公开(公告)号：US20220141542A1

公开(公告)日：2022-05-05

申请号：US17433414

申请日：2020-02-24

Applicant: BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY

Inventor： Timothy STEVENS ,  Rory TURNBULL ,  Stephen APPLEBY

IPC: H04N21/6405 ,  H04N21/6408 ,  H04N21/266

Abstract: Described is a method of delivering content over a network using an approach referred to as “Multicast Assisted Unicast Delivery” (MAUD), as a multicast network is used to assist, rather than substituting for, an otherwise unicast path. Content is requested by client devices from a content server over unicast. The responses containing the requested content are separated into two components: a first component containing elements that are specific to individual client devices (for example session specific data), and a second component that is common to all client devices (typically this is the video content being requested). The first component can be delivered over unicast and the second component over multicast. Identifiers are introduced into each of the first and second components to aid recombination of the components to form the original responses. The separation and recombination are handled by suitably configured proxy servers.

公开(公告)号：US20240397134A1

公开(公告)日：2024-11-28

申请号：US18695755

申请日：2022-09-20

Applicant: British Telecommunications Public Limited Company

Inventor： Michael NILSSON ,  Stephen APPLEBY ,  Timothy STEVENS ,  Rory TURNBULL

IPC: H04N21/266 ,  H04N21/6405 ,  H04N21/6408 ,  H04N21/845

Abstract: A method of managing content delivery to a client device via a proxy is described. The proxy starts off by receiving content requests from the client device over unicast, and fulfils those requests by forwarding them to a content server, and receiving that content before forwarding onto the client device. The proxy then determines that it may be possible to join a multicast channel to more efficiently receive the required content. However, before joining the multicast channel, the proxy determines whether joining the multicast channel might result in the client device receiving content in a manner that would cause the client device to change the quality level of the content segments being requested. The proxy can do this by first obtaining segment requested by the client device from the unicast server over unicast. The proxy also requests timing information from the multicast server to determine a time at which the same segment will complete delivery over multicast. The proxy then delivers the segment received from the unicast server by the determined multicast delivery time.

公开(公告)号：US20240276069A1

公开(公告)日：2024-08-15

申请号：US18695241

申请日：2022-09-20

Applicant: British Telecommunications Public Limited Company

Inventor： Michael NILSSON ,  Stephen APPLEBY ,  Timothy STEVENS ,  Rory TURNBULL

IPC: H04N21/6405 ,  H04N21/6371 ,  H04N21/647

CPC classification number: H04N21/6405 ,  H04N21/6371 ,  H04N21/64738

Abstract: A method of managing content delivery to a client device via a proxy is described. The proxy starts off by receiving content requests from the client device over unicast, and fulfils those requests by forwarding them to a content server, and receiving that content before forwarding onto the client device. At some stage, the proxy determines that it may be possible to join a multicast channel to more efficiently receive the required content. However, before a switch is made, the proxy gathers multicast delivery timing data from the content server without joining the multicast group, and behavioural characteristics of the client device. The proxy uses this data to determine whether the client device would change the quality level of the content segments being requested.

公开(公告)号：US20240114065A1

公开(公告)日：2024-04-04

申请号：US18257558

申请日：2021-12-03

Applicant: BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY

Inventor： Rory TURNBULL ,  Timothy STEVENS ,  Stephen APPLEBY

IPC: H04L65/611 ,  H04L43/0888 ,  H04L65/1069 ,  H04L65/612

CPC classification number: H04L65/611 ,  H04L43/0888 ,  H04L65/1069 ,  H04L65/612

Abstract: A method of managing a network for delivering content to a client device, where content segments are delivered over multicast to a proxy. The received segments are stored at the proxy, before delivery of those segments is made from the proxy to the client device over unicast. Whilst the proxy receives further segments over multicast, it probes the network by making unicast requests for data (dummy data or additional content segments), and receiving those segments over unicast from the content server. The multicast rate reception rate and the unicast (probe) rate are measured and a maximum network throughput is calculated as the sum of these two rates. Subsequent segments are then delivered from the proxy to the client device at the calculated maximum network throughput rate, or at some rate dependent thereon. Thus, the client device will receive segments at a rate that is more indicative of the actual maximum network throughput, so can better use its adaptive bit rate algorithms to determine whether a switch to higher bit rate segments is appropriate.

公开(公告)号：US20230216905A1

公开(公告)日：2023-07-06

申请号：US18019362

申请日：2021-08-06

Applicant: BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY

Inventor： Rory TURNBULL ,  Timothy STEVENS ,  Stephen APPLEBY

IPC: H04L65/611 ,  H04L65/612 ,  H04L67/02

CPC classification number: H04L65/611 ,  H04L65/612 ,  H04L67/02

Abstract: Described is a method of delivery of content to a client device. In particular, the method can be applied to hybrid unicast/multicast delivery networks, where content is provided by a content server to a root proxy, and that root proxy delivers the content to edge proxies over multicast. However, requests for that content in the form of HTTP GET requests from a client device are received by an edge proxy, which subsequently sends an HTTP HEAD request for header information associated with that content directly to the content server. The content server responds over unicast with a suitable response to the HTTP HEAD request, which is received by the edge proxy. The edge proxy takes the response together with the payload from the content segment received over multicast, to generate a client specific content segment for delivery to the client device over unicast.