Integrating social contact identifiers into wagering games

• US 9,208,645 B2
• Filed: 01/30/2015
• Issued: 12/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Bally Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Allen, Jeffrey L., Gura, Damon E., Hornik, Jeremy M.
• Primary Examiner(s): McClellan, James S
• Application Number:
  US14/610,660
• Publication Number:
  US 20150170464A1
• Time in Patent Office: 312 Days
• Field of Search: 460/16, 460/20
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3218 wherein at least part of the system is portable
• 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 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3281 wherein game attributes are transferred between players, e.g. points, weapons, avatars

Abstract

Described herein are processes and devices that integrate social contact identifiers into wagering games. Some embodiments include providing game play elements configured for use in presentation of possible outcomes for a wagering game, wherein the wagering game is associated with a first player account stored on an account server. Some embodiments further include selecting, via one or more processors, a second player account indicated in the first player account as a social contact of a player associated with the first player account. Some embodiments further include, via at least one of the one or more processors, providing a social contact identifier of the second player account for use in the wagering game to represent at least a portion of at least one of the game play elements.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for integrating social contact identifiers into wagering games, the computer-implemented method comprising:

determining, by a social contact identifier integrator in a wagering game server, a first player account associated with a wagering game;

accessing, by the social contact identifier integrator, the first player account to determine one or more other player accounts that are social contacts of the first player account;

selecting, by the social contact identifier integrator, a second player account from the one or more other player accounts;

determining, by the social contact identifier integrator, a social contact identifier associated with the second player account;

configuring, by the social contact identifier integrator, the wagering game to include the social contact identifier in a game play element of the wagering game; and

transmitting, via a communications network, wagering game content including the game play element.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the game play element is a wild symbol for the wagering game.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

assigning a value to the social contact identifier associated with the second player account, wherein the value assigned to the social contact identifier associated with the second player account results in a winning outcome for the wagering game.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the wagering game to include the social contact identifier in the game play element of the wagering game comprises replacing an existing game play element of the wagering game with the game play element containing the social contact identifier.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the replacing the existing game play element of the wagering game with the game play element containing the social contact identifier represents a change to an outcome of the wagering game.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the wagering game to include the contact identifier in the game play element of the wagering game comprises integrating the social contact identifier with the game play element of the wagering game.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a reward to award to the second player account based on the configuring the wagering game to include the contact identifier in the game play element of the wagering game; and

notifying the second player account of the reward.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the selecting the second player account from the one or more other player accounts is in response to detecting input, associated with the first player account, wherein the input indicates a selection of the second player account.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the social contact identifier associated with the second player account comprises one or more of an avatar, a picture, user account name, a nickname, an identifying number, a serial number, a number sequence, a network address, a sound bite, a jingle, a catch-phrase, a spoken name, and an identifying sound.

10. A computer-implemented-implemented method for integrating social contact identifiers into wagering games, the computer-implemented method comprising:

determining, by a social contact identifier integrator of a wagering game server, a first player account and one or more other player accounts that are social contacts of the first player account;

selecting, by the social contact identifier integrator, a second player account from the one or more other player accounts;

determining a social contact identifier associated with the second player account; and

configuring, by the social contact identifier integrator, the wagering game to include the social contact identifier in a game play element of the wagering game.

11. The computer-implemented of claim 10, further comprising:

assigning a value to the social contact identifier associated with the second player account, wherein the value assigned to the social contact identifier associated with the second player account results in a winning outcome for the wagering game.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein use of the social contact identifier associated with the second player account affects a pay-out calculation of the wagering game.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising:

prior to the selecting the second player account, updating, in response to user input, a list of the one or more other player accounts that are social contacts of the first player account; and

selecting the second player account from the list of the one or more other player accounts.

14. The computer-implemented of claim 10, wherein the social contact identifier associated with the second player account comprises one or more of an avatar, a picture, user account name, a nickname, an identifying number, a serial number, a number sequence, a network address, a sound bite, a jingle, a catch-phrase, a spoken name, and an identifying sound.

15. One or more machine-readable storage devices having instructions stored thereon, which when executed by a set of one or more processors cause the set of one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

determining a first player account associated with a wagering game;

accessing the first player account to determine one or more other player account that are social contacts of the first player account;

selecting a second player account from the one or more other player accounts;

determining a social contact identifier associated with the second player account;

configuring the wagering game to include the social contact identifier in a game play element of the wagering game; and

transmitting, via a communications network, wagering game content including the game play element.

16. The one or more machine-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein the configuring the wagering game to include the social contact identifier in a game play element of the wagering game changes an outcome of the wagering game.

17. The one or more machine-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein the second player account is one of a plurality of player accounts indicated in the first player account and wherein the selecting a second player account from the one or more other player accounts is based on a criteria other than randomness.

18. The one or more machine-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein use of the social contact identifier associated with the second player account affects a pay-out calculation of the wagering game.

19. The one or more machine-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein the social contact identifier associated with the second player account comprises one or more of an avatar, a picture, user account name, a nickname, an identifying number, a serial number, a number sequence, a network address, a sound bite, a jingle, a catch-phrase, a spoken name, and an identifying sound.

20. The one or more machine-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein the configuring the wagering game to include the social contact identifier in the game play element of the wagering game comprises integrating the social contact identifier with an existing game play element of the wagering game.