WO2015127262A1

WO2015127262A1 - Methods and systems for streaming content-germane news feeds

Info

Publication number: WO2015127262A1
Application number: PCT/US2015/016896
Authority: WO
Inventors: John M. Ossenmacher
Original assignee: Redigi, Inc.
Priority date: 2014-02-20
Filing date: 2015-02-20
Publication date: 2015-08-27

Abstract

The invention provides a digital content player that presents news feeds germane to content currently being played-back, viewed or presented to a user of that player. Related aspects of the invention provide a digital data processing system that includes a server and one or more client digital data devices. The server executes a news feed server which is in communications coupling with the client digital data device over a network.. A player executing on at least one of those client digital data devices plays-back, permits viewing of and/or otherwise presents digital content-e.g., digital songs, videos, movies, electronic books, stories, articles, documents, still images, games or other digital content of the type known in the art-to a user of the respective digital data device. At the same time, the player and/or the device present to the user at least those portions of the news feed germane to that content.

Description

- TITLE -

METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR STREAMING CONTENT-GERMANE NEWS FEEDS

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of priority of United States Patent Application Serial No. 61/942,308, filed Feb. 20, 2014, assigned to the same assignee hereof, and bearing the same title hereof, the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention pertains to digital data processing and more particularly, by way of non-limiting example, to methods and systems for streaming content-germane news feeds. The invention has application, by way of non-limiting example, in enhancing the playback, viewing or other presentation ("playing") of digital content on mobile phones, portable content players, desktop computers and other digital content players.

Digital content creators, publishers, and distributors are ever looking for ways to increase their own revenues, but only begrudgingly to increase consumer satisfaction in the creative content that they sell. Take the growth of in-app and web portal advertising, for example, as discussed in US2013/013399A1 by the assignee hereof, disclosing inter alia an ad server that delivers advertisements to client devices during operation of the apps on client devices in relation to a context in which those are being used by their respective users. More generally, though gussied up for maximum eye appeal (and, therefore, revenue-generating click-throughs), rarely are advertisements aimed toward improving enjoyment of consumed content. Indeed, while a boon to marketers, advertising is rarely welcomed by users. One aim of this invention is to change the equation in that regard.

A related aim is to provide improved methods and systems of digital data processing. A further related aim is to provide such methods and systems as improve consumer enjoyment of content consumed on mobile phones, portable content players, desktop computers and other digital data devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The foregoing are among the objects attained by the invention, which provides in some aspects a digital content player that presents news feeds germane to content currently being played-back, viewed or otherwise presented to a user of that player.

Related aspects of the invention provide a digital data system that includes a server and one or more client digital data devices. The server executes a news feed server which is in communications coupling with the client digital data device(s), e.g., over the Internet or other network. A player executing on at least one of those client digital data devices plays-back, permits viewing of and/or otherwise presents (collectively, "plays") digital content— e.g., digital songs, videos, movies, electronic books, stories, articles, documents, still images, games or other digital content of the type known in the art— to a user of the respective digital data device. At the same time, the player and/or the device presents to the user news feed germane to that content.

Related aspects of the invention provide a digital data system and/or a digital data device, e.g., one or both as described above, in which the germane news feed presented by the player and/or respective device on which it is executing comprises news items pertaining to any of an actor, author, artist, composer, director, performer, or other person or entity creatively involved in creation of the digital content that is being played at the same time by the player.

Other related aspects of the invention provide such a digital data system and/or digital data device in which the germane news feed comprises news items pertaining to any of a distributor, producer, publisher, retailer or other person or entity involved in publication and/or distribution of the digital content that is being played at the same time by the player.

Related aspects of the invention provide a digital data system, e.g., as described above, in which the server streams digital content to at least one such client device for play thereby to the user concurrently (or substantially concurrently) with receipt of that streamed content by that client digital data device. The server can, according to further related aspects of the invention, transmit to such client digital data device, along with the streamed digital content, news feed germane thereto. In related aspects, functions attributed here to a single server can be divided among two or more such devices, e.g., one that streams digital content to such client digital data device and another which transmits the news feed thereto.

Other aspects of the invention provide a digital data system having a server and one or more digital data devices, e.g., as described above, wherein at least one such digital data device receives such news feed from an external source (e.g., a server) and presents at least portions of the news feed to the user along with digital content to which that news feed is germane.

