Method and apparatus for sharing content

• US 9,137,578 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2013
• Issued: 09/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Roku, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Roku, Inc.
• Inventors: Garner, Greg
• Primary Examiner(s): Kumar, Pankaj
• Assistant Examiner(s): NEWLIN, TIMOTHY R
• Application Number:
  US13/778,068
• Publication Number:
  US 20130263189A1
• Time in Patent Office: 931 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234 Processing of video elementary streams, e.g. splicing of video streams or manipulating encoded video stream scene graphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2387 Stream processing in response to a playback request from an end-user, e.g. for trick-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4668 for recommending content, e.g. movies
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47217 for controlling playback functions for recorded or on-demand content, e.g. using progress bars, mode or play-point indicators or bookmarks specific graphical features in visual interfaces H04N21/4312
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4725 using interactive regions of the image, e.g. hot spots details of information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739

Abstract

A method includes supplying a video stream to a primary display device, detecting an information request associated with the video stream, identifying a portion of the video stream corresponding to the time of detecting, supplying to a secondary display device choices corresponding to the information request, receiving selected choices and supplying to the secondary display device information corresponding to the selected choices.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

supplying a video stream to a primary display device;

receiving an information request, wherein the information request solicits information associated with content of the video stream on the primary display device; and

in response to receiving the information request, supplying to a secondary display device a plurality of tag data relating to the video stream, wherein the tag data comprises a plurality of different tag sources and different tag types, tag timestamps, and tag content data, wherein the plurality of tag data are visually and concurrently indicated on a single progress bar of the video stream being displayed on the secondary display device, and whereby the tag content data is displayed on the display screen of the secondary display device when one of the plurality of tag types is selected.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the tag content data is displayed as an overlay on the display screen of the secondary display device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the tag type comprises one of a user tag, a friend tag, and a global tag.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the user tag is a tag generated by a user of the primary or secondary display device.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the global tag is an aggregation of tags generated by other users.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the tag timestamp comprises location information of the at least one tag information on the progress bar of the video stream.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein each of the tag types is visually distinguished from each other on the progress bar of the video stream.

8. A method for interacting with a video stream presented on a main display device, the method comprising:

requesting an information related to the video stream presented on the main display using a secondary display device;

receiving, at the secondary display device, a plurality of tag information relating to the video stream, wherein each of the plurality of tag information comprises a plurality of tag types, a plurality of tag sources, a plurality of tag timestamps, and a tag content data; and

concurrently displaying the plurality of tag information on a single progress bar representing a length of a content of the video stream, wherein a location on the progress bar of each of the plurality of tag information is based on the tag timestamp of each of the plurality of tag information.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving a user selection of a tag information from the plurality of tag information; and

displaying the tag content data of the selected tag information from the plurality of tag information.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the tag content data is displayed as an overlay on the display screen of the secondary display device.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the tag type comprises one of a user tag, a friend tag, and a global tag.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the user tag is a tag generated by a user of the primary or secondary display device.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the global tag is an aggregation of tags generated by other users.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein each of the plurality of tag information is visually distinguished on the progress bar of the second display screen based on the tag type of each of the plurality of tag information.

15. A non-transitory processor-readable medium having one or more instructions operational on a client device, which when executed by a processor causes the processor to:

supply a video stream to a primary display device; and

receive an information request, wherein the information request solicits information associated with content of the video stream on the primary display device; and

in response to the information request, supply to a secondary display device a plurality of tag sources and tag types, wherein the plurality of tag sources and types are visually and concurrently indicated on a single progress bar of the video stream being displayed on the secondary display device.

16. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 15, further comprises displaying a tag content data on the progress bar when one of the plurality of tag type or source is selected, wherein the tag content data is displayed as an overlay on the display screen of the secondary display device.

17. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the tag type comprises one of a user tag, a friend tag, and a global tag.

18. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the user tag is a tag generated by a user of the primary or secondary display device.

19. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the global tag is an aggregation of tags generated by other users.

20. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 15, wherein each of the plurality of tag information is visually distinguished on the progress bar of the second display screen based on the tag type of each of the plurality of tag information.