Content-related information display system

• US 9,480,920 B2
• Filed: 06/29/2012
• Issued: 11/01/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Square Enix
• Inventors: Ooya, Kazuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): D'Agostino, Paul A
• Application Number:
  US13/537,336
• Publication Number:
  US 20130005490A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,586 Days
• Field of Search: 463/40, 463/41, 463/43, 463/45
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/26 having at least one additional display device, e.g. on the game controller or outside a game booth
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/31 Communication aspects specific to video games, e.g. between several handheld game devices at close range
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/323 between game devices with different hardware characteristics, e.g. hand-held game devices connectable to game consoles or arcade machines
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/49 Saving the game status; Pausing or ending the game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/533 for prompting the player, e.g. by displaying a game menu
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/61 using advertising information
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/79 involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/822 Strategy games; Role-playing games A63F13/825, A63F13/828 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/95 Storage media specially adapted for storing game information, e.g. video game cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/303 for displaying additional data, e.g. simulating a Head Up Display
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/403 Connection between platform and handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5506 using advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/554 by saving game or status data
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5546 using player registration data, e.g. identification, account, preferences, game history

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a content-related information display system capable of acquiring related information corresponding to contents, such as a game, during a reproduction of the contents by a first apparatus without stopping the reproduction of the contents by the first apparatus. The first apparatus displays the contents on a first display. When a predetermined condition is satisfied during the reproduction of the contents, the first apparatus transmits reproducing status information on a reproducing status of the content to a second apparatus. The second apparatus receives the reproducing status information and specifies content-related information according to the reproducing status information. The second apparatus displays the content-related information on a second display.

Claims

1. A content-related information display system, comprising:

a first memory that stores content to be reproduced;

a first processor that reproduces the content stored by the first memory for displaying the content on a first display, and generates reproducing status information which is related to a reproducing status of the content;

a second memory that stores content-related information which is related to the content;

a second processor that specifies content-related information to be displayed on a second display, the content-related information being specified according to the reproducing status information generated by the first processor,

wherein the first processor generates the reproducing status information and the second processor specifies the content-related information in response to a predetermined condition being satisfied during reproduction of the content by the first processor.

2. The content-related information display system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first apparatus that includes the first memory, the first processor, and the first display, the first apparatus displaying the content on the first display; and

a second apparatus that includes the second memory, the second processor, and the second display, the second game apparatus displaying the content-related information on the second display,

wherein the second apparatus is connectable to the first apparatus by one of a communication line and a communication network, and

the first apparatus transmits the reproducing status information to the second apparatus via the one of the communication line and the communication network.

3. The content-related information display system according to claim 2,

wherein the second apparatus comprises:

an input that enables a user to instruct an operation;

a history information storage that stores history information related to the content-related information displayed by the second apparatus;

a history information displayer that displays the history information, which is stored by the history information storage, on the second display such that the history information is selectable by the operation to the input; and

a selection receptor that receives a selection of the history information displayed by the history information displayer, and

the second apparatus displays the content-related information corresponding to the history information received by the selection receptor.

4. The content-related information display system according to claim 2, wherein the first apparatus is a video game apparatus, and the content is a video game program.

5. The content-related information display system according to claim 4,

wherein the video game apparatus comprises an input device that enables a user to instruct an operation,

the video game program is progressed by operating a player character by the operation to the input, and

the second processor further specifies the content-related information to be displayed on the second display according to a status of the player character.

7. The content-related information display system according to claim 1, wherein, when the predetermined condition is satisfied, position coordinates of a player character in a virtual space are transmitted from the first processor to the second processor as the reproducing status information.

8. The content-related information display system according to claim 1, wherein, when a menu screen is opened as the reproducing status of the content, the second processor specifies further content-related information to be displayed on the second display.

9. The content-related information display system according to claim 1, wherein

the predetermined condition includes a pause being executed during the reproduction of the content,

the first processor opens a menu screen to be displayed on the first display in response to the pause being executed as the predetermined condition, and

the second processor specifies further detailed information corresponding to the menu screen as the content-related information to be displayed on the second display in response to the pause being executed as the predetermined condition.

10. The content-related information display system according to claim 4, wherein the second apparatus is a portable video game apparatus.

11. The content-related information display system according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined condition includes a predetermined button on the video game apparatus being pressed.

12. The content-related information display system according to claim 10, wherein

the predetermined condition includes an opponent character being encountered by a player character in the video game program,

the reproducing status information transmitted from the video game apparatus to the portable video game apparatus includes an identifier of the opponent character, and

the content-related information which is to be displayed on the second display of the portable video game apparatus includes information on the opponent character.

13. The content-related information display system according to claim 2, wherein

the content-related information stored in the second memory of the second apparatus includes registration information unique to the first apparatus,

the reproducing status information transmitted from the first apparatus to the second apparatus includes identification information, and

the second processor of the second apparatus specifies the content-related information to be displayed on the second display when the identification information matches the registration information.

14. The content-related information display system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a terminal apparatus that includes the first memory, the first processor, the first display, the second memory, the second processor, and the second display, the content being displayed on the first display, the content-related information being displayed on the second display.

15. The content-related information display system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a server that comprises the first memory; and

a terminal apparatus that comprises the first processor and the first display,

wherein the terminal apparatus is connected to the server via a communication network, and the first processor of the terminal apparatus accesses the first memory of the server to read the content for reproducing the content on the first display.

6. A method for reproducing content on a first display device, and displaying content-related information related to the content being reproduced on the first display on a second display, the method comprising:

reading, with a first processor, the content from a first memory for reproducing the content on the first display;

generating, with the first processor, reproducing status information which is related to a reproducing status of the content;

specifying, with a second processor and from a second memory, content-related information to be displayed on the second display, the content-related information being specified according to the reproducing status information,

wherein the first processor generates the reproducing status information and the second processor specifies the content-related information in response to a predetermined condition being satisfied during reproduction of the content with the first processor.

16. The method according to claim 6, wherein, when the predetermined condition is satisfied, position coordinates of a player character in a virtual space are transmitted from the first processor to the second processor as the reproducing status information.

17. The method according to claim 6, wherein, when a menu screen is opened as the reproducing status of the content, the second processor specifies further content-related information to be displayed on the second display.

18. The method according to claim 6, wherein

the predetermined condition includes a pause being executed by the first processor during the reproduction of the content, and

the method further comprises:

opening, with the first processor, a menu screen to be displayed on the first display in response to the pause being executed as the predetermined condition, and

specifying, with the second processor, further detailed information corresponding to the menu screen as the content-related information to be displayed on the second display in response to the pause being executed as the predetermined condition.

19. The method according to claim 6, wherein

a first apparatus includes the first memory, the first processor, and the first display,

a second apparatus includes the second memory, the second processor, and the second display,

the second apparatus is connectable to the first apparatus by one of a communication line and a communication network, and

the method further comprises:

displaying the content on the first display of the first apparatus;

transmitting the reproducing status information from the first apparatus to the second apparatus via the one of the communication line and the communication network; and

displaying the content-related information on the second display of the second apparatus.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein

the content-related information is stored in the second memory of the second apparatus and includes registration information unique to the first apparatus,

the reproducing status information that is transmitted from the first apparatus to the second apparatus includes identification information, and

the second processor of the second apparatus specifies the content-related information to be displayed on the second display when the identification information matches the registration information.