CA2179812C - Cable television billing method - Google Patents
Cable television billing methodInfo
- Publication number
- CA2179812C CA2179812C CA002179812A CA2179812A CA2179812C CA 2179812 C CA2179812 C CA 2179812C CA 002179812 A CA002179812 A CA 002179812A CA 2179812 A CA2179812 A CA 2179812A CA 2179812 C CA2179812 C CA 2179812C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- customer
- service
- product
- link
- party
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Fee Related
Links
Classifications
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N7/00—Television systems
- H04N7/16—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
- H04N7/162—Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing
- H04N7/165—Centralised control of user terminal ; Registering at central
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
- H04N21/20—Servers specifically adapted for the distribution of content, e.g. VOD servers; Operations thereof
- H04N21/25—Management operations performed by the server for facilitating the content distribution or administrating data related to end-users or client devices, e.g. end-user or client device authentication, learning user preferences for recommending movies
- H04N21/254—Management at additional data server, e.g. shopping server, rights management server
- H04N21/2543—Billing, e.g. for subscription services
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
- H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
- H04N21/41—Structure of client; Structure of client peripherals
- H04N21/422—Input-only peripherals, i.e. input devices connected to specially adapted client devices, e.g. global positioning system [GPS]
- H04N21/42203—Input-only peripherals, i.e. input devices connected to specially adapted client devices, e.g. global positioning system [GPS] sound input device, e.g. microphone
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
- H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
- H04N21/47—End-user applications
- H04N21/472—End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
- H04N21/60—Network structure or processes for video distribution between server and client or between remote clients; Control signalling between clients, server and network components; Transmission of management data between server and client, e.g. sending from server to client commands for recording incoming content stream; Communication details between server and client
- H04N21/61—Network physical structure; Signal processing
- H04N21/6106—Network physical structure; Signal processing specially adapted to the downstream path of the transmission network
- H04N21/6118—Network physical structure; Signal processing specially adapted to the downstream path of the transmission network involving cable transmission, e.g. using a cable modem
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
- H04N21/60—Network structure or processes for video distribution between server and client or between remote clients; Control signalling between clients, server and network components; Transmission of management data between server and client, e.g. sending from server to client commands for recording incoming content stream; Communication details between server and client
- H04N21/61—Network physical structure; Signal processing
- H04N21/6156—Network physical structure; Signal processing specially adapted to the upstream path of the transmission network
- H04N21/6168—Network physical structure; Signal processing specially adapted to the upstream path of the transmission network involving cable transmission, e.g. using a cable modem
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
- H04N21/60—Network structure or processes for video distribution between server and client or between remote clients; Control signalling between clients, server and network components; Transmission of management data between server and client, e.g. sending from server to client commands for recording incoming content stream; Communication details between server and client
- H04N21/65—Transmission of management data between client and server
- H04N21/658—Transmission by the client directed to the server
- H04N21/6581—Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
- H04N21/60—Network structure or processes for video distribution between server and client or between remote clients; Control signalling between clients, server and network components; Transmission of management data between server and client, e.g. sending from server to client commands for recording incoming content stream; Communication details between server and client
- H04N21/65—Transmission of management data between client and server
- H04N21/658—Transmission by the client directed to the server
- H04N21/6587—Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
- H04N7/00—Television systems
- H04N7/16—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
- H04N7/173—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal
- H04N7/17309—Transmission or handling of upstream communications
Abstract
A television cable billing method comprises es-tablishing a continuous communication link (40) be-tween a provider and a plurality of customers over a singe duplex transmission line. A billable account num-ber is assigned to each customer and each customer is billed a flat fee rate for the continuous communica-tions link. A customer communicates a request (42) for a product or service over the communications link to-gether with the customer's billing account number. The product or service is provided to the customer over the communications link by the provider and the customer's billing account number is billed (44) for the provided product or service. The communications link is main-tained (41) both before and after the product or service is provided.
Description
Wo 95/20293 217 9 812 r~ 44 CABLE TELEVISION BILLING METE~OD
Ao~cOuNu OF l~ NV~Y lUN
The present invention relates to a cable television billing method.