In related aspects of the invention, such a digital data device that transmits to the external source (e.g., the server) an indication of any of current or upcoming digital content to be played by the player to the user of the device.

In other related aspects of the invention, such a digital data device filters the news feed from the external source (e.g., the server) to present to the user that portion germane to the digital content currently being played to the user.

The foregoing and other aspects of the invention are evident in the drawings and in the text below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the invention may be attained by reference to the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 depicts a digital system and client digital data devices according to one practice of the invention;

Figures 2 and 3 depict operation of the system and devices of Figure 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Figure 1 depicts a digital data system 10 of the type in which the invention may be practiced. This includes a server 18 that is coupled to client digital data devices 12, 14 via the

Internet, a wide area network (WAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), local area network (LAN), telephone networks and/or a combination of these and other networks (wired, wireless, public, private or otherwise)— all indicated here by the network element 16.

The illustrated client digital data devices 12, 14 are conventional desktop computers, workstations, minicomputers, laptop computers, tablet computers, PDAs, digital radios, , MP3 player, gameboys, play- stations or or other digital data apparatus of the type that are commercially available in the marketplace and that are suitable for operation in the illustrated system as described herein, all as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof. Here, those client digital data devices are of the type and configuration used by consumers; in other embodiments, they may be of other configurations.

The client digital data devices 12, 14 comprise central processing, memory, storage and input/output subunits and other constituent components (not shown) of the type conventional in the art of the aforementioned devices that are configured to execute digital content player applications 12a, 14a, respectively.

These applications may be for playing digital songs, videos, movies, electronic books, stories, articles, documents, still images, games or other digital content of the type known in the art, as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof. Thus, for example, as illustrated with respect to device 14, in some embodiments, such an application can be adapted for generating and transmitting to an external device such as server 18 an identification (i.d.) of a digital content piece that is currently being played by that application to the user of the respective device.

Although only one such application 12a, 14a is shown per device 12, 14 for sake of simplicity, in practice multiple such applications may be provided on those devices, each for one or more respective types of content. Moreover, though illustrated apps 12a, 14a are of the stand-alone variety, they may instead (or in addition) comprise web applications suitable for execution within a browser or otherwise.

The central processing, memory, storage and input/output units of client digital data devices 12, 14 may be configured to form and/or may be supplemented by other elements of the type known in the art desirable or necessary to support applications 12a, 14a, respectively, in accord with the teachings hereof, as well as to support other operations of the client digital data devices 12, 14. These can include, by way of non-limiting example, peripheral devices (such as touch screens, displays, keyboards, mice, etc.), operating systems, database management systems, and network interface cards and software, e.g., for supporting communications with server 18 and other devices over network 16.

Client digital data devices 12, 14 may differ in architecture and operation from that shown and described here and/or from each other, all consistent with the teachings hereof. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, client device 12 and its respective player 12a are configured to play digital content pieces streamed from server 18. Conversely, client device 14 and its respective player 14a are configured to play digital content pieces from an integral or attached store 14b. Those content pieces (in store 14b) may be ones previously downloaded from server 18, transferred from an attached CD player or other external device via an input/output subunit of device 14, or otherwise. In practice, client devices 12, 14 in many embodiments are capable of playing both streamed content (as in the case of device 12) and already- stored content (as in the case of device 14).

Like client digital data devices 12, 14, server 18 is a digital data processing apparatus of the type commercially available in the marketplace suitable for operation in the illustrated system as described herein, as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof. Though server

18 is typically implemented in a server-class computer, such as a minicomputer, it may also be implemented in a desktop computer, workstation, laptop computer, tablet computer, PDA, MP3 player, game player, play- station or other suitable apparatus (again, as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof).

Server 18, too, comprises central processing, memory, storage and input/output subunits and other constituent components (not shown) of the type conventional in the art that execute software comprising a digital content server 18a and a news server 18b. Construction of those servers 18a, 18b will be evident to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of their respective operations as discussed below.

