Distributed architecture for media playback system

Abstract

A method and system to provide media to a terminal coupled to a network, the terminal comprising a media playback component. The method and system provides for programmatically directing the terminal to access a first network site in the plurality of network sites, and causing the media playback component on the terminal to automatically load a first media web resource located at the first network site to playback a first media. The method and system also includes programmatically directing the terminal to access a second network site in the plurality of network sites, and causing the media playback component on the terminal to automatically load a second media web resource located at the second network site to playback a second media.

1 . A system for providing media play-back on a network, the system comprising: 
 a terminal coupleable to the network;    a play-list module coupleable to the terminal, the play-list module storing a first play-list signaled from the terminal, the first play-list comprising a plurality of network addresses, including a first network address that locates a first media network resource on a first network site, and a second network address that locates a second media network resource on a second network site;    a network server module coupleable to the terminal and to the play-list module, the network server module signaling the first play-list to the terminal, the network server module controlling the terminal to cause the terminal to access the media network resource associated with each network address in the first play-list, and to automatically load each respective media network resources into the media playback component.    
   
   
       2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the play-list module receives and stores a plurality of play-lists from a plurality of terminals, each play-list comprising a plurality of network addresses, including a first network address that locates a first media network resource on a first network site, and a second network address that locates a second media network resource on a second network site, wherein the network server module responds to a request from a second terminal for a select play-list in the plurality of play-lists by signaling the plurality of network address in the select play-list to the second terminal.  
   
   
       3 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the media network resource located by each network address in one of the plurality of play-lists is loaded into a playback component on the requesting terminal to playback media having a combination of music and/or video.  
   
   
       4 . A method for providing media to a terminal coupled to a network, the terminal comprising a media playback component, the method comprising: 
 programmatically directing the terminal to access a first network site in the plurality of network sites;    causing the media playback component on the terminal to automatically load a first media web resource located at the first network site to playback a first media;    programmatically directing the terminal to access a second network site in the plurality of network sites; and    causing the media playback component on the terminal to automatically load a second media web resource located at the second network site to playback a second media.    
   
   
       5 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising: 
 programmatically directing the terminal to access one or more additional network sites in the plurality of network sites; and    causing the media playback component on the terminal to automatically load each media web resource located on each of the one or more additional network sites so as to sequentially playback media from each of the network sites accessed by the media playback component.    
   
   
       6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein programmatically directing the terminal to access a first network site in the plurality of network sites includes loading a first web address for the first network site into a web browser component of the terminal, and wherein programmatically directing the terminal to access a second network site in the plurality of network sites includes loading a second web address for the second network site into the web browser component of the terminal.  
   
   
       7 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein programmatically directing the terminal to access a second network site in the plurality of network sites includes programmatically directing the terminal to access the second network site having an address that is external to the first address.  
   
   
       8 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein programmatically directing the terminal to access the first and second network sites in the plurality of network sites includes programmatically directing a web browser component and the media playback component from a web server module coupled to the terminal via the network.