System and method for enhancing user search results by determining a streaming media program currently being displayed in proximity to an electronic device

• US 10,114,895 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2014
• Issued: 10/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Maddison, Kyle, Kirillov, Roman
• Primary Examiner(s): Rabovianski, Jivka
• Application Number:
  US14/455,776
• Publication Number:
  US 20140351234A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,544 Days
• Field of Search: 725 37, 725 40, 725 46, 725 48, 725 53
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/70 of video data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9032 Query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90328 using search space presentation or visualization, e.g. category or range presentation and selection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4524 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; systems specially adapted for using geographical information in broadcast systems H04H60/70; protocols in which the network application is adapted for the location of the user terminal in communication control or processing H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739

Abstract

A method receives a search query from a user device during a time window and accesses a repository of streaming media related information to determine one or more streaming media programs available to the user device during the time window. The method identifies a first set of categories associated with the received search query and identifies a respective program-specific set of categories associated with each of the respective available streaming media programs. The method compares the first set of categories to each respective program-specific set of categories to infer that a first streaming media program is being displayed in proximity to the user device. The method modifies the search query based on adding search terms from the streaming media related information corresponding to the first streaming media program. The method identifies search results corresponding to the modified search query and returns the search results to the user device.

Claims

1. A method for enhancing search queries related to streaming multimedia, the method comprising:

at a server with one or more processors and memory storing programs configured for execution by the one or more processors;

receiving a search query from a first user device entered by a user during a time window;

accessing a repository of streaming multimedia related information to determine one or more streaming multimedia programs available to the first user device for watching during the time window;

identifying a first set of categories associated with the received search query;

for each streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs, identifying a respective second set of categories associated with the respective streaming multimedia program;

determining that a first streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs is being displayed on a second user device in proximity to the first user device by comparing the first set of categories to each second set of categories;

determining one or more additional search terms that are relevant to the determined first streaming multimedia program and the received search query;

modifying the received search query by adding the one or more additional search terms to the received search query;

identifying search results corresponding to the modified search query; and

causing the first user device to display the search results.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the first streaming multimedia program includes, for each streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs, generating a respective score based on comparing the first set of categories to the respective second set of categories.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the first streaming multimedia program further includes ordering the one or more streaming multimedia programs in accordance with the generated scores.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein determining the first streaming multimedia program further includes selecting a streaming multimedia program with a highest generated score as the first streaming multimedia program.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the streaming multimedia related information includes information related to program show times, channel information, program title, program description, program series information, cast information, and genre information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user device comprises one of:

a set top box; and

a smart phone.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that a first streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs is being displayed on a second user device in proximity to the first user device comprises determining that the first streaming multimedia program is being displayed within viewing or hearing range of a user of the first user device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein comparing the first set of categories to each second set of categories comprises, for each second set of categories, applying a matching function that computes a respective number of matches between categories in the first set and categories in the respective second set.

9. A server system for enhancing search queries related to streaming multimedia, comprising:

one or more processors;

memory; and

one or more programs stored in the memory configured for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more programs comprising instructions for;

receiving a search query from a first user device entered by a user during a time window;

accessing a repository of streaming multimedia related information to determine one or more streaming multimedia programs available to the first user device for watching during the time window;

identifying a first set of categories associated with the received search query;

for each streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs, identifying a respective second set of categories associated with the respective streaming multimedia program;

determining that a first streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs is being displayed on a second user device in proximity to the first user device by comparing the first set of categories to each second set of categories;

determining one or more additional search terms that are relevant to the determined first streaming multimedia program and the received search query;

modifying the received search query by adding the one or more additional search terms to the received search query;

identifying search results corresponding to the modified search query; and

causing the first user device to display the search results.

10. The server system of claim 9, wherein the instructions for determining the first streaming multimedia program include instructions for generating a respective score for each streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs based on comparing the first set of categories to the respective second set of categories.

11. The server system of claim 10, wherein the instructions for determining the first streaming multimedia program include instructions for ordering the one or more streaming multimedia programs in accordance with the generated scores.

12. The server system of claim 11, wherein the instructions for determining the first streaming multimedia program further include instructions for selecting a streaming multimedia program with a highest generated score as the first streaming multimedia program.

13. The server system of claim 9, wherein the streaming multimedia related information includes information related to program show times, channel information, program title, program description, program series information, cast information, and genre information.

14. The server system of claim 9, wherein the first user device comprises one of:

a set top box; and

a smart phone.

15. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs configured for execution by a server system having one or more processors and memory, the one or more programs comprising instructions for:

receiving a search query from a first user device entered by a user during a time window;

accessing a repository of streaming multimedia related information to determine one or more streaming multimedia programs available to the first user device for watching during the time window;

identifying a first set of categories associated with the received search query;

for each streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs, identifying a respective second set of categories associated with the respective streaming multimedia program;

determining that a first streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs is being displayed on a second user device in proximity to the first user device by comparing the first set of categories to each second set of categories;

determining one or more additional search terms that are relevant to the determined first streaming multimedia program and the received search query;

modifying the received search query by adding the one or more additional search terms to the received search query;

identifying search results corresponding to the modified search query; and

causing the first user device to display the search results.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions for determining the first streaming multimedia program include instructions for generating a respective score for each streaming multimedia program of the one or more streaming multimedia programs based on comparing the first set of categories to the respective second set of categories.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions for determining the first streaming multimedia program include instructions for ordering the one or more streaming multimedia programs in accordance with the generated scores.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the instructions for determining the first streaming multimedia program further include instructions for selecting a streaming multimedia program with a highest generated score as the first streaming multimedia program.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the streaming multimedia related information includes information related to program show times, channel information, program title, program description, program series information, cast information, and genre information.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the first user device comprises one of:

a set top box; and

a smart phone.