Providing a program listing

• US 10,542,322 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2018
• Issued: 01/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Jayaram, Ranjith
• Primary Examiner(s): Saltarelli, Dominic D
• Application Number:
  US15/969,321
• Publication Number:
  US 20180255365A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• Field of Search: 725 44, 725 46, 725 47
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2408 Monitoring of the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. client requests monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876; scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44226 on social networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4826 using recommendation lists, e.g. of programs or channels sorted out according to their score
• 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

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing a program listing include storing user profile data and a user identifier for a user; storing an association of the user identifier with user identifiers for each of the plurality of social contacts of the user; receiving program identifier data representing programs currently being viewed by the social contacts; ranking the program identifier data for each of the plurality of social contacts based at least in part on the user profile data; and sending display data representing the program identifier data for display in an order based on the ranking.

Claims

1. A method for providing displays of media content consumed by a plurality of social contacts of a user, the method comprising:

receiving, using a hardware processor, content identifier data representing media content items indicated as being consumed by the plurality of social contacts associated with a user, wherein each of the content identifier data was automatically generated in response one of the plurality of social contacts consuming at least a portion of one of the media content items;

receiving, from a plurality of sharing applications that are each associated with one of the plurality of social contacts, an indication to share consumption of one or more of the plurality of media content items with a user account of the user; and

providing, using the hardware processor, display data in a multi-pane display, wherein the multi-pane display presents, in a first pane, a plurality of media content items which have each been shared with the user by one or more of the plurality of social contacts using the plurality of sharing applications, wherein each of the plurality of media content items corresponds to one of the media content items in the content identifier data.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a user identifier associated with the user; and

determining an association of the user identifier with user identifiers for each of the plurality of social contacts of the user.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein providing the display data further comprises presenting the display data along with a plurality of the content identifier data to the user, wherein the display data is configured to align each of the plurality of content identifier data with one of the plurality of user identifiers of one of the plurality of social contacts that is currently consuming, or has previously consumed, the media content item associated with the content identifier.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising annotating each of the plurality of media content items in the first pane of the multi-pane display with information indicating which social contacts from the plurality of social contacts are currently consuming that media content item.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising annotating each of the plurality of programs in the first pane of the multi-pane display with information indicating which social contacts from the plurality of social contacts previously consumed that media content item.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request to select a media content item from the plurality of media content items being presented within the multi-pane display;

determining whether the user account has access to a content source that provides the selected media content item; and

causing audio data corresponding to the selected media content item to be presented.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of media content items is presented with an alternative media content item to consume that was shared by one of the plurality of social contacts.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving feedback from one of the plurality of social contacts, wherein the feedback comprises an electronic message relating to a program being viewed by one of the plurality of social contacts.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-pane display presents simultaneous media streams of the media content item of the media content items.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from the user to set up a pane arrangement in the multi-pane display;

in response to receiving the request, receiving a selection of a first social contact from the plurality of social contacts; and

in response to receiving the selection of the first social contact from the plurality of social contacts, configuring the pane arrangement of the multi-pane display to include a second pane that includes one or more media content items that have been shared by the first social contact.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising configuring a pane arrangement of the multi-pane display to include a second pane that includes media content items that have been previously consumed by one of the plurality of social contacts and a third pane that includes media content items that are being currently consumed by one of the plurality of social contacts.

12. A system for providing displays of media content consumed by a plurality of social contacts of a user, the system comprising:

a memory; and

a hardware processor that, when executing computer executable instructions stored in the memory, is configured to;

receive content identifier data representing media content items indicated as being consumed by the plurality of social contacts associated with a user, wherein each of the content identifier data was automatically generated in response one of the plurality of social contacts consuming at least a portion of one of the media content items;

receive, from a plurality of sharing applications that are each associated with one of the plurality of social contacts, an indication to share consumption of one or more of the plurality of media content items with a user account of the user; and

provide display data in a multi-pane display, wherein the multi-pane display presents, in a first pane, a plurality of media content items which have each been shared with the user by one or more of the plurality of social contacts using the plurality of sharing applications, wherein each of the plurality of media content items corresponds to one of the media content items in the content identifier data.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to:

receive a user identifier associated with the user; and

determine an association of the user identifier with user identifiers for each of the plurality of social contacts of the user.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein providing the display data further comprises presenting the display data along with a plurality of the content identifier data to the user, wherein the display data is configured to align each of the plurality of content identifier data with one of the plurality of user identifiers of one of the plurality of social contacts that is currently consuming, or has previously consumed, the media content item associated with the content identifier.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to annotate each of the plurality of media content items in the first pane of the multi-pane display with information indicating which social contacts from the plurality of social contacts are currently consuming that media content item.

16. The system of claim 12 wherein the hardware processor is further configured to annotate each of the plurality of programs in the first pane of the multi-pane display with information indicating which social contacts from the plurality of social contacts previously consumed that media content item.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to:

receive a request to select a media content item from the plurality of media content items being presented within the multi-pane display;

determine whether the user account has access to a content source that provides the selected media content item; and

cause audio data corresponding to the selected media content item to be presented.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein at least one of the plurality of media content items is presented with an alternative media content item to consume that was shared by one of the plurality of social contacts.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to receive feedback from one of the plurality of social contacts, wherein the feedback comprises an electronic message relating to a program being viewed by one of the plurality of social contacts.

20. The system of claim 12, wherein the multi-pane display presents simultaneous media streams of the media content item of the media content items.

21. The system of claim 12, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to:

receive a request from the user to set up a pane arrangement in the multi-pane display;

in response to receiving the request, receive a selection of a first social contact from the plurality of social contacts; and

in response to receiving the selection of the first social contact from the plurality of social contacts, configure the pane arrangement of the multi-pane display to include a second pane that includes one or more media content items that have been shared by the first social contact.

22. The system of claim 12, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to configure a pane arrangement of the multi-pane display to include a second pane that includes media content items that have been previously consumed by one of the plurality of social contacts and a third pane that includes media content items that are being currently consumed by one of the plurality of social contacts.

23. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for providing displays of media content consumed by a plurality of social contacts of a user, the method comprising:

receiving content identifier data representing media content items indicated as being consumed by the plurality of social contacts associated with a user, wherein each of the content identifier data was automatically generated in response one of the plurality of social contacts consuming at least a portion of one of the media content items;

receiving, from a plurality of sharing applications that are each associated with one of the plurality of social contacts, an indication to share consumption of one or more of the plurality of media content items with a user account of the user; and

providing display data in a multi-pane display, wherein the multi-pane display presents, in a first pane, a plurality of media content items which have each been shared with the user by one or more of the plurality of social contacts using the plurality of sharing applications, wherein each of the plurality of media content items corresponds to one of the media content items in the content identifier data.