Digital content server 18a, which is absent from some embodiments of the invention, comprises conventional functionality of the type known in the art suitable for serving digital content to client devices, 12, 14. In some embodiments, that server 18a can be adapted for transmitting to the news server 18b an identification (i.d.) of a digital content piece that is currently being streamed to (or is otherwise being played or about to be played by) one of the client digital data device players 12a, 14a. Such i.d.'s can be unique identifications, e.g., assigned to each content piece downloaded by the server 18a to the respective client devices 12, 14 or, by way of further example, created by hashing and/or concatenating one or more metadata associated with each content piece.

Content served by server 18a may be in the form of files, e.g., downloadable MP3, MP4, EBOOK, PDF or other digital content files, and/or in the form of streamed content, again, both forms of the type known in the art as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof. Depending upon the embodiment, that digital content may be one or more of digital songs, videos, movies, electronic books, stories, articles, documents, still images, games or other digital content of the type known in the art, as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof.

The serving of such apps and streams by content server 18a can be at the request of apps 12a, 14a, at the behest of the operator of server 18, or otherwise, again, in a conventional manner known in the art, as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof. And, this can be at random and/or predefined intervals or otherwise, again, in a conventional manner known in the art, as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof. Each digital content piece (e.g., each song, video, movie, etc.) playable on the client devices 12, 14 is otherwise associated with metadata describing the piece That metadata can be stored in whole or in part with the respective content pieces themselves, e.g., in embodiments where a digital content server 18a is present and stores MP3, MP4, EBOOK, PDF, or other digital files that support internal metadata. Alternatively, or in addition, that metadata can be stored in a database 18c— which, although shown here as local to device 18, can be remote or can be supplanted, in whole or in part, by an external metadata feed.

Regardless, the metadata can include one or more (and, preferably, more) of the following, by way of non-limiting example, for each content piece: titles of the piece and any work(s) of which it is a part; names of actors, authors, artists, composers, directors, performers, and/or other persons or entities creatively involved in creation of the content piece; names of distributors, producers, publishers, retailers and/or other persons or entities involved in publication and/or distribution of the piece; keywords and/or other information for use in identifying news germane to the content piece. In the illustrated embodiment, the digital content metadata is indexed by the i.d. of the respective digital content piece themselves, though, other embodiments may vary in this regard.

News server 18b comprises software (or other programmable and/or configurable technology) suitable for feeding items of news to client devices 12, 14. This may in the form of files and/or it may be streamed, moreover it may be in structured or unstructured formats, e.g., text, comma-delimited, XML, and/or it may be in accord with one or more public and/or proprietary protocols, e.g., RSS or otherwise. In many embodiments, the news feeds (that is, the news items) delivered by server 18b comprises headlines, though, it may also include one or more of the following, instead or in addition: bylines, publication, dates, summaries, keywords, hypertext or other links, opening word(s)/sentence(s)/paragraph(s) of news article, and/or complete articles.

The news server 18b can include a database (not shown) of current— and, in some embodiments, past— news items. That database can be populated with news items from manual or other input provided by news reporters, editors and others (not shown); though, more typically, it is populated from content received in real-time, batch or otherwise from news bureaus such as AP, Bloomberg, and so forth. The database can be local to or remote from server 18, and it can be supplanted, in whole or in part, by an external news item feed.

As with the digital content pieces, each item of news feed (e.g., each article, headline, and so forth) can be associated with metadata describing aspects of that item of news feed. That metadata can form parts of the items themselves, e.g., as in the case of items that are maintained in PDF, EBOOK, and other structured format. Alternatively, or in addition, it can be stored in a news items metadata database 18d local to server 18b, or otherwise.

Regardless, the news item metadata (in embodiments in which it is included) can include identifiers (e.g., names, nicknames, stage names, etc.) of persons, places and/or things who are the subject of and/or mentioned in the respective news items, as well as current and former affiliates and/or endeavors thereof. The latter can include, for example, names of current or former spouses, lovers, etc., names of current and former bands (in the case of pop musicians), names of prior creative works (prior movies, plays, books, albums, etc.), and so forth, all by way of non-limiting example.

In embodiments which include such news item metadata, it can be that metadata against which metadata of currently playing digital content is matched (e.g., in addition to the content of the news item itself) in order to determine whether a given news item is germane to that content. It will, hence, be appreciated by those skilled in the art that other embodiments may vary in regard to the makeup of the news items metadata. In the illustrated embodiment, the news item metadata is preferably indexed and/or otherwise searchable by any of the metadata fields, e.g., so as to facilitate such matching, though other embodiments may vary in this regard.

