Media Streaming Device Selection via Proximity and Usage Status
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current media content streaming systems lack efficient mechanisms for delivering reminder notifications and streaming media content to the most proximal device, especially when users have multiple registered devices and set-top boxes, leading to potential confusion and inconvenience.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that register multiple mobile devices and set-top boxes with a service provider server, determine the most recently used device or set-top box, and send reminder notifications and stream media content to the selected device or set-top box based on proximity and usage status, allowing users to seamlessly watch live events across different devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple devices are registered for media content streaming, then device versatility and user convenience are improved, but device selection complexity and user confusion increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically determines which device should receive the media content by detecting proximity and active usage status, eliminating the need for manual user selection. The server autonomously routes notifications and content to the most appropriate device based on real-time device state information.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors device proximity and usage status, using this feedback information to dynamically determine the optimal device for content delivery. This feedback mechanism ensures the system adapts to current user context automatically.
2Reliability
If reminder notifications are sent to all registered devices, then notification reliability is improved, but network traffic and user distraction increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of uniformly notifying all devices, the system selectively sends notifications only to the most proximal and actively used device. This localized approach maintains notification reliability for the relevant device while reducing unnecessary network traffic to other devices.
3Ease of operation
If media content is streamed to the most proximal device, then user convenience is improved, but device detection precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses approximate proximity detection rather than requiring precise measurement. By accepting devices within a general proximity range and considering usage status as a tiebreaker, the system achieves sufficient accuracy for user convenience without demanding high-precision detection capabilities.
Data Source
AI summary
Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, registering a first mobile device of a subscriber as a first candidate device to receive a notification of a future streaming of a media content item; registering a second mobile device of the subscriber as a second candidate device to receive the notification of the future streaming of the media content item; determining first and second usage status of the first and second mobile devices; selecting, based upon the first usage status and the second usage status, one of the first and second mobile devices; sending to the selected mobile device a notification that the future streaming of the media content item will begin; receiving from the selected mobile device a streaming instruction to initiate streaming of the media content item; and streaming to the selected mobile device the media content item. Other embodiments are disclosed.