Method and apparatus for delivering media content and backup media content using multiple networks

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9788302-B2
Application number	US-201414556383-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 1, 2014
Priority date	Dec 1, 2014
Publication date	Oct 10, 2017
Grant date	Oct 10, 2017

Abstract

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, providing a content stream to a media processor over a first network where the content stream comprises first media content, evaluating a quality of the first media content according to a quality threshold, and responsive to a determination that the quality of the first media content does not satisfy the quality threshold, providing to a cellular device second media content over a multicast-broadcast single-frequency network channel of a cellular network. Other embodiments are disclosed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A media processor comprising:
a processing system including a processor; and
a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:
receiving, over a first network, a content stream comprising first media content, wherein the first network is a non-cellular network, wherein the non-cellular network includes an interactive television network;
evaluating a quality of the first media content according to a quality threshold;
monitoring signals of a cellular network resulting in monitored signals;
determining the monitored signals obtained from the cellular network satisfies the quality threshold;
switching to a default frequency channel of a multicast-broadcast single-frequency network of the cellular network responsive to a first determination that the quality of the first media content does not satisfy the quality threshold and the monitored signals satisfy the quality threshold;
responsive to switching to the default frequency channel, receiving, via a cellular device, second media content over the default frequency channel, wherein the second media content is a same content as the first media content, and wherein the second media content is received by a plurality of end user devices via a multicast-broadcast single-frequency process;
presenting, via a display, the second media content; and
responsive to a second determination that the quality of the first media content satisfies the quality threshold, ceasing the presenting of the second media content and presenting, via the display, the first media content.

2. The media processor of claim 1 , wherein a cellular content source accesses the second media content from a broadcast content source that supplies the first media content over the first network.

3. The media processor of claim 1 , wherein the first media content comprises video content having a first format, wherein the second media content comprises the video content having a second format, and wherein the monitored signals are different from the first media content and the second media content.

4. The media processor of claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise: transmitting a cease message that causes the receiving of the second media content over the multicast-broadcast single-frequency network to cease, and wherein the evaluating of the quality of the first media content is based on a signal-to-noise ratio analysis.

5. The media processor of claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise evaluating a second quality of the second media content according to the quality threshold, wherein the presenting of the second media content is responsive to a third determination that a quality of the second media content satisfies the quality threshold.

6. The media processor of claim 1 , wherein the receiving of the content stream is via a unicast or multicast of the content stream over the first network, and wherein the evaluating of the quality of the first media content according to the quality threshold is based on user input.

7. The media processor of claim 1 , wherein the cellular device is integrated with a mobile communication device, and wherein the receiving of the second media content is from the mobile communication device that receives the second media content from a cellular content source over the default frequency channel of the multicast-broadcast single-frequency network of the cellular network.

8. A method comprising:
providing, by a processing system including a processor, a content stream to a media processor over a first network, wherein the content stream comprises first media content, and wherein the first network is non-cellular network, wherein the non-cellular network includes an interactive television network;
evaluating, by the processing system, a quality of the first media content according to a quality threshold;
monitoring signals of a cellular network resulting in monitored signals;
determining the monitored signals provided on the cellular network satisfies the quality threshold;
switching to a default frequency channel of a multicast-broadcast single-frequency network of the cellular network; and
responsive to a determination that the quality of the first media content does not satisfy the quality threshold and the monitored signals satisfy the quality threshold, providing, by the processing system to a cellular device, second media content over the default frequency channel, wherein the second media content is a same content as the first media content, wherein the cellular device is in communication with the media processor, wherein the providing of the second media content causes the media processor to replace a first presentation of the first media content with a second presentation of the second media content, and wherein the second media content is provided to a plurality of end user devices via a multicast-broadcast single-frequency process.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the evaluating of the quality of the first media content is based on a quality message received by the processing system from the media processor according to an evaluation of the first media content performed by the media processor.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the cellular device is integrated with a mobile communication device, and wherein the providing of the second media content is to the mobile communication device over the multicast-broadcast single-frequency network of the cellular network which causes the communication device to transmit the second media content to the media processor.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the providing of the content stream to the media processor over the first network is via a broadcast, and wherein the cellular device is integrated with the media processor.

12. The method of claim 8 , further comprising transmitting, by the processing system, a cease message that causes ceasing of the providing of the second media content over the multicast-broadcast single-frequency network of the cellular network.

13. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
monitoring, by the processing system, a number of content requests in a geographic location,
wherein the providing of the second media content over the default frequency channel of the multicast-broadcast single-frequency network of the cellular network is responsive to a determination that the number of content requests satisfies a request threshold for the geographic location.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the transmitting of the cease message is responsive to a determination that the quality of the first media content is higher than a quality of the second media content.

15. A machine-readable storage device, comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processing system including a processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:
providing a content stream to a media processor over a first network, wherein the content stream comprises first media content, and wherein the first network is non-cellular network, wherein the non-cellular network includes an interactive television network;
monitoring maintenance events associated with the first network;
monitoring signals of a cellular network resulting in monitored signals;
determining the monitored signals provided on the cellular network satisfy a quality threshold; and
switching to a default frequency channel of a multicast-broadcast single-frequency network of the cellular network; and
responsive to a determination that a maintenance event affects the providing of the content stream to

Assignees

• At & T Ip I Lp
• At & T Ip I Lp

Inventors

• Baldwin Christopher

Classifications

• H04W72/30 Primary

  Resource management for broadcast services · CPC title

• H04W72/542

  using measured or perceived quality · CPC title

• H04W72/005 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H04N21/6131

  involving transmission via a mobile phone network (wireless downlink channel access H04W74/006) · CPC title

• H04L1/08

  by repeating transmission, e.g. Verdan system {(H04L1/1858 and H04L1/189 take precedence)} · CPC title