In embodiments in which the news item metadata is stored in a database 18d, a news item identifier can be supplied with each metadatum or record of metadata in order to facilitate retrieval of news items, once their metadata has been matched. The news server 18b can be coupled, directly or indirectly, to the digital content server and/or the players 12a, 14a for purposes of receiving or otherwise obtaining information on digital content being streamed to and/or playing (or to be played) on devices 12, 14, respectively.

Although only a single server 18 is depicted and described here, it will be appreciated that other embodiments may have greater or fewer numbers of these devices, and that the functionality of the digital content server 18a (if any) and news server 18b may be distributed as between them, all by way of non-limiting example. Those other servers may differ in architecture and operation from that shown and described here and/or from each other, all consistent with the teachings hereof. Still further, although server 18 of the illustrated embodiment is depicted as being remotely disposed from the client digital data devices 12, 14, in other embodiments, one or more of the client devices may be disposed in vicinity of the server and, indeed, may be co-housed with it.

Operation

Figure 2 depicts operation of the illustrated system 10 according to some practices of the invention, specifically, presentation on device 12 of news items germane to digital content that is currently being streamed to and played on that device.

In step 20, the device 12 and particularly, for example, player 12a transmits, via network 16, a request to digital content server 18a for streaming of a piece of digital content. In the illustrated embodiment, that request includes the i.d. of that content piece, e.g., returned as a parameter of an HTTP request, a remote procedure call, or a remote message, all by way of example, issued by player 12a to server 18; however, in other embodiments, the content piece to be streamed can be specified otherwise.

In step 22, the digital content server 18a retrieves metadata for the content piece from database 18c (and/or from the the digital content pieces itself) and supplies it (or a reference thereto) to news feed server 18b. Retrieval can be based on the i.d. supplied with the client request or otherwise.

In steps 24 and 26, the digital content server 18a begins streaming the requested content piece to the device 12, which "plays" it via player 12a.

In step 28, which can be concurrent with any of steps 24 and 26, the news feed server 18b searches its news items database for items germane to the currently streaming digital content piece. It does this by matching the metadata supplied in step 22 against the news item database and/or the news item metadata database. Matching can be done by performing text searching within those databases and retrieving, for feed to the client device 12, the corresponding matching news items.

Depending on default or other settings (e.g., made by the administrator of server 18b, requested by the user of device 12, the creator and/or distributor of the streamed content, or otherwise), these germane news items can be news items pertaining to

• an actor, author, artist, composer, director, performer, and/or other person or entity creatively involved in creation of the content piece being streamed to and played by device 12,

• a distributor, producer, publisher, retailer and/or other person or entity involved in publication and/or distribution of that content piece, and/or

• otherwise germane to that content piece.

In order to tighten the degree of "germaneness," the matching performed in step 28 can be by exact text searches, though, preferably, "fuzzy" searches of the type known in the art are applied. And, although, in some embodiments, the news feed server 18b retrieves each news item for which there is at least one match, other embodiments may require multiple matches and/or may weight matches differently. In this latter regard, for example, the news feed server 18b may retrieve for feed to the client device 12 each news item for which an artist name supplied in the content piece metadata matches against a specific news item and/or its metadata, the server 18b may require additional matches for other content piece metadata fields (e.g., title of work and publisher name, etc.). Still other embodiments may use alternate mechanisms to match the content piece metadata supplied in step 22 against the news items and/or their metadata in order to discern news items germane to the currently streaming content piece.

In step 30, the news feed server 18b sends to device 12 news items matched in step 28— i.e., news items germane to the content piece currently being streamed to and played by that device's player 12a.

In step 32, the player 12a presents those news items upon receipt and, particularly, while playing the streamed content to which they pertain. Such presentation can be by way of visual display, e.g., on touch screens, LED displays, monitors or other output peripherals integral or attached to the respective devices. Alternatively, or in addition, such presentation can be aural, e.g., by way of conversion, if necessary, of textual news feeds to synthesized voice (in the conventional manner known in the art as adapted in accord with the teachings hereof) that is played back over earphones or speakers that are integral or attached to the respective devices.

