Internet remote game server

• US 8,764,566 B2
• Filed: 11/10/2006
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Miltenberger, Paul Douglas, Sheth, Kaushal, Fissell, Ryan Michael, Tan, Carmen Atienza, Bryson, Andy O., Devaraj, Shanmugapriyan, Cheng, Theodore YuChiang
• Primary Examiner(s): GARNER, WERNER G
• Application Number:
  US11/598,260
• Publication Number:
  US 20070202941A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,790 Days
• Field of Search: 463/12, 463/13, 463 16- 22, 463/25, 463/42, 463/43, 463/29, 463/30, 463/40
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3225 Data transfer within a gaming system, e.g. data sent between gaming machines and users
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3232 wherein the operator is informed
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3255 Incentive, loyalty and/or promotion schemes, e.g. comps, gaming associated with a purchase, gaming funded by advertisements

Abstract

A gaming system, including a game outcome server, an account handling device and a client device communicatively coupled via network, is described. The game outcome server may be operable to send command, instructions, data or combinations thereof that allow an interface for a wager-based game to be generated on the client device, generate a game outcome for the wager-based game that is displayed on the client device and generate an update to a player balance maintained on the account handling device. The account handling device is operable to provide gaming services related to the game play on the client device including a) web-site hosting where the web-site lists available gaming services including games provided by the game outcome server, b) accounting, c) money handling including player account management and d) player eligibility functions.

Claims

1. A network device comprising:

a game outcome server, said game outcome server comprising a first processor and a communication interface and being configured to store a plurality of wagering games, said communication interface being communicatively coupled, over a network, with a remote client device and a player management server, said first processor being configured to;

a) communicate with the remote client device and with the player management server via the communication interface, the player management server comprising a second processor operable to provide fund transfers to a player account and to maintain a player balance,

b) receive information from the player management server that allows a communication session to be established directly between the game outcome server and the remote client device, and establish a connection with the remote client device,

c) send, directly to the remote client device, first commands, first instructions, first data or combinations thereof that allow an interface for playing a wagering game to be modified on a client interface of the remote client device, wherein the client interface was previously generated based on information exchanged during a previous communication session between the player management server and the remote client device,

d) receive, directly from the remote client device, information indicating a request to play the wagering game and a wager amount,

e) responsive to step d, send information to the player management server requesting authorization of the wager amount based on the player balance in the player account,

f) receive an authorization message from the player management server indicating the wager amount is authorized, whereafter a game outcome for the wagering game is generated and an adjustment to the player balance is calculated,

g) send to the remote client device second commands, second instructions, second data or combinations thereof that allows a presentation of the game outcome to be generated on the client interface; and

h) send the adjustment to the player balance to the player management server to effect an update of the player balance.

2. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured (i) to generate the game outcome for the wagering game and the adjustment to the player balance prior to sending the information to the player management server indicating the request to authorize the wager amount and (ii) to send the information relating to the game outcome and the adjustment to the player balance with the request to authorize the wager amount.

3. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive from the player management server a request for information related to a first game outcome previously generated on the network device and to send the information related to the first game outcome previously generated on the network device.

4. The network device of claim 1, wherein prior to sending to the client device the first commands, first instructions, first data or combinations thereof for generating the play of the wagering game on the client interface, the first processor is further configured to receive information indicating a selection of the wagering game made on the client device from the player management server.

5. The network device of claim 4, wherein the information indicating a selection of the wagering game is formatted as a Universal Resource Locator (URL) and the first processor is further configured to parse the URL received from the player management server to determine the wagering game to be generated on the client interface.

6. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to send to the player management server information relating to the wagering game.

7. The network device of claim 6, wherein information relating to the wagering game includes a URL string.

8. The network device of claim 6, wherein the information relating to the wagering game is sent to the player management server prior to receiving the information from the player management server that allows the communication session to be established with the client device.

9. The network device of claim 1, wherein the player management server comprises an on-line casino.

10. The network device of claim 1, wherein the player management server comprises a casino-type gaming machine.

11. The network device of claim 1, wherein the client device is selected from the group consisting of a casino-type gaming machine, a personal computer, a set-top box, a mobile phone and a personal digital assistant.

12. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further operable to 1) receive a transfer of funds from the player management server, 2) maintain the funds as a temporary balance that is available for at least one wager on the wagering game and 3) add the adjustment to the player balance to the temporary balance to generate a new temporary balance, without sending the information to the player management server indicating the request to authorize the wager amount, without receiving from the player management server the information that indicates the wager amount is authorized and without sending the adjustment to the player balance to the player management server.

13. The network device of claim 12, wherein the first processor is further operable to transfer the temporary balance or the new temporary balance to the player management server to adjust the player balance.

14. The network device of claim 12, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive information indicating a cash-out request from the client device and in response to transfer the temporary balance or the new temporary balance to the player management server to adjust the player balance maintained on the player management server.

