SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SHARING MULTIMEDIA CONTENT WITH SYNCHED PLAYBACK CONTROLS

• US 20180103078A1
• Filed: 10/10/2016
• Published: 04/12/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: GOSWAMI, NABARUN, SULIBHAVI, MADHVESH
• Granted Patent: US 10,778,742 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/762 at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/764 at the destination reformatting of additional data in video clients H04N21/4355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23406 involving management of server-side video buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2387 Stream processing in response to a playback request from an end-user, e.g. for trick-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8113 comprising music, e.g. song in MP3 format

Abstract

A system and method for data communication is disclosed, which includes a first electronic device configured to receive an input to enable selection of a multimedia content item on the first electronic device. The selected multimedia content item is communicated, by the first electronic device, to a second electronic device along with playback controls. Playback of the selected multimedia content item may be controlled at the first electronic device and the second electronic device based on synching of the communicated playback controls during the playback. The control is performed such that a current playback time of the selected multimedia content item is in sync at the first electronic device and the second electronic device.

Claims

1. A system for data communication, said system comprising:

one or more circuits in a first electronic device configured to;

receive an input to enable selection of a multimedia content item on said first electronic device;

communicate said selected multimedia content item to a second electronic device along with playback controls; and

control playback of said selected multimedia content item at said first electronic device and said second electronic device such that a current playback time of said selected multimedia content item is in sync at said first electronic device and said second electronic device during said playback, based on synching of said communicated playback controls.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said first electronic device and said second electronic device corresponds to one of:

a smartphone, a tablet device, a wearable device, a speaker system, a camera, a smart glass, a television, a computing device, a multimedia output device, a projector, an augmented-reality device, a virtual-reality device, and/or an Internet-of-Things (loT) device.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein said multimedia content item is an audio or a video.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein said second electronic device is configured to control playback of said multimedia content item in said first electronic device based on said playback controls received by said second electronic device from said first electronic device.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein said communication of said selected multimedia content item and said synching of said communicated playback controls is performed via different communication channels.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein said communication of said selected multimedia content item and said synching of said communicated playback controls is performed via a same communication channel.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein said multimedia content item communicated to said second electronic device is sourced from a multimedia streaming server or a local storage device of said first electronic device, and wherein said synching of said communicated playback controls is performed via an Internet-of-Things (loT) framework.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein said multimedia content item is streamed from a primary buffer of said first electronic device to said second electronic device, wherein said streamed multimedia content item is cached at a corresponding primary buffer of said second electronic device for a continuous synching of said communicated playback controls during said playback.

9. The system according to claim 8, wherein said one or more circuits are configured to establish a new session with a third electronic device to receive another multimedia content item from said third electronic device while simultaneously streaming said multimedia content item from said primary buffer, wherein said other multimedia content stream is stored in a secondary buffer when said primary buffer is engaged in said first electronic device.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein said one or more circuits are configured to schedule said communication of said multimedia content item together with said playback controls to said second electronic device from a content streaming server based on time of day, a date, and/or a user-defined trigger mechanism to initiate communication to said second electronic device.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein said one or more circuits are configured to transfer an ownership right to said second electronic device to control further communication of said received multimedia content item to a third electronic device.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein said one or more circuits are configured to generate an interface on said first electronic device to enable a social interaction with a plurality of electronic devices connected in a session, wherein said social interaction among said plurality of electronic devices and said playback of said selected multimedia content item at said plurality of electronic devices occur simultaneously.

13. A method for data communication, said method comprising:

receiving, by one or more circuits in a first electronic device, an input to enable selection of a multimedia content item on said first electronic device;

communicating, by said one or more circuits, said selected multimedia content item to a second electronic device along with playback controls; and

controlling, by said one or more circuits, playback of said selected multimedia content item at said first electronic device and said second electronic device such that a current playback time of said selected multimedia content item is in sync at said first electronic device and said second electronic device during said playback, based on synching of said communicated playback controls.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein said second electronic device is configured to control playback of said multimedia content item in said first electronic device based on said playback controls received by said second electronic device from said first electronic device.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein said communication of said selected multimedia content item and said synching of said communicated playback controls is performed via different communication channels.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein said communication of said selected multimedia content item and said synching of said communicated playback controls is performed via same communication channels.

17. The method according to claim 13, further comprising establishing, by said one or more circuits, a new session with a third electronic device to receive another multimedia content item from said third electronic device while simultaneously streaming said multimedia content item from a primary buffer of said first electronic device, wherein said other multimedia content stream is stored in a secondary buffer of said first electronic device when said primary buffer is engaged in said first electronic device.

18. The method according to claim 13, further comprising scheduling, by said one or more circuits, said communication of said multimedia content item together with said playback controls to said second electronic device from a content streaming server based on time of day, a date, and/or a user-defined trigger mechanism to initiate communication to said second electronic device.

19. The method according to claim 13, further comprising transferring, by said one or more circuits, an ownership right to said second electronic device to control further communication of said received multimedia content item to a third electronic device.

20. The method according to claim 13, further comprising generating, by said one or more circuits, an interface on said first electronic device to enable a social interaction with a plurality of electronic devices connected in a session, wherein said social interaction among said plurality of electronic devices and said playback of said selected multimedia content item at said plurality of electronic devices occur simultaneously.