Dynamically updating media content for display to a user of a social network environment based on user interactions

• US 8,312,140 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2012
• Issued: 11/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Zuckerberg, Mark, Bosworth, Andrew, Cox, Chris, Sanghvi, Ruchi, Cahill, Matt
• Primary Examiner(s): Winder, Patrice
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hussain, Tauqir
• Application Number:
  US13/448,157
• Publication Number:
  US 20120203838A1
• Time in Patent Office: 211 Days
• Field of Search: 709/224, 709/204
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/335 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles filtering in web context G06F16/9535, G06F16/9536
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/40 Support for services or applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/75 Media network packet handling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

A system and method provides dynamically selected media content to someone using an electronic device in a social network environment. Items of media content are selected for the user based on his or her relationships with one or more other users. The user'"'"'s relationships with other users are reflected in the selected media content and its format. An order is assigned to the items of media content, for example, based on their anticipated importance to the user, and the items of media content are displayed to the user in the assigned order. The user may change the order of the items of media content. The user'"'"'s interactions with media content available in the social network environment are monitored, and those interactions are used to select additional items of media content for the user.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

storing in a database a user profile for a viewing user of a social network system, the user profile including an identification of a plurality of other users of the social network with whom the viewing user has established a connection;

sending a newsfeed comprising a plurality of news stories selected based on the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for content in the plurality of news stories to a user device for display to the viewing user, at least one of the news stories comprising a description about an action taken by at least one of the other users of the social networking system with whom the viewing user has established a connection;

monitoring one or more interactions between the viewing user of the social network system and at least one of;

another user of the social network system and media content in the social network system;

updating the newsfeed to include one or more additional news stories selected based on the monitored interactions, at least one of the additional news stories describing an action taken by at least one of the other users of the social network system with whom the viewing user has established a connection; and

sending the updated newsfeed comprising the selected additional news stories to the user device for display to the viewing user in an order that is based at least in part on the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for the selected additional news stories.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the order is also based in part on a preference setting in the user profile of the of the viewing user, the preference setting describing ordering of news stories in the newsfeed.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for the selected additional news stories is based at least in part on frequencies with which the viewing user interacts with other users of the social networking system taking actions described by the additional news stories.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for the selected additional news stories is based at least in part on frequencies with which the viewing user interacts with media content associated with other users of the social networking system with whom the viewing user has established a connection.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for a selected news story is based in part on a frequency with which the viewing user interacts with a user of the social network system taking an action described in the selected news story.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the monitoring comprises recording the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with particular relationships, events, objects, categories of relationships, subcategories of relationships, categories of events, categories of objects, subcategories of events or subcategories of objects.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for the selected additional news stories is based at least in part on a frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with particular relationships, events, objects, categories of relationships, subcategories of relationships, categories of events, categories of objects, subcategories of events or subcategories of objects.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein a weighting is associated with one or more of the particular relationships, the events, the objects, the categories of relationships, the subcategories of relationships, the categories of events, the categories of objects, the subcategories of events or the subcategories of objects.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein a monitored interaction is with one or more items of media content contained in a news story selected for the viewing user.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein a monitored interaction is with one or more items of media content in the social network system outside of a news story that has been previously selected for the viewing user.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein a monitored interaction includes the viewing user'"'"'s interaction with an email.

12. A method comprising:

storing in a database a user profile for a viewing user of a social network system, the user profile including an identification of a plurality of other users of the social network with whom the viewing user has established a connection;

sending a newsfeed comprising a plurality of news stories about users of the social network system selected from news stories based on the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for content in the plurality of news stories to a user device for display to the viewing user;

monitoring one or more interactions between the viewing user and at least one of;

another user of the social network system and media content in the social network system;

selecting additional news stories from the plurality of news stories based on one or more of the monitored interactions, at least one of the additional news stories including a description about an action taken by at least one of the other users of the social network system with whom the viewing user has established a connection;

updating the newsfeed to include the selected additional news stories; and

sending the updated newsfeed including the selected additional news stories to the user device for display to the viewing user in an order that is based at least in part on the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for the selected additional news stories.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the order is also based in part on a preference setting in the user profile of the of the viewing user, the preference setting describing ordering of news stories in the newsfeed.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein selecting additional news stories from the plurality of news stories comprises:

determining, from the one or more monitored interactions, a frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with relationships between the viewing user and other users of the social networking system;

weighting news stories associated with the relationships between the viewing user and other users of the social networking system so a weight associated with a relationship is relative to a frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with the relationship;

ranking the news stories associated with the relationships based on the weight associated with the news stories; and

selecting the additional news stories from the ranked news stories.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein ranking the news stories associated with the relationships is also based on one or more preference settings associated with one or more relationships, the one or more preference settings included in the user profile of the viewing user.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the weight associated with the relationship is modified based on changes in the frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with the relationship over time.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein selecting additional news stories from the plurality of news stories comprises:

determining, from the one or more monitored interactions, a frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with objects in the social networking system;

weighting news stories associated with the objects in the social networking system so a weight associated with an object is relative to a frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with the object;

ranking the news stories associated with the objects based on the weight associated with the news stories; and

selecting the additional news stories from the ranked news stories.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for the selected additional news stories is based at least in part on frequencies with which the viewing user interacts with media content associated with other users of the social networking system with whom the viewing user has established a connection.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the monitoring comprises recording the viewing user'"'"'s actions associated with particular relationships, events, objects, categories of relationships, subcategories of relationships, categories of events, categories of objects, subcategories of events or subcategories of objects.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein a monitored interaction is with one or more items of media content contained in a news story selected for the viewing user.

21. The method of claim 12, wherein a monitored interaction is with one or more items of media content in the social network system outside of a news story that has been previously selected for the viewing user.

22. The method of claim 12, wherein a monitored interaction includes the viewing user'"'"'s interaction with an email.

23. A method comprising:

storing in a database a user profile for a viewing user of a social network system, the user profile including an identification of a plurality of other users of the social network with whom the viewing user has established a connection;

monitoring one or more interactions between the viewing user and at least one of;

another user of the social network system and media content in the social network system;

selecting news stories from a plurality of news stories based on one or more of the monitored interactions, at least one of the news stories including a description about an action taken by at least one of the other users of the social network system with whom the viewing user has established a connection;

updating a newsfeed sent to the viewing user to include the selected news stories, the newsfeed including news stories about actions taken by one or more other users of the social network system with whom the viewing user has established a connection; and

sending the updated newsfeed comprising the selected news stories to the user device for display to the viewing user in an order that is based at least in part on the viewing user'"'"'s affinity for the selected news stories.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the order is also based in part on a preference setting in the user profile of the of the viewing user, the preference setting describing ordering of news stories in the newsfeed.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein selecting news stories from the plurality of news stories based on one or more of the monitored interactions comprises:

determining, from the one or more monitored interactions, a frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s interactions with relationships between the viewing user and other users of the social networking system;

weighting news stories associated with the relationships between the viewing user and other users of the social networking system so a weight associated with a relationship is relative to a frequency of the viewing user'"'"'s interactions with the relationship;

ranking the news stories associated with the relationships based on the weight associated with the news stories; and

selecting the additional news stories from the ranked news stories.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein ranking the news stories associated with the relationships is also based on one or more preference settings associated with one or more relationships, the one or more preference settings included in the user profile for the viewing user.