Method and apparatus for providing a customized selection of audio content over the internet

• US 8,589,476 B2
• Filed: 05/07/2010
• Issued: 11/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Siegel, Brian M., Abram, Philip M., Beckwitt, Marc, Gudorf, Gregory D., Iso, Kazuaki, Raymond, Brian, Tobin, Christopher M.
• Primary Examiner(s): BAROT, BHARAT
• Application Number:
  US12/776,015
• Publication Number:
  US 20100217800A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,292 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709202-203, 709206-207, 709217-219, 370351-356
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0255 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02

Abstract

A method an apparatus is provided for providing selected media files, which are chosen from among a plurality of media files, to a user over a packet-switched network such as the Internet. The method begins by receiving over the packet-switched network a request from the user to receive media content. Next, a user profile associated with the user is retrieved from a database. The user profile reflects user preferences in media content to be received over the packet-switched network. The plurality of media files are ranked based at least in part on the user profile. At least one highly ranked media file is selected from among the ranked plurality of media files. At least one of the highly ranked media files is forwarded to the user over the packet-switched network.

Claims

1. A system for providing selected media files to users over a packet-switched network, said system comprising:

a database that includes a user profile associated with each respective one of the users and reflecting user preferences in media content to be received over the packet-switched network, wherein said user profile includes a behavior profile of the user based on online activity of the user, and wherein said user profile includes a declared user profile specifying self-defined user preferences provided by said user;

a processor for selecting a customized subset of media files for each of the users based at least in part on user preferences in media content obtained from each respective user profile stored in said database, wherein said processor selects the customized subset of media files by ranking a plurality of media files in accordance with a keyword search of the behavior profile for preselected terms; and

a server in communication with the packet-switched network for forwarding one or more files in the customized subset of media files to the user over the packet-switched network.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the media content is musical content and the media files are musical files.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said behavior profile includes information identifying items displayed by the user during at least one online session.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said behavior profile is updated based on online user activity subsequent to forwarding said at least one media file to the user.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said packet-switched network is the Internet.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said self-defined user preferences include predefined musical categories.

7. The system of claim 1 further comprising an advertisement database, distinct from said database, storing a plurality of advertisements, wherein said processor is configured to select and forward to the user at least one advertisement based at least in part on the user profile.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein said online activity on which the behavior profile is based includes an identification of web pages visited by the user and files selected by the user.

9. A system for providing selected media files to users over a packet-switched network, said system comprising:

a database that includes a user profile associated with each respective one of the users and reflecting user preferences in media content to be received over the packet-switched network;

a processor for selecting a customized subset of media files for each of the users based at least in part on user preferences in media content obtained from each respective user profile stored in said database; and

a server in communication with the packet-switched network for forwarding one or more files in the customized subset of media files to the user over the packet-switched network,

wherein said processor selects the customized subset of media files by ranking a plurality of media files in accordance with a social filtering technique, wherein data in a current user'"'"'s profile is compared with corresponding data from previous users with similar interests, and the highest-ranking media files of the previous users are provided to the current user.

10. A system for providing selected media files to users over a packet-switched network, said system comprising:

a database that includes a user profile associated with each respective one of the users and reflecting user preferences in media content to be received over the packet-switched network, wherein said user profile includes a behavior profile of the user based on online activity of the user, and wherein said behavior profile is obtained at least in part from a cookie received from an interface device associated with the user, wherein the cookie maintains a record of the click-stream activity of the user during previous on-line sessions which do not involve a host server;

a processor for selecting a customized subset of media files for each of the users based at least in part on user preferences in media content obtained from each respective user profile stored in said database; and

a server in communication with the packet-switched network for forwarding one or more files in the customized subset of media files to the user over the packet-switched network.