While cable television services are he~ n~
increasingly available, the billing methods have failed to keep pace with the technology. Presently, if a customer chooses to obtain a service other than a service previously contracted for, the customer must place a t~1 ~rhnn~ call to the cable television provider to have that additional service provided to him. The customer and the customer's billing account number are irlPnt;~
during this t~1F.rhnnr. call, and the ~;t;nn~1 service is delivered and billed for. The purchase of the service made by the customer during the call, and the delivery of the service made by the provider, are separate tr~nF~snt;nnc, and do not provide for timely ;nt.~r:7~t;nn between them. ~or example, under the prior art cable television methods, it is not FnsR;h1~ for a customer to request delivery of a movie and then pause tr~nr~; RR; nn or request rl~tr~ne~'n; RR; on of a portion of that movie.
8~ARY OF ~HE ~ v ~1~ ~ lUN
The main obj ect of the present invention is to SUBSTIME SHEET (RULE 26) W0 95/20293 2 ~ 9 8 i2 r~ , /44 , .1 ;min~t~- the disadvantages of the prior art cable television methods by providln~ a billing method that allows for a customer to utilize the existing ~.
t;ons link between the provider and the customer both to request and to receive products and services, The customer typically may make a request to learn more about particular product3 and services offered, then request delivery of a product or 3ervice, and then interact further with the provider to tailor the delivery of the product or service to meet the customer ' s needs . The customer ' s requests can be made by keying in data from a keyboard or by oral communication. The provider can fulfill the customer~ 8 requests for products by delivery of information in the form of pictures, words, sounds and/or data, and can ~ulfill the cu3tomer's request6 for service8 by conforming delivery of a product or service to the form requested from time to time by the customer or by establishing a two-way communications link with a third party and transmitting the customer' 8 information to the third party.
These and other obj ects and advantages of the present invention are achieved in accordance with the prese~t invention by a c~ble television billing method Wo 95/20293 2 i 7 9 8 1 2 r~ ,e"'~ 144 wherein a rrnt;nllrllq communications link i5 est~hl;Ahf-~between a provider and a plurality of customers over a single duplex tr~n~m; qsion line . Each customer is a6signed a billing account number and each customer is billed at a flat fee rate for the cnntinllr~llA
communications link. Each customer is able to communicate requests to the provider over the communications link, the customer~s billing account number being sent ~l~t~ tically along with the request.
After veriying that the billing number is valid, the provider bills an amount over and beyond the flat fee rate to the customer's billing account number for providing the requested product or service, and r~q to fulfill the customer~s request over the link. Because the cl ; r~tions link i5 duplex and remains est~hl; RhPC
at all times, the customer can reryuest additional productR or services, qome of which can a~ect previous requests, both before and after the provider, r~q to fulfill previous requests.
The flat fee rate charged for est~hl;Ah;nr and maintaining the r~nt;nllr--R duplex communications link can be either no charge or a regular periodic charge.
The customer can make a reryuest by keying in W09sl20293 ~ ~ r~l~u~,~l /44 data from a k=yb~a-d on the customer~g rl--mi~ , or by speaking his request into a microphone if the provider has voice recognition ~r~hi 1 i ty.
The customer ' s billing account number is t: t i cally sent by a data communications receiver/transmitter on the customer ' 8 premises to the provider 80 that the customer need not manually enter this data on the keyboard.
The request flllf;llf~rl by the provider can be:
(1) related to the content of the product or service to be delivered (e.g., a movie, a musIcal score, text, data, a weather, stock market or spDrts report); (2) related to the method o delivery of the product or service (e.g., delivery to ~ ~e at a stated time, deIivery to be halted temporarily, repeat delivery oI~ data previously delivered, alteration of the order o~ delivery of data from that previously requested); or, (3) comprise a service (e.g., est~hli~hin~ an audio, video, and/or data transmission link between the customer and a third party, delivery of the customer~s information to one or more third parties, provide a psychic reading) .
Some requests can be fulfilled by the prDvider su~ lying the customer with menus of offered products, W095/20293 2~79~ 2 ~ U..,51. 144 services, prices, and/or additional menus from which the customer could make further requests.
The provider can fulfill the customer ' 8 request by sending the customer (or other i nt~n~lP-l recipientl either one or more packets of data or a cnnt i nllmlA steam of data. The provider can fulfill the customer's request by transmission of either digital or analog signals. The provider can fulfill the customer~ 8 request through either visual or aural means.
