Methods and systems for interactive gaming

• US 10,522,006 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2019
• Issued: 12/31/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ERA Sports, Inc.
• Original Assignee: ERA Sports, Inc.
• Inventors: Alexander, Erik
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Milap
• Application Number:
  US16/243,894
• Publication Number:
  US 20190213840A1
• Time in Patent Office: 356 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3276 wherein the players compete, e.g. tournament

Abstract

A computer implemented interactive gaming tournament system includes generating match content in response to a request inquiry from a user device that is associated with a user, the match content includes payment attribute information and tournament attribute information, content is generated for the user device that includes the payment attribute information and tournament attribute information. The system includes sending a request for validation to a payment service in response to an entrance request from the user device, the entrance request includes selected tournament attribute information. The system includes sending population content based on the selected tournament attribute information in response to receiving validation content from the payment service, the validation content includes confirmation that a user account associated with the user contains funds that are equal to or greater than a fee associated with the selected payment attribute information.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

submitting, over a network, from a user device that is associated with a user to a content server that includes one or more processors and a memory, a tournament request inquiry, wherein the tournament request inquiry includes information identified or entered by the user via a Graphical User Interface (GUI) on the user device;

generating, by the one or more processors, interactive gaming match content from the memory of the content server in response to receiving the tournament request inquiry from the user device, wherein the interactive gaming match content includes payment attribute information that identifies an entrance fee for each one of a number of players per team for at least one gaming match and tournament attribute information that identifies a game server and a number of team spots available for each one of the at least one gaming match, wherein the interactive gaming match content that includes the payment attribute information and the tournament attribute information is sent, over the network, by the one or more processors to the user device;

selecting, by the user, from the interactive gaming match content displayed on the GUI of the user device, the game server for one of the at least one gaming match and sending, over the network, from the user device to the content server, an entrance request that identifies the selected game server, the one of the at least one gaming match and a selected entrance fee to be paid for at least one of the each one of the number of players per team for the one of the at least one gaming match;

sending, over the network, by the one or more processors, from the content server to a third-party payment platform, a request for validation from the third-party payment platform in response to the content server receiving the entrance request from the user device; and

sending, over the network by the one or more processors, match population content from the content server to the selected game server that includes the at least one of the each one of the number of players per team in response to receiving validation content from the third-party payment platform, wherein the validation content includes confirmation that a user account associated with the user contains funds that are equal to or greater than the selected entrance fee for the at least one of the each one of the number of players per team for the one of the at least one gaming match associated with the selected game server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the tournament attribute information includes for the each one of the at least one gaming match, a payout amount.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein sending, over the network by the one or more processors, the match population content from the content server to the selected game server further comprises sending, over the network by the one or more processors, the match population content from the content server to the selected game server for the one of the at least one gaming match, via a built-in game API for the one of the at least one gaming match hosted on the selected game server, the match population content for one or more additional ones of user devices associated with one or more additional user.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein sending, over the network, by the one or more processors, from the content server to the third-party payment platform, the request for validation to the third-party payment platform further comprises the user device returning a return response over the network to the third-party payment platform in response to a request confirmation sent from the third-party payment platform over the network to the user device, wherein the return response is identified or entered by the user via the GUI on the user device, wherein the request confirmation includes the one of the at least one gaming match associated with the selected game server and serves as an acknowledgment and agreement by the user from the user device that the user is joining the one of the at least one gaming match identified by the entrance request.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising the third-party payment platform sending a response verification over the network to the content server after the third-party payment platform has received the return response from the user device which verifies the user device is joining the match identified by the entrance request.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the user device receives the interactive gaming match content over the network from the content server and sends the entrance request over the network to the content server via a cloud-based web application that is hosted by the content server.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the user device receives the interactive gaming match content over the network from the content server and sends the entrance request over the network to the content server via an application that is hosted on the user device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are hosted on one or more cloud servers that communicate with the user device via a data network that includes, but is not limited to, a wide area network (WAN), the one or more cloud servers or an intranet connection.

9. A computer program product embodied in a computer-readable storage device and comprising instructions that when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

receive, over a network, from a user device that is associated with a user by a content server that includes the processor and a memory, a tournament request inquiry, wherein the tournament request inquiry includes information identified or entered by the user via a Graphical User Interface (GUI) on the user device;

generate interactive gaming match content from the memory of the content server in response to receiving the tournament request inquiry from the user device, wherein the interactive gaming match content includes payment attribute information that identifies an entrance fee for each one of a number of players per team for at least one gaming match and tournament attribute information that identifies a game server and a number of team spots available for each one of the at least one gaming match, wherein the interactive gaming match content that includes the payment attribute information and tournament attribute information is sent, over the network, by the processor to the user device;

