METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCTS FOR FACILITATING INTERACTIVE PROGRAMMING SERVICES

• US 20070240183A1
• Filed: 04/05/2006
• Published: 10/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Pederson, Candace, Garbow, Zachary
• Application Number:
  US11/278,713
• Publication Number:
  US 20070240183A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/21805 enabling multiple viewpoints, e.g. using a plurality of cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44224 Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/466 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies services using the results of monitoring in broadcast systems H04H60/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4661 Deriving a combined profile for a plurality of end-users of the same client, e.g. for family members within a home user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/472 End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content end-user interfaces for retrieving video data from a database G06F16/739; network services for supporting unicast streaming H04L65/612
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/475 End-user interface for inputting end-user data, e.g. personal identification number [PIN], preference data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8227 the additional signal being at least another television signal

Abstract

A method, system, and computer program product for facilitating interactive programming services is provided. The method includes providing a selection of viewpoints for perceiving a program event. Each of the viewpoints provides a unique perspective of the program event. The viewpoints are simultaneously transmitted to a digital media system as a single programming event, which is one of a plurality of programming events that collectively form a program. The method also includes providing criteria selectable for determining which of the viewpoints to present via the digital media system, receiving at least one response to the criteria, and selecting a viewpoint to present based upon the at least one response. The method further includes presenting the program event, the program event exhibited from the selected viewpoint.

Claims

1. A method for facilitating interactive programming services, comprising:

providing a selection of viewpoints for perceiving a program event, each of the viewpoints providing a unique perspective of the program event, the viewpoints simultaneously transmitted to a digital media system as a single programming event, the single programming event comprising one of a plurality of programming events that collectively form a program;

providing criteria selectable for determining which of the viewpoints to present via the digital media system;

receiving at least one response to the criteria and selecting a viewpoint to present based upon the at least one response; and

presenting the program event, the program event exhibited from the selected viewpoint.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the criteria includes a rule that specifies a preferred viewpoint of the program event given the occurrence of a specified condition;

wherein the viewpoints include;

a fixed camera angle;

a camera view displaying an object or individual; and

a view resulting from a camera embedded in object.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the criteria includes a location-based user group preference and the determining which of the viewpoints to present includes polling a group of individuals at a location for individual viewpoint preferences, determining a most popular viewpoint based upon collective responses from the group, and selecting the most popular viewpoint for presentation.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising determining whether a percentage of individuals sharing the most popular viewpoint exceed a specified threshold;

wherein the selecting the most popular viewpoint for presentation is performed only if the percentage exceeds the specified threshold.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring activities performed by an individual with respect to manual switching of viewpoints during execution of a program;

logging the activities in a database; and

upon detecting a manual switch of viewpoint;

comparing program event data surrounding the manual switch with program event data stored in the database;

prompting the individual to create a rule for specifying automatic switching of viewpoints in future program events when, based upon the comparing, a pattern of similar manual switching activities is detected; and

applying the rule to a user profile when the individual accepts the prompt to create the rule.

15. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising instructions for implementing:

monitoring activities performed by an individual with respect to manual switching of viewpoints during execution of a program;

logging the activities in a database; and

upon detecting a manual switch of viewpoint;

comparing program event data surrounding the manual switch with program event data stored in the database;

prompting the individual to create a rule for specifying automatic switching of viewpoints in future program events when, based upon the comparing, a pattern of similar manual switching activities is detected; and

applying the rule to a user profile when the individual accepts the prompt to create the rule.

6. A system for facilitating interactive programming services, comprising:

a digital media system;

a viewpoint control application executing on the digital media system, performing;

providing a selection of viewpoints for perceiving a program event, each of the viewpoints providing a unique perspective of the program event, the viewpoints simultaneously received at the digital media system as a single programming event, the single programming event comprising one of a plurality of programming events that collectively form a program;

providing criteria selectable for determining which of the viewpoints to present via the digital media system;

receiving at least one response to the criteria and selecting a viewpoint to present based upon the at least one response; and

presenting the program event, the program event exhibited from the selected viewpoint.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the criteria includes a rule that specifies a preferred viewpoint of the program event given the occurrence of a specified condition;

wherein the viewpoints include;

a fixed camera angle;

a camera view displaying an object or individual; and

a view resulting from a camera embedded in object.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the criteria includes a location-based user group preference and the determining which of the viewpoints to present includes polling a group of individuals at a location for individual viewpoint preferences, determining a most popular viewpoint based upon collective responses from the group, and selecting the most popular viewpoint for presentation.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the viewpoint control application further performs:

determining whether a percentage of individuals sharing the most popular viewpoint exceed a specified threshold;

wherein the selecting the most popular viewpoint for presentation is performed only if the percentage exceeds the specified threshold.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the viewpoint control application further performs:

monitoring activities performed by an individual with respect to manual switching of viewpoints during execution of a program;

logging the activities in a database; and

upon detecting a manual switch of viewpoint;

comparing program event data surrounding the manual switch with program event data stored in the database;

prompting the individual to create a rule for specifying automatic switching of viewpoints in future program events when, based upon the comparing, a pattern of similar manual switching activities is detected; and

applying the rule to a user profile when the individual accepts the prompt to create the rule.

11. A computer program product for facilitating interactive programming services, the computer program product including instructions for implementing a method, comprising:

providing a selection of viewpoints for perceiving a program event, each of the viewpoints providing a unique perspective of the program event, the viewpoints simultaneously transmitted to a digital media system as a single programming event, the single programming event comprising one of a plurality of programming events that collectively form a program;

providing criteria selectable for determining which of the viewpoints to present via the digital media system;

receiving at least one response to the criteria and selecting a viewpoint to present based upon the at least one response; and

presenting the program event, the program event exhibited from the selected viewpoint.

12. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the criteria includes a rule that specifies a preferred viewpoint of the program event given the occurrence of a specified condition;

wherein the viewpoints include;

a fixed camera angle;

a camera view displaying an object or individual; and

a view resulting from a camera embedded in object.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the criteria includes a location-based user group preference and the determining which of the viewpoints to present includes polling a group of individuals at a location for individual viewpoint preferences, determining a most popular viewpoint based upon collective responses from the group, and selecting the most popular viewpoint for presentation.

14. The computer program product of claim 13, further comprising instructions for implementing:

determining whether a percentage of individuals sharing the most popular viewpoint exceed a specified threshold;

wherein the selecting the most popular viewpoint for presentation is performed only if the percentage exceeds the specified threshold.