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Abstract

A system and method for providing program guide information to subscribers is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method is applied to a broadcasting system having a first service network broadcasting a first signal having a first set of programs, a second service network broadcasting a second signal having a second set of programs, and a third service network broadcasting a third signal having a third set of programs, wherein the first signal, the second signal, and the third signal each include service channels uniquely identified by a service channel identifier, a method of providing a unified program guide to a receiver station. The method comprises the steps of merging at least a portion of a first program guide describing at least a portion of the first set of programs with at least a portion of a second program guide describing at least a portion of the second set of programs to produce a unified program guide describing at least a portion of a union of the first set of programs and the second set of programs; mapping at least a portion of the unified program guide to a first service channel of the first signal and the second signal; and mapping the portion of the unified program guide to a second service channel of the third signal, wherein the second service channel is logically offset from the first service channel.

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First Claim