selecting, by the user, from the interactive gaming match content displayed on the GUI of the user device, the game server for one of the at least one gaming match and sending, over the network, from the user device to the content server, an entrance request that identifies the selected game server, the one of the at least one gaming match and a selected entrance fee to be paid for at least one of the each one of the number of players per team for the one of the at least one gaming match;

send, over the network, by the processor, from the content server to a third-party payment platform, a request for validation from the third-party payment platform in response to the content server receiving the entrance request from the user device; and

send, over the network, by the processor, match population content from the content server to the selected game match server that includes the at least one of the each one of the number of players per team in response to receiving validation content from the third-party payment platform, wherein the validation content includes confirmation that a user account associated with the user contains funds that are equal to or greater than the selected entrance fee for the at least one of the each one of the number of players per team for the one of the at least one gaming match associated with the selected game server.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the tournament attribute information includes for the each one of the at least one gaming match, a payout amount.

11. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein sending, over the network by the processor, the match population content from the content server to the selected game server further comprises sending, over the network by the processor, the march population content from the content server to the selected game server for the one of the at least one game match, via a built-in game API for the one of the at least one gaming match hosted on the selected game server, the match population content for one or more additional ones of user devices associated with one or more additional users.

12. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein sending over the network, by the processor, from the content server to the third-party payment platform, the request for validation to the third-party payment platform further comprises the user device returning a return response over the network to the third-party payment platform in response to a request confirmation sent from the third-party payment platform over the network to the user device, wherein the return response is identified or entered by the user via the GUI on the user device, wherein the request confirmation includes the one of the at least one gaming match associated with the selected game server and serves as an acknowledgment and agreement by the user from the user device that the user is joining the one of the at least one gaming match identified by the entrance request.

13. The computer program product of claim 9, further comprising the third-party payment platform sending a response verification over the network to the content server after the third-party payment platform has received the return response from the user device which verifies the user device is joining the match identified by the entrance request.

14. The computer program product of claim 9, further comprising the user device receiving the interactive gaming match content over the network from the content server and sending the entrance request over the network to the content server via a cloud-based web application that is hosted by the content server.

15. The computer program product of claim 9, further comprising the user device receiving the interactive gaming match content over the network from the content server and sending the entrance request over the network to the content server via an application that is hosted on the user device.

16. A system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memory elements including instructions that when executed cause the one or more processors to;

receive, over a network, from a user device that is associated with a user by a content server that includes the one or more processors and the one or more memory elements, a tournament request inquiry, wherein the tournament request inquiry includes information identified or entered by the user via a Graphical User Interface (GUI) on the user device;

generate interactive gaming match content from the one or more memory elements of the content server in response to receiving the tournament request inquiry from the user device, wherein the interactive gaming match content includes payment attribute information that identifies an entrance fee for each one of a number of players per team for at least one gaming match and tournament attribute information that identifies a game server and a number of team spots available for each one of the at least one gaming match, wherein the interactive gaming match content that includes the payment attribute information and tournament attribute information is sent, over the network, by the one or more processors to the user device;

selecting, by the user, from the interactive gaming match content displayed on the GUI of the user device, the game server for one of the at least one gaming match and sending, over the network, from the user device to the content server, an entrance request that identifies the selected game server, the one of the at least one gaming match and a selected entrance fee to be paid for at least one of the each one of the number of players per team for the at least one gaming match;

send, over a network, by the processor, from the content server to a third-party payment platform, a request for validation from the third-party payment platform in response to the content server receiving the entrance request from the user device; and

send, over the network, by the one or more processors, match population content from the content server to the selected game match server that includes the at least one of the each one of the number of players per team in response to receiving validation content from the third-party payment platform, wherein the validation content includes confirmation that a user account associated with the user contains funds that are equal to or greater than the selected entrance fee for the at least one of the each one of the number of players per team for the one of the at least one gaming match associated with the selected game server.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the tournament attribute information includes for the each one of the at least one gaming match, a payout amount.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein sending, over the network by the one or more processors, the match population content from the content server to the selected game server further comprises sending, over the network by the one or more processors, the match population content from the content server to the selected game server for the one of the at least one game match via a built-in game API for the one of the at least one gaming match hosted on the selected game server, the match population content for one or more additional ones of user devices associated with one or more additional users.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein sending, over the network, by the one or more processors, from the content server to the third-party payment platform, the request for validation to the third-party payment platform further comprises the user device returning a return response over the network to the third-party payment platform in response to a request confirmation sent from the third-party payment platform over the network to the user device, wherein the return response is identified or entered by the user via the GUI on the user device, wherein the request confirmation includes the one of the at least one gaming match associated with the selected game server and serves as an acknowledgment and agreement by the user from the user device that the user is joining the one of the at least one gaming match identified by the entrance request.

20. The system of claim 16, further comprising the third-party payment platform sending a response verification over the network to the content server after the third-party payment platform has received the return response from the user device which verifies the user device is joining the match identified by the entrance request.