The provider can bill the customer the amount over and beyond the flat fee on the basis of an agreed value, the quantity of data transmitted, the transmi~sion time for the transmission of the data, or the overall elapsed time involved in the transaction. The billing can be set as a function of the flat fee charge, with a higher flat fee charge permitting the customer to have lower charges for additional products and services, and . Some products and services can be provided without any additional charge.
These and other f eatures of the present invention will be described in the following ,1Pt~ d description of the invention referring to the attached drawings, wherein:
WO9S/20293 ~ 9~ r ~ 44 ~
B~EF r~g~l~ ~ c, . OF T~E DrJ~wTN~.c:
Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a sy3tem for carrying out the method according to the pre3ent invention; and Fig. 2 is a ~low chart of the method according to the present invention.
~r.~T~Tr.r.~n ~ . OF T}I3 lWVl:,w~,lU..
As 3hown in Fig. 1, the 3ystem according to the present invention has a central of f ice 10 which communicates over a network 20 to remotely located customers having, irq~tinnq unitg 30 which include a television monitor and 3peaker3 31 for displaying audio and visual information received from the ccntral office 10, a data I irAtinnc receiver/tran3mitter 32 which receives data and communicate3 data onto the network 20, and a keyboard 33 which enable3 the customer to enter data to be transmitted to the central office 10. Data entered by the cu3tomer also can be displayed by the te~evision monitor 31.
The network 20 in~ R a single full duplex trAnPmi qcinn line which is capable of handling the ~ransmission of hrnA~lhA ~1 an- baseband signals, both WO 95l20293 79 81 2 p~ "44 digital and analog, in both directions between each ,- ir~t;nnq unit 30 and the central office 10.
With ref erence to Fig . 2, the billing method according to the present invention comprigeg est~hl ;qhi the communications link in step 40 over the network 20, the ~ t;~nq link being a ~nnt;n~ us full duplex trAn~m; cqin~ line between the provider and each of a plurality of customers.
Each customer is assigned a billing account number and each customer i8 billed a flat fee rate for .: --the continuous communications link.
In step 41, the communications link remains est~hl; qhf~d even in the absence of any tr~no~n; qR; nn .
In step 42, the customer communicates a request over the tr~n~ cc; nn line of the network 20 to the central office 10.
When a customer' s request is received, the request is 6ent along with data identifying the customer ~ s billable account number and upon verifying that the billable account number is valid in step 43, the provider bills an additional amount to the billable account number in 6tep 44 and then _ n~oq to fulfill the request over the communications link in step 45. The WO95l20293 ~ 9~2 ~ l44 ~
tinnq link remains estAhl ;~h~ in qtep 41 after t of f-ll f; 11 t of the request in step 45 The providing of a product or service can be carried out by providing at least Dne packet of data f rom the central ofice lO to the customer (or other intPn~
r~r;ri~nt) or by providing a rr,nt;nllm~R stream of data.
The central office 10 also can conform the delivery of a product or service to the form requested from time to time by the customer. The central office 10 also can act as a connection point for the sending of the customer's information (audio, video, and/or data) to one or more third parties .
The hilling f or the rer~uested product or service can be based upon an agreed price for the product or service (e.g., as stated in a menu or advertisement), the quantity of data trAnr-i tt~rl for the product or service, the tr~nrm;RRinn time for delivery of the product or service, or the overall elapsed time involved in the transaction.
Preferably, the charge for the requested product or service is a function of the flat fee paid by the customer for the rnnt;nllrllq communications link. For example, the higher the flat fee rate, the lower the WogS/20293 217981~ r~ 'C 144 charge for the additional product or ~3ervice, and v ce =.
It i8 understood that the embodiments described hereinabove are merely illustrative and are not int~nr~
to limit the scope of the invention. It is realized that various changes, alterations, reaL~ y~ ' ~ and --modif;rat;nn~ can be made by those skilled in the art without subst~nt;~l ly departing from the spirit and scope o~ the present invention.
Ao~cOuNu OF l~ NV~Y lUN
The present invention relates to a cable television billing method.
