US 10469554B2

Here is a concise summary of US Patent 10469554B2:

US Patent 10469554B2

• Title: Apparatus, system, and method for multi-bitrate content streaming
• Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC [cite: US10469554B2]
• Inventors: David F. Brueck, Mark B. Hurst, R. Drew Major [cite: US10469554B2]
• Filing Date: 2019-01-18 [cite: US10469554B2]
• Issue Date: 2019-11-05 [cite: US10469554B2]
• Abstract: An apparatus for multi-bitrate content streaming includes a receiving module configured to capture media content, a streamlet module configured to segment the media content and generate a plurality of streamlets, and an encoding module configured to generate a set of streamlets. The system includes the apparatus, wherein the set of streamlets comprises a plurality of streamlets having identical time indices and durations, and each streamlet of the set of streamlets having a unique bitrate, and wherein the encoding module comprises a master module configured to assign an encoding job to one of a plurality of host computing modules in response to an encoding job completion bid. A method includes receiving media content, segmenting the media content and generating a plurality of streamlets, and generating a set of streamlets. [cite: US10469554B2]

Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims:

• Claim 1 (Apparatus): This claim describes a device for streaming content at multiple bitrates. It includes a component to receive media content, another component to break that content into small, sequential pieces called "streamlets" (each lasting between about 0.1 and 5 seconds). An encoding component then processes these streamlets, creating a "set" for each original streamlet. Each set contains several versions of the same streamlet, all covering the same time segment but encoded at different bitrates. This encoding component also features a "master module" that intelligently assigns encoding tasks to various "host computing modules" based on bids from these hosts. These bids consider factors like how much of a job they've already completed, their average completion time, processor speed, and memory capacity. [cite: US10469554B2]

• Claim 10 (System): This claim defines a system for multi-bitrate content streaming. The system comprises the apparatus described in Claim 1, detailing a receiving module for media content, a streamlet module for segmenting content into streamlets of a predetermined duration, and an encoding module. The encoding module is responsible for encoding each streamlet into a separate content file and generating a set of streamlets. Importantly, each set of streamlets shares identical time indices and durations, but each streamlet within a set has a unique bitrate. The encoding module also includes a master module that assigns encoding jobs to multiple host computing modules based on their job completion bids. [cite: US10469554B2]

• Claim 18 (Method): This claim outlines a method for adaptive-rate content streaming. The method involves receiving media content, segmenting it into multiple sequential streamlets (each having a predetermined length of time), and then encoding each streamlet into a separate content file. A key step is generating a "set of streamlets" where all streamlets in a set share the same time index but each has a distinct bitrate. The method may also include converting the raw media content into raw audio or video before segmenting it. Furthermore, it involves assigning encoding jobs to different host computing modules based on bids submitted by those modules, where the bids are determined by various computing performance variables. [cite: US10469554B2]

Legal Status and Litigation:

As of April 26, 2026, US Patent 10469554B2 is listed as "Expired - Lifetime" with an anticipated expiration date of 2025-04-28. [cite: US10469554B2]

The patent family has been involved in litigation, including cases filed in Utah District Court, Delaware District Court, Texas Eastern District Court, and the International Trade Commission. Additionally, multiple PTAB (Patent Trial and Appeal Board) cases have been filed (IPR2025-00467, IPR2024-00903, IPR2024-00045, IPR2024-00514), and several cases related to this patent family are noted as filed in the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) including cases 23-1965, 26-1047, 26-1080, and 26-1146. [cite: US10469554B2] No specific details regarding 2026 CAFC dockets for this patent beyond what is already noted in the patent's litigation history were found directly in the current search.