Method and apparatus for content replacement in live production

Abstract

The insertion of an advertisement or other new content into a time slot between content segments advantageously occurs by selecting the new segment to fill its associated slot as closely as possible. Play out of a successive content segment occurs for distribution over at least one of a first set of channels and at least one second channel until the occurrence of the time slot whereupon the new content segment undergoes play out for distribution over the at least one second channel. If the new content segment has a duration longer than the time slot, the length of at least one content segment gets reduced to provide substantially seamless play out.

What is claimed: 
     
         1 . A system for seamlessly inserting an advertisement in an open time slot within a plurality of media content segments to be distributed non-linearly across a network of Internet websites, the system comprising:
 a content encoding configuration manager configured to encode a plurality of media content segments including audio and video media encoded in a transmission encoded format not capable of being distributed across a network of Internet websites into a non-linear transmission encoded format, such that the encoded plurality of media content segments are configured to be distributed non-linearly in an Internet data stream across a network of Internet websites;   an open time slot identifier configured to identify an open time slot within the Internet data stream including the encoded plurality of media content segments;   an advertisement segment encoder configured to encode an advertisement segment into the non-linear transmission encoded format, such that the advertisement segment is configured to be non-linearly transmitted over the network of Internet websites;   a seamless advertisement segment inserter configured to seamlessly insert the encoded advertisement segment in the Internet data stream at the identified open time slot without replacing a portion of the encoded plurality of media content segments in the Internet data stream, such that both the encoded plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement segment in the Internet data stream are configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites; and   a content distribution server configured to transmit the Internet data stream, including both the encoded plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement segment, across the network of Internet websites to at least one content consuming device for displaying the Internet data stream thereon with no perceivable space between the advertisement segment and the encoded plurality of media content segments.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the advertisement segment encoder is further configured to encode an advertisement segment, which is different than the encoded advertisement segment in the Internet data stream, into the linear transmission encoded format, such that the advertisement segment is configured to be linearly transmitted over a network of broadcast channels, and wherein the seamless advertisement segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded advertisement segment, which is different than the encoded advertisement segment in the Internet data stream, in a broadcast stream that includes the encoded plurality of media content segments without replacing a portion of the encoded plurality of media content segments in the broadcast stream, such that both the encoded plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement segment in the broadcast stream are configured to be linearly distributed across the network of broadcast channels. 
     
     
         3 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the content distribution server is further configured to transmit the plurality of content segments in the linear transmission encoded format for transmission over of the network of broadcast channels that include at least one of a terrestrial television broadcast channel, a cable channel, and a satellite channel. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the seamless advertisement segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded advertisement segment in the Internet data stream by reducing a length of the encoded advertisement segment when the encoded advertisement segment has a duration time that is longer than a duration time of the identified open time slot. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the seamless advertisement segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded advertisement segment in the Internet data stream by first padding a length of the encoded advertisement segment when the encoded advertisement segment has a duration time that is shorter than a duration time of the identified open time slot. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the advertisement segment encoder is further configured to encode the advertisement segment in an uncompressed format for distribution in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         7 . A system for seamlessly inserting an alternative content segment in an open time slot within a plurality of media audio and video content segments to be distributed non-linearly across a network of Internet websites, the system comprising:
 a database configured to store a plurality of alternative content segments that each have a respective duration time;   a media content encoder configured to encode a plurality of media content segments into a non-linear transmission encoded format, such that the plurality of encoded media content segments are configured to be distributed non-linearly in an Internet data stream across a network of Internet websites;   an alternative content segment encoder configured to encode at least one of the plurality of alternative content segments into the non-linear transmission encoded format, such that the at least one alternative content segment is configured to be non-linearly transmitted over the network of Internet websites;   an alternative content insertion controller configured to identify an open time slot within the Internet data stream between a respective pair of the plurality of encoded media content segments, and to seamlessly insert the encoded at least one alternative content segment in the Internet data stream at the identified open time slot without replacing a portion of the plurality of encoded media content segments in the Internet data stream, such that both the plurality of encoded media content segments and the inserted and encoded alternative content segment are configured to be non-linearly distributed in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites; and   a content distribution server configured to transmit the Internet data stream that includes both the plurality of encoded media content segments and the inserted and encoded alternative content segment across the network of Internet websites to at least one content consuming device to display the Internet data stream thereon with no perceivable space between the alternative content segment and the plurality of encoded media content segments.   
     