While cable television services are he~ n~
increasingly available, the billing methods have failed to keep pace with the technology. Presently, if a customer chooses to obtain a service other than a service previously contracted for, the customer must place a t~1 ~rhnn~ call to the cable television provider to have that additional service provided to him. The customer and the customer's billing account number are irlPnt;~
during this t~1F.rhnnr. call, and the ~;t;nn~1 service is delivered and billed for. The purchase of the service made by the customer during the call, and the delivery of the service made by the provider, are separate tr~nF~snt;nnc, and do not provide for timely ;nt.~r:7~t;nn between them. ~or example, under the prior art cable television methods, it is not FnsR;h1~ for a customer to request delivery of a movie and then pause tr~nr~; RR; nn or request rl~tr~ne~'n; RR; on of a portion of that movie.
8~ARY OF ~HE ~ v ~1~ ~ lUN
The main obj ect of the present invention is to SUBSTIME SHEET (RULE 26) W0 95/20293 2 ~ 9 8 i2 r~ , /44 , .1 ;min~t~- the disadvantages of the prior art cable television methods by providln~ a billing method that allows for a customer to utilize the existing ~.
t;ons link between the provider and the customer both to request and to receive products and services, The customer typically may make a request to learn more about particular product3 and services offered, then request delivery of a product or 3ervice, and then interact further with the provider to tailor the delivery of the product or service to meet the customer ' s needs . The customer ' s requests can be made by keying in data from a keyboard or by oral communication. The provider can fulfill the customer~ 8 requests for products by delivery of information in the form of pictures, words, sounds and/or data, and can ~ulfill the cu3tomer's request6 for service8 by conforming delivery of a product or service to the form requested from time to time by the customer or by establishing a two-way communications link with a third party and transmitting the customer' 8 information to the third party.
These and other obj ects and advantages of the present invention are achieved in accordance with the prese~t invention by a c~ble television billing method Wo 95/20293 2 i 7 9 8 1 2 r~ ,e"'~ 144 wherein a rrnt;nllrllq communications link i5 est~hl;Ahf-~between a provider and a plurality of customers over a single duplex tr~n~m; qsion line . Each customer is a6signed a billing account number and each customer is billed at a flat fee rate for the cnntinllr~llA
communications link. Each customer is able to communicate requests to the provider over the communications link, the customer~s billing account number being sent ~l~t~ tically along with the request.
After veriying that the billing number is valid, the provider bills an amount over and beyond the flat fee rate to the customer's billing account number for providing the requested product or service, and r~q to fulfill the customer~s request over the link. Because the cl ; r~tions link i5 duplex and remains est~hl; RhPC
at all times, the customer can reryuest additional productR or services, qome of which can a~ect previous requests, both before and after the provider, r~q to fulfill previous requests.
The flat fee rate charged for est~hl;Ah;nr and maintaining the r~nt;nllr--R duplex communications link can be either no charge or a regular periodic charge.
The customer can make a reryuest by keying in W09sl20293 ~ ~ r~l~u~,~l /44 data from a k=yb~a-d on the customer~g rl--mi~ , or by speaking his request into a microphone if the provider has voice recognition ~r~hi 1 i ty.
The customer ' s billing account number is t: t i cally sent by a data communications receiver/transmitter on the customer ' 8 premises to the provider 80 that the customer need not manually enter this data on the keyboard.
The request flllf;llf~rl by the provider can be:
(1) related to the content of the product or service to be delivered (e.g., a movie, a musIcal score, text, data, a weather, stock market or spDrts report); (2) related to the method o delivery of the product or service (e.g., delivery to ~ ~e at a stated time, deIivery to be halted temporarily, repeat delivery oI~ data previously delivered, alteration of the order o~ delivery of data from that previously requested); or, (3) comprise a service (e.g., est~hli~hin~ an audio, video, and/or data transmission link between the customer and a third party, delivery of the customer~s information to one or more third parties, provide a psychic reading) .
Some requests can be fulfilled by the prDvider su~ lying the customer with menus of offered products, W095/20293 2~79~ 2 ~ U..,51. 144 services, prices, and/or additional menus from which the customer could make further requests.
