GB2464545A

GB2464545A - Providing and controlling a music playlist, via a communications network such as the internet

Info

Publication number: GB2464545A
Application number: GB0819249A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jason Burrage
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-10-21
Filing date: 2008-10-21
Publication date: 2010-04-28
Also published as: GB0819249D0

Abstract

A customer may request a music playlist for a disco or party, providing enough details of the event for a DJ to determine a playlist which gets stored on a server system 301. The DJ preferably also prepares mixes, described as meta-data, for a smooth transition between music tracks. When the disco is started, the server system 301 preferably sends the playlist and mix metadata to the customer's client system 321 via the internet 310 using Internet Segue Language (ISL), storing sufficient data in the client system 321 memory to enable continuous music if a network failure occurs. The client system 321 can interpret this data and request each music track as required, from the server system 301. During play the client system 321 can use the mix metadata to recreate the mixes defined by the DJ.

Description

A method and system for providing and controlling a disco via the Internet.

Background

This invention relates to a method and system for providing and controlling disco music via a communications network such as the internet.

A disco may be required for many different types of events in many different venues. The events may include birthdays, wedding receptions, engagements, anniversaries, fetes, Christmas, New Year, Guy Fawkes Night, Halloween, summer parties, office parties as well as many other celebrations. The venues they play in may include domestic properties, bars, night clubs, private clubs, public houses, local halls, schools, parks, universities as well as many other types of venue. For many events, the disco will be provided by a Disc Jockey CDJ") who supplies a portable sound system & lighting effects, and the music they will be playing. This is sometimes referred to as a Mobile Disco. For some venues, in particular bars, clubs and some public houses, the sound system and lighting effects may already be installed, so the DJ is only required to provide the music to be played.

A DJ will normally play music that caters for the age and music taste of his/her customers. A good DJ will also provide a smooth, uninterrupted transition (mix") between the music tracks being played such that customers can continue dancing without experiencing significant or distracting changes in genre and/or tempo.

A DJ may use music that is stored in any format they wish, including cassette tape, vinyl record or digital formats that can be read by a computer system.

A DJ will usually perform the mixes live and by hand, or they may choose to utilise DJ tools such as a Beats-Per-Minute CBPM") meter or any of the commercially available computer DJ applications.

Experienced DJ's usually have favourite or well-practiced mixes they frequently repeat at each event.

The DJ is usually required to be in attendance personally in order to play and mix the music. Pre-recorded discos can be utilised, but this can be complicated as copyright must be considered and there is no scope for changing the music selection once play has started. There are also commercial disco mixes available to buy on proprietary formats such as Compact Disc ("CD"), but these are of a set length and once purchased, the music and mixes cannot be changed.

Although hiring a DJ to perform onsite and supply a disco for an event provides a personal level of service for the customers, it has a major downside in that it is expensive. This expense is a direct result of the high-level of labour required to provide the disco. For example, while providing the disco, the DJ is only active when selecting and cueing up music tracks, and performing the mixes. The DJ may therefore only be utilised for approximately 20-40% of the time they are playing. Wedding reception discos are another example, as they often take place in the same venue as the main dinner. In order that the DJ does not interrupt the dinner, they are often required to setup in advance of the dinner. This can result in a DJ being onsite for many hours, when they may only be required to play for as little as 1-2 hours at the end of the night. A further example is the cost of travelling to and from a venue.

Another downside of using an onsite DJ is the risk of the DJ arriving late due to traffic or weather conditions.

A further downside can be venue access. This can be due to poor vehicular access, particularly at inner city venues, or due to stairs and narrow doorways which make moving the mobile disco equipment difficult and time consuming.

For venues such as bars and public houses, there is also the consideration of space. A Mobile Disco can take several square metres of floor space, which can reduce the number of paying customers on the premises, reducing revenues accordingly. Space can be an issue for small venues too.

Statement of Invention

To overcome this, the present invention proposes a method and system by which a disco is prepared in advance and delivered across the internet with real-time control of the music mixing.