     
         8 . The system according to  claim 7 , wherein the media content encoder is further configured to encode the plurality of media content segments into a linear transmission encoded format so as to configured the plurality of media content segments to be distributed linearly across a network of broadcast channels in a broadcast data stream. 
     
     
         9 . The system according to  claim 7 , wherein the media content encoder is further configured to encode the plurality of media content segments so as to reconfigure the plurality of media content segments from a transmission encoded format not capable of being distributed across a network of Internet websites into the non-linear transmission encoded format to configure the plurality of encoded media content segments to be distributed non-linearly in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the alternative content insertion controller is further configured to encode an alternative content segment of the plurality of alternative content segments that is different than the encoded alternative content segment in the Internet data stream, into the linear transmission encoded format, such that the alternative content segment is configured to be linearly transmitted over the network of broadcast channels, and seamlessly insert the encoded alternative content segment, which is different than the encoded alternative content segment in the Internet data stream, in a broadcast stream that includes the encoded plurality of media content segments without replacing a portion of the encoded plurality of media content segments in the broadcast stream, such that both the encoded plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded alternative content segment in the broadcast stream are configured to be linearly distributed across the network of broadcast channels. 
     
     
         11 . The system according to  claim 8 , wherein the network of broadcast channels include at least one of a terrestrial television broadcast channel, a cable channel and a satellite channel. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the alternative content insertion controller is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded alternative content segment in the Internet data stream by reducing a length of the encoded alternative content segment when the respective duration time of the encoded alternative content segment is longer than a duration time of the identified open time slot. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the alternative content insertion controller is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded alternative content segment in the Internet data stream by first padding a length of the encoded alternative content segment when the respective duration time of the encoded alternative content segment is shorter than a duration time of the identified open time slot. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the alternative content insertion controller is further configured to encode the alternative content segment in an uncompressed format for distribution in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein at least a portion of the plurality of alternative content segments are Internet advertisements, respectively. 
     
     
         16 . A system for seamlessly inserting an alternative content segment in an open time slot within a plurality of media content segments to be distributed non-linearly across a network of Internet websites, the system comprising:
 a content encoding configuration manager configured to encode a plurality of media content segments, which are encoded in a transmission encoded format not capable of being distributed across a network of Internet websites, into a non-linear transmission encoded format to configure the plurality of media content segments to be distributed in an Internet data stream non-linearly across a network of Internet websites;   an open time slot identifier configured to identify an open time slot within the Internet data stream between a pair of the plurality of media content segments; and   a seamless alternative content segment inserter configured to seamlessly insert an encoded alternative content segment in the Internet data stream at the identified open time slot within the encoded plurality of media content segments, such that the Internet data stream is configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites.   
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 16 , further comprising an alternative content segment encoder configured to encode the alternative content segment into the non-linear transmission encoded format, such that the alternative content segment is configured to be non-linearly transmitted over the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 18 , further comprising a content distribution server configured to transmit the Internet data stream, including both the encoded plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded alternative content segment, across the network of Internet websites to at least one content consuming device for displaying the Internet data stream thereon with no perceivable space between the alternative content segment and the plurality of media content segments. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the alternative content segment is an Internet advertisement. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 19 , wherein the alternative content segment encoder is further configured to encode an advertisement, which is different than the Internet advertisement in the Internet data stream, into the transmission encoded format, such that the encoded advertisement is configured to be linearly transmitted over the network of broadcast channels. 
     
     
         21 . The system of  claim 20 , wherein the seamless advertisement segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded advertisement in a broadcast stream that includes the plurality of media content segments without replacing a portion of the plurality of encoded media content segments in the broadcast stream, such that both the plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement in the broadcast stream are configured to be linearly distributed across the network of broadcast channels. 
     
     
         22 . The system according to  claim 19 , wherein the content encoding configuration manager is further configured to encode the plurality of content segments into the transmission encoded format for transmission over of the network of broadcast channels that include at least one of a terrestrial television broadcast channel, a cable channel and a satellite channel. 
     