The provider can fulfill the customer ' 8 request by sending the customer (or other i nt~n~lP-l recipientl either one or more packets of data or a cnnt i nllmlA steam of data. The provider can fulfill the customer's request by transmission of either digital or analog signals. The provider can fulfill the customer~ 8 request through either visual or aural means.
The provider can bill the customer the amount over and beyond the flat fee on the basis of an agreed value, the quantity of data transmitted, the transmi~sion time for the transmission of the data, or the overall elapsed time involved in the transaction. The billing can be set as a function of the flat fee charge, with a higher flat fee charge permitting the customer to have lower charges for additional products and services, and . Some products and services can be provided without any additional charge.
These and other f eatures of the present invention will be described in the following ,1Pt~ d description of the invention referring to the attached drawings, wherein:
WO9S/20293 ~ 9~ r ~ 44 ~
B~EF r~g~l~ ~ c, . OF T~E DrJ~wTN~.c:
Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a sy3tem for carrying out the method according to the pre3ent invention; and Fig. 2 is a ~low chart of the method according to the present invention.
~r.~T~Tr.r.~n ~ . OF T}I3 lWVl:,w~,lU..
As 3hown in Fig. 1, the 3ystem according to the present invention has a central of f ice 10 which communicates over a network 20 to remotely located customers having, irq~tinnq unitg 30 which include a television monitor and 3peaker3 31 for displaying audio and visual information received from the ccntral office 10, a data I irAtinnc receiver/tran3mitter 32 which receives data and communicate3 data onto the network 20, and a keyboard 33 which enable3 the customer to enter data to be transmitted to the central office 10. Data entered by the cu3tomer also can be displayed by the te~evision monitor 31.
The network 20 in~ R a single full duplex trAnPmi qcinn line which is capable of handling the ~ransmission of hrnA~lhA ~1 an- baseband signals, both WO 95l20293 79 81 2 p~ "44 digital and analog, in both directions between each ,- ir~t;nnq unit 30 and the central office 10.
With ref erence to Fig . 2, the billing method according to the present invention comprigeg est~hl ;qhi the communications link in step 40 over the network 20, the ~ t;~nq link being a ~nnt;n~ us full duplex trAn~m; cqin~ line between the provider and each of a plurality of customers.
Each customer is assigned a billing account number and each customer i8 billed a flat fee rate for .: --the continuous communications link.
In step 41, the communications link remains est~hl; qhf~d even in the absence of any tr~no~n; qR; nn .
In step 42, the customer communicates a request over the tr~n~ cc; nn line of the network 20 to the central office 10.
When a customer' s request is received, the request is 6ent along with data identifying the customer ~ s billable account number and upon verifying that the billable account number is valid in step 43, the provider bills an additional amount to the billable account number in 6tep 44 and then _ n~oq to fulfill the request over the communications link in step 45. The WO95l20293 ~ 9~2 ~ l44 ~
tinnq link remains estAhl ;~h~ in qtep 41 after t of f-ll f; 11 t of the request in step 45 The providing of a product or service can be carried out by providing at least Dne packet of data f rom the central ofice lO to the customer (or other intPn~
r~r;ri~nt) or by providing a rr,nt;nllm~R stream of data.
The central office 10 also can conform the delivery of a product or service to the form requested from time to time by the customer. The central office 10 also can act as a connection point for the sending of the customer's information (audio, video, and/or data) to one or more third parties .
The hilling f or the rer~uested product or service can be based upon an agreed price for the product or service (e.g., as stated in a menu or advertisement), the quantity of data trAnr-i tt~rl for the product or service, the tr~nrm;RRinn time for delivery of the product or service, or the overall elapsed time involved in the transaction.
Preferably, the charge for the requested product or service is a function of the flat fee paid by the customer for the rnnt;nllrllq communications link. For example, the higher the flat fee rate, the lower the WogS/20293 217981~ r~ 'C 144 charge for the additional product or ~3ervice, and v ce =.
It i8 understood that the embodiments described hereinabove are merely illustrative and are not int~nr~
to limit the scope of the invention. It is realized that various changes, alterations, reaL~ y~ ' ~ and --modif;rat;nn~ can be made by those skilled in the art without subst~nt;~l ly departing from the spirit and scope o~ the present invention.
