Method and apparatus for virtual editing of multimedia presentations

• US 8,527,880 B2
• Filed: 12/06/2011
• Issued: 09/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: JLB Ventures, LLC
• Original Assignee: JLB Ventures, LLC
• Inventors: Friedman, Glen, Kikinis, Dan
• Primary Examiner(s): BAUTISTA, XIOMARA L
• Application Number:
  US13/311,655
• Publication Number:
  US 20120114308A1
• Time in Patent Office: 637 Days
• Field of Search: 715/716, 715/717, 715/719, 715/720, 715/721, 715/723, 715/730, 715/731, 715/732, 715/200, 715/205, 715/230, 715/255, 725/38, 725/44, 725 46- 49, 725/51, 725/61, 707/805, 707/781, 707/705, 707/752
• US Class Current: 715/730
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes

Abstract

A method and apparatus for viewing desired portions of a multimedia presentation. Desired portions of a multimedia presentation are determined. In one embodiment, an editor may determine which portions of the presentation are desired. Alternatively, or additionally, specified criteria may be applied to the presentation to determine the desired portions. An annotation file is then created based upon the determined desired portions of the multimedia presentation. The annotation file contains pointers corresponding to the desired portions of the multimedia presentation. Annotation management software may be use the annotation file to cause a display device to display only desired portions of the presentation. The annotation file may be applied to a broadcast presentation or a recorded program file. In one embodiment the annotation file may contain information related to the desired portions of the multimedia presentation and/or the remainder of the multimedia presentation.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

identifying a plurality of desired portions of a content item;

automatically creating, by a computing device having at least one processor, annotations for the content item, wherein automatically creating the annotations includes;

storing a first identifier corresponding to a first desired portion of the plurality of desired portions and a second identifier corresponding to a second desired portion of the plurality of desired portions in the annotations, wherein the first desired portion and the second desired portion are separated in the content item by an intervening portion, and

storing displayable content information describing a non-identified portion of the content item; and

generating, by the computing device, a display of the displayable content information describing the non-identified portion of the content item without displaying the non-identified portion.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

creating a recorded program file of the content item;

playing the content item using a viewing system; and

accessing the annotations such that, of the content item, only the plurality of desired portions are displayed by the viewing system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the identification of the plurality of desired portions includes applying a set of criteria to the content item.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of criteria includes at least one preference of a viewer.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the annotations are stored in an annotation file, the annotation file further storing:

information related to the plurality of desired portions of the multimedia presentation.

6. A method comprising:

transmitting, by a computing device having at least one processor, a content item to a first location;

identifying a plurality of desired portions of the content item at a location remote from said first location;

creating one or more annotations for the content item, the one or more annotations including a pointer corresponding to a desired portion of the plurality of desired portions and displayable content information describing a non-identified portion of the content item, wherein the displayable content information is different from the content item; and

transmitting, from the location remote from said first location, the one or more annotations to another device, including the pointer and the displayable content information, wherein the one or more annotations are configured to cause the other device to generate a display of the displayable content information along with one or more of the plurality of desired portions.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more annotations are transmitted subsequent to content item being provided at a specified time.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein creating the one or more annotations is performed by applying a set of one or more criteria to portions of the content item.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the set of one or more criteria is user-defined.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more annotations include a pair of pointers, one pointer identifying a beginning of the desired portion and the other pointer identifying an end of the desired portion.

11. An apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

non-transitory memory storing computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause the apparatus to;

identify a plurality of desired portions of a content item;

create annotations for the content item, wherein automatically creating the annotations includes;

storing a first identifier corresponding to a first desired portion of the plurality of desired portions and a second identifier corresponding to a second desired portion of the plurality of desired portions in the annotations, wherein the first desired portion and the second desired portion are separated in the content item by an intervening portion, and

storing displayable content information describing a non-identified portion of the content item; and

generate a display of the displayable content information describing the non-identified portion of the content item without displaying the non-identified portion.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the apparatus to:

create a recorded program file of the content item;

render the content item using a viewing system; and

access the annotations such that, of the content item, only the plurality of desired portions are displayed by the viewing system.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the identification of the plurality of desired portions includes applying a set of criteria to the content item.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the set of criteria includes at least one preference of a viewer.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the annotations are stored in an annotation file, the annotation file further storing:

information related to the plurality of desired portions of the multimedia presentation.

16. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the apparatus is a set-top box.

17. An apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

non-transitory memory storing computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause the apparatus to;

transmit a content item to a first location;

identify a plurality of desired portions of the content item at a location remote from said first location;

create one or more annotations for the content item, the one or more annotations including a pointer corresponding to a desired portion of the plurality of desired portions and displayable content information describing a non-identified portion of the content item, wherein the displayable content information is different from the content item; and

transmit, from the location remote from said first location, the one or more annotations to another device, including the pointer and the displayable content information, wherein the one or more annotations are configured to cause the other device to generate a display of the displayable content information along with one or more of the plurality of desired portions.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the one or more annotations are transmitted subsequent to the content item being provided at a specified time.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein creating the one or more annotations is performed by applying a set of one or more criteria to portions of the content item.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the set of one or more criteria is user-defined.

21. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the one or more annotations include a pair of pointers, one pointer identifying a beginning of the desired portion and the other pointer identifying an end of the desired portion.