SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING VIDEO CONTENT ASSOCIATED WITH A SOURCE IMAGE TO A TELEVISION IN A COMMUNICATION NETWORK

A system and method for providing video content associated with a source image to a television that is part of a communication network is provided. At least a portion of the source image and the video content are displayed on the television. A request at a content distribution platform in the communication network is received for display of the source image from a communication device associated with the television. In certain embodiments, the communication network is cable television network. In other embodiments, the communication network may be a television over IP network. The requested source image is retrieved by the content distribution platform. The source image is displayed on a user's television, and the user may desire to have video content associated with a link displayed on the user's television. A request for video content associated with the link is then received. The content distribution platform then retrieves the video content that is associated with the link. The video content is pre-encoded and may be, for example, an MPEG data file. The content distribution platform then composites the video content and at least a portion of the source image together. The data of the source image and the pre-encoded video content form a video stream that can be decoded by a decoder associated with the television. The composited video stream is then sent through the communication network to the communication device where it is decoded and displayed on the user's television. In certain embodiments, the source image is a web page.