Advantages The delivery of a disco over the internet will reduce the effort required to produce and perform the disco, eliminate travel costs and travel time, eliminate the need to transport bulky equipment, and reduce the space required for the disco at the venue. It also allows a DJ to provide discos at several concurrent events, which is particularly useful for popular DJ's that find themselves in demand.

The method for preparing the disco defines all mixes in advance of the event. This ensures the mixes are of a high quality and prevents mistakes associated with live performances from occurring. Because the mixes are stored for future use, a mix only need be created once and can then be re-used at any future events, providing a massive saving in labour costs.

The system for controlling a disco over the internet utilises streaming technology and performs the music mixes live. This avoids the need for pre-recorded mixes or downloaded files which might infringe copyright or incur extra dubbing costs, and allows songs to be inserted into the playlist at any point while the disco is playing, just as a human DJ would when a customer makes a request on the night. It also enables several discos to be performed at once from a single set of music files.

Preferably, the customer provides sufficient information about their event to enable an experienced DJ to produce a playlist containing a suitable music selection in an appropriate order of play.

Preferably, the DJ preparing the disco is sufficiently experienced to create a playlist containing a suitable music selection in an appropriate order of play.

Preferably, the DJ preparing the disco is skilled at creating good mixes between music tracks.

Preferably, the computer systems sending and receiving the disco are sufficiently powerful to ensure continuity of music play.

Preferably, the customers Internet connection has sufficient bandwidth to ensure continuity of music play.

Introduction to Drawings

For a better understanding of the present invention and to show how the same may be carried into effect, the detailed description will refer to the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 shows how a mix between two consecutive tracks can be defined.

Figure 2 shows how the timing of a mix needs to be defined to account for speed changes.

Figure 3 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

A customer requires a disco for an event to be delivered over the Internet, so they place an order via a website. One skilled in the art would appreciate that the order can be placed using various methods other than a website. For example, e-mail, telephone, facsimile, post, in person, television-based system, or various other methods through which orders may be placed.

In a preferred embodiment, the order should include details of the event, such as start time, duration, purpose of the event and age group of guests. This information is then used by the DJ to prepare the disco for the event in advance. One skilled in the art would appreciate that there are many factors that contribute to the selection of music played by a DJ and these should be provided with the order details where appropriate. For example, customer playlists, first song, last song, specific music style, or type of venue.

Using the information provided in the order, a skilled DJ then prepares a playlist of music tracks that are most likely to meet the customer's requirements. If there is any ambiguity regarding requirements, clarification must be sought from the customer to ensure a satisfactory selection is provided. Once prepared, the playlist is stored in a database on the server system and linked to the customers order.

The DJ then utilises a software application to create the mix between each consecutive music track in the playlist. As each mix is defined, the parameters allowing accurate recreation of that mix are stored as metadata in the database on the server system.

Figure 1 shows how, in one possible embodiment, a mix between two music tracks, Track A 101 and Track B 102, can be defined. Track A 101 and Track B 102 are shown to overlap. Track B 102 is cued up to start from Cue Point CP and will start playing when Track A 101 reaches the Start Point SF. Track A 101 will then stop playing when End Point EP is reached. The control of the cross fader between 100% Track A 111 and 100% Track B 113 is also shown. Set Fade SF1 shows a zero duration, partial adjustment of the cross fader towards the Centre Position 112 to partially increase the volume of Track B 102 at a specific point in TrackA. Set Fade SF2 shows an adjustment to the Cene Posftion 112, starting parameters described in Figure 1 and any other parameters required in order to apply any other desired effects to the mix.

Each mix is stored in the database as an individual object to enable re-use in other discos, irrespective of what other songs are included in the playlist for that other disco. This provides the advantage that once a mix has been defined, it can be re-used for subsequent discos without further DJ effort.

Once every mix between consecutive music tracks in the playlist has been defined and stored in the database on the server system, the disco preparation is complete.

