Systems and methods to identify video content types

Abstract

Mediacast video content detection systems and methods that analyze the image content data of mediacast source data flows that include a variety of replaceable video content segments and a variety of non-replaceable video content segments to detect one or more characteristics of the video content segments. Detection regions may be utilized to detect visual elements in the video content segments that provide information regarding one or more properties of the video content segments, such as program type, start times, end times, video content provider, title, and the like. Replacement video content segments may replace video content segments determined to be replaceable. A buffering scheme may be employed to inherently adjust asynchronicity between a broadcast or Webcast and a mediacast. Actual insertion of replacement video content segments may occur upstream of a content consumer device or at the content consumer device.

1 . A method of operation in a content insertion system, the content insertion system comprising at least one processor and at least one nontransitory processor-readable medium communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, the method comprising:
 receiving a mediacast source data flow which comprises a plurality of replaceable content segments interspersed with a plurality of non-replaceable content segments, the replaceable content segments consisting of one or more sections of replaceable content material which includes image content data and the non-replaceable content segments consisting of one or more sections of non-replaceable content material which includes image content data;   reviewing at least a portion of the image content data of the received mediacast source data flow for a presence or absence of at least one defined visual content element contained within at least one of the replaceable content material or the non-replaceable content material to determine whether a portion of the received mediacast source data flow corresponds to a non-replaceable content segment or a replaceable content segment based on at least one of a presence or an absence of the defined visual content element;   in response to determining the presence of a replaceable content segment, selecting a replacement content segment from a store of replacement content segments of the content insertion system; and   modifying the mediacast source data flow by replacing the replaceable content segment with the replacement content segment.