MITIGATING MEDIA STATION INTERRUPTIONS

摘要

A media receiver identifies attributes of a media station to which the media receiver is currently tuned. The media receiver monitors the signal quality of the media station. If the signal quality of the media station drops below a quality threshold, the receiver chooses an alternate station having similar content, and then tunes to the alternate station until the signal quality of the original station improves. When the signal quality of the original station rises above a re-tune threshold, the receiver can switch back to the original station. The receiver can monitor and record user listening patterns, station-switching patterns, and situational parameters, to identify times or locations at which station switches occur. This information can be used to select appropriate alternative stations, to perform pre-emptive station switches, and to determine when a station's content will be buffered with the expectation that a station's signal will drop below the quality threshold.

主权项

1. A method of mitigating media station interruptions, the method comprising:
identifying one or more first content attributes of a first media station to which a media receiver is currently tuned; monitoring at least one signal-quality parameter of a signal being received from the first media station; determining that the at least one signal-quality parameter has dropped below a first threshold level; identifying an alternate media station having at least a second threshold level of second content attributes that match the first content attributes of the first media station; in response to the at least one signal-quality parameter having dropped below the first threshold level, tuning the media receiver to the alternate media station; continuing to monitor the at least one signal-quality parameter of the signal; determining that the at least one signal-quality parameter has risen above a re-tune value; and in response to the at least one signal parameter having risen above the re-tune value, re-tuning the media receiver to the first media station.