This document discloses systems and methods for enabling viewers to
control and manage the presentation of programs based on specified types
of rating categories and content attributes that the viewer desires not
to be presented. The invention provides program data corresponding to
each program. The data contains (1) time-varying information related to
the content of discrete portions of the television program and,
optionally, (2) corresponding data controlling the presentation of that
content. By way of example, the program data includes rating and content
attribute values as well as control data indicating to which media
component the value applies or instructions corresponding to the ways in
which each portion of the program may be disabled, modified, replaced,
and/or edited. A set top box or other configured consumer electronics
device combines the program data with data input by the user concerning
the programming the user desires to disable and the methods therefor.
Based on the program data and the viewer's presentation profile, the
consumer electronic device controls whether and/or how each applicable
portion or component of programming is presented to the viewer.