System and method for managing and distributing audio recordings

• US 8,452,887 B1
• Filed: 09/19/2011
• Issued: 05/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Voice Portraits, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Voice Portraits, Inc.
• Inventors: Stier, Jeffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): Shin, Kyung H
• Application Number:
  US13/236,396
• Time in Patent Office: 617 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/231, 715/716, 725/116
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/251 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies details of learning user preferences for the retrieval of video data in a video database G06F16/739; computer systems using learning methods G06N3/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2743 Video hosting of uploaded data from client
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• 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 21/4753 for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8106 involving special audio data, e.g. different tracks for different languages
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8173 End-user applications, e.g. Web browser, game
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8352 involving content or source identification data, e.g. Unique Material Identifier [UMID]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

Disclosed are system, methods and computer program products for recording, playing back, responding to and sharing audio recordings. In one example embodiment, the system includes an audio management server that stores and distributes through various third-party websites audio clips, such as voice, music, sounds, and other recordings made by system users. The audio clips can be recorded by system users directly through a central website hosted by the server. Alternatively, the audio clips can be recorded on various third-party websites using audio widgets provided by the audio management server. In addition, the recorded audio clips can be shared on various other third-party websites, such as blogs, social networking sites, celebrity sites and the like, using the audio widget provided by the server.

Claims

1. A method for recording, playing back, responding to and sharing audio clips comprising:

storing in an audio server a first audio clip recorded on a first third-party website;

posting on a second third-party website a link for accessing the first audio clip;

receiving a request from a website visitor to play back the first audio clip, wherein the request includes a link to the first audio clip on the audio server;

determining if the playback request came from the first or second third-party website;

if the playback request came from the first third-party website where the first audio clip was recorded, providing to the first third-party website the first audio clip and an audio widget operable to play back, respond to and share the first audio clip; and

if the playback request came from the second third-party website, redirecting the website visitor to the first third-party website and providing to the first third-party website the first audio clip and the audio widget operable to play back, respond to and share the audio clip.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein storing in an audio server a first audio clip further comprises:

assigning by the audio server a unique identifier to the first audio clip; and

generating by the audio server a link to the first audio clip, the link comprising an identifier of the audio server and the unique identifier of the first audio clip.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining if the playback request came from the first or second third-party website further comprises:

determining from the playback request a website which sent the playback request; and

comparing said website with the first website where the first audio clip was recorded.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, after the playback of the audio clip on the first website,

identifying a user of the audio server who recorded the first audio clip;

accessing a user account of the identified user in the audio server;

updating in the user account a playback counter associated with the first audio clip; and

if the playback request came from the second third-party website, storing in the user account an identifier of the second third-party website.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving from the website visitor a request to record a second audio clip in response to the first audio clip recorded on the first third-party website;

recording the second audio clip using the audio player widget of the first website; and

posting on the first and second third-party websites links to the second audio clip.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising:

receiving from the website visitor a request to record a third audio clip in response to the second clip recorded on the first third-party website;

recording the third audio clip using the audio widget of the first website; and

posting on the first and second third-party websites links to the third audio clip.