PRESENTING SECONDARY CONTENT FOR A WAGERING GAME

• US 20100240455A1
• Filed: 10/29/2008
• Published: 09/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Original Assignee: WMS Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Wright, Tracey L., Gagner, Mark B., Grabiec, Jacek A., Schulhof, Scott H., Irby, Michael J. II
• Application Number:
  US12/741,643
• Publication Number:
  US 20100240455A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/30
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3227 Configuring a gaming machine, e.g. downloading personal settings, selecting working parameters

Abstract

Described herein are processes and devices that cause secondary content to be presented during wagering games. One of the devices described is a secondary content server. The secondary content server can obtain user related information, like user preferences, about a player of a wagering game and use the user related information to determine or generate secondary content. The secondary content server can cause the secondary content to be presented on a wagering game device or terminal. The secondary content server can determine if more than one device can present the secondary content. In some embodiments, the secondary content server presents the secondary content on a wagering game device. However, if other devices are connected to the wagering game device, the secondary content server may instead cause the secondary content to be presented on one of the other devices.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining a player identifier associated with a wagering game player;

using the player identifier to access a user account comprising one or more user preferences;

comparing the one or more user preferences to secondary content, wherein said comparing comprises analyzing the secondary content to find a correlation with the one or more user preferences, resulting in correlated secondary content;

generating control information that references the correlated secondary content; and

causing a device to process the control information to present the correlated secondary content during the wagering game.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the secondary content comprises wagering game content that is ancillary to the wagering game but that can affect the wagering game.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the secondary content comprises an advertisement.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the secondary content comprises any one or more of audio information, interactive objects, text messages, schedule information, secondary game information, side bets, and user generated content.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the secondary content comprises an object that alters characteristics based on game related information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the collection of secondary content comprises wagering game related information and a plurality of secondary content objects, and wherein said comparing comprises

analyzing the wagering game related information to find a correlation with the one or more user preferences resulting in correlated wagering game related information, and

analyzing the wagering game related information to find a correlation with one or more of the plurality of secondary content objects, resulting in one or more correlated secondary content objects.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein causing a device to process the control information comprises:

causing the device to process the control information to associate the correlated wagering game related information with the correlated secondary content object to generate a secondary content notification, and

causing the device to process the control information to present the secondary content notification in close proximity to wagering game content

8. The method of claim 1, wherein causing the device to process the control information comprises causing the device to present the secondary content as close as possible to the wagering game content without interfering with the presentation of game play elements that affect or display an outcome of the wagering game.

9. A network, comprising:

a wagering game server comprising

a primary content unit configured to control wagering game content to be presented during a wagering game,

a secondary content unit configured to determine secondary content to be presented contemporaneously with the wagering game content during the wagering game,

a user account manager configured to access a user accounts that contain user related information, and

a presentation coordinator configured to utilize the user related information to determine the secondary content; and

a wagering game client to present the wagering game content and the secondary content.

10. The network of claim 9, wherein the presentation coordinator is further configured to

compare the user related information to the secondary content, comprising analyzing the secondary content to find a correlation with the user related information, resulting in correlated secondary content;

and

generate control information that references the correlated secondary content.

11. The network of claim 9, further comprising:

a community server configured to store the user account.

12. The network of claim 9, further comprising:

an ad server configured to store the secondary content as one or more advertisements.

13. The network of claim 9, wherein the secondary content comprises content that can affect the wagering game.

14. The network of claim 9, wherein the wagering game device comprises

a primary display section configured to present any one or more of the wagering game and the secondary content, and

a secondary display section configured to display the secondary content, wherein the secondary display section is configured to be movable in relation to the primary display section.

15. A method comprising:

determining one of a plurality of a remote wagering game terminals on which wagering games are being presented;

determining secondary content to present during the wagering games;

determining a second device connected to the wagering game terminal, said second device being capable of presenting the secondary content;

determining that the second device is available to present the secondary content; and

causing the second device to present the secondary content during the wagering game.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the one of the plurality of remote wagering game terminals is connected to a docking station and the second device is a display device that is connected to or part of the docking station.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein determining secondary content to present during the wagering games comprises:

determining one or more user accounts associated with a player of the wagering game;

determining a preference setting for secondary content from the one or more user accounts; and

using the preference setting to determine the secondary content.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein determining that the second device is available comprises determining that the second device has available resources to present the secondary content.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the secondary content comprises an advertisement.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the secondary content comprises any one or more of audio information, interactive objects, text messages, schedule information, secondary game information, side bets, and user generated content.