Systems and methods for providing personalized audio content

• US 9,215,020 B2
• Filed: 09/17/2012
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Chan, Alistair K., Holman, Paul, Hyde, Roderick A., Myhrvold, Nathan P., Rosema, Keith David, Stephenson, Neal, Tegreene, Clarence T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Holder, Regina N
• Application Number:
  US13/621,721
• Publication Number:
  US 20140079241A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,184 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 31/00 Associated working of cameras or projectors with sound-recording or sound-reproducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/233 Processing of audio elementary streams monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25883 being end-user demographical data, e.g. age, family status or address arrangements for identifying locations of users in broadcast systems H04H60/52
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43079 of additional data with content streams on multiple devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44218 Detecting physical presence or behaviour of the user, e.g. using sensors to detect if the user is leaving the room or changes his face expression during a TV program methods or arrangements for recognising human body or animal bodies or body parts G06V40/10; methods or arrangements for acquiring or recognising human faces, facial parts, facial sketches, facial expressions G06V40/16; methods or arrangements for recognising movements or behaviour G06V40/20; arrangements for identifying users in broadcast systems H04H60/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8106 involving special audio data, e.g. different tracks for different languages
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/12 for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 5/00 Pseudo-stereo systems, e.g. in which additional channel signals are derived from monophonic signals by means of phase shifting, time delay or reverberation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications

Abstract

A method for providing audio content to a user device in a movie theater includes the steps of personalizing the audio content for the user device based on an identifier and providing the personalized audio content to the user device. In some embodiments, the identifier is based on demographic information about the user. According to some embodiments, the personalized audio content accompanies additional content that is not provided by the user device. In some embodiments, the personalized audio content accompanies a movie.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions encoded thereon, wherein the instructions when processed by a processing circuit perform the following:

personalizing audio content for a user device based on an identifier, wherein the audio content is a dialogue track played during a movie;

automatically providing the personalized audio content to the user device; and

changing the personalized audio content when the user device leaves a room displaying the movie.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the identifier is based on demographic information about a user.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the personalized audio content comprises at least one of:

an alternate or additional dialogue, an alternate or additional sound effect, an additional musical accompaniment, and one or more advertisements or offers.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, further comprising instructions to perform:

personalizing the audio content for a different user device based on a different identifier, wherein the personalized audio content for the user device is different from the personalized audio content for the different user device; and

providing the personalized audio content to the different user device.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a location in a room.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a type of the user device.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the changed personalized audio content includes audio content that is different from the personalized audio content that would be provided to the user device if the user device did not leave the room displaying the movie.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a group to which a user of the user device belongs.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, further comprising instructions to perform:

personalizing the audio content for a different user device based on a different identifier, wherein the personalized audio content for the user device is different from the personalized audio content for the different user device; and

providing the personalized audio content to the different user device;

wherein the personalized audio content for the different user device is based on a different group to which a different user of the different user device belongs.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein members of the group each receive the personalized audio content through their respective user devices, the personalized audio content being the same for each of the members.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the identifier is based on a ticket purchase.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the identifier is based on an identity of the user device.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the identifier is based on facial recognition.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, further comprising instructions to perform:

storing information about a user or a user device to a database.

15. A computing device for providing audio content to a user device in a movie theater, the computing device comprising:

a processor configured to;

personalize the audio content for the user device based on an identifier; and

provide the personalized audio content to the user device when the user device leaves a room in the movie theater displaying a movie, wherein the personalized audio content includes an audio synopsis of portions of the movie missed while the user device is not in the room displaying the movie.

16. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the identifier is based on demographic information about the user.

17. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the personalized audio content accompanies the movie.

18. The computing device of claim 17, wherein the identifier is based on whether the user belongs to a social network.

19. The computing device of claim 18, wherein the personalized audio content comprises audio commentary created by members of the social network.

20. The computing device of claim 19, wherein the processor is further configured to delay delivery of the audio commentary to align the commentary with a scene of the movie.

21. The computing device of claim 17, wherein the personalized audio content comprises, at least one of:

an alternate or additional dialogue, an alternate or additional sound effect, an additional musical accompaniment, and one or more advertisements or offers.

22. The computing device of claim 15, further comprising:

a network interface for wirelessly providing the personalized audio content to the user device.

23. The computing device of claim 15, the processor further configured to:

personalize the audio content for a different user device based on a different identifier, wherein the personalized audio content for the user device is different from the personalized audio content for the different user device; and

provide the personalized audio content to the different user device.

24. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a location in the movie theater.

25. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a group to which the user of the user device belongs.

26. The computing device of claim 25, the processor further configured to:

personalize the audio content for a different user device based on a different identifier, wherein the personalized audio content for the user device is different from the personalized audio content for the different user device; and

provide the personalized audio content to the different user device;

wherein the personalized audio content for the different user device is based on a different group to which a different user of the different user device belongs.

27. The computing device of claim 25, wherein members of the group each receive the personalized audio content through their respective user devices, the personalized audio content being the same for each of the members.

28. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the identifier is based on a ticket purchase.

29. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the identifier is based on an identity of the user device.

30. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the identifier is based on facial recognition.

31. The computing device of claim 15, further comprising:

a storage medium;

wherein the processor is further configured to;

store, in the storage medium, information about the user or the user device to a database.

32. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the personalized audio content is provided automatically to the user device.

33. A user device for receiving audio content in a movie theater from a computing device, the user device comprising:

a processor configured to;

transmit an identifier to the computing device; and

receive personalized audio content from the computing device based on the identifier and based on a location of the user device after the user device leaves a room in the movie theater displaying a movie, wherein the location of the user device includes at least one of a lobby area, a lavatory, and a concession stand.

34. The user device of claim 33, wherein the personalized audio content accompanies a movie.

35. The user device of claim 34, wherein the identifier is based on whether the user belongs to a social network.

36. The user device of claim 35, wherein the personalized audio content comprises audio commentary created by members of the social network.

37. The user device of claim 36, wherein the processor is further configured to delay delivery of the audio commentary to align the commentary with a scene of the movie.

38. The user device of claim 33, wherein the personalized audio content comprises, at least one of:

an alternate or additional dialogue, an alternate or additional sound effect, an additional musical accompaniment, and one or more advertisements or offers.

39. The user device of claim 33, further comprising:

a network interface for wirelessly receiving the personalized audio content from the computing device.

40. The user device of claim 33, further comprising:

at least one speaker;

wherein the processor provides the personalized audio content to the user through the at least one speaker.

41. The user device of claim 33, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a location in the movie theater of the user device.

42. The user device of claim 33, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a type of the user device.

43. The user device of claim 33, wherein the personalized audio content is based on a group to which the user of the user device belongs.

44. The user device of claim 33, wherein the identifier is based on a ticket purchase.

45. The user device of claim 33, wherein the identifier is based on an identity of the user device.