A system and method for blocking normal media content signals, such as radio program signals emitted on a speaker and substituting alternative content for blocked signals includes a voice control module operable to receive a blocking command via a microphone. Receiving a blocking command results in the normal content being blocked and predetermined alternative content is played for either a user specified time or a predetermined time. Control over the radio or other media device is completely oral via speech recognition technology.

A broadcast response system provides, e.g., a radio broadcast listener with the ability to obtain media content such as music or speech while listening to the radio. The user can respond to items in the radio broadcast such as advertisements, fund raising drives, or interactive listener polls during the broadcast. Data such as song title and artist, author or publisher and the IP address for the location where the digital version of the content is stored, can be transmitted using, e.g., the RBDS/RDS data stream. A reference number representing song title and artist, author or publisher and the IP address for the location where the digital version of the content is stored can also be employed for ease of implementation. This reference number can reside in a lookup table to be accessed by broadcast response server.

The present disclosure relates to a method and system for receiving a broadcast signal. The system includes a broadcast receiver device having two receiving units, two decoding units, a combining unit and a further processing unit. A broadcast signal is received by both receiving units, so that two reception signals are provided. From each reception signal, a raw data stream is extracted and decoded by the decoding units. It is checked if the data stream provided by each decoding unit is complete. If a first data stream is complete, it is processed by the further processing unit. If the first data stream is incomplete and the second data stream is complete, the second data stream is further processed. If both data streams are incomplete, they will be combined to a combined data stream by the combining unit, the combined data stream being further processed, if it is complete.

A system and method for broadcast response generally employing RDS, DARC, or similar technology is provided, including a method for responding to a broadcast comprising extracting an event identifier from a broadcast signal; detecting a response by a user to the broadcast signal; polling a communications device to determine a user identifier; and communicating the event identifier and the user identifier when the user response is detected.

An improved system and method of capturing, transmitting, rating (exclusive content), continuously playing, selling and advertising listener and/or viewer data from vehicle Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) equipped infotainment systems capable of receiving and translating live broadcasts for Analog TV, Digital TV, HDTV, Satellite TV, Satellite Radio (SIRUS/XM), AM, FM, HD, DRM, UHF, VHF, Shortwave, Internet Podcasts and Bluetooth coupled media is described herein. The In-vehicle Listener and Viewer Data Capture System (LVDCS) is capable of recording, collecting and transmitting audience measurement data (from automobiles or other vehicles), using only the vehicle's OEM equipped communication network, including viewing and listening data for all audio and video content derived from the Infotainment System Module (ISM), Audio/Video Control Module (A/VCM), touchscreen or vehicle radio. The scope of viewing and listening data collected as well as communication method are unique to the LVDCS.

Additional unique features of the LVDCS are In-Vehicle Listener and Viewer Continuous Play Feature function and Radio Data System (RDS) Interactive Bubble Advertising. The In-Vehicle Listener and Viewer Continuous Play Feature is a Method of continuously playing an Over The Air (OTA) transmission including Analog TV, Digital TV, HDTV, AM, FM, HD, DRM, UHF, VHF and Shortwave broadcast, by transitioning to the live internet broadcast stream, via either a processor or LVDCS software equipped on the vehicles Gateway Module (GWM), ISM or A/VCM, when the strength of the OTA signal drops below a pre-defined value, the internet stream will transition to that station. Conversely, when the OTA signal reaches a pre-defined value, separate and greater than the value of the transition from the OTA signal to the internet stream, the converse transition from internet stream to OTA will take place.

RDS Interactive Bubble Advertising is a Method of Advertising onto an ISM, A/VCM, touchscreen or vehicle radio by overlaying RDS Radio Text (RT) data, transmitted Over-The-Air (OTA), included in the LVDCS for interactive display. RDS data specific to advertising segments, or in between broadcast segments, transmitted OTA and received by an ISM, A/VCM, touchscreen or vehicle radio onboard vehicle touchscreen or vehicle radio will be read and processed via an onboard processor and the LVDCS to execute protocols to display Interactive Bubble Advertising. Visual display includes interactive location map, logo, symbol, emoji or hyperlinked media.

RDS RT data triggers the start and stop of the Interactive Bubble Advertising by transmitting an encoded identifying bit to authentica

A broadcast response system provides, e.g., a radio broadcast listener with the ability to obtain media content such as music or speech while listening to the radio. The user can respond to items in the radio broadcast such as advertisements, fund raising drives, or interactive listener polls during the broadcast. Data such as song title and artist, author or publisher and the IP address for the location where the digital version of the content is stored, can be transmitted using, e.g., the RBDS/RDS data stream. A reference number representing song title and artist, author or publisher and the IP address for the location where the digital version of the content is stored can also be employed for ease of implementation. This reference number can reside in a lookup table to be accessed by broadcast response server.

A method for processing audio signals in a radio transmitter, includes: receiving an analog audio sample stream and a digital audio sample stream; determining offsets in time between the analog audio stream and the digital audio stream using a normalized cross-correlation of audio envelopes of the analog audio sample stream and the digital audio sample stream; filtering the determined offsets in time to produce filtered offset values; determining an alignment slip adjustment value as a function of the filtered offset values; aligning the analog audio sample stream and the digital audio sample stream using the determined alignment slip adjustment value; and generating a hybrid radio signal for broadcast that includes time-aligned analog audio and digital audio.

A radio receiver of an audio system receives a radio signal that includes a main signal and a radio data system (RDS) signal. The RDS signal includes custom information associated with media content tags and synchronized with time slots in the main signal. A media streaming service identifies targeted media content based on a profile of a mobile device connected to the audio system and sends the targeted media content to the mobile device over an Internet connection. During a playing of the audio broadcast, the audio system receives a custom information in the RDS signal and sends to the mobile device a request including the media content tag associated with the custom information. In response, the audio system receives from the mobile device a targeted media content matching the media content tag. The audio system plays the targeted media content synchronized with the time slot in the main signal.

A method operable by a vehicle processor comprises: causing a vehicle receiver to receive a radio broadcast channel; obtaining from the received radio broadcast channel, digital data comprising a respective identifier, transmitting location and broadcasting range for one or more other radio broadcast channels whose broadcasting range overlaps with a broadcasting range of the received radio broadcast channel; determining a location of the vehicle; determining if a broadcasting range of any of the or each other radio broadcast channels overlaps with a location of the vehicle; and outputting for display through a user interface, an indication of available radio broadcast channels including the or each of the other radio broadcast channels determined to have a broadcasting range overlapping with the location of the vehicle.

Embodiments presented herein are directed to content linking multicast streaming The embodiments connect a listener to over-the-air (OTA) broadcast radio content using an Internet Protocol (IP) multicast stream of the broadcast radio content when, for example, (i) a traditional broadcast radio receiver is not available, or (ii) an OTA broadcast radio signal that carries the content is not available. For example, when recovery of the OTA broadcast radio signal by a car radio is not possible because of poor reception or because the car radio is not configured with a suitable broadcast radio tuner, the embodiments generate a link to a multicast stream of the OTA broadcast radio content (also referred to as a multicast broadcast radio stream or simply a multicast stream), and provide the link to the car radio. The car radio can then access the multicast stream of the OTA broadcast radio content using the link.