Multi-user personalized digital multimedia distribution methods and systems

摘要

A media distribution technique employs a multi-user server positioned at the terminal end of a broadcast media network. The server receives broadcast media signals and selectively captures a portion of the signals for live personalized media streaming and/or storage for later personalized media streaming and/or download over a local distribution network to a collection of user receivers. Request/control streams sent from the receivers to the server control real-time personalization of the media streams such as trick-play functions and channel selection. Buffering and data storage segmentation techniques are used to provide highly responsive personal video recorder-like functionality to the multiple end users.