Claims (18)
1. Method for operating a cable television network comprising:
a central office of a provider communicating over the network to a plurality of remotely located customers having communications units which include means for receiving data from the central office, data communications and transmitting means which receive data and communicate data onto the network and data input means, for billing for at least one of a product and a service delivered over the cable television network from at least one third party to at least one of said customers, said method comprising the steps of:
a) setting up said office, said communications units with means for receiving data from the central office, data communications and transmitting means and data input means;
b) establishing a continuous duplex communications link between a provider and a plurality of customers over a common duplex transmission line;
c) assigning a billing account to each customer;
d) the provider establishing duplex communications between a customer and at least one third party via the link;
e) the at least one third party receiving a request from the customer via the link for at least one of a product and a service of the at least one third party;
f) the at least one third party delivering the at least one of d product and a service to the customer; and g) the provider billing the billing account of the customer for the at least one of a product and a service delivered to the customer from the at least one third party.
a central office of a provider communicating over the network to a plurality of remotely located customers having communications units which include means for receiving data from the central office, data communications and transmitting means which receive data and communicate data onto the network and data input means, for billing for at least one of a product and a service delivered over the cable television network from at least one third party to at least one of said customers, said method comprising the steps of:
a) setting up said office, said communications units with means for receiving data from the central office, data communications and transmitting means and data input means;
b) establishing a continuous duplex communications link between a provider and a plurality of customers over a common duplex transmission line;
c) assigning a billing account to each customer;
d) the provider establishing duplex communications between a customer and at least one third party via the link;
e) the at least one third party receiving a request from the customer via the link for at least one of a product and a service of the at least one third party;
f) the at least one third party delivering the at least one of d product and a service to the customer; and g) the provider billing the billing account of the customer for the at least one of a product and a service delivered to the customer from the at least one third party.
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one of a product and a service is delivered via the link.
3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the step of delivering the at least one of a product and a service comprises conforming delivery of the at least one of a product and a service to the form of delivery requested from time to time by the customer.
4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the conforming of delivery is done after commencement of delivery.
5. The method according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4, wherein the at least one of a product and a service is at least one of video audio, and data.
6. The method according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, wherein the duplex communications via the link between the customer and the at least one third party is over the common duplex transmission line and at least one other communications network.
7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the at least one other communications network includes at least one of a cable television network, a telephone network, and the Internet.
8. The method according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7, wherein the step of receiving a request comprises receiving the request together with a billing account.
9. The method according to any of claims 1 to 8, further comprising balling each customer at a flat fee rate for the link.
10. System for billing for at least one of a product and a service delivered over a cable television network, comprising a central office of a provider communicating over the network to a plurality of remotely located customers having communications units which include means for receiving data from the central office, data communications and transmitting means which receive data and communicate data onto the network and data input means, further comprising a continuous duplex communications link established between the provider and the customers over a common duplex transmission line, means for assigning a billing account to each customer and for identifying an account number associated with a customer's request for at least one of a product and a service of one third party, wherein duplex communications are established between the customer and at least one third party by the provider via the link, wherein the request is communicated from the customer to the third party via the link, wherein the at least one of a product and a service is delivered to the customer from the at least one third party, and wherein the provider bills the billing account of the customer for the at least one of a product and a service delivered to the customer from the at least one third party.
11. The system according to claim 10, wherein the at least one of a product and a service is deliverable via the link.
12. The system according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the at least one of a product and a service is delivered by conforming delivery of the at least one of a product and a service to the form of delivery requested from time to time by the customer.
13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the conforming of delivery is done after commencement of delivery.
14. The system according to any one of claims 10 to 13, wherein the at least one of a product and a service is at least one of video, audio, and data.
15. The system according to any one of claims 10 to 14, wherein the duplex communications via the link between the customer and the at least one third party is over the common duplex transmission line and at least one other communications network.
16. The system according to claim 15, wherein the at least one other communications network includes at least one of a cable television network, a telephone network, and the Internet.
17. The system according to any one of claims 10 to 16, wherein the means for receiving data comprises means for receiving a request for at least one of a product and a service together with a billing account.
18. The system according to any one of claims 10 to 17, further comprising means for billing each customer at a flat fee rate for the link.
