System and method of providing video content commentary

• US 8,230,458 B2
• Filed: 06/29/2007
• Issued: 07/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Knowledge Ventures, L.P. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Amento, Brian, Stead, Larry, Harrison, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Parry, Chris
• Application Number:
  US11/824,479
• Publication Number:
  US 20090007200A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,852 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/13
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4438 Window management, e.g. event handling following interaction with the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4756 for rating content, e.g. scoring a recommended movie
• 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 7/173 with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal

Abstract

A method of providing video content commentary is disclosed that includes sending video content to a first set-top box device at a first time, where the first set-top box device is associated with a first subscriber. The method also includes receiving data corresponding to a comment submitted by the first subscriber. The comment relates to a particular portion of the video content. Further, the method includes sending the video content to a second set-top box device at a second time, where the second set-top box device is associated with a second subscriber. The video content sent to the second set-top box device includes a graphical representation of the comment.

Claims

1. A method of providing video content commentary, the method comprising:

sending video content to a first set-top box device at a first time, the first set-top box device associated with a first subscriber;

receiving data at the server, the data corresponding to a comment submitted by the first subscriber, wherein the comment is associated with a particular portion of the video content;

sending the video content to a second set-top box device at a second time, the second set-top box device associated with a second subscriber;

determining, at the server, that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device;

storing the data corresponding to the comment submitted by the first subscriber at the server conditioned on the determination that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device;

receiving a request at the server from the set-top box device for the video content associated with the comment submitted by the first subscriber; and

sending the video content to the second set-top box device after receiving the request, wherein the video content that is sent includes the comment submitted by the first subscriber inserted at the particular portion of the video content.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first subscriber and the second subscriber are represented in a virtual audience that is displayed concurrently with the video content at a display associated with the second set-top box device, wherein the virtual audience includes a first avatar associated with the first subscriber and a second avatar associated with the second subscriber.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the determination that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device is conditioned on determining that the first subscriber is associated with a user profile of the second subscriber.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the user profile includes one of a location of a subscriber, a favorite movie associated with the subscriber, and an age associated with the subscriber.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the data corresponding to the comment is sent to the second set-top box device as a graphical representation of the comment.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the data corresponding to the comment is stored at the server conditioned only upon the determination that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device.

7. A system to provide video content commentary, the system comprising:

a server, wherein the server comprises;

a processor; and

a memory accessible to the processor, the memory comprising;

a video content module, the video content module including a first set of instructions that are executable by the processor to send video content to a first set-top box device at a first time and to send the video content to a second set-top box device at a second time, wherein the first set-top box device is associated with a first subscriber and the second set-top box device is associated with a second subscriber; and

a video content comment module, the video content comment module including a second set of instructions that are executable by the processor to;

receive data, the data corresponding to a comment submitted by the first subscriber, wherein the comment is associated with a particular portion of the video content;

determine that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device;

store the data corresponding to the comment submitted by the first subscriber at the memory conditioned on the determination that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device; and

send the video content to the second set-top box device after receiving a request from the second set-top box device for the video content associated with the comment submitted by the first subscriber, wherein the video content that is sent includes the comment submitted by the first subscriber inserted at the particular portion of the video content.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein determining that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device is conditioned on a determination that the first subscriber is associated with a user profile of the second subscriber.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the user profile of the second subscriber is based on information associated with the second subscriber, the information including one of a location of a subscriber, a favorite movie associated with the subscriber, and an age associated with the subscriber.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the memory further includes a virtual audience module executable by the processor to provide a representation of a virtual audience as a visual overlay presented concurrently with the video content, wherein the representation of the virtual audience comprises an avatar associated with the first subscriber.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the data corresponding to the comment is sent to the second set-top box device as a graphical representation of the comment.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising:

operational instructions that when executed by a processor, cause the processor to send video content to a first set-top box device at a first time, the first set-top box device associated with a first subscriber;

operational instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to receive data, the data corresponding to a comment submitted by the first subscriber, wherein the comment is associated with a particular portion of the video content;

operational instructions that when executed by a processor, cause the processor to send the video content to a second set-top box device at a second time, the second set-top box device associated with a second subscriber;

operational instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to determine that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device;

operational instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to store the data corresponding to the comment submitted by the first subscriber at a server conditioned on the determination that the video content is not being synchronously played via the first set-top box device and the second set-top box device;

operational instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to receive a request at the server from the second set-top box device for the video content associated with the comment submitted by the first subscriber; and

operational instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to send the video content to the second set-top box device after receiving the request, wherein the video content that is sent includes the comment submitted by the first subscriber inserted at the particular portion of the video content.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein sending the data corresponding to the comment to the second set-top box device is conditioned on determining that the first subscriber is associated with a user profile of the second subscriber.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the data corresponding to the comment is sent to the second set-top box device as a graphical representation of the comment.