     
         23 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the seamless advertisement segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded alternative content segment in the Internet data stream by reducing a length of the encoded alternative content segment when the encoded alternative content segment has a duration time that is longer than a duration time of the identified open time slot. 
     
     
         24 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the seamless advertisement segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded alternative content segment in the Internet data stream by first padding a length of the encoded alternative content segment when the encoded alternative content segment has a duration time that is shorter than a duration time of the identified open time slot. 
     
     
         25 . The system of  claim 17 , wherein the alternative content segment encoder is further configured to encode the alternative content segment in an uncompressed format for distribution in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         26 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the alternative content segment is an Internet advertisement. 
     
     
         27 . A system for inserting a content segment in an open time slot of a plurality of content segments to be distributed across a network of Internet websites, the system comprising:
 a content encoding configuration manager configured to encode a linear content segment into a non-linear transmission format so as to re-configure the content segment to be distributed in an Internet data stream non-linearly across a network of Internet websites;   an open time slot identifier configured to identify the open time slot in the Internet data stream between a pair of media content segments; and   a content segment inserter configured to insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream at an open time slot of the Internet data stream such that the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment is configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites.   
     
     
         28 . The system of  claim 27 , further comprising a content distribution server configured to transmit the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment across the network of Internet websites to at least one content consuming device for displaying the Internet data stream thereon. 
     
     
         29 . The system of  claim 27 , wherein the encoded content segment is an Internet advertisement. 
     
     
         30 . The system of  claim 29 , wherein the content encoding configuration manager is further configured to encode an advertisement, which is different than the Internet advertisement in the Internet data stream, into a linear transmission format, such that the encoded advertisement is configured to be linearly transmitted over a network of broadcast channels, and wherein the content segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded advertisement in a broadcast stream that includes a plurality of media content segments without replacing a portion of the plurality of media content segments in the broadcast stream, such that both the plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement in the broadcast stream are configured to be linearly distributed across the network of broadcast channels. 
     
     
         31 . The system according to  claim 30 , wherein the network of broadcast channels include at least one of a terrestrial television broadcast channel, a cable channel and a satellite channel. 
     
     
         32 . The system of  claim 27 , wherein the content segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by reducing a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is longer than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         33 . The system of  claim 27 , wherein the content segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by padding a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is shorter than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         34 . The system of  claim 27 , wherein the content encoding configuration manager is further configured to encode the content segment in an uncompressed format for distribution in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         35 . A system for inserting a content segment in an open time slot of a plurality of content segments to be distributed across a network of Internet websites, the system comprising:
 a content segment encoder configured to encode a linear content segment into a non-linear transmission format and re-configure the content segment so as to be distributed in an Internet data stream non-linearly across a network of Internet websites; and   a content segment inserter configured to insert the encoded content segment in an Internet data stream at an open time slot of the Internet data stream such that the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment is configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites.   
     
     
         36 . The system of  claim 35 , further comprising an open time slot identifier configured to identify the open time slot of the Internet data stream between a pair of media content segments so as to allow the content segment inserter to insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream at the identified open time slot of the Internet data stream such that the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment is configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         37 . The system of  claim 36 , further comprising a content distribution server configured to transmit the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content seament across the network of Internet websites to at least one content consuming device for displaying the Internet data stream thereon. 
     
     
         38 . The system of  claim 35 , wherein the encoded content segment is an Internet advertisement. 
     
     
         39 . The system of  claim 38 , wherein the content encoding configuration manager is further configured to encode an advertisement, which is different than the Internet advertisement in the Internet data stream, into a linear transmission format, such that the encoded advertisement is configured to be linearly transmitted over a network of broadcast channels, and wherein the content segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded advertisement in a broadcast stream that includes a plurality of media content segments without replacing a portion of the plurality of media content segments in the broadcast stream, such that both the plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement in the broadcast stream are configured to be linearly distributed across the network of broadcast channels. 
     
     
         40 . The system according to  claim 39 , wherein the network of broadcast channels include at least one of a terrestrial television broadcast channel, a cable channel and a satellite channel. 
     
