iTV content is created and deployed using a server component adapted to allow content developers to create applications according to an authoring specification that describes a framework for same; a transport component configured to optimize and deliver the applications to one or more clients; and a client component adapted to render the applications through a television so as to permit user interaction therewith. The authoring specification provides for the presentation of content through one or more templates defined therein, allowing application definition and behavior to remain common across multiple client device types, middleware platforms, and/or iTV operating environments. The framework for applications accommodates advertising, promotions, content placement packages and/or programming campaign definitions, so as to permit a selection of a specific advertisement, promotion or content at a time of preparation of the iTV content by the server, and/or a time of execution of the applications by the client.

A user interface allows for blending of television program choices from which a viewer may select, the blending representing options for linear and non-linear programming presented together within a single hierarchy of a designated category. The blending may further include managed content relevant to the designated category, where desired. Such designated categories may include television programming categories and/or content categories. The options for linear and non-linear programming may be presented together within a single screen of the user interface.

The disclosed computer-implemented method may include a process for monitoring and improving end-to-end video quality based on scaled and/or interpolated perceptual quality scores across various video views. The method may also include a process for improving search experience for user expectations. Additionally, the method may include a process for providing hardware virtualization and simulation for server hosting. Furthermore, the method may include a process for filtering network traffic in a hosting environment. The method may additionally include a process for testing applications in a hosting environment. The method may further include a process for supporting multi-touch applications. The method may also include a process for optimized graphics rendering. Various other related methods and systems are also disclosed.

Techniques for rendering user interface (UI) in a virtual set top system using a pooling of UI rendering engines is performed at a device (e.g., a server or a cloud computing platform). The pooling method includes receiving multiple requests for UIs from multiple client devices, where the multiple requests include states of the UIs. The method further includes dividing the multiple requests into a plurality of groups based at least in part on the states of the UIs, where a respective group of the plurality of groups corresponds to requests for a set of UIs from a respective set of client devices. The method additionally includes assigning a pool of UI engines in a virtual machine (VM) to render the set of UIs for the respective set of client devices based on one or more of characteristics of the set of UIs and characteristics of the respective group.

The present disclosure provides a method and apparatus for processing information, and relates to the fields of cloud computing technology and other technologies. The method can include: allocating a virtualized instance based on a received information verification request; generating an initial video stream containing a virtualized input interface in the virtualized instance based on the information verification request, and sending the initial video stream to a client side to display the virtualized input interface at the client side; obtaining, in response to receiving operation event information being in the virtualized input interface and sent by the client side, an updated video stream based on the operation event information, and sending the updated video stream to the client side; and analyzing and verifying, in response to determining that an operation event corresponding to the operation event information is completed, the operation event information to obtain a verification result.

A user interface allows for blending of television program choices from which a viewer may select, the blending representing options for linear and non-linear programming presented together within a single hierarchy of a designated category. The blending may further include managed content relevant to the designated category, where desired. Such designated categories may include television programming categories and/or content categories. The options for linear and non-linear programming may be presented together within a single screen of the user interface.

Disclosed herein are system, method, and computer-readable storage-medium embodiments for implementing passive data collection from third-party channel applications. An embodiment includes running a channel application of a first layer of an operating system, and receiving an application programming interface (API) call, from the channel application, for a module of a second layer of the operating system. The module may be a non-video playback module that includes graphic rendering logic, for example. Some embodiments may further include intercepting metadata sent to the module, determining identifying information of a content instance based on the intercepted metadata, and storing the determined identifying information of the content instance.

A system for retrieval of executable applications, comprising: a broadcast tele-vision receiver apparatus; and a server; wherein the broadcast television receiver apparatus includes a communication unit having an interface for bidirectional communication with a network and adapted to determine channel information from a currently decoded channel carried in a broadcast television signal, the channel information identifying the currently decoded channel, the communication unit being further adapted to send the channel information to a server over the network, and to receive application information from the server, the application information describing a set of applications which are available for execution, and to receive executable code components for the set of applications corresponding to the application information, and wherein the broadcast television receiver apparatus further includes a data processor adapted to execute the application whilst the channel is decoded; and wherein the server is adapted to receive the channel information over the network, to determine the application information by analyzing the channel information, and to send the application information to the communication unit.

A server computing device receives, from a client device, a digest segment generated by the client device. The digest segment corresponds to a first media stream segment received by the client device, and the digest segment includes a representation of the first media stream segment. The server computing devices determines, using the digest segment, a playback command that corresponds to the first media stream segment and transmits, to the client device, the playback command.

A multimedia streaming and network apparatus is provided that includes a router module, a storage module and a processing module for executing the application program in the storage module to perform the multimedia streaming and network apparatus operation method. A first streaming request packet corresponding to a physical STB is received through a LAN port. A multicast and hardware offload function corresponding to the LAN port is activated. A STB virtual machine is operated to perform a STB function. A second streaming request packet corresponding to the STB virtual machine is received. A multicast and hardware offload function corresponding to the processing module port is activated. A video stream from a remote server is transmitted by the router module through the LAN port and the processing module port respectively to the physical STB and the STB virtual machine to be processed and playback.