Single-Player PauseAd Playback for Seamless Content Transitions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing digital content platforms face disruptions such as black screens or buffering indicators during transitions between PauseAds and main content due to the use of different manifest URLs, leading to an undesirable user experience.
Innovation Solution
Implementing dynamic Ad manifest generation and pre-fetching thumbnail images to facilitate smooth transitions within a single player instance, using a dynamic manifest generator and thumbnail image generator to display a visual anchor during pauses, ensuring seamless transitions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If different manifest URLs are used for PauseAds and main content, then advertisers can engage viewers during content interruptions, but transitions between PauseAds and main content cause disruptions such as black screens or buffering indicators
Solution Approach 1:
A seamless transition mechanism is introduced as an intermediary between PauseAd playback and main content resumption. The system pre-loads main content segments and maintains playback position information, allowing the player to switch from ad content back to main content without manifest URL changes, black screens, or buffering indicators, thus eliminating the harmful transition disruptions while preserving advertising engagement capability
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-loading main content segments and caching them before PauseAd playback begins. It also pre-prepares the playback position and manifest information, so that when the user resumes content, the transition occurs instantly without requiring real-time manifest URL switching, thereby preventing black screens and buffering during transitions
2Reliability
If a single player instance is used for both PauseAds and main content, then transition disruptions are eliminated, but the system complexity increases due to dynamic manifest generation and coordination
Solution Approach 1:
The player instance is designed as a universal multi-functional player that can handle both main content playback and PauseAd playback within the same instance. The system uses a single manifest URL that dynamically provides appropriate content based on playback state, eliminating the need for separate player instances and reducing system complexity while maintaining smooth transitions
Solution Approach 2:
The system merges the PauseAd playback functionality and main content playback functionality into a single player instance. By combining these functions and using a unified manifest management approach with dynamic content provisioning, the system reduces architectural complexity compared to using separate player instances, while ensuring seamless transitions between content types
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides systems, devices, and methods related to providing PauseAd services. An example method includes: sending a content manifest request for a content item to a content provider, receiving a content manifest response including a content manifest file associated with the content item and an advertisement (Ad) template, initiating a single player instance for playback and presentation of main content of the content item, pausing the playback of the main content in response to a user request, receiving a thumbnail image of the main content at pause, presenting the thumbnail image within the single player instance, sending an Ad manifest request for a PauseAd to a dynamic manifest generator, receiving an Ad manifest response, fetching the PauseAd, and initiating a PauseAd streaming session for playback of the PauseAd within the single player instance according to the Ad template and the Ad manifest file.