# U.S. Patent No. 12,581,137: video management system for video files and live streaming content

The issued patent behind the way Velostream builds streaming platforms: one automated pipeline for live signals and file-based media. Invented by Stephen Hird, Velostream's chief technology officer, and built and operated by the Velostream team during its engagement with Vidgo.

## The record

- Number: US 12,581,137 B2
- Title: Video management system for video files and live streaming content
- Inventor: Stephen Hird
- Priority date: September 9, 2022
- Filed: September 11, 2023, application 18/465,086
- Published: July 4, 2024, US 2024/0223821 A1
- Granted: March 17, 2026
- Claims: 10
- Term: listed through December 22, 2043
- Assignee of record: Arivo Entertainment LLC
- Sources: https://patents.google.com/patent/US12581137B2/en and https://ppubs.uspto.gov/pubwebapp/

## What the patent covers

One system handles live signals and file-based media in a single automated pipeline. Independent claim 1 describes a method that:

1. builds a dynamic transcoding profile for each source that preserves the original resolution rather than forcing it onto a fixed ladder;
2. applies the requested security at ingest, encrypts the output files and uploads them to a content delivery network;
3. converts and carries the metadata through the pipeline;
4. serves multiple viewing groups from the same asset, each with its own expiration date;
5. updates, retains and expires content automatically, without operator intervention.

This is a plain-English summary; the issued claims control.

## Timeline

- September 9, 2022: priority date, first provisional application
- March 2, 2023: second provisional application
- September 11, 2023: non-provisional application 18/465,086 filed
- July 4, 2024: published as US 2024/0223821 A1
- March 17, 2026: granted as US 12,581,137 B2
- December 22, 2043: listed term end

## The inventor

Stephen Hird is Velostream's chief technology officer and the named inventor. He led engineering for the Vidgo platform, from the live headend to dynamic ad insertion and the device applications, and was previously with The Walt Disney Company.

## Assignee of record: Arivo Entertainment LLC

The assignee of record on the issued patent is Arivo Entertainment LLC. Velostream does not own U.S. Patent No. 12,581,137 and makes no claim to it. Velostream's relationship to the '137 patent is that of the inventor's firm: the engineering team that designed, built and operated the system the claims describe, and the people who can explain it to counsel, a licensee or a court.

## Working with the inventor

- Inventor access: the named inventor, available to counsel.
- Claim mapping: element-by-element charts against accused products and services.
- Infringement and validity analysis: technical reads of products, prior art and file histories.
- Source-level review: code review under protective order by engineers who wrote production streaming systems.
- Declarations and testimony: technical declarations, deposition and trial support, tutorials for the court.
- Reconstruction: rebuilding and demonstrating the claimed system for licensing discussions and proceedings.

## Questions

**What is U.S. Patent No. 12,581,137?** An issued United States patent titled "Video management system for video files and live streaming content," granted March 17, 2026 on application 18/465,086 with a priority date of September 9, 2022; 10 claims; term listed through December 22, 2043.

**Who invented it?** Stephen Hird, Velostream's chief technology officer, during Velostream's engagement with Vidgo.

**Who owns it?** The assignee of record is Arivo Entertainment LLC. Velostream is not the owner.

**Is this the Vidgo patent?** The claimed system is the one the Velostream team designed, built and operated for Vidgo, the live television service with more than 500 channels.

**How do I reach the inventor?** hello@velostream.com

Contact: hello@velostream.com. HTML version: https://velostream.com/patent/