Responding to requests for data

• US 7,668,729 B2
• Filed: 09/05/2007
• Issued: 02/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Richards, Ted
• Primary Examiner(s): OUELLETTE, JONATHAN P
• Application Number:
  US11/850,535
• Publication Number:
  US 20070299840A1
• Time in Patent Office: 902 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1
• US Class Current: 705/1.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement

Abstract

A user information item is associated with a data set selected by a user for delivery over an electronic network. The user'"'"'s present and previous data selections are analyzed to identify a user information category related to at least one of these data selections, and the user information item is chosen from the identified user information category. User information items can be combined or associated with a video, animation or multimedia data set selected by a user for delivery over an electronic network.

Claims

1. A method for providing user information related to a user'"'"'s selection of audio data, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a user'"'"'s selection of audio data and an indicium identifying the user;

analyzing the user'"'"'s present selection of audio data and previous selections of audio data, and identifying at least one user interest category based on the user'"'"'s present and previous audio data selections;

selecting at least one user information item from the at least one identified user interest category, the at least one selected user audio information item including auto data;

automatically determining, by a computer, a number of times the selected at least one user audio information item has been combined with a previous audio selection of the user;

comparing the determined number of times with a threshold number of times;

based on the results of the comparison, selecting a second at least one user audio information item from the at least one identified user category;

combining the audio data of the second selected at least one user audio information item with the user'"'"'s audio data selection; and

delivering the combined second selected at least one user audio information item and the user'"'"'s audio data selection over a network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of analyzing and identifying comprises the steps of:

assigning each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections to said at least one user interest category, and counting the number of assignments to each of said at least one user interest category; and

when the accumulated number of assignments to a selected one of said at least one user interest category is greater than a selected threshold number, identifying the selected one of said at least one user interest category as a category from which said at least one user audio information item is selected.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of analyzing and identifying comprises the steps of:

assigning each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections to said at least one user interest category, assigning each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and each of said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections an approximate time at which said audio data selection was received, assigning each of said audio data selections a weighting factor that decreases as the difference between a present time and the approximate time at which said audio data selection was received, multiplying the numerical value of an assignment to each of said at least one user interest category by a corresponding weighting factor to produce a numerical value for a weighted assignment to each of said at least one user interest category, and counting the numerical value of the weighted assignment to each of said at least one user interest category; and

when the accumulated number of weighted assignments to a selected one of said at least one user interest category is greater than a selected threshold number, identifying the selected one of said at least one user interest category as a category from which said at least one user audio information item is selected.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of choosing said at least one user interest category from the group of categories consisting of political news, economic news, cultural news, social news, technology news and music.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of selecting said at least one user information item to be an advertisement of at least one product that is related to said at least one user interest category.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein said user interest category is selected from the group consisting of news, music and technology, and wherein said news is selected from the group consisting of political news, economic news, and cultural and social news.

7. The method according to claim 6 wherein:

said political news is selected from the group consisting of domestic political news and foreign political news;

said economic news is selected from the group consisting of domestic economic news and foreign economic news; and

said social and cultural news is selected from the group consisting of local events and developments, national events and developments, foreign events and developments, the arts, and entertainment; and

wherein;

said music is selected from the group consisting of current popular music, older popular music, semi classical music, and classical music; and

said technology is selected from the group consisting of telecommunications;

electronics and related technologies;

space exploration and colonization;

manufacturing and operations;

transportation and automotive vehicles;

chemical technology; and

biotechnology.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein said classical music is selected from the group consisting of pre-baroque music, baroque music, romantic music, modern music, operas, operettas, lieder and ballet and other dance music.

9. A system for providing user information related to a user'"'"'s selection of audio data, the system comprising:

an audio data server that receives a user'"'"'s selection of audio data and an indicium identifying the user;

a user information server that analyzes the user'"'"'s present selection of audio data and previous selections of audio data, that identifies at least one user interest category based on the user'"'"'s present and previous audio data selections, that selects at least one user audio information item from the at least one identified user interest category, that counts a number of times a particular user audio information item has been combined with audio data selected by the user; and

that combines, if the count is below a threshold number, the at least one user audio information item with the user'"'"'s audio data selection, and

an audio data delivery system that delivers the combined at least one user audio information item and the user'"'"'s audio data selection over an electronic network.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein said user information server assigns each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections to said at least one user interest category, and counts the number of assignments to each of said at least one user interest category;

and

when the accumulated number of assignments to a selected one of said at least one user interest category is greater than a selected threshold number, said user information server identifies the selected one of said at least one user interest category as a category from which said at least one user information item is selected.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein said user information server assigns each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections to said at least one user interest category, assigns each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and each of said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections an approximate time at which said audio data selection was received, assigns each of said audio data selections a weighting factor that decreases as the difference between a present time and the approximate time at which said audio data selection was received, multiplies the numerical value of an assignment to each of said at least one user interest category by a corresponding weighting factor to produce a numerical value for a weighted assignment to each of said at least one user interest category, and counts the numerical value of the weighted assignment to each of said at least one user interest category;

and

when the accumulated number of weighted assignments to a selected one of said at one user interest category is greater than a selected threshold number, said user information server identifies the selected one of said at least one user interest category as a category from which said at least one user information item is selected.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein said at least one user interest category is chosen from the group of categories consisting of political news, economic news, cultural news, social news, technology news and music.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein said at least one user audio information item is selected to be an advertisement of at least one product that is related to said at least one user interest category.

14. A method for providing user information related to a user'"'"'s selection of audio data, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a user'"'"'s selection of audio data and an indicium identifying the user;

analyzing the user'"'"'s present selection of audio data and previous selections of audio data, and identifying at least one user interest category based on the user'"'"'s present and previous audio data selections according to the identifying user indicium;

selecting at least one user audio information item from the at least one identified user interest category, the at least one user audio information item including audio data;

automatically counting by a computer, a number of times a particular user audio information item has been combined with audio data selected by the user;

automatically combining, by the computer, if the counted number of times below a threshold number, the audio data of the at least one selected user audio information item with the user'"'"'s audio data selection; and

delivering the combined at least one user audio information item and the user'"'"'s audio data selection over an electronic network.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said step of analyzing and identifying comprises the steps of:

assigning each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections to said at least one user interest category, and counting the number of assignments to each of said at least one user interest category; and

when the accumulated number of assignments to a selected one of said at least one user interest category is greater than a selected threshold number, identifying the selected one of said at least one user interest category as a category from which said at least one user audio information item is selected.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein said step of analyzing and identifying comprises the steps of:

assigning each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections to said at least one user interest category, assigning each of said user'"'"'s present audio data selections and each of said user'"'"'s previous audio data selections an approximate time at which said audio data selection was received, assigning each of said audio data selections a weighting factor that decreases as the difference between a present time and the approximate time at which said audio data selection was received, multiplying the numerical value of an assignment to each of said at least one user interest category by a corresponding weighting factor to produce a numerical value for a weighted assignment to each of said at least one user interest category, and counting the numerical value of the weighted assignment to each of said at least one user interest category; and

when the accumulated number of weighted assignments to a selected one of said at least one user interest category is greater than a selected threshold number, identifying the selected one of said at least one user interest category as a category from which said at least one user audio information item is selected.