15. The network device of claim 12, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive information indicating a request to transfer the temporary balance or the new temporary balance from the player management server and in response to transfer the temporary balance or the new temporary balance to the player management server to adjust the player balance maintained on the player management server.

16. The network device of claim 12, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive information from the client device indicating a request for the transfer of the funds from the player management server and indicating an amount of the funds to transfer and to send the request for the transfer of the funds to the player management server.

17. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured, prior to sending to the client device the first commands, the first instructions, the first data or combinations thereof for generating the play of the wagering game on the client interface, to determine whether the player is located in a legal gaming jurisdiction and is eligible for game play.

18. The network device of claim 17, wherein the determination of whether the player is located in the legal gaming jurisdiction and is eligible for the game play is based upon at least information regarding a player'"'"'s stated country of residence and a location of the client device.

19. The network device of claim 18, wherein the location of the client device is determined from one or more of an IP address, GPS information or combinations thereof.

20. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first commands, the first instructions, the first data or combinations thereof include one or more application files compatible with a media player executed on the client device.

21. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first commands, the first instructions, the first data or combinations thereof include a software application for execution on the client device.

22. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to store one or more of the game outcome, the wager amount, the adjustment to the player balance or combinations thereof in a database.

23. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to store in association with the game outcome one or more of a unique player ID, a game name, a game ID, a game transaction ID, a game transaction time stamp, a currency, a bet amount, a client ID, an account handling device ID or combinations thereof to a database.

24. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive from a remote device information indicating a request to display a list of wagering games that the network device is operable to generate.

25. The network device of claim 24, wherein the remote device comprises the player management server.

26. The network device of claim 24, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive information indicating a selection of a first wagering game from the list of wagering games and to send information relating to the first wagering game to the player management server.

27. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive from the player management server information relating to a brand or an operator of the player management server and to incorporate the information relating to the brand or to the operator of the player management server into the first commands, the first instructions, the first data or combinations thereof such that brand information or client information is generated on the client interface.

28. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured, prior to sending to the client device the first commands, the first instructions, the first data or combinations thereof that allows the interface for playing the wagering game to be generated on the client interface, to authenticate an identity of the player management server.

29. The network device of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to receive information from the player management server that the wagering game is to be played for free.

30. A network device comprising:

a game outcome server, said game outcome server comprising a first processor configured to store a plurality of selectable wagering games, and to communicate with a remote client device and a player management server, said first processor being configured to;

a) communicate with the remote client device and with the player management server, the player management server having a second processor operable to provide fund transfers to a player account and to maintain a player balance,

b) receive information from the player management server that allows a communication session to be established directly between the game outcome server and the remote client device, and establish a connection with the remote client device,

c) send, directly to the remote client device, first commands, first instructions, first data or combinations thereof that allow an interface for playing a wagering game to be modified on a client interface of the remote client device, wherein the client interface was previously generated based on information exchanged during a previous communication session between the player management server and the remote client device,

d) receive, directly from the remote client device, information indicating a request to play the wagering game and a wager amount,

e) generate a game outcome for the wagering game and an adjustment to a player balance,

f) send information to the player management server requesting authorization of a game transaction wherein the request to authorize the game transaction includes information relating to the wager amount, the game outcome and the adjustment to the player balance,

g) receive an authorization message from the player management server indicating the game transaction is authorized, and then send to the client device second commands, second instructions, second data or combinations thereof that allows a presentation of the game outcome to be generated on the client interface; and

h) store a record of the game transaction.

31. A network device comprising:

a game outcome server, said game outcome server comprising a first processor and a communication interface and being configured to store a plurality of selectable wagering games, and to communicate with a remote client device and a player management server, said first processor being configured to;

a) communicate with the remote client device and with the player management server, the player management server having a second processor operable to provide fund transfers to a player account and to maintain a player balance,

b) receive information from the player management server that allows a session for communication of game data to be established between the first processor and the remote client device directly without flow of the game data through the player management server during the session, and establish a connection with the remote client device,

c) send, directly to the remote client device, the game data comprising first commands, first instructions, first data or combinations thereof for generating play of a wagering game on a client interface of the remote client device and for modifying the client interface, wherein the client interface was previously generated based on information exchanged during a previous communication session between the player management server and the remote client device,

d) receive from the player management server a transfer of funds deducted from a player balance maintained on the player management server,

e) maintain the funds as a temporary balance that is available for at least one wager on the wagering game,

f) receive, directly from the remote client device, information indicating a request to play the wagering game and a wager amount,

g) generate a game outcome for the wagering game and a balance adjustment,

h) add the balance adjustment to the temporary balance to update the temporary balance,

i) send directly to the client device second commands, second instructions, second data or combinations thereof that allows a presentation of the game outcome to be generated on the client interface; and

j) send the updated temporary balance to the player management server.