Systems and methods for presenting media program accessibility information in a media program browse view

• US 9,389,749 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2013
• Issued: 07/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon and Redbox Digital Entertainment Services, LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Roberts, Brian F., Maskatia, Imran Arif, Bowers, Paul Bradley
• Primary Examiner(s): Alcon, Fernando
• Application Number:
  US14/093,285
• Publication Number:
  US 20140157329A1
• Time in Patent Office: 956 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0607 Regulated
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/20 Servers specifically adapted for the distribution of content, e.g. VOD servers; Operations thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/218 Source of audio or video content , e.g. local disk arrays details of retrieval in video databases G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/27 Server based end-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/40 Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/472 End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content end-user interfaces for retrieving video data from a database G06F16/739; network services for supporting unicast streaming H04L65/612
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895

Abstract

An exemplary method includes a media service provider system 1) providing for display in a media program browse view on a display screen, a cover art image object representing a media program within a grid of cover art image objects representing a plurality of media programs accessible through a media program distribution service, 2) determining a media distribution model by way of which the media program represented by the cover art image object is accessible through the media program distribution service, and 3) providing, for display in the media program browse view together with the cover art image object, an accessibility indicator that indicates the media distribution model by way of which the media program is accessible. Corresponding systems and methods are also described.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

providing, by a media service provider system for display in a media program browse view on a display screen, a cover art image object representing a media program within a grid of cover art image objects representing a plurality of media programs accessible through a media program distribution service;

determining, by the media service provider system, a media distribution model by way of which the media program represented by the cover art image object is accessible through the media program distribution service;

providing, by the media service provider system and for display in the media program browse view together with the cover art image object, an accessibility indicator that indicates the media distribution model by way of which the media program is accessible and that is at least partially overlaid over the cover art image object;

providing, by the media service provider system for display in an additional media program browse view on the display screen, the cover art image object representing the media program within an additional grid of cover art image objects representing an additional plurality of media programs accessible through the media program distribution service;

selecting, by the media service provider system, a status indicator to associate with the cover art image object representing the media program in the additional media program browse view;

providing, by the media service provider system and for display in the additional media program browse view together with the cover art image object, a graphical object representing the selected status indicator; and

providing, by the media service provider system for display in the additional media program browse view together with the additional grid of cover art image objects, a plurality of user-selectable filter options representing a plurality of media distribution models,

wherein the selected status indicator includes a bookmarked status that indicates that the media program has been bookmarked by a user and that follows and is displayed with the cover art image object regardless of which one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options representing the plurality of media distribution models is selected.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing, by the media service provider system for display in the media program browse view together with the cover art image object, an additional cover art image object representing an additional media program within the grid of cover art image objects;

determining, by the media service provider system, an additional media distribution model by way of which the additional media program represented by the additional cover art image object is accessible through the media program distribution service; and

providing, by the media service provider system and for display in the media program browse view together with the additional cover art image object, an additional accessibility indicator that indicates the additional media distribution model by way of which the additional media program is accessible.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the additional media distribution model is different from the media distribution model.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the media distribution model comprises a digital media distribution model that utilizes a digital media distribution channel to distribute the media program; and

the accessibility indicator indicates that the media program is accessible through the digital media distribution model.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the accessibility indicator indicates one or more of an option to rent the media program, an option to buy the media program, and an option for subscription access to the media program.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the accessibility indicator includes a textual notification at least partially overlaid over the cover art image object.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the media distribution model comprises a physical media distribution model that utilizes a kiosk-based distribution channel through which physical copies of the media program are distributed; and

the accessibility indicator indicates that the media program is accessible through the kiosk-based distribution channel.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the media programs represented in the grid of cover art image objects are accessible through the media program distribution service by way of a plurality of different media distribution models, the media distribution model included in the plurality of different media distribution models.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising providing, by the media service provider system and in a same view on the display screen as the cover art image object, an additional accessibility indicator together with an additional cover art image object representing an additional media program, the additional accessibility indicator indicating an additional media distribution model included in the plurality of different media distribution models.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting, by the media service provider system, the accessibility indicator for inclusion in the media program browse view based on one or more media program access factors that include one or more of a user account subscription status, a media program content status, a user device capability, and an available media format of the media program.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing, by the media service provider system and for display in the media program browse view together with the cover art image object and the accessibility indicator, a progress bar that indicates a progress status of a consumption of the media program by the user.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the accessibility indicator includes an icon overlaid on the cover art image object.

13. The method of claim 1, embodied as computer-executable instructions on at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium.

14. A method comprising:

providing, by a media service provider system for display in a media program browse view on a display screen, a cover art image object representing a media program within a grid of cover art image objects representing a plurality of media programs accessible through a media program distribution service;

determining, by the media service provider system, a plurality of status indicators for the media program, the plurality of status indicators respectively associated with a plurality of media distribution models by way of which the media program represented by the cover art image object is accessible through the media program distribution service;

selecting, by the media service provider system from the plurality of status indicators, a status indicator to associate with the cover art image object representing the media program;

providing, by the media service provider system and for display in the media program browse view together with the cover art image object, a graphical object representing the selected status indicator and being at least partially overlaid over the cover art image object; and

providing, by the media service provider system for display in the media program browse view together with the grid of cover art image objects, a plurality of user-selectable filter options representing the plurality of media distribution models,

wherein the selected status indicator includes a bookmarked status that indicates that the media program has been bookmarked by a user and that follows and is displayed with the cover art image object regardless of which one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options representing the plurality of media distribution models is selected.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein:

the plurality of media distribution models comprises a digital media distribution model that utilizes a digital media distribution channel to distribute the media program and a physical media distribution model that utilizes a physical media distribution channel to distribute the media program.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the plurality of status indicators are associated with a rental status of the media program, the bookmarked status of the media program, a subscription status of the media program, a physical location of a physical copy of the media program, and a time limit associated with accessing the media program.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising providing, by the media service provider system and for display in the media program browse view together with the cover art image object and the graphical object representing the selected status indicator, a progress bar that indicates a progress status of a consumption of the media program by the user.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the graphical object representing the selected status indicator includes a graphical representation of a ribbon that is displayed together with the cover art image object.

19. The method of claim 14, embodied as computer-executable instructions on at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium.

20. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a user interface facility that directs the processor to

provide, for display in a graphical user interface, a media program browse view including a grid comprising a plurality of cover art image objects representing a plurality of media programs,

determine a media distribution model by way of which a media program included in the plurality of media programs and represented by a cover art image object included in the plurality of cover art image objects is accessible through a media program distribution service,

provide, for display in the media program browse view together with the cover art image object representing the media program, an accessibility indicator that indicates the media distribution model by way of which the media program is accessible and that is at least partially overlaid over the cover art image object,

provide, for display in an additional media program browse view, the cover art image object representing the media program within an additional grid of cover art image objects representing an additional plurality of media programs accessible through the media program distribution service,

select a status indicator to associate with the cover art image object representing the media program in the additional media program browse view,

provide, for display in the additional media program browse view together with the cover art image object, a graphical object representing the selected status indicator, and

provide, for display in the additional media program browse view together with the additional grid of cover art image objects, a plurality of user-selectable filter options representing a plurality of media distribution models,

wherein the selected status indicator includes a bookmarked status that indicates that the media program has been bookmarked by a user and that follows and is displayed with the cover art image object regardless of which one of the plurality of user-selectable filter options representing the plurality of media distribution models is selected.