Server and units
First Claim
1. A method comprising linking a plurality of units with a central server, operating a virtual game on said server, and offering purchasing options to users of said units to purchase virtual non-monetary assets for use in said virtual game;
- wherein at least some of the purchased non-monetary assets expire after a fixed time;
at least some of the purchased non-monetary assets expire due to usage;
at least a portion of a user score can be exchanged into virtual money for the purchase of non-monetary assets, thereby lowering the user score; and
the user score and purchased non-monetary assets deteriorate at a predetermined rate while the user is offline.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method comprises linking a plurality of units with a central server, operating a virtual game on the server, and offering purchasing options to users of the units to purchase virtual non-monetary assets for use in the virtual game. Also described is a system comprising a central server, and a plurality of units linked to the server via a communication link, wherein a unit of the system includes purchasing means operable by a user to purchase virtual non-monetary assets for use by a user in the virtual game.
64 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A method comprising linking a plurality of units with a central server, operating a virtual game on said server, and offering purchasing options to users of said units to purchase virtual non-monetary assets for use in said virtual game;
wherein at least some of the purchased non-monetary assets expire after a fixed time;
at least some of the purchased non-monetary assets expire due to usage;
at least a portion of a user score can be exchanged into virtual money for the purchase of non-monetary assets, thereby lowering the user score; and
the user score and purchased non-monetary assets deteriorate at a predetermined rate while the user is offline.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A system comprising a central server, and a plurality of units linked to said server via a communication link, wherein a unit of said system includes purchasing means operable by a user to purchase virtual non-monetary assets for use by a user in a virtual game operating on said server;
wherein the system is operable such that at least some of the purchased non-monetary assets will expire after a fixed time;
at least some of the purchased non-monetary assets will expire due to usage;
at least a portion of a user score can be exchanged into virtual money for the purchase of non-monetary assets, thereby lowering the user score; and
the user score and purchased non-monetary assets deteriorate at a predetermined rate while the user is offline.- View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
Specification