Reducing network and battery consumption during content delivery and playback

Abstract

Methods and systems for content delivery are provided. A user of a media device may select one or more media content files, which may be located locally or remotely. The content selected by the user is located. If selected content is located at a remote source, that file is downloaded to the media device using maximum available radio bandwidth and stored in local storage. That data is provided as a stream to a media player from the local storage.

1 . A method for reducing power consumption during content delivery and playback, comprising:
 receiving a selection designating content at a content source;   downloading the designated content to local storage of a media device, wherein the content is downloaded at a maximum available network bandwidth using a radio at the media device;   streaming a downloaded portion of the designated content from the local storage to a media player of the media device; and   deactivating the radio when the designated content is completely downloaded.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating an interface for receiving the one or more user selections. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating a playlist based on the one or more user selections. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein downloading the content is based on an order of the playlist. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 3 , further comprising updating the playlist based on user input. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating a request to a proxy for the designated content. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the downloaded content in the local storage may be provided to the media player based on user input. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein access to the local storage device is limited to one or more media players associated with the media device. 
     
     
         9 . A media device for receiving content delivery, comprising
 a user interface configured to receive a selection designating content;   a media broker configured to locate the designated content at a content source;   a radio configured to download the located content to local storage at a maximum available network bandwidth, the radio further configured to deactivate when the designated content is completely downloaded; and   a media proxy configured to provide a downloaded portion of the designated content via streaming from the local storage to a media player.   
     
     
         10 . The media device of  claim 9 , further comprising the media player, the media player being configured to play streamed content. 
     
     
         11 . The media device of  claim 9 , further comprising a playlist generator configured to generate a playlist based on the one or more user selections. 
     
     
         12 . The media device of  claim 9 , wherein the media broker is further configured to download the designated content from the remote content source based on an order of the playlist. 
     
     
         13 . The media device of  claim 9 , wherein the media proxy is further configured to provide a user with information concerning content from one or more content sources; 
     
     
         14 . The media device of  claim 9 , wherein the local storage is configured to provide the downloaded content to the media player based on user input. 
     
     
         15 . The media device of  claim 9 , wherein access to the local storage is limited to one or more media players associated with the media device. 
     
     
         16 . The media device of  claim 9 , further comprising a storage handler configured to manage content from one or more local content sources. 
     
     
         17 . The media device of  claim 9 , further comprising a radio/power manager configured to manage the power of the radio. 
     
     
         18 . A system for content delivery, comprising
 a content source; and   a media device including local storage, a radio, and a media player, the media device configured to:
 receive a selection designating content from the content source, 
 download the designated content to the local storage at a maximum available network bandwidth using the radio, 
 stream a downloaded portion of the designated content from the local storage to the media player, and 
 deactivate the radio when the designated content is completely downloaded. 
   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , further comprising a relay server configured to intercept content from one or more remote content sources and to process the intercepted content for playing on the media device. 
     
     
         20 . A computer-readable storage medium having embodied thereon a program being executable by a computer processor to perform a method for content delivery, the method comprising:
 receiving a selection designating content at a content source;   downloading the designated content to local storage of a media device, wherein the content is downloaded at a maximum available network bandwidth using a radio at the media device;   streaming a downloaded portion of the designated content from the local storage to a media player of the media device; and   deactivating the radio when the designated content is completely downloaded