Broadcast based information systems like Teletext use a unidirectional
communication scheme in order to get access to information. This means
that requests for data objects are not transmitted from a client to a
server. Instead the receiver part of the client has to listen for the
requested object on the broadcast medium and copy it to the local storage
when it goes by. The access time from the receiver point of view is
defined as the difference between the reception point in time of the
object and the point in time when the request was made. Nowadays realized
broadcast based information systems are not able to determine precisely
when a requested object will be available. The present invention uses a
repetition distance which defines an additional parameter which has to be
transmitted with each broadcast data object at the transmitter side. The
receiver can use this information to determine the precise repetition
point in time of a requested object. This information can be used to
realize a progress indicator, so that an user can be informed about the
time he has to wait for the requested object. Also this information is
essential for the realization of certain caching strategies.