Media Content Notification Via Communications Network

• US 20110161366A1
• Filed: 01/04/2011
• Published: 06/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/1995
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panalogin LLC (Acacia Research Corporation), Customer Communications Group
• Original Assignee: Registrar Systems LLC (Continental Communications Group, Inc.)
• Inventors: Klug, John R., Peterson, Thad D.
• Granted Patent: US 8,666,808 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/770
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/41 where a single sign-on provides access to a plurality of computers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6272 by registering files or documents with a third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0204 Market segmentation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements

Abstract

The notification system identifies media content based on personal preferences of individual users and provides notification of identified media content to the users. In one embodiment, the system includes a number of user nodes that communicate with a registration site and a notification site via the interne. The notification site includes a media content database and a processor running contents election logic. The processor accesses the media content database in order to identify content that may be of interest to particular users of the user nodes. In this regard, content for a particular user may be identified by matching interest information obtained from the registration site with the content information of the media content database.

Claims

1. A computer readable medium containing instructions for receiving, storing and providing user information used to identify content of interest to a user, by:

accessing a first database adapted to provide information about an user, the first database including at least one first entry associating interest information with the user and at least one second entry identifying the user; and

providing the information received and stored in the first database to an apparatus adapted to use the information to identify content of interest to the user.

2. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the apparatus adapted to use the information to identify content of interest to the user utilizes second instructions provided on a computer readable medium, the second instructions facilitating the further identification of content of interest to the user by:

accessing at least one second database providing information related to available content;

identifying available content as being of interest to the user based upon the results of a matching of the information about the user and the information related to the available content;

whereupon completion of accessing the second database and identifying available content, the content is identified as being of potential interest to the user.

3. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the first database is accessed at a registration site and the second database is accessed at a notification site.

4. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the first database and the second database are collocated.

5. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the information provided via the first database is generated based upon one of at least user responses, user usage history, and user monitoring.

6. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein a second apparatus utilizes instructions to present the identified available content of interest to the user, by:

receiving a notification that content of interest to the user has been identified;

retrieving the content of interest; and

presenting the content of interest to the user.

7. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the content of interest is retrieved from at least one content database.

8. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the content database is collocated with the apparatus which utilizes the instructions to present the identified available content to the user.

9. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the apparatus which utilizes the instructions to present the identified available content is at least one of a television, a radio, a computer device, an Internet compatible device, a wired telephone and a wireless telephone.

10. The computer readable medium of 1, wherein the notification is received via at least one of a computer device, a wired or wireless telephone, a pager, regular mail, and a communications network device.

11. A data processing system configured to identify content of interest to at least one user comprising:

a first database adapted to store at least one file of information regarding at least one media content; and

a processor operable for accessing the first database and receiving and processing preference information useful in identifying at least one media content of potential interest to at least one user;

whereupon receiving the preference information, the processor searches the first database and identifies at least one media content of interest to the at least one user.

12. The data processing system of claim 11, wherein the preference information is based upon user preference information obtained from a second database operable for providing demographic information associated with the at least one user.

13. The data processing system of claim 11, wherein at least two of the processor, the first database and the second database are collocated.

14. The data processing system of claim 11, wherein the first database includes at least one file of information providing at least one of title information, schedule information, content information, series information, episode information, target demographics of the content, advertisers associated with the content, and derived information.