One skilled in the art would appreciate that overlapping music tracks and playing them at varying speeds will affect the overall length of the disco being provided. It is therefore essential that the overall length of the final playlist and associated mixes meets the requirements of the customer.

In the preferred embodiment, the customer can start playing their disco by performing a user action over the Internet that tells the server system to start the disco. One skilled in the art would appreciate that some security checks would need to be performed to ensure the person performing the user action is actually the customer, the correct disco is sent to the correct customer, and the disco cannot be listened in to by another party not entitled to receive it.

On receiving the user action, the server system reads the playlist for that disco and extracts all the mix metadata required for that playlist. This is then converted into an Internet Segue Language CISL") which is sent to the client system over the Internet. The ISL code provides all the information required for the client system to perform the disco. For example:

BEGIN

TRACK

FILE = 000001

END_TRACK

MIX

END_SPEED = 103 END_POINT = 9448425 START_POINT = 9207462 START_SPEED = 102 CUE_POINT = 53978 SET_FADER = 50,9207462,02.000 SET_FADER = 100,9448425,00.000

END_MIX

TRACK

FILE = 000002

END_TRACK

MIX

END_SPEED = 100 END_POINT = 10407600 START_POINT = 9217456 START_SPEED = 99 CUE_POINT = 0 SET_FADER = 50,9217456,01.000 SET_FADER = 100,10407600,00.000

END_MIX

TRACK

FILE = 000003

END_TRACK

MIX

END_SPEED = 100 END_POINT = 10362927 START_POINT = 10354876 START_SPEED = 100 CUE_POINT = 0 SET_FADER = 50,10354876,00.000 SET_FADER = 100,10362927,00.000

END_MIX

END

One skilled in the art would appreciate that the ISL code sent could include more commands than those shown in the above example to cover the different parameters and effects required to recreate more complex music mixes. One skilled in the art would also appreciate that the syntax could take various forms.

In the preferred embodiment, the client system has a disco software application (disco application") running that interprets the ISL code to determine the playlist for the disco as well as how and when each music track should be mixed with the previous music track. The disco application requests the first music track in the playlist from the server. In response to this request, the server system starts to stream that music track. When the disco application starts receiving the requested music track, the disco application stores the contents of the stream into a memory buffer, ready for play. The disco application starts playing the first track when sufficient music has been stored in the buffer to allow for minor connection or bandwidth issues. The disco application plays the first track at the End Speed communicated in the ISL for the first mix. The first track is now the current track playing.

The next steps in the processing of the ISL code and control of the music tracks are iterative...

1. At some point before the next track is due to start, the disco application requests the next music track in the playlist from the server. In response to this request, the server system starts to stream that music track.

2. When the disco application starts receiving that music track, the disco application stores the contents of the stream into a memory buffer, ready for play.

3. When the Start Point for the next track is reached, the disco application starts the next track from the Cue Point for that track, as communicated in the ISL, and the track is played at the Start Speed for that track, as communicated in the ISL. The disco application also performs the Set Fader commands and any other commands for that mix, as communicated in the ISL.

4. When the End Point of the current track is reached, the disco application stops the current track and clears the buffer it was stored in. The disco application continues to play the next track, which now becomes the current track, gradually adjusting the speed of play until the End Speed communicated in the ISL for the next mix is achieved.

These steps repeat until the last track in the playlist is reached. The disco application then plays the last track to completion and stops the disco. The last track may be played through at its Start Speed if desired.

As each music track is played, it is preferable to send a request back to the server system to inform it of the current song being played. Therefore, should the client system, network connection or server system fail such that the disco needs to be restarted, the ISL code sent to the client system upon restart can be modified by the server system to remove music tracks already played.

One skilled in the art would appreciate that there are many variations that could be applied to this method of processing and control to achieve varying levels of performance and reliability. For example, the disco application could request the music files well in advance of requiring them in order to provide extended continuity should the client-server connection fail for a significant period of time for some reason. In another embodiment, music files and the ISL code could be downloaded over the internet in advance so that the disco can be performed offline. This may require digital rights management or encryption to prevent the client system from retaining or accessing the music files without permission.

