Incorporating social-network information in online games

• US 8,990,230 B1
• Filed: 12/30/2010
• Issued: 03/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lunt, Christopher, Galbreath, Nicholas, Winner, Jeffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): Ly, Cheyne D
• Application Number:
  US12/982,683
• Time in Patent Office: 1,545 Days
• Field of Search: 707/722, 707/727, 707/732, 707/758, 707/781, 715/789, 715/751
• US Class Current: 707/758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/284 Relational databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/338 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9024 Graphs; Linked lists G06F16/9027 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9536 Search customisation based on social or collaborative filtering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0275 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles

Abstract

Particular embodiments receive an indication from a first user that the first user desires to play a game; retrieve, from a social-networking system, one or more second users who are connected to the first user within a threshold degree of separation within the social-networking system; and invite each second user to play the game with the first user.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at one or more computing devices, an indication from a first user of a social-networking system that the first user desires to play an online game of a third-party online gaming site, the social-networking system comprising a graph that comprises a plurality of nodes and edges connecting the nodes, each edge between two nodes representing a relationship between them and establishing a single degree of separation between them, wherein the first user corresponds to a first node of the graph;

identifying, by the one or more computing devices, one or more second users of the social-networking system that are connected to the first user within the social-networking system by a degree of separation less than or equal to a threshold degree of separation, the one or more second users corresponding to one or more second nodes of the graph, respectively, wherein, the threshold degree of separation being configurable; and

inviting, by the one or more computing devices, each of one or more of the second users each corresponding to a second node having a degree of separation from the first node less than or equal to the configured threshold degree of separation to play the online game of the third-party gaming site with the first user by sending a message to each of the second users.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold degree of separation is specified by the first user.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the one or more computing devices, an indication from a second user that the second user desires to play the online game with the first user; and

enabling, by the one or more computing devices, the first user and the second user to play the online game together at an online gaming system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the indication comprises a username and a password of the first user that enable the first user to log on to an online gaming system where the first user plays the online game.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein inviting a second user comprises sending an e-mail to the second user inviting the second user to play the online game with the first user.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein inviting a second user comprises sending an instant message to the second user inviting the second user to play the online game with the first user.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the one or more second users comprises:

sending, to the social-networking system, a first identifier corresponding to the first user; and

receiving, from the social-networking system, one or more second identifiers corresponding to the one or more second users.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising computing the first identifier by applying a hash algorithm to a credential associated with the first user.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold degree of separation is one, two, three, or all.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold degree of separation is specified by a system operator.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold degree of separation is specified by a third party application.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold degree of separation is variable.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold degree of separation is one.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying to the second user a hyperlink for the online game.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying a hyperlink for the online game, the displayed hyperlink being based on an algorithmic search.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying a hyperlink for the online game, the displayed hyperlink being a sponsored link.

26. The method of claim 1, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying a visual tag next to a hyperlink for the online game, the visual tag comprising an image or text string-indicating that one or more other second users have clicked on the hyperlink for the online game.

35. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the one or more computing devices, for each of the second users, the degree of separation between the first node corresponding to the first user and the second node corresponding to the second user.

10. A system comprising:

a memory comprising instructions executable by one or more processors; and

the one or more processors coupled to the memory and operable to execute the instructions, the one or more processors being operable when executing the instructions to;

receive an indication from a first user of a social-networking system that the first user desires to play an online game of a third-party online gaming site, the social-networking system comprising a graph that comprises a plurality of nodes and edges connecting the nodes, each edge between two nodes representing a relationship between them and establishing a single degree of separation between them, wherein the first user corresponds to a first node of the graph;

identify one or more second users of the social-networking system that are connected to the first user within the social-networking system by a degree of separation less than or equal to a threshold degree of separation, the one or more second users corresponding to one or more second nodes of the graph, respectively, wherein, the threshold degree of separation being configurable; and

invite each of one or more of the second users each corresponding to a second node having a degree of separation from the first node less than or equal to the configured threshold degree of separation to play the online game of the third-party gaming site with the first user by sending a message to each of the second users.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the threshold degree of separation is specified by the first use.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the one or more processors are further operable when executing the instructions to:

receive an indication from a second user that the second user desires to play the online game with the first user; and

enable the first user and the second user to play the online game together at an online gaming system.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the indication comprises a username and a password of the first user that enable the first user to log on to an online gaming system where the first user plays the online game.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein inviting a second user comprises sending an e-mail to the second user inviting the second user to play the online game with the first user.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein inviting a second user comprises sending an instant message to the second user inviting the second user to play the online game with the first user.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein identifying the one or more second users comprises:

sending, to the social-networking system, a first identifier corresponding to the first user; and

receiving, from the social-networking system, one or more second identifiers corresponding to the one or more second users.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are further operable when executing the instructions to compute the first identifier by applying a hash algorithm to a credential associated with the first user.

18. The system of claim 10, wherein the threshold degree of separation is one, two, three, or all.

27. The system of claim 10, wherein the threshold degree of separation is specified by a system operator.

28. The system of claim 10, wherein the threshold degree of separation is specified by a third party application.

29. The system of claim 10, wherein the threshold degree of separation is variable.

30. The system of claim 10, wherein the threshold degree of separation is one.

31. The system of claim 10, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying to the second user a hyperlink for the online game.

32. The system of claim 10, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying a hyperlink for the online game, the displayed hyperlink being based on an algorithmic search.

33. The system of claim 10, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying a hyperlink for the online game, the displayed hyperlink being a sponsored link.

34. The system of claim 10, wherein inviting a second user comprises displaying a visual tag next to a hyperlink for the online game, the visual tag comprising an image or text string indicating that one or more other second users have clicked on the hyperlink for the online game.