Systems and methods for providing media guidance in relation to previously-viewed media assets

Abstract

The systems and methods disclosed herein provide media guidance in relation to previously-viewed media assets. A request from a user to access a source by which a media asset is currently being transmitted to a plurality of users is received. In response to accessing the source by which the media asset is currently being transmitted, a viewing history associated with the user is accessed to determine whether the media asset has previously been viewed by the user. Responsive to determining that the media asset has previously been viewed by the user, a first play position, at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset is identified. A transport bar is generated for display by the systems and methods, including a first time indicator corresponding to the first play position, and a second time indicator corresponding to a portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source.

1 . A method for providing media guidance in relation to previously-viewed media assets, the method comprising:
 receiving, using control circuitry, a request from a user to access a source by which a media asset is currently being transmitted to a plurality of users;   in response to accessing the source by which the media asset is currently being transmitted, accessing a viewing history associated with the user to determine whether the media asset has previously been viewed by the user;   in response to determining that the media asset has previously been viewed by the user, identifying a first play position at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset; and   generating for display a transport bar comprising a first time indicator and a second time indicator, wherein the first time indicator corresponds to the first play position, at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset, and the second time indicator corresponds to a portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first play position corresponds to a time after the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source, the method further comprising:
 receiving a selection from the user to monitor when the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source reaches the first play position; and   executing a function once the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted reaches the first play position.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein executing the function comprises at least one of:
 alerting the user that the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted has reached the first play position,   generating for display, without further input from the user, the media asset, and   recording the media asset from the first play position.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first play position corresponds to a time before the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source, the method further comprising:
 receiving a selection from the user to generate the media asset for display from the first play position; and   generating for display the media asset from the first play position, in response to receiving the selection from the user.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first play position corresponds to a time before the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source, the method further comprising:
 receiving a selection from the user to generate the media asset for display from the beginning; and   generating for display the media asset from the beginning in response to receiving the selection from the user.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the source corresponds to a broadcast channel. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the viewing history comprises viewing information for one or more users and accessing the viewing history comprises:
 determining an identifier associated with the user; and   identifying the first play position at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset based on the identifier.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the source is a first source, the method further comprising:
 receiving a selection from the user to access the media asset on-demand in response to generating for display the transport bar; and   accessing the media asset on-demand from a second source.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first time indicator comprises at least one of a date and a time at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 generating for display the media asset, wherein the transport bar is overlaid with the generated display of the media asset.   
     
     
         11 . A system for providing media guidance in relation to previously-viewed media assets, the system comprising:
 storage circuitry configured to:
 store a viewing history associated with a user; and 
   control circuitry configured to:
 receive a request from the user to access a source by which a media asset is currently being transmitted to a plurality of users; 
 in response to accessing the source by which the media asset is currently being transmitted, access the viewing history associated with the user to determine whether the media asset has previously been viewed by the user; 
 in response to determining that the media asset has previously been viewed by the user, identify a first play position at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset; and 
 generate for display a transport bar comprising a first time indicator and a second time indicator, wherein the first time indicator corresponds to the first play position, at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset, and the second time indicator corresponds to a portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source. 
   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the first play position corresponds to a time after the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source, and the control circuitry is further configured to:
 receive a selection from the user to monitor when the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source reaches the first play position; and   execute a function once the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted reaches the first play position.   
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to execute the function by at least one of:
 alerting the user that the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted has reached the first play position,   generating for display, without further input from the user, the media asset, and   recording the media asset from the first play position.   
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the first play position corresponds to a time before the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source, and the control circuitry is further configured to:
 receive a selection from the user to generate the media asset for display from the first play position; and   generate for display the media asset from the first play position, in response to receiving the selection from the user.   
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the first play position corresponds to a time before the portion of the media asset currently being transmitted by the source, and the control circuitry is further configured to:
 receive a selection from the user to generate the media asset for display from the beginning; and   generate for display the media asset from the beginning in response to receiving the selection from the user.   
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the source corresponds to a broadcast channel. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the viewing history comprises viewing information for one or more users, and the control circuitry is further configured to access the viewing history by:
 determining an identifier associated with the user; and   identifying the first play position at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset based on the identifier.   
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the source is a first source, and the control circuitry is further configured to:
 receive a selection from the user to access the media asset on-demand in response to generating for display the transport bar; and   access the media asset on-demand from a second source.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the first time indicator comprises at least one of a date and a time at which the user previously stopped viewing the media asset. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the control circuitry is further configured to:
 generate for display the media asset, wherein the transport bar is overlaid with the generated display of the media asset.   
     
     
         21 - 50 . (canceled)