Communications among users belonging to affiliations spanning multiple virtual spaces

• US 9,450,900 B1
• Filed: 09/22/2014
• Issued: 09/20/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronic Arts Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Inventors: Ranade, Amit
• Primary Examiner(s): Cox, Natisha
• Application Number:
  US14/493,033
• Time in Patent Office: 729 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/00 Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions gaming systems which provide a financial reward G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/103 Workflow collaboration or project management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/131 Protocols for games, networked simulations or virtual reality

Abstract

Communications may be facilitated among users belonging to affiliations spanning two or more virtual spaces accessible via virtual environments. In exemplary implementations, affiliations within individual virtual spaces may be managed. A given affiliation within a given virtual space may comprise a discrete group of users with a relationship having a functional significance within the given virtual space. A communications interface may be provided for presentation to individual users. The communications interface may be configured to enable a given user to observe in-coming communications and provide out-going communications. Synchronous and/or asynchronous communications may be facilitated via the communications interface between users belonging to one or more common affiliations. The communications may be facilitated among users belonging to a common overarching affiliation, which may encompass two or more affiliations from different virtual spaces that include substantially the same group of users.

Claims

1. A system configured to facilitate communications among users belonging to affiliations spanning two or more online games accessible via virtual environments, the system comprising:

one or more processors configured by machine-readable instructions to;

provide a communications interface for presentation to individual users, the communications interface being configured to enable a given user to observe in-coming communications and provide out-going communications; and

facilitate synchronous communications via the communications interface between users belonging to a common overarching affiliation, the common overarching affiliation encompassing two or more affiliations from different online games that include substantially the same group of users, the affiliations including a first affiliation from a first online game and a second affiliation from a second online game, the common overarching affiliation having a functional significance that has an impact on game play within the first online game and the second online game, and facilitating a first user and a second user who belong to the common overarching affiliation to exchange synchronous communications with each other while the first user is engaged in the first online game and the second user is engaged in the second online game.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to manage one or more overarching affiliations.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is presented within one or both of a online game or a virtual environment.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is presented outside of a online game and outside of a virtual environment.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein two or more synchronous communications are spatially grouped within the communications interface based on individual affiliations associated with the two or more synchronous communications.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to provide an indication via the communications interface of whether one or more users belonging to individual ones of the affiliations are available to exchange synchronous communications.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to provide an indication of whether one or more users belonging to the common overarching affiliation are available to exchange synchronous communications.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to facilitate asynchronous communications via the communications interface between users belonging to one or more common affiliation, and wherein the first user is enabled to send the second user asynchronous communications regardless of whether the second user is engaged in an online game or a virtual environment.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to facilitate asynchronous communications among users belonging to the common overarching affiliation.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to manage inboxes associated with individual users, the inboxes being presented via the communications interface, and wherein a first inbox is associated with the first user such that the first inbox is configured to contain an asynchronous communication sent by the second user to the first user.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein two or more asynchronous communications contained by a given inbox are organized within the given inbox based on individual affiliations associated with the asynchronous communications contained by the given inbox.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to manage privileges associated with individual users based on statuses attributed to the individual users, the privileges including a first privilege.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the first user is enabled to edit asynchronous communications of one or more other users belonging to the common affiliation responsive to the first privilege being associated with the first user and the first privilege being unassociated with the one or more other users belonging to the common affiliation.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein communications from the first user are visibly distinct in the communications interface from communications from one or more other users responsive to the first privilege being associated with the first user and the first privilege being unassociated with the one or more other users belonging to the first affiliation.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to distribute alerts via the communications interface to individual users belonging to one or more common affiliations, individual ones of the alerts being distributed responsive to one or more predetermined events occurring within one or more online games associated with the one or more common affiliations, wherein the alerts are distributed regardless of whether the individual users belonging to the one or more common affiliations are engaged in one or more online games associated with the one or more common affiliations.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to distribute alerts to users belonging to the common overarching affiliation.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein a first alert sent to a user associated with a privilege contains different information relative to the first alert sent to a user unassociated with the privilege.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to enable the first user to transmit one or both of a synchronous communication or an asynchronous communication to two or more other users belonging to the first affiliation associated with the first online game regardless of whether individual ones of the two or more other users are engaged in the first online game.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to enable the first user to transmit one or both of a synchronous or an asynchronous communication to users belonging to the common overarching affiliation.

25. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to enable the first user to transmit one or both of a synchronous communication or an asynchronous communication to two or more other users belonging to the common overarching affiliation, regardless of whether individual ones of the two or more other users are engaged in the first online game.

20. A system configured to facilitate communications among users belonging to affiliations spanning two or more online games accessible via virtual environments, the system comprising:

one or more processors configured by machine-readable instructions to;

provide a communications interface for presentation to individual users, the communications interface being configured to enable a given user to observe in-coming communications and provide out-going communications; and

facilitate asynchronous communications via the communications interface between users belonging to a common overarching affiliation, the common overarching affiliation encompassing two or more affiliations from different online games that include substantially the same group of users, the affiliations including a first affiliation from a first online game and a second affiliation from a second online game, the common overarching affiliation having a functional significance that has an impact on game play within the first online game and the second online game, wherein the common overarching affiliation includes a first user and a second user, and facilitating the first user to send the second user asynchronous communications regardless of whether the second user is engaged in one or more of the online games or a virtual environment.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to manage one or more overarching affiliations.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to facilitate synchronous communications via the communications interface between users belonging to one or more common affiliations, wherein the first user and the second user are enabled to exchange synchronous communications while the first user is engaged in the first online game and the second user is engaged in the second online game.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to facilitate synchronous communications among users belonging to the common overarching affiliation.

24. The system of claim 20, wherein the one or more processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to distribute alerts via the communications interface to individual users belonging to the common overarching affiliation, individual ones of the alerts being distributed responsive to one or more predetermined events occurring within one or more online games encompassed by the common overarching affiliation, wherein the alerts are distributed regardless of whether the individual users belonging to the common overarching affiliation are engaged in the one or more online games encompassed by the common overarching affiliation.

26. A method for facilitating communications among users belonging to affiliations spanning two or more online games accessible via virtual environments, the method comprising:

providing a communications interface for presentation to individual users, the communications interface being configured to enable a given user to observe in-coming communications and provide out-going communications; and

one or both of;

facilitating synchronous communications via the communications interface between users belonging to a common overarching affiliation, the common overarching affiliation encompassing two or more affiliations from different online games that include substantially the same group of users, the affiliations including a first affiliation from a first online game and a second affiliation from a second online game, the common overarching affiliation having a functional significance that has an impact on game play within the first online game and the second online game, and enabling a first user and a second user, wherein the first user and the second user belong to the common overarching, to exchange synchronous communications while the first user is engaged in the first online game and the second user is engaged in the second online game;

or

facilitating asynchronous communications via the communications interface between the users belonging to the common overarching affiliation, and enabling the first user to send the second user asynchronous communications regardless of whether the second user is engaged in one or more of the online games or a virtual environment.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising managing one or more overarching affiliations.

28. The method of claim 27, further comprising providing an indication via the communications interface of whether one or more users belonging to the common overarching affiliation are available to exchange synchronous communications.

29. The method of claim 27, further comprising managing privileges associated with individual users based on statuses attributed to the individual users, the privileges including a first privilege, wherein (1) the first user is enabled to edit asynchronous communications of one or more other users belonging to the common overarching affiliation responsive to the first privilege being associated with the first user and the first privilege being unassociated with the one or more other users belonging to the common overarching affiliation, and/or (2) communications from the first user are visibly distinct in the communications interface from communications from one or more other users responsive to the first privilege being associated with the first user and the first privilege being unassociated with the one or more other users belonging to the common overarching affiliation.

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising distributing alerts via the communications interface to individual users belonging to the common overarching affiliation, individual ones of the alerts being distributed responsive to one or more predetermined events occurring within one or more online games encompassed by the common overarching affiliation, wherein the alerts are distributed regardless of whether the individual users belonging to the common overarching affiliation are engaged in one or more of the different online games encompassed by the common overarching affiliation.

31. The method of claim 27, further comprising enabling the first user to transmit one or both of a synchronous communication or an asynchronous communication to two or more other users belonging to the common overarching affiliation regardless of whether individual ones of the two or more other users are engaged in a online game encompassed by the common overarching affiliation.