US 5,798,785 · Granted 1998-08-25

How Discovery Built the Smart TV Guide That Learned What You Like

Imagine a cable box that watches what shows you actually watch, then uses that data to suggest new programs you might enjoy—kind of like Netflix's recommendations, but for live TV in the 1990s. This patent covers the technology that makes a set-top box smart enough to create personalized TV menus without you having to reprogram it manually.

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The plain-English version

What it protects

The claim covers a set-top box (the device that connects your cable to your TV) that can receive and store program information, analyze viewing habits, and automatically generate customized menu screens suggesting shows to individual subscribers. What's protected here is the combination of remote reprogramming capability, data-gathering circuits, and the algorithmic logic that selects which programs to display based on subscriber behavior—all working together in a single terminal device.

Why it matters

In the mid-1990s, cable systems exploded from dozens of channels to hundreds, overwhelming viewers with choice. This patent gave cable operators like Discovery Communications a way to make their systems smarter and more personalized without requiring customers to do the work themselves. It was an early ancestor of modern recommendation engines, solving a real pain point before streaming services existed.

Real-world use

Every time a cable subscriber flipped on their TV and saw a custom menu of suggested shows—ones that seemed to match their taste without them asking—that was this patented technology at work.

Original USPTO abstract

A novel reprogrammable set top terminal for a television program delivery system which suggests programs for viewing is described. The invention relates to methods and apparatus for reprogramming set top terminals, and selecting and displaying programs to suggest to subscribers for viewing. The invention is particularly useful in television program delivery systems with hundreds of channels of programming, a menu driven program selection system, and a program control information signal which carries data and identifies the available program choices. Specifically, the invention relates to remote reprogramming of terminal memory and the gathering and analysis of data for selecting programs to suggest to a subscriber. The invention is a terminal which includes a circuit for receiving incoming signals, a processor, memory, and a circuit to generate menu screens for display on a TV or monitor. Various data gathering and analysis techniques are used to customize selection of programs for display on a menu.

Patent details

Publication number: US 5,798,785
Filing date: 1993-12-02
Grant date: 1998-08-25
Assignee: Discovery Communications, Inc.
Inventor(s): HENDRICKS; JOHN S., BONNER; ALFRED E., WUNDERLICH; RICHARD E.
CPC class: H04H60/25

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