Multiple player real-time on-line sports competition system
First Claim
1. A method for operating an on-line gaming system, comprising:
- registering with the on-line gaming system with at least one of a competitor membership, recruiter membership and distributor membership;
agreeing to requirements of at least one type of membership at a predetermined level;
performing the requirements of the at least one type of membership;
ranking the performance of the member against other members with a same type of membership at the predetermined level; and
advancing the member to a next level of membership when the ranked performance exceeds a membership threshold.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system for providing on-line sport competition in real-time. A server computer executes game playing software which is connected via a network to a plurality of player client computers. Hardware accessories at the player'"'"'s locating permit the entry of real-time playing data such as driving conditions in a race game, which are used by the game playing software executed on the server. The game playing software determines at predetermined intervals the relative performance of players playing a game, based on competition skill, which forms the basis for determining winners, and participants in future competitions. The performance information is sent to the client computers of players engaged in the game. The overall rank of each player is calculated after each competition to group players having similar skill levels and serves as entry criteria in future competitions.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. A method for operating an on-line gaming system, comprising:
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registering with the on-line gaming system with at least one of a competitor membership, recruiter membership and distributor membership;
agreeing to requirements of at least one type of membership at a predetermined level;
performing the requirements of the at least one type of membership;
ranking the performance of the member against other members with a same type of membership at the predetermined level; and
advancing the member to a next level of membership when the ranked performance exceeds a membership threshold. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A method for participating in an on-line sports competition on a computer network, comprising:
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registering as a member of an on-line sports competition organization;
installing at least one of software and hardware approved by the organization;
registering an entry for the on-line sports competition in accordance with at least one of the software and hardware requirements for at least a first level of competition;
training on the registered entry for an on-line sports competition in order to qualify for the first level of competition;
qualifying the registered entry for the first level of competition by accumulating credits from training with the registered entry;
competing at the first level of competition with the first level qualified and registered entry;
qualifying for a second level of competition by accumulating credits from racing at the first level of competition;
competing at the second level of competition with the second level qualified and registered entry;
qualifying for a third level of competition by accumulating credits from racing at the second level of competition; and
competing at the third level of competition with the third level qualified and registered entry; and
qualifying for grand prizes by accumulating credits from racing at the third level of competition, wherein the first, second and third levels of competition require progressively higher levels of skill and competitive success, the schedule for the first, second, third and higher levels of competition are pre-established, and the credits for the first, second and third levels of competition progressively increase in value. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7)
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8. A method for hosting a plurality of on-line sports competitions on a computer network, comprising;
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entering a plurality of players that are competing on a same predetermined level with one in the competition according to overall rankings of each of the plurality of players;
starting current on-line sports competitions on at least one of the different levels of the competition rankings among a plurality of similarly ranked players;
predetermining a real-time interval to report the competitive position of each player in current on-line sports competitions for each of the plurality of players;
reporting updates of the competitive position of each player to each of the plurality of players competing with one another in the current on-line sports competitions within the predetermined real-time interval; and
reporting final results of the current on-line sports competitions and updating the overall competition rankings for at least each of the plurality of players competing with one another in the current on-line sports competition at a conclusion of the current on-line sports competitions. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A system for conducting on-line sports competitions in real-time comprising:
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at least one server computer communicating over a computer network, said at least one server configured to host a plurality of players of on-line sports competitions and update competition rankings of the plurality of players in a predetermined substantially real-time interval;
at least one computer subsystem with a memory communicating over the computer network, said at least one computer subsystem with a memory configured to store data and programs for access by an application program conducting on-line sports competitions, store data on the competition performance of a plurality of players, and store data on overall rankings of each of the plurality of players; and
at least one client computer communicating over the computer network, said at least one client computer configured to interface to current on-line sports competitions provided by said server which updates the players competition performance in the predetermined real-time interval, and provides the players+ with their overall ranking with respect to other players.
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17. An apparatus for participating in on-line sports competitions in real-time comprising:
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a client computer communicating over a computer network to a server computer executing an application program for playing an interactive game, the client computer configured to interface to current on-line sports competitions that update competition performance in a predetermined substantially real-time interval; and
hardware accessories for communicating with the client computer and for playing the on-line sports competition, said hardware accessories configured to provide each of the plurality of players with a realistic interface to current on-line sports competitions. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19)
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20. An apparatus for conducting on-line sports competitions in real-time comprising:
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at least one server computer communicating over a computer network, said at least one server computer configured to host a plurality of players connected through a client computer to said computer network, said server computer having a game playing computer program for executing the steps of;
starting an on-line sports competition on at least one level representing a competition ranking of said plurality of players;
predetermining a substantial real-time interval between updates of the player performance in current on-line sports competitions for each of the plurality of players;
reporting updates of the competition to at least each of the plurality of players competing with one another within the predetermined real-time interval; and
reporting final results of the on-line competition and updating the competition rankings for each of the plurality of players competing with one another in the current on-line sports competition at a conclusion of the current on-line sports competition. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification