Manifest Modification for Virtualized TV Apps on Legacy Set-Top Boxes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Legacy TV set-top boxes have limited processing power, graphical capabilities, and memory, making them unable to support advanced interactive TV and VOD services due to resource constraints.
Innovation Solution
Implement a virtualized application service system where interactive TV and VOD applications run on a server, allowing thin-client devices to emulate local execution, with the server modifying content streams by intercepting and altering manifest files to include additional content.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If applications run locally on legacy set-top boxes, then processing power and graphical capabilities are available, but resource constraints prevent support for advanced interactive TV and VOD services
Solution Approach 1:
A server acts as an intermediary between the legacy set-top box and the application ecosystem. The server hosts resource-intensive applications and virtualizes them, allowing thin-client devices to access advanced services without requiring local processing power. The server mediates between the client's limited capabilities and the application's resource demands.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates virtual copies of client devices on the server. Each physical set-top box corresponds to one or more virtual client devices that run applications in a virtualized environment. This copying approach allows the legacy hardware to access modern services by interacting with virtual instances rather than requiring direct application execution on limited local resources.
2Adaptability or versatility
If content streams are modified to include additional content from multiple providers, then user experience is enhanced, but bandwidth requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-fetching and caching content segments on the server before they are needed by the client. Manifest files are modified in advance to include additional content references. This allows the client to receive a comprehensive manifest without immediately downloading all associated content, reducing instantaneous bandwidth consumption while still providing content variety.
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts content modification operations from the client device and relocates them to the server. Instead of the client modifying manifests locally (which would require significant processing and memory), the server intercepts, modifies, and returns manifest files with additional content from multiple providers. This extraction transfers the computational burden from the resource-constrained client to the powerful server.
3Adaptability or versatility
If manifest files are intercepted and modified on the server, then additional content can be included, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The server implements a universal manifest modification mechanism that handles multiple content providers and various content types through a single integrated system. Rather than creating separate modification paths for different providers or content kinds, the server uses a unified approach to intercept, modify, and return manifest files, reducing overall system complexity despite the added functionality.
Data Source
AI summary
A server system transmits from an application executing on a virtual client device, through a remote physical client device, a request for a manifest. The server system receives, a manifest received by, and forwarded from, the remote physical client device. The server system determines whether the server system is authorized to modify the received manifest. In response to determining that the server system is authorized to modify the received manifest, the server system requests additional content to modify the received manifest. The server system modifies listed content in the received manifest to generate an updated manifest. The server system sends the updated manifest to the application at the server system. The application processes the updated manifest. The server system sends, to the remote physical client device, an instruction to request the additional content.