In another embodiment of the present invention, customers could make requests while the disco is playing by selecting music tracks from those available on the server system via a user interface on the client system. The client system would inform the server system of the request and the server system would then determine the most appropriate point in the playlist to insert the requested music track. This could be based on availability of predefined mixes, tempo, genre or any other suitable criteria. The insertion point could also be determined manually by a skilled person monitoring the server system. The server system would then send the necessary ISL code to the client system and the client system would decipher this code and play the updated disco. In another embodiment of the present invention, the server system could instruct the client system to insert a specific sound track (e.g. Big Ben chiming at Midnight) into the disco at a specific point in time.

Figure 3 shows one embodiment of the present invention using a block diagram. The Server System 301 consists of Digital Music Files 302, a Database 303, a Streaming Service 304, a Web Service 305 and a Data Service 306. The Database 303 acts as a store for all customer, disco booking, music, mix, playlist and pricing data, plus any other data required for the implementation, control and delivery of the disco service. The Server System 301 connects to the Client System 321 via the Internet 310, or any other suitable communications network with sufficient bandwidth capability to support uninterrupted streaming of music at an acceptable quality level for a disco, preferably >250kbps. The Client System consists of a Browser Application 322, Disco Application 323 and Sound Output Device 324. The Browser Application 322 enables the Client System 321 to communicate with the Web Server 305. The Disco Application requests, receives and deciphers the ISL code sent by the Data Service 306, requests and receives the music tracks from the Streaming Service 304, and plays the music tracks to the Sound Output Device 324, in accordance with the mix metadata, to produce the required disco. The Sound Output Device 324 is connected to an Amplifier 331 and Speaker System 341, appropriate for the venue, through which the disco is amplified and played.

One skilled in the art would appreciate that the disco can be delivered over various environments other than the internet. For example, various communication channels may be used such as local area network, wide area network, or a point-to-point connection. Wireless technologies, such as wireless networks or mobile broadband could also be used to enable the disco to be totally portable and delivered almost anywhere in the world.

In another embodiment, the real-time mixing of the music tracks could be performed on the server system and the resulting music output streamed to the client system. However, one skilled in the art would appreciate that this would place all processing load on the server system, especially if compression technology is being employed to reduce bandwidth requirements.

Claims

Claims 1. A method and system for providing and controlling a disco via the Internet.
2. A method of preparing a disco for subsequent recreation of that disco in a real-time environment across a communications network.
3. A method according to claim 2, in which a music mix, containing any number of mixing techniques and mixing effects, between two different music tracks is prepared in such a way as to enable subsequent recreation of that music mix in a real-time environment across a communications network.
4. A method according to claim 3, in which the music mix between two different music tracks is described as metadata.
5. A method according to claim 3, in which the metadata for a music mix between two different music tracks is defined in such a way that it is independent of any other music tracks, mixes or speeds of play and can be recreated at any point in a disco playlist.
6. A method according to claim 3, in which the metadata for a music mix between two different music tracks is stored to enable subsequent recreation of those music mixes in a real-time environment across a communications network.
7. A method according to claim 2, in which playlist and music mix metadata is communicated across a communications network to enable the recreation of a disco in a real-time environment on a client computer system.
8. A system of delivering a disco in a real-time environment across a communications network.
9. A system according to claim 8, which enables the disco to be streamed using compression technology to minimise bandwidth requirements.
10. A system according to claim 8, which enables the processing load of mixing music tracks to be performed by the client system to reduce server system processor loading.
11. A system according to claim 8, which enables the delivery of multiple different discos concurrently from one set of music files on the server system.
12. A system according to claim 8, which enables play to resume from the last music track played if a failure occurs to the client system, network connection or server system.
13. A system according to claim 8, in which the playlist can be updated during play to cater for customer requests during the disco.
14. A system according to claim 8, which enables the insertion of music tracks or other sounds into the disco at a specific point in time, irrespective of the time the disco was started.