Figure 3 depicts a variant of the operation of illustrated system 10, specifically, where the client digital data device, here, by way of example, device 14 and, specifically, player 14a thereof, presents news items germane to non-streamed digital content that is being played on that device. The operations in this regard are identical to those described above, as indicated by use of like step designations, except insofar as the following.

In step 20', device 14 and/or player 14a responds to a request from the user of device 14 to play a digital content piece contained on store 14b of device 14 by transmitting the i.d. of that content piece to server 18b, e.g., via a remote procedure call, remote messaging or oth- erwise. In other embodiment, other metadata from which the piece can be identified is sent instead or in addition to the content piece.

In step 22', the digital content server 18b retrieves metadata for the content piece from database 18c based on the i.d. supplied by the client digital data device 14 or otherwise.

Operation of the mode depicted in Figure 3 proceeds as described above in connection with Figure 2, other than for absent step 24.

In the embodiments of Figures 1 - 3, the news feed server 18b filters the news items in its news item database (and/or available via external feeds) by matching digital content piece metadata against news items and/or their metadata— and, more specifically, here, by searching the available news items using the content piece metadata.

In other embodiments, such filtering is performed by the client devices 12 and/or 14 themselves and specifically, for example, by their respective players 12a, 14a or other software components operating in connection therewith.

Specifically, the players 12a, 14a (or other components) of those embodiments incorporate functionality similar to that attributed above to the news server 18b of server 18. Instead of receiving notification of the current digital content piece via network 16 and/or content server 18a, however, that functionality receives the content i.d. (or other such metadata) from the respective local player 12a, 14a. And, though that functionality can incorporate a database of news items populated by news reporters, editors, real-time, batch or other from news bureaus, etc., in the illustrated embodiment it filters the news items from among those supplied by server 18b— which, unlike the embodiments discussed above, transmits unfiltered (or less specifically filtered) news items to the client digital data devices 12, 14.

Described above are systems and method meeting the desired objects, among others. It will be appreciated that the embodiments illustrated and described herein are merely exam- pies of the invention and that other embodiments, incorporating changes thereto, fall within the scope of the invention.

Claims

CLAIMS In view of the foregoing, what I claim is:

1. A digital content player that presents news feeds germane to content currently being played-back, viewed or otherwise presented to a user of that player.

2. A digital data system that includes

A. a server digital data device and one or more client digital data devices,

B. the server digital data device executes a news feed server which is in communications coupling with the client digital data device(s), e.g., over the Internet or other network,

C. a player executing on at least one of those client digital data devices plays-back, permits viewing of and/or otherwise presents (collectively, "plays") digital content— e.g., digital songs, videos, movies, electronic books, stories, articles, documents, still images, games or other digital content of the type known in the art— to a user of the respective digital data device, and at the same time, the player and/or the client digital data device presents to the user news feed germane to that content.

3. A digital data system and/or a digital data device according to claim 2 in which the germane news feed presented by the player and/or respective device on which it is executing comprises news items pertaining to any of an actor, author, artist, composer, director, performer, or other person or entity creatively involved in creation of the digital content that is being played at the same time by the player.

4. A digital data system and/or digital data device according to any of claims 2 and 3 in which the germane news feed comprises news items pertaining to any of a distributor, producer, publisher, retailer or other person or entity involved in publication and/or distribution of the digital content that is being played at the same time by the player.

5. A digital data system according to claim 4 in which the server streams digital content to at least one such client device for play thereby to the user concurrently (or substantially concurrently) with receipt of that streamed content by that client digital data device.

6. A digital data system according to claim 5 in which the server can transmit to such client digital data device, along with the streamed digital content, news feed germane thereto.

7. A digital data system according to claim 6, in which functions attributed here to a single server can be divided among two or more such devices, e.g., one that streams digital content to such client digital data device and another which transmits the news feed thereto.

8. A digital data system comprising,

A. a server and one or more digital data devices,

B. wherein at least one such digital data device receives such news feed from an external source (e.g., a server) and presents at least portions of the news feed to the user along with digital content to which that news feed is germane.

9. A digital data device that transmits to the external source (e.g., a server digital data device as described above) an indication of any of current or upcoming digital content to be played by the player to the user of the device.

10. A digital data device of claim 9, that filters the news feed from the external source (e.g., the server) to present to the user that portion germane to the digital content currently being played to the user.

11. Method of operating digital content players, digital data systems and digital data devices as described above.