Applications Claiming Priority (3)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US08187256 US5446489C1 (en) | 1994-01-25 | 1994-01-25 | Cable television billing method |
| US187,256 | 1994-01-25 | ||
| PCT/US1995/000744 WO1995020293A1 (en) | 1994-01-25 | 1995-01-17 | Cable television billing method |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2179812A1 CA2179812A1 (en) | 1995-07-27 |
| CA2179812C true CA2179812C (en) | 2001-06-05 |
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| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002179812A Expired - Fee Related CA2179812C (en) | 1994-01-25 | 1995-01-17 | Cable television billing method |
Country Status (12)
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|---|---|
| US (1) | US5446489C1 (en) |
| EP (1) | EP0741944B1 (en) |
| JP (1) | JP3526306B2 (en) |
| AT (1) | ATE202885T1 (en) |
| AU (1) | AU687167B2 (en) |
| BR (1) | BR9502739A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA2179812C (en) |
| DE (1) | DE69521602T2 (en) |
| DK (1) | DK0741944T3 (en) |
| FI (1) | FI114525B (en) |
| MX (1) | MX9602974A (en) |
| WO (1) | WO1995020293A1 (en) |
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| US5682325A (en) * | 1994-09-12 | 1997-10-28 | Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc. | Level 1 gateway for video tone networks |
| US5619249A (en) * | 1994-09-14 | 1997-04-08 | Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P. | Telecasting service for providing video programs on demand with an interactive interface for facilitating viewer selection of video programs |
| US5689799A (en) * | 1995-04-26 | 1997-11-18 | Wink Communications, Inc. | Method and apparatus for routing confidential information |
| US5794221A (en) * | 1995-07-07 | 1998-08-11 | Egendorf; Andrew | Internet billing method |
| US5673430A (en) * | 1995-10-13 | 1997-09-30 | At&T | System and method for optimizing subscriber programming preferences |
| US7266686B1 (en) | 1996-05-09 | 2007-09-04 | Two-Way Media Llc | Multicasting method and apparatus |
| US6829595B2 (en) | 1997-06-27 | 2004-12-07 | Valista, Inc. | MicroTrac internet billing solutions |
| US5899980A (en) * | 1997-08-11 | 1999-05-04 | Trivnet Ltd. | Retail method over a wide area network |
| US7024681B1 (en) * | 1997-12-04 | 2006-04-04 | Verizon Laboratories Inc. | Method and apparatus for near video on demand |
| US7707600B1 (en) | 1998-08-21 | 2010-04-27 | Intel Corporation | Confirming video transmissions |
| US7047196B2 (en) | 2000-06-08 | 2006-05-16 | Agiletv Corporation | System and method of voice recognition near a wireline node of a network supporting cable television and/or video delivery |
| US8095370B2 (en) | 2001-02-16 | 2012-01-10 | Agiletv Corporation | Dual compression voice recordation non-repudiation system |
| US20020116285A1 (en) * | 2001-02-21 | 2002-08-22 | Atsushi Ito | Performing a purchasing transaction |
| US8769593B1 (en) * | 2001-05-31 | 2014-07-01 | Keen Personal Media, Inc. | Client terminal for storing an initial program segment and appending a remaining program segment to provide a video program on demand |
| US7653927B1 (en) | 2001-12-21 | 2010-01-26 | Keen Personal Media, Inc. | System and method for selecting a pay per view program to be transmitted to a program receiver |
| US8156525B2 (en) | 2002-05-20 | 2012-04-10 | Sony Corporation | Information-processing system, information-processing device, and information-processing method |
| US20040093613A1 (en) * | 2002-11-07 | 2004-05-13 | International Business Machines Corp. | Fee-based programming charge based on content viewed by user |
| WO2006031812A2 (en) * | 2004-09-13 | 2006-03-23 | Comcast Cable Holdings, Llc | Method and system of managing subscriber access to services associated with service provider |
| US20080077950A1 (en) * | 2006-08-25 | 2008-03-27 | Sbc Knowledge Ventures, Lp | System and method for billing for video content |