     
         41 . The system of  claim 35 , wherein the content segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by reducing a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is longer than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         42 . The system of  claim 35 , wherein the content segment inserter is further configured to seamlessly insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by padding a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is shorter than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         43 . The system of  claim 35 , wherein the content encoding configuration manager is further configured to encode the content segment in an uncompressed format for distribution in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         44 . A system for inserting a content segment in an open time slot of a plurality of content segments to be distributed across a network of Internet websites, the system comprising:
 means for encoding a linear content segment into a non-linear transmission format so as to re-configure the content segment to be distributed in an Internet data stream non-linearly across a network of Internet websites;   means for identifying the open time slot in the Internet data stream between a pair of media content segments; and   means for inserting the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream at an open time slot of the Internet data stream such that the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment is configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites.   
     
     
         45 . The system of  claim 44 , further comprising means for transmitting the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment across the network of Internet websites to at least one content consuming device for displaying the Internet data stream thereon. 
     
     
         46 . The system of  claim 44 , wherein the encoded content segment is an Internet advertisement. 
     
     
         47 . The system of  claim 46 , further comprising:
 means for encoding an advertisement, which is different than the Internet advertisement in the Internet data stream, into a linear transmission format, such that the encoded advertisement is configured to be linearly transmitted over a network of broadcast channels; and   means for seamlessly inserting the encoded advertisement in a broadcast stream that includes a plurality of media content segments without replacing a portion of the plurality of media content segments in the broadcast stream, such that both the plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement in the broadcast stream are configured to be linearly distributed across the network of broadcast channels.   
     
     
         48 . The system according to  claim 47 , wherein the network of broadcast channels include at least one of a terrestrial television broadcast channel, a cable channel and a satellite channel. 
     
     
         49 . The system of  claim 44 , further comprising means for seamlessly inserting the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by reducing a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is longer than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         50 . The system of  claim 44 , further comprising means for seamlessly insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by padding a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is shorter than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         51 . The system of  claim 44 , further comprising means for encoding the content segment in an uncompressed format for distribution in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         52 . A system for inserting a content segment in an open time slot of a plurality of content segments to be distributed across a network of Internet websites, the system comprising:
 means for encoding a linear content segment into a non-linear transmission format and re-configure the content segment so as to be distributed in an Internet data stream non-linearly across a network of Internet websites; and   means for inserting the encoded content segment in an Internet data stream at an open time slot of the Internet data stream such that the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment is configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites.   
     
     
         53 . The system of  claim 52 , further means for identifying the open time slot of the Internet data stream between a pair of media content segments so as to allow the content segment inserter to insert the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream at the identified open time slot of the Internet data stream such that the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment is configured to be non-linearly distributed across the network of Internet websites. 
     
     
         54 . The system of  claim 53 , further comprising means for transmitting the Internet data stream with the inserted and encoded content segment across the network of Internet websites to at least one content consuming device for displaying the Internet data stream thereon. 
     
     
         55 . The system of  claim 52 , wherein the encoded content segment is an Internet advertisement. 
     
     
         56 . The system of  claim 55 , further comprising:
 means for encoding an advertisement, which is different than the Internet advertisement in the Internet data stream, into a linear transmission format, such that the encoded advertisement is configured to be linearly transmitted over a network of broadcast channels; and   means for seamlessly inserting the encoded advertisement in a broadcast stream that includes a plurality of media content segments without replacing a portion of the plurality of media content segments in the broadcast stream, such that both the plurality of media content segments and the inserted and encoded advertisement in the broadcast stream are configured to be linearly distributed across the network of broadcast channels.   
     
     
         57 . The system according to  claim 56 , wherein the network of broadcast channels include at least one of a terrestrial television broadcast channel, a cable channel and a satellite channel. 
     
     
         58 . The system of  claim 55 , further comprising means for seamlessly inserting the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by reducing a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is longer than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         59 . The system of  claim 55 , further comprising means for seamlessly inserting the encoded content segment in the Internet data stream by padding a length of the encoded content segment when the encoded content segment has a duration time that is shorter than a duration time of the open time slot. 
     
     
         60 . The system of  claim 55 , further comprising means for encoding the content segment in an uncompressed format for distribution in the Internet data stream across the network of Internet websites.