AN EVENTS CAPTURING SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR USE IN AN INTEGRATED BROADCAST DELIVERY SYSTEM

摘要

An event capturing system for use in an integrated multimedia broadcast delivery system extending from a broadcast provider to a subscribe r. The delivery system comprises means for providing multimedia signals configured according to IP (Internet Protocol) format for multicast transmission over a broadband network and a system manager for providing interactive access to t he multimedia signals by the subscriber through conversion means (being either a decoder in a set top box and a television or a decoder in a computer and a computer monitor at the subscriber's location) configured for converting the IP multicast format signal into a format for display on a television or compute r monitor. An interactive program guide (IPG) is provided to the subscriber for accessi ng the broadcast signal. The event capturing system comprises an event collection component configured for identifying the occurrence of an event associated with the system manager and/or said subscriber access and for forwarding for storage in a first memory location information which identifies the event. Each of t he identification of the event and storage of the event information are advantageously performed in real time. Preferably, some or all of the information is also stored in a second memory location for direct access by another component of the syste m manager and statistical analyses are performed based on the information stor ed for a plurality of the identified events.