NOTIFICATION FOR INTERACTIVE CONTENT

• US 20110072461A1
• Filed: 09/09/2010
• Published: 03/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Gamehancement LLC (Jeffrey M. Gross)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: MORLEY, D. Beau, MOON, Hannah Y.
• Application Number:
  US12/878,598
• Publication Number:
  US 20110072461A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8583 by creating hot-spots

Abstract

A system may provide a video program or information associated with the video program on a video display device, and provide an interactive content icon on the video display device. The interactive content icon may indicate that interactive content is available for the video program.

Claims

1-24. -24. (canceled)

25. A method comprising:

providing, by a device, a program guide including a plurality of entries, at least one entry, of the plurality of entries, including at least one interactive content icon visually representing at least one type of interactive content with which the at least one entry is associated, the plurality of entries identifying a plurality of programs;

filtering, by the device and based on a type of interactive content of the at least one type of interactive content, the plurality of entries to provide a filtered list of entries; and

providing, by the device, the filtered list of entries, each program, in the filtered list of entries, being associated with the type of interactive content.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

receiving information associated with a program of the filtered list of entries, the received information including tag information;

identifying, based on the tag information, the type of interactive content; and

providing an interactive content icon, with the program, corresponding to the type of interactive content, where the provided interactive content icon is based on the identified type of interactive content.

27. The method of claim 25, where at least one program, of the filtered list of entries, is associated with a plurality of types of interactive content, the plurality of types of interactive content including the type of interactive content;

and

where the method further comprises;

providing a plurality of interactive content icons, with the at least one program, corresponding to the plurality of types of interactive content.

28. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

receiving information associated with the at least one program,

where the received information associated with the provided program includes first tag information, corresponding to a first type of interactive content, of the plurality of types of interactive content, and second, different tag information corresponding to a second, different type of interactive content, of the plurality of types of interactive content; and

providing the plurality of interactive content icons based on the first tag information and the second tag information.

29. The method of claim 28, where providing the plurality of interactive content icons based on the first tag information and the second tag information comprises:

providing, based on the first tag information, a first interactive content icon, of the plurality of interactive content icons; and

providing, based on the second tag information, a second, different interactive content icon, of the plurality of interactive content icons.

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

receiving selection of a first interactive content icon of the plurality of interactive content icons;

providing, based on receiving the selection of the first interactive content icon, first interactive content corresponding to the selected first interactive content icon;

receiving selection of a second, different interactive content icon of the plurality of interactive content icons; and

providing, based on receiving the selection of the second interactive content icon, second, different interactive content corresponding to the selected second interactive content icon.

31. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

providing an interactive content icon, with a program of the filtered list of entries, corresponding to the type of interactive content;

receiving selection of the provided interactive content icon; and

providing, based on the receiving, interactive content, corresponding to the provided interactive content icon, concurrently with the program,

where the provided program is provided on a first portion of a display device, and where the provided interactive content is provided on a second, different portion of the display device.

32. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

filtering, based on a second, different type of interactive content, the filtered plurality of entries to provide a second, different filtered list of entries identifying a second, different filtered list of programs; and

providing the second filtered list of programs.

33. A device comprising:

a memory to store one or more instructions; and

a processor, to execute the one or more instructions, to;

provide a program guide including a plurality of entries, at least one entry, of the plurality of entries, including one or more interactive content icons visually representing one or more types of interactive content with which the at least one entry is associated, the plurality of entries identifying a plurality of programs,

detect selection of one type of interactive content, of the one or more types of interactive content,

filter, based on the detected selection, the plurality of entries to provide a filtered list of entries associated with the one type of interactive content, and

provide one or more programs, of the plurality of programs, corresponding to the filtered list of entries, each program, of the provided one or more programs, being associated with the one type of interactive content.

34. The device of claim 33, where the processor is further to:

provide an interactive content icon, with a provided program of the provided one or more programs, corresponding to a type of interactive content of the one or more types of interactive content, where the type of interactive content corresponds to one of an item for purchase, a service for purchase, or media content for purchase,

receive selection of the provided interactive content icon, and

provide, based on the selected interactive content icon and with the provided program, interactive content corresponding to the one of the item for purchase, the service for purchase, or the media content for purchase.

