System permitting the display of video or still image content on selected displays of an electronic display network according to customer dictates

• US 20020162113A1
• Filed: 04/29/2002
• Published: 10/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Charles Eric Hunter
• Original Assignee: Novus Partners LLC
• Inventors: Hunter, Charles Eric
• Granted Patent: US 7,895,088 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/87
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0227 Frequent usage incentive value reconciliation between diverse systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26258 for generating a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlist, or scheduling item distribution according to such list retrieval of multimedia data based on playlists G06F16/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41415 involving a public display, viewable by several users in a public space outside their home, e.g. movie theatre, information kiosk
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8153 comprising still images, e.g. texture, background image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Commercial advertisers, such as consumer product companies and the advertising agents that represent them, directly access a network of thousands of large, high resolution electronic displays located in high traffic areas and directly send their own advertisements electronically to the network to be displayed at locations and times selected by the advertisers. In another application, operators of digital movie theaters have ongoing, continuous access to tens of thousands of movies that can be ordered in digital form for display on selected screens at their theaters at selected times.

Claims

1. A system permitting video or still image content to be displayed on selected ones of multiple electronic displays at selected times according to the dictates of system customers, said system comprising:

a network connecting to a plurality of electronic displays;

at least one central information processing station including;

a customer interface permitting system customers to access the system;

means permitting system customers to review options concerning their orders;

means permitting a system customer to place an order for a particular video or still image content to be displayed on a particular electronic display of the network;

means for transmitting customer-ordered video or still image content to the customer-selected electronic display location; and

means for driving each electronic display to display customer-ordered video or still image content.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the electronic displays are located in outdoor or indoor high traffic areas primarily for advertising purposes, the video or still image content comprises advertising content and the central information processing station includes means for receiving customer-transmitted video or still image advertising content.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the electronic displays are electronic movie display devices located in movie theaters, the video or still image content comprises movies in digital form and the system customers comprise movie theater operators.

4. A system for the distribution of movies owned by content providers and for display of the movies in digital movie theaters according to the dictates of movie theater operators who are the customers of the system, said system comprising:

a network connecting to a plurality of electronic movie display devices located in movie theaters;

at least one central information processing station including;

a customer interface permitting system customers to access the system;

means permitting a system customer to review movies that are available in digital form to the customer;

means permitting a system customer to schedule and purchase a movie for display on a particular electronic movie display device located at the customer'"'"'s movie theater; and

means for transmitting a customer-ordered movie in digital form to the customer'"'"'s movie theater location.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the electronic movie display devices are selected from the group consisting of LED displays, LCD shutter-type screens, digital light processing systems and reflective LCD displays.

6. The system of claim 4 including means for generating bills to customers.

7. The system of claim 4 including means for generating royalty payment information for use in paying the content providers for use of their content.

8. The system of claim 4 wherein the system includes at least one receiver and at least one server for each customer'"'"'s movie theater location.

9. The system of claim 4 wherein said means for transmitting a customer-ordered movie in digital form to the customer'"'"'s movie theater includes a satellite downlink at each customer'"'"'s movie theater location.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein the movies are transmitted in encoded digital form and the satellite downlink includes a decoder protecting against piracy.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the movies are transmitted in non-real time.

12. The system of claim 4 wherein said central information processing station includes a customer interface web server permitting Internet access to the system.

13. A method for distribution of movies owned by content providers and for display of the movies in digital movie theaters according to the dictates of movie theater operators who are the customers, said method comprising the steps of:

permitting customers to review movies that are available in digital form to the customers;

permitting a customer to schedule and purchase a movie for display on a particular electronic movie display device located at the customer'"'"'s movie theater; and

transmitting a customer-ordered movie in digital form to the customer'"'"'s movie theater location.