers experience the broadcast in real-time, but this prevents the player from making modifications to playback behavior based on detected live events
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the content delivery server monitors live events during the broadcast (such as technical difficulties, highlights, or content transitions) and dynamically adjusts playback behavior based on this feedback. The server communicates event information to client media players, which then modify their playback actions accordingly.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the playback behavior dynamic rather than static. The media player's seek bar and playback controls are continuously adjusted based on detected live events, allowing the system to adapt playback characteristics in real-time while maintaining overall uninterrupted broadcast delivery.
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosed computer-implemented methods and systems trigger actions by a client media player in response to determining that a live event has occurred during a live media broadcast. For example, the disclosed methods and systems determine that a live event has occurred during a live media broadcast and can generate instructions for various actions that the client media player should take in response to the live event. In one or more implementations, the disclosed methods and systems communicate these tailored instructions via the same dedicated communication channel that carries media content requests and responses. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.