Digital network-based video tagging system

• US 8,285,121 B2
• Filed: 10/07/2007
• Issued: 10/09/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gula Consulting Limited Liability Company (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Fall Front Wireless NY LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Kulas, Charles J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zhao, Daquan
• Application Number:
  US11/868,522
• Publication Number:
  US 20090092374A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,829 Days
• Field of Search: 386/278, 386/326, 386/332, 386/336, 707/609, 707/610, 707/622, 707/912, 707/913, 707/914, 707/917
• US Class Current: 386/278
• 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 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/173 with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal

Abstract

A system for handling video tags. The tags are displayed synchronized to a video. A controller manages and modifies tag data that can be created by one or more users. The controller identifies a tag dataset for use with a video and provides information for synchronization and display of the tags. In a particular embodiment, features of a social-network website implementation are disclosed whereby a user community can post, filter, rate and display tags.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

obtaining an identification corresponding to a video;

receiving, based at least in part on the identification, an associated dataset from a location over a digital network, wherein the associated dataset includes;

display information describing visual design and placement of additional content at predetermined locations that, in response to playback of the video, overlap at least a portion of displayed video content to annotate items depicted within the displayed video content; and

synchronization information for displaying the additional content at predetermined times in response to playback of the video;

transferring the associated dataset to a playback engine for synchronized playback of at least a portion of the additional content with the video according to at least a portion of the synchronization information;

accepting a first modification to the associated dataset by a first user to produce a first modified dataset;

accepting a second modification to the first modified dataset by a second user to produce a second modified dataset, the second modification including a modification to the display information, to the synchronization information, or to both the display information and the synchronization information; and

transferring the second modified dataset to the playback engine for synchronized playback, with the video, of at least a portion of the additional content in accordance with information in the second modified dataset.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the identification comprises:

obtaining a predetermined identification corresponding to the video.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the identification comprises:

obtaining a predetermined identification embedded with a video file.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the identification comprises:

obtaining a predetermined identification embedded with a video stream.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

deriving the identification, at least in part, from data that includes at least a portion of the video.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein deriving the identification comprises:

generating a hash value from the data.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein deriving the identification comprises:

comparing multiple values in the data with multiple predetermined expected values.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining whether a statistical criterion is met based on the comparing multiple values in the data with the multiple predetermined expected values.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein determining whether the statistical criterion is met comprises:

determining whether a threshold percentage of expected values at predetermined locations in the data is met.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the identification comprises:

accepting a signal from a user input device; and

obtaining the identification based at least in part on the signal from the user input device.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein obtaining the identification based at least in part on the signal from the user input device comprises:

determining, in response to the signal, a filename.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein accepting a signal from a user input device comprises accepting a signal that identifies the video and determining the filename comprises determining a filename associated with the video.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein determining the filename comprises:

identifying the associated dataset corresponding to the filename.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, based at least in part on the identification, the associated dataset comprises:

receiving multiple associated datasets configured to provide the additional content in synchronization with playback of the video.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

obtaining the video over the digital network.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the identification comprises:

obtaining a predetermined identification representing a listing in a directory structure readable by humans or automated processes.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the identification comprises:

obtaining a predetermined identification representing a binary value.

18. An apparatus comprising:

a hardware processor;

a machine-readable storage medium including one or more instructions executable by the hardware processor that configure the hardware processor to;

obtain an identification corresponding to a video;

receive, based at least in part on the identification, an associated dataset from a location over a digital network, wherein the associated dataset includes;

display information describing visual design and placement of additional content at predetermined locations that, in response to playback of the video, overlap at least a portion of displayed video content to annotate items depicted within the displayed video content; and

synchronization information for displaying the additional content at predetermined times in response to playback of the video;

transfer the associated dataset to a playback engine for synchronized playback of the additional content with the video

accept a first modification to the associated dataset by a first user to produce a first modified dataset;

accept a second modification to the first modified dataset by a second user to produce a second modified dataset, the second modification including a modification to the display information, to the synchronization information, or to both the display information and the synchronization information; and

transfer the second modified dataset to the playback engine for synchronized playback, with the video, of at least a portion of the additional content in accordance with information in the second modified dataset.

19. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium including instructions executable by a hardware processor, the instructions comprising:

instructions to obtain an identification corresponding to a video;

instructions to receive, based at least in part on the identification, an associated dataset from a location over a digital network, wherein the associated dataset includes;

display information describing visual design and placement of additional content at predetermined locations that, in response to playback of the video, overlap at least a portion of displayed video content to annotate items depicted within the displayed video content; and

synchronization information for displaying the additional content at predetermined times in response to playback of the video;

instructions to transfer the associated dataset to a playback engine for synchronized playback of the additional content with the video;

instructions to accept a first modification to the associated dataset by a first user to produce a first modified dataset;

instructions to accept a second modification to the first modified dataset by a second user to produce a second modified dataset, the second modification including a modification to the display information, to the synchronization information, or to both the display information and the synchronization information; and

instructions to transfer the second modified dataset to the playback engine for synchronized playback, with the video, of at least a portion of the additional content in accordance with information in the second modified dataset.