Game of chance utilizing social network contact attributes

• US 8,641,501 B2
• Filed: 05/05/2012
• Issued: 02/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: WMS Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Allen, Jeffrey L., Guinn, Andrew C., Gura, Damon E., Kyte, Robert L., Lang, Harry C., Robbins, Richard B., Smith, Pamela S., Stankovic, Danijel
• Primary Examiner(s): Laneau, Ronald
• Assistant Examiner(s): MYHR, JUSTIN L
• Application Number:
  US13/464,964
• Publication Number:
  US 20120282995A1
• Time in Patent Office: 640 Days
• Field of Search: 463 16- 21, 463 40- 42
• US Class Current: 463/17
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0214 Referral reward systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3227 Configuring a gaming machine, e.g. downloading personal settings, selecting working parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/323 wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3262 Player actions which determine the course of the game, e.g. selecting a prize to be won, outcome to be achieved, game to be played
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3272 Games involving multiple players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3281 wherein game attributes are transferred between players, e.g. points, weapons, avatars
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/329 Regular and instant lottery, e.g. electronic scratch cards
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

The disclosure includes a game of chance in which profile data for social contacts in a social networking system is used to determine whether a player wins or loses the game of chance. Social contacts are randomly selected from a group of social contacts. The social contacts may be obtained from a single data source or from multiple data sources and aggregated. A game player wins if the randomly selected social contacts have one or more profile attributes that match each other. The game may be presented as a slots based game in which profile pictures for the social contacts are the symbols for the reels of the slots game.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving data comprising a plurality of social contacts, the data including profile attributes of each the plurality of social contacts;

randomly selecting, using one or more processors, a subset of the plurality of social contacts; and

providing an award upon determining one or more matches of a profile attribute of social contacts in the subset with an attribute of a player.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the profile attribute comprises at least one of age, geographic location, birth date, astrological sign, interests, or physical attribute.

3. The method of claim 1, and further comprising displaying an image associated with the randomly selected subset of the plurality social contacts as reel elements for reels of a slots based game.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the reel elements include logos.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the logos comprise symbols for one or more suggested games, the one or more suggested games selected in accordance with one or more interests identified for the player.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of social contacts are associated with the player.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of social contacts share an interest, wherein the interest includes at least one of a topic, activity, event, sport, team, or band, and wherein the award is selected in accordance with the interest.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the award is determined in accordance with a ranking of the randomly selected subset of the plurality of social contacts.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the ranking is determined in accordance with a number of points or awards earned by the randomly selected subset of the plurality of social contacts.

10. The method of claim 1, and further comprising enhancing the award upon determining that the player has correctly identified a relationship among the randomly selected subset of the plurality of contacts.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the award includes one or more of points, access to an online game, access to a feature of a game, access to a bonus game, a discount on a good or service, a virtual trophy, a virtual medal, or a virtual badge.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the award comprises points and further comprising adding the points to an account associated with a player.

13. The method of claim 12, and further comprising converting a point value in the account associated with the player to a second point value for a second account associated with the player.

14. A system comprising:

a social networking system including a plurality of social contacts; and

a game of chance communicably coupled to the social networking system, the game of chance configured to;

receive data comprising a plurality of social contacts of a player, the data including profile attributes of each the plurality of social contacts;

randomly select, using one or more processors, a subset of the plurality of social contacts; and

provide an award upon determining one or more matches of a profile attribute of social contacts in the subset with an attribute of a player.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the game of chance is a slots based game.

16. The system of claim 14, and further comprising an award conversion unit to convert points awarded by the game of chance into points for a loyalty system.

17. A machine-readable medium having machine executable instructions for causing one or more processors to perform operations, the operations comprising:

receiving data comprising a plurality of social contacts of a player, the data including profile attributes of each the plurality of social contacts;

randomly selecting, using one or more processors, a subset of the plurality of social contacts; and

providing an award upon determining one or more matches of a profile attribute of social contacts in the subset with an attribute of a player.

18. The machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the profile attribute comprises at least one of age, geographic location, birth date, astrological sign, interests, or physical attribute.

19. The machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise displaying an image associated with the randomly selected subset of the plurality of social contacts as reel elements for reels of a slots based game.

20. The machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein reel elements include one or more logos.

21. The machine-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the logos are randomly selected in addition to the random selection of the subset of the plurality of social contacts, and wherein the odds of being presented with a logo are determined in accordance with a rate of play.

22. The machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the award includes one or more of points, access to an online game, access to a feature of a game, access to a bonus game, a discount on a good or service, a virtual trophy, a virtual medal, or a virtual badge.

23. The machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the award comprises a point value and wherein the point value is determined in accordance with a type of profile attribute.

24. The machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the subset of the plurality of social contacts includes at least two social contacts and wherein determining one or more matches of the profile attribute includes determining matches for profile attributes of the at least two social contacts and the player.