35. The device of claim 33, where, when providing the one or more programs, the processor is to:

provide a first program, of the provided one or more programs, associated with the one type of interactive content, with a first interactive content icon corresponding to the one type of interactive content, and

provide a second, different program, of the provided one or more programs, associated with the one type of interactive content, with a second interactive content icon corresponding to the one type of interactive icon.

36. The device of claim 35, where the processor is further to:

receive selection of the provided first interactive content icon,

provide, based on the received selection of the provided first interactive content icon, first interactive content in a first format,

receive selection of the provided second interactive content icon, and

provide, based on the received selection of the provided second interactive content icon, second interactive content in a second, different format.

37. The device of claim 33, where the processor is further to:

receive information associated with a provided program of the provided one or more programs,

where the received information includes metadata associated with the provided program, the metadata including tag information corresponding to the one type of interactive content,

identify, based on the tag information, the one type of interactive content, and

provide, based on the identified one type of interactive content, an interactive content icon, of the one or more interactive content icons, with the provided program.

38. The device of claim 33, where the processor is further to:

detect selection of a second, different type of interactive content, of the one or more types of interactive content,

filter, based on the second type of interactive content, the plurality of entries to provide a second, different filtered list of entries, and

provide the second filtered list of entries.

39. The device of claim 38, where the processor is further to:

provide a first entry, of the filtered list of entries, with a first interactive icon of the one or more interactive content icons, and

provide a second entry, of the second filtered list of entries, with a second, different interactive content icon of the one or more interactive content icons.

40. A computer-readable memory device including one or more instructions, executable by at least one processor, to perform a method, the method comprising:

providing a program guide including a plurality of entries, at least one entry, of the plurality of entries, including one or more interactive content icons visually representing one or more different types of interactive content, the one or more different types of interactive content being associated with the at least one entry, the plurality of entries identifying a plurality of programs;

detecting selection, from a user, of a type of interactive content, of the one or more different types of interactive content;

filtering, in response to the detected user selection, the plurality of entries to provide a filtered list of entries; and

providing the filtered list of entries to the user, each program, in the filtered list of entries, being associated with the type of interactive content.

41. The computer-readable memory device of claim 40, where a program, in the filtered list of entries, is associated with at least two different types of interactive content, of the one or more different types of interactive content, the at least two different types of interactive content including the type of interactive content,

where the method further comprises:

providing at least two different interactive content icons, of the one or more interactive content icons, concurrently with the program, the at least two different interactive content icons corresponding to the at least two different types of interactive content.

42. The computer-readable memory device of claim 41, the method further comprising:

receiving metadata associated with the program,

where the received metadata associated with the program includes first tag information, corresponding to a first type of interactive content, of the at least two different types of interactive content, and second, different tag information corresponding to a second, different type of interactive content, of the at least two different types of interactive content; and

providing at least a first interactive content icon, of the at least two different interactive content icons, based on the first tag information, and a second, different interactive content icon, of the at least two different interactive content icons, based on the second tag information.

43. The computer-readable memory device of claim 41, where a first type of interactive content, of the at least two different types of interactive content, corresponds to one of an item for purchase or a service for purchase, and

where the at least two different interactive content icons, provided with the program, include a first interactive content icon corresponding to the first type of interactive,

the method further comprising:

receiving selection of the first interactive content icon; and

providing, based on the receiving, interactive content corresponding to the one of the item for purchase or the service for purchase.

44. The computer-readable memory device of claim 43, where a second, different type of interactive content, of the at least two different types of interactive content, corresponds to one of first media content for purchase or second, different media content for playing, and

where the at least two different interactive content icons, provided with the program, include a second, different interactive content icon corresponding to the second type of interactive content,

the method further comprising:

receiving selection of the second interactive content icon; and

providing, based on receiving selection of the second interactive icon, second, different interactive content corresponding to the one of the first media content for purchase or the second media content for playing.