Actions in a Messaging System

• US 20190028411A1
• Filed: 09/05/2017
• Published: 01/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Singh, Harshvardhan, Rajappa, Arun, Tewari, Jayawant, Behera, Abhisek Kumar, Gupta, Prashant, Seth, Apoorv
• Granted Patent: US 10,757,049 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/10 Multimedia information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/18 Commands or executable codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services

Abstract

A messaging system for effecting effect instant messaging communication sessions (chats) between users of the messaging system allows “actions” to be exchanged in chats. The actions are generated in an action database. A template-creating user can create a custom action template for generating actions, which is only available to certain users.

Claims

1. A messaging system comprising:

a messaging component configured to effect instant messaging communication sessions between users of the messaging system;

a user database configured to hold user identifiers of the users;

template storage configured to store action templates;

a template creation interface configured to receive, from a template-creating user, template creation data for creating a custom action template and associated data identifying a subset of the user identifiers;

a template manager configured to create in the template storage a custom action template according to the template creation data, and associate the custom action template with the subset of user identifiers so as to render the custom action template available to only the users having the subset of associated user identifiers;

an action database configured to hold actions; and

an action manager configured to generate each of the actions in the action database, in response to an instruction from an action-generating user, according to one of the action templates available to the action-generating user, wherein the messaging component is configured to transmit a message to a user device of at least one action-receiving user to render data of the generated action accessible to the action-receiving user in an instant messaging communication session.

2. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein the template storage is configured to store generic action templates available to all of the users of the messaging system.

3. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein instant messages transmitted and received between the action-generating user and the action-receiving user are displayed as a sequence of messages at the user device of the action-receiving user, and the messaging component is configured to transmit the message to cause a notification of the action to be displayed at the user device in the displayed sequence of messages.

4. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein the action manager is configured to modify the action in the action database in response to an instruction from the action-receiving user, and to transmit a message to a user device of the action-generating user to render data of the modified action accessible to the action-generating user in the instant messaging communication session.

5. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein the messaging system is configured to cause a user device of the action-generating user to display a set of user interface elements, each representing one of the action templates available to the action-generating user, and the action manager is configured to generate, in response to the action-generating user selecting one of the user interface elements, the action according to the action template represented by the selected user interface element.

6. A messaging system according to claim 5, wherein the template storage is configured to store generic action templates available to all of the users of the messaging system, wherein at least one of the user interface elements represents a generic action template and at least another of the user interface elements represents a custom action template available to the action-generating user.

7. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein the action is associated in the action database with the user identifier of the action-generating user and/or the user identifier of the action-receiving user.

8. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein the custom action template has at least one custom attribute derived from the template creation data, wherein any action generated according to the custom action template comprises a value of the custom attribute.

9. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein the messaging system comprises a search component configured to receive a search input, and generate search results by searching the action database according to the search input for actions generated and/or received by that user.

10. A messaging system according to claim 9, wherein the action is associated in the action database with the user identifier of the action-generating user and/or the user identifier of the action-receiving user, wherein the search input is received from the action-generating or the action-receiving user and the search component is configured to generate the search results by searching for actions generated by that user and/or actions received by that user.

11. A messaging system according to claim 9, wherein the custom action template has at least one custom attribute derived from the template creation data, wherein any action generated according to the custom action template comprises a value of the custom attribute, wherein the search component is configured to search the action database based on the custom attribute.

12. A messaging system according to claim 9, wherein the custom action template has at least one custom attribute derived from the template creation data, wherein any action generated according to the custom action template comprises a value of the custom attribute, wherein the custom action template is associated in the template storage with at least one custom filter derived from the template creation data for the at least one custom attribute, wherein the search component is configured to filter the search results according to the custom filter.

13. A messaging system according to claim 9, wherein the custom action template has at least one custom attribute derived from the template creation data, wherein any action generated according to the custom action template comprises a value of the custom attribute, wherein the custom action template is associated in the template storage with at least one custom grouping rule derived from the template creation data for the at least one custom attribute, wherein the search component is configured to group the search results according to the custom grouping rule.

14. A messaging system according to claim 9, wherein the custom action template has at least one custom attribute derived from the template creation data, wherein any action generated according to the custom action template comprises a value of the custom attribute, wherein the custom attribute is marked as indexable in the template creation data and the template manager is configured to index the custom attribute in response to determining that the custom attribute is marked as indexable in the template creation data.

15. A messaging system according to claim 1, wherein the subset of user identifiers are bound to a common identifier in the user database, wherein the data identifying the subset of users comprises or indicates the common identifier and thereby identifies the subset of the user identifiers.

16. A messaging system according to claim 15, wherein the data identifying the subset of users comprises or indicates an identifier of the template-creating user, which is associated with the common identifier in the user database.

17. A method of creating action templates in a messaging system, the messaging system for effecting instant messaging communication sessions between users of the messaging system and having a user database holding user identifiers of the users, the method comprising, at the messaging system:

receiving, from a template-creating user, template creation data for creating a custom action template and associated data identifying a subset of the user identifiers held in the user database of the messaging system;

creating in template storage a custom action template according to the template creation data, the custom action template for generating an action in an action database of the messaging system; and

associating the custom action template with the subset of user identifiers so as to render the custom action template available to only the users having the subset of associated user identifiers.

18. A method according to claim 17, comprising:

in response to an instruction from one of the subset of users, generating an action in the action database according to the custom action template; and

transmitting a message to a user device of at least one action-receiving user to render data of the generated action accessible to the action-receiving user in an instant messaging communication session effected by the messaging system.

19. A method according to claim 17, wherein the action-receiving user is one of the subset of users.

20. A computer program product for use in a messaging system, the messaging system having a user database configured to hold user identifiers of the users, the computer program product comprising code stored on a computer-readable storage medium and configured, when executed in the messaging system, to implement operations of:

receiving a user identifier of an action-generating user;

accessing template storage holding a custom action template, wherein the custom action template is associated with a subset of the user identifiers such that the custom action template is available to only the users having the subset of associated user identifiers;

determining that the received user identifier matches one of the subset of user identifiers associated with the custom action template and, in response, causing a user interface element representing the custom action template to be displayed at a user device of the action-generating user;

in response to an instruction from the action-generating user, generating an action in an action database according to the custom action template; and

transmitting a message to a user device of at least one action-receiving user to render data of the generated action accessible to the action-receiving user in an instant messaging communication session effected by the messaging system.