Providing extrinsic data for video content

• US 10,009,664 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2015
• Issued: 06/26/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Treder, Douglas M., Aliverti, Brent D., Brahmbhatt, Kintan D., Carlson, Adam, Dantzler, Jim L., Timmermann, Jordan M., Wilson, Brian M., Young, Kelvin C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bruckart, Benjamin R
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tien M
• Application Number:
  US14/615,950
• Publication Number:
  US 20150156562A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,236 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/236 Assembling of a multiplex stream, e.g. transport stream, by combining a video stream with other content or additional data, e.g. inserting a URL [Uniform Resource Locator] into a video stream, multiplexing software data into a video stream; Remultiplexing of multiplex streams; Insertion of stuffing bits into the multiplex stream, e.g. to obtain a constant bit-rate; Assembling of a packetised elementary stream multiplexing of data packets for data networks, e.g. RTP/UDP H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25 Management operations performed by the server for facilitating the content distribution or administrating data related to end-users or client devices, e.g. end-user or client device authentication, learning user preferences for recommending movies maintenance or administration in data networks H04L41/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47217 for controlling playback functions for recorded or on-demand content, e.g. using progress bars, mode or play-point indicators or bookmarks specific graphical features in visual interfaces H04N21/4312
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4725 using interactive regions of the image, e.g. hot spots details of information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

Disclosed are various embodiments for providing extrinsic data relevant to a video content feature. In one embodiment, where a single cast member performs as multiple characters in the video content feature, the extrinsic data may include character images for each character played by the cast member. In another embodiment, where multiple generic images of a cast member are available, a particular generic image is selected to be included in the extrinsic data according to a measure of relevancy of the generic image to the video content feature. In another embodiment, when a generic image of a cast member is unavailable, an image of the cast member in character is included in the extrinsic data.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

at least one computing device; and

at least one service executable in the at least one computing device, wherein when executed the at least one service causes the at least one computing device to at least;

determine that a plurality of generic images of a cast member of a video content feature are available, the plurality of generic images depicting the cast member out of character;

select a single generic image of the plurality of generic images that has a date nearest in time to a date of the video content feature by comparing a respective date of individual ones of the plurality of generic images with the date of the video content feature;

generate extrinsic data associated with the video content feature by retrieving data from an extrinsic content library in a data store, the extrinsic data including the single generic image or an identifier of the single generic image, and at least one of time synchronization information or scene synchronization information;

compress the extrinsic data;

receive a request to access the video content feature from a content access application executed by a client; and

in response to the request, send the extrinsic data to the content access application on the client via a network, the content access application on the client being configured to decompress the extrinsic data and to render a user interface showing the single generic image relative to a presentation of the video content feature by synchronizing the showing of the single generic image using the at least one of the time synchronization information or the scene synchronization information.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the extrinsic data that is generated indicates a plurality of cast members who perform in the video content feature, a division of the video content feature into a plurality of scenes, and a corresponding subset of the plurality of cast members who perform in individual ones of the plurality of scenes.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the cast member vocally, but not visually, performs a character in the video content feature.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the cast member visually, but not vocally, performs a character in the video content feature.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein when executed the at least one service further causes the at least one computing device to at least send a portion of the video content feature to the content access application on the client via the network.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein when executed the at least one service further causes the at least one computing device to at least:

determine that a generic image of another cast member of the video content feature is unavailable;

identify a character image of the other cast member, the character image depicting the other cast member in character; and

wherein the extrinsic data that is generated includes the character image or an identifier of the character image.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable medium embodying a program executable in at least one computing device, wherein when executed the program causes the at least one computing device to at least:

determine that a plurality of generic images of a cast member of a video content feature are available, the plurality of generic images depicting the cast member out of character;

select a single generic image of the plurality of generic images that has a date nearest in time to a date of the video content feature by comparing a respective date of individual ones of the plurality of generic images with the date of the video content feature;

generate extrinsic data associated with the video content feature by selecting data from an extrinsic content library in a data store, the extrinsic data including the single generic image or an identifier of the single generic image, and at least one of time synchronization information or scene synchronization information;

receive a request to access the video content feature from a content access application executed by a client;

compress the extrinsic data; and

in response to the request, send the extrinsic data to the content access application on the client via a network, the content access application on the client being configured to decompress the extrinsic data and to render a user interface showing the single generic image relative to a presentation of the video content feature by synchronizing the showing of the single generic image using at least one of the time synchronization information or the scene synchronization information.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the extrinsic data that is generated indicates a plurality of cast members who perform in the video content feature, a division of the video content feature into a plurality of scenes, and a corresponding subset of the plurality of cast members who perform in individual ones of the plurality of scenes.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the cast member vocally, but not visually, performs a character in the video content feature.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the cast member visually, but not vocally, performs a character in the video content feature.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein when executed the program further causes the at least one computing device to at least send at least a portion of the video content feature to the content access application on the client via the network.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the identifier comprises a uniform resource locator (URL).

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the extrinsic data that is generated includes a division of the video content feature into a plurality of scenes and associates each scene of the plurality of scenes with a respective set of characters that appear in the scene.

14. A method, comprising:

determining, by at least one computing device, that a plurality of generic images of a cast member of a video content feature are available, the plurality of generic images depicting the cast member out of character;

selecting, by the at least one computing device, a single generic image of the plurality of generic images that has a date nearest in time to a date of the video content feature by comparing a respective date of individual ones of the plurality of generic images with the date of the video content feature;

generating, by the at least one computing device, extrinsic data associated with the video content feature by selecting data from an extrinsic content library in a data store, the extrinsic data including the single generic image or an identifier of the single generic image, and at least one of time synchronization information or scene synchronization information;

receiving, by the at least one computing device, a request to access the video content feature from a content access application executed by a client;

compressing, by the at least one computing device, the extrinsic data; and

sending, by the at least one computing device, the extrinsic data to the content access application on the client via a network, the content access application on the client being configured to decompress the extrinsic data and to render a user interface showing the single generic image relative to a presentation of the video content feature by synchronizing the showing of the single generic image using at least one of the time synchronization information or the scene synchronization information.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the extrinsic data that is generated indicates a plurality of cast members who perform in the video content feature, a division of the video content feature into a plurality of scenes, and a corresponding subset of the plurality of cast members who perform in individual ones of the plurality of scenes.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the cast member vocally, but not visually, performs a character in the video content feature.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the cast member visually, but not vocally, performs a character in the video content feature.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising sending, by the at least one computing device, at least a portion of the video content feature to the content access application on the client via the network.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the identifier comprises a uniform resource locator (URL).

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the extrinsic data that is generated includes a division of the video content feature into a plurality of scenes and associates each scene of the plurality of scenes with a respective set of characters that appear in the scene.