| US9462312B2 (en) * | 2010-08-13 | 2016-10-04 | Cox Communications, Inc. | Systems and methods for facilitating purchases of broadband content and services |
| DE102012109983B3 (en) | 2012-10-19 | 2014-03-06 | Loewe Opta Gmbh | Method for providing cost information for paid media files |
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| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4163254A (en) * | 1977-02-14 | 1979-07-31 | Block Robert S | Method and system for subscription television billing and access |
| US4484217A (en) * | 1982-05-11 | 1984-11-20 | Telease, Inc. | Method and system for remote reporting, particularly for pay television billing |
| DE3579785D1 (en) * | 1984-10-31 | 1990-10-25 | Sony Corp | DECODING DEVICES FOR TELEVISION TV SYSTEMS. |
| JPH01220990A (en) * | 1988-02-29 | 1989-09-04 | Kondeishiyonaru Akusesu Technol Kenkyusho:Kk | Charge system decoder |
| US5003384A (en) * | 1988-04-01 | 1991-03-26 | Scientific Atlanta, Inc. | Set-top interface transactions in an impulse pay per view television system |
| US5146491A (en) * | 1991-08-08 | 1992-09-08 | Pilgrim Telephone, Inc. | Telephone billing method |
| US5247347A (en) * | 1991-09-27 | 1993-09-21 | Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc. | Pstn architecture for video-on-demand services |
| US5255267A (en) * | 1992-03-09 | 1993-10-19 | First Pacific Networks, Inc. | Apparatus for combining broadband and baseband signal transmissions |
| DE69331119T2 (en) * | 1992-04-30 | 2002-07-25 | Olympus Optical Co | Data management device for an open system |
| US5283789A (en) * | 1992-05-15 | 1994-02-01 | Private Satellite Network, Inc. | Communication system providing data and television signals to PC work stations |
| US5357276A (en) * | 1992-12-01 | 1994-10-18 | Scientific-Atlanta, Inc. | Method of providing video on demand with VCR like functions |
| WO1994030015A1 (en) * | 1993-06-03 | 1994-12-22 | Target Technologies, Inc. | Data and television network for digital computer workstations |
-
1994
- 1994-01-25 US US08187256 patent/US5446489C1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
-
1995
- 1995-01-17 WO PCT/US1995/000744 patent/WO1995020293A1/en active IP Right Grant
- 1995-01-17 CA CA002179812A patent/CA2179812C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1995-01-17 AT AT95908578T patent/ATE202885T1/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1995-01-17 DE DE69521602T patent/DE69521602T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1995-01-17 JP JP51964995A patent/JP3526306B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1995-01-17 EP EP95908578A patent/EP0741944B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1995-01-17 DK DK95908578T patent/DK0741944T3/en active
- 1995-01-17 MX MX9602974A patent/MX9602974A/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1995-01-17 BR BR9502739A patent/BR9502739A/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 1995-01-17 AU AU16840/95A patent/AU687167B2/en not_active Withdrawn - After Issue
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1996
- 1996-07-23 FI FI962941A patent/FI114525B/en not_active IP Right Cessation
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| AU687167B2 (en) | 1998-02-19 |
| BR9502739A (en) | 1996-01-02 |
| FI962941A (en) | 1996-09-20 |
| US5446489C1 (en) | 2001-06-26 |
| US5446489A (en) | 1995-08-29 |
| EP0741944A4 (en) | 1997-03-19 |
| AU1684095A (en) | 1995-08-08 |
| WO1995020293A1 (en) | 1995-07-27 |
| MX9602974A (en) | 1997-03-29 |
| DK0741944T3 (en) | 2001-09-17 |
| DE69521602D1 (en) | 2001-08-09 |
| EP0741944A1 (en) | 1996-11-13 |
| EP0741944B1 (en) | 2001-07-04 |
| FI962941A0 (en) | 1996-07-23 |
| ATE202885T1 (en) | 2001-07-15 |
| JP3526306B2 (en) | 2004-05-10 |
| DE69521602T2 (en) | 2001-10-25 |
| FI114525B (en) | 2004-10-29 |
| JPH10504686A (en) | 1998-05-06 |
| CA2179812A1 (en) | 1995-07-27 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| EEER | Examination request | ||
| MKLA | Lapsed | ||
| MKLA | Lapsed |
Effective date: 20080117 |