System and method of video player commerce

• US 20050022226A1
• Filed: 06/02/2004
• Published: 01/27/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Original Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Inventors: Ackley, Jonathan, Poole, Kathleen S., Carr, Bennet S., Carey, Christopher T.
• Granted Patent: US 8,132,210 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/23
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42646 for reading from or writing on a non-volatile solid state storage medium, e.g. DVD, CD-ROM
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• 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 21/47815 Electronic shopping payment schemes, payment architectures or payment protocols for electronic shopping systems G06Q20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8583 by creating hot-spots
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

The present disclosure provides the ability to purchase products featured in a video through use of an consumer video playback device, such as a DVD or High-Definition video player. A video disc in accordance with the present invention includes a video that is specially encoded with commands or triggers that correspond with the display of a product for advertisement or sale. The video disc may for example be a DVD, and the video may be a movie. The playback device is configured to recognize these triggers and indicate to the user that a product may be available for purchase. When a product is displayed in the video, an indicator appears on the screen which indicates to the user that this product is available for purchase.

Claims

1. A method of offering a product shown in a video for purchase, the method comprising:

providing at least one trigger with a video, the trigger corresponding to the display of a product shown in the video;

displaying an indicator when the trigger is recognized to indicate that the product displayed in the video is available for purchase; and

providing a user interface configured to allow the user to select the product for purchase.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the video is a movie.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the video is provided on a DVD.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the trigger is a time corresponding to the display of the product within the video.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the trigger is located within a separate track/stream that plays simultaneously with the video.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the trigger is encoded in the video stream.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the trigger is provided by downloading from the Internet.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the trigger is provided with the video on a DVD.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the user interface is a remote control.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing information about the product featured in the video.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the indicator is a graphic that appears over the video.

12. A method of offering a product shown in a video for purchase, the method comprising:

providing an enhanced video disc, the video disc comprising a video and at least one trigger, the trigger corresponding to the display of a product in the video;

providing a video disc player capable of reading the enhanced video disc, the video disc player comprising a processor and an internet connection; and

displaying the encoded video on the player, and displaying an indicator when the player recognizes a trigger to indicate that the product displayed in the video is available for purchase.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the video is a movie.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein the enhanced video disc is a DVD.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein the trigger is a time corresponding to the display of the product within the video.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the trigger is stored in a database table.

17. The method of claim 12 wherein the trigger is located within a separate track/stream that plays simultaneously with the video.

18. The method of claim 12 wherein the trigger is encoded in the video stream.

19. The method of claim 12 wherein the user interface is a remote control.

20. The method of claim 12 wherein the video disc further comprises information about each of the products featured in the video.

21. The method of claim 12 wherein the video disc player comprises a network connection and is capable of accessing the Internet.

22. The method of claim 12 further comprising permitting the user to purchase the product through the Internet connection.

23. A method of providing trigger data:

receiving a video disc at a video disc player;

reading the contents of the video disc;

determining if trigger data is present on the video disc;

requesting trigger data from a remote server if trigger data is not present on the video disc; and

loading the trigger data in memory of the video player for use with the video stream.

24. The system of claim 23 wherein the video disc is a DVD.

25. A method of offering a product shown in a video for purchase, comprising:

receiving a video at a video playback device;

receiving trigger data at the video playback device;

initiating a software module configured to recognize the trigger data;

loading the trigger data into the software module;

playing the video; and

displaying an indicator when a trigger is recognize, wherein the trigger indicates to a viewer that a product displayed in the video is available for purchase.

26. The method of claim 25 further comprising providing a user interface configured to allow the user to purchase the product.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein the video is received from a video disc.

28. The method of claim 25 wherein the video disc is a DVD.

29. The method of claim 25 wherein the trigger data is received from a video disc.

30. The method of claim 25 wherein the trigger data is received from the Internet.