Systems and methods for scheduling interactive media and events

• US 9,549,220 B2
• Filed: 08/18/2015
• Issued: 01/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: StratosAudio, Inc.
• Original Assignee: StratosAudio, Inc.
• Inventors: Christensen, Kelly M., Hansen, John Phillip, Mock, Thomas Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Alcon, Fernando
• Application Number:
  US14/829,042
• Publication Number:
  US 20150358684A1
• Time in Patent Office: 518 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077
• 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 21/262 Content or additional data distribution scheduling, e.g. sending additional data at off-peak times, updating software modules, calculating the carousel transmission frequency, delaying a video stream transmission, generating play-lists scheduling strategies for dispatcher in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/4881; arrangements for scheduling broadcast services or broadcast-related services H04H60/06; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; establishing a time schedule or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/62
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• 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 21/8166 involving executable data, e.g. software arrangements for executing specific programs G06F9/44; broadcasting computer programmes in broadcast systems H04H20/91; involving the movement of software or configuration parameters H04L67/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8173 End-user applications, e.g. Web browser, game
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

The user can respond to a media segment wherein the media segment may be associated with a schedulable event. Software on the device can then schedule the event into an electronic calendar system, and/or may use data associated with the media segment. At the appropriate time, the electronic calendar system may notify the user of the scheduled broadcast and/or event.

Claims

1. A computer system for scheduling at least one selectable option associated with a scheduling opportunity, the computer system comprising:

a computer network interface that receives from an interactive media receiver, through a computer network, a unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity and a responder identifier associated with the interactive media receiver;

one or more electronic databases that comprise at least a first database entry associated with the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity and a second database entry associated with the responder identifier; and

one or more computer processors that;

access the first database entry and the second database entry;

determine the at least one selectable option associated with the scheduling opportunity;

determine a first selectable option from the at least one selectable option based at least in part on information corollary to the second database entry associated with the responder identifier and information corollary to the first database entry associated with the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity;

store, in the one or more electronic databases, the first selectable option in association with the responder identifier;

cause transmission of at least the first selectable option by the computer network interface to the interactive media receiver; and

cause generation of one or more reminders associated with the first selectable option, wherein the one or more reminders are caused to be generated by at least one of the following;

the interactive media receiver, a device associated with the interactive media receiver, the computer system, a different computer system that communicates with the device associated with the interactive media receiver.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer network interface further receives from the interactive media receiver, through the computer network, a second unique identifier that enables unique identification of a specific instance of an interactive media transmission associated with the scheduling opportunity.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the responder identifier enables identification of at least one of the following:

a user associated with the interactive media receiver, the interactive media receiver, an account associating a user with the interactive media receiver, an account associated with the interactive media receiver.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first database entry and the second database entry are stored using at least one of the following configurations:

the first database entry is stored using a first database of the one or more electronic databases and the second database entry is stored using the first database of the one or more electronic databases, the first database entry is stored using a first database of the one or more electronic databases and the second database entry is stored using a second database of the one or more electronic databases.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first selectable option is associated with at least one of the following:

a location, a time, a date, information associated with the first selectable option, an organization associated with the first selectable option.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the determination of the at least one selectable option is made using at least one of the following criteria:

demographics associated with the responder identifier, preferences associated with the responder identifier, a calendar associated with the responder identifier, a location associated with the responder identifier, a schedule associated with the responder identifier, information associated with the scheduling opportunity, information received from the interactive media receiver distinct from the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity and the responder identifier, information stored in association to the first database entry, information stored in association to the second database entry, information associated with the first selectable option.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the determination of the first selectable option is made using at least one of the following criteria:

demographics associated with the responder identifier, preferences associated with the responder identifier, a calendar associated with the responder identifier, a location associated with the responder identifier, a schedule associated with the responder identifier, information associated with the scheduling opportunity, information received from the interactive media receiver distinct from the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity and the responder identifier, information stored in association to the first database entry, information stored in association to the second database entry, information associated with the at least one selectable option.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more computer processors further generate a report, the report including at least one of the following:

information including at least the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity, the responder identifier, a date and time associated with the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity, a location associated with the interactive media receiver, information associated with the responder identifier, information associated with the scheduling opportunity, information associated with the at least one selectable option, information associated with the first selectable option, a date and time associated with the first selectable option.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer network interface further receives from the interactive media receiver, through the computer network, subsequent to the transmission to the interactive media receiver, at least one of the following:

an acceptance of the first selectable option, a rejection of the first selectable option, a request for a second selectable option distinct from the first selectable option, a request for additional information associated with the first selectable option, a purchase associated with the first selectable option, a response associated with the first selectable option.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the transmission of at least the first selectable option by the computer network interface to the interactive media receiver is accompanied by at least one of the following:

a second selectable option, information associated with the first selectable option, information associated with the second selectable option, information associated with the scheduling opportunity.

11. A computer system for coordinated scheduling, the computer system comprising:

an electronic media receiver that receives an interactive media transmission and a unique identifier specific to a scheduling opportunity corollary to the interactive media transmission;

at least one computer processor that determines at least one selectable option associated with the scheduling opportunity and a responder identifier associated with the electronic media receiver;

an electronic display that presents the at least one selectable option associated with the scheduling opportunity,

wherein the at least one computer processor further determines an associated device to coordinate scheduling of the scheduling opportunity;

a computer network interface that communicates with the associated device, through a computer network, information corresponding to the scheduling opportunity including at least the unique identifier specific to a scheduling opportunity corollary to the interactive media transmission and the responder identifier associated with the electronic media receiver; and

a user interface that enables selection of the at least one selectable option associated with the scheduling opportunity and the responder identifier associated with the electronic media receiver,

wherein the computer network interface further communicates at least the selection of the at least one selectable option, the unique identifier specific to a scheduling opportunity corollary to the interactive media transmission and the responder identifier associated with the electronic media receiver to the associated device through the computer network, causing the associated device to perform at least one of the following;

generate a reminder, generate a calendar entry, record a media event.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the electronic media receiver further receives a unique identifier that enables unique identification of a specific instance of the interactive media transmission;

and the system further comprises;

a database that stores the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity, corollary to the responder identifier associated with the electronic media receiver and the unique identification of the specific instance of the interactive media transmission.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the information corresponding to the scheduling opportunity includes at least one of the following:

a location, a time, a date, the at least one selectable option, a description of the scheduling opportunity, an identification associated with the electronic media receiver, data derived from the interactive media transmission, a website associated with the scheduling opportunity, an organization associated with the scheduling opportunity.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the selection of the at least one selectable option enables at least one of the following:

a calendar entry stored in an electronic memory accessible by the at least one computer processor, a calendar entry accessible by the associated device, a calendar entry stored in a database distinct from the electronic memory and the associated device, an alert associated with the at least one computer processor, an alert on the associated device, a purchase corollary to the interactive media transmission, a website accessible by the at least one computer processor, a website accessible by the associated device, an appointment corollary to the interactive media transmission, scheduling an event on a recording device.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the determination of the at least one selectable option comprises at least one of the following:

information received by the electronic media receiver in association with the interactive media transmission, information received by the electronic media receiver in association with the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity, information received subsequent to the receiving of the interactive media transmission by the electronic media receiver, information received subsequent to the receiving of the unique identifier specific to the scheduling opportunity by the electronic media receiver, information derived from communicating with a database by the electronic media receiver, information obtained from prior selections made using the electronic media receiver.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the associated device executes a second selection distinct from the selectable option selected using the user interface.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the electronic media receiver receives from the associated device through the computer network, a communication including a responder identifier associated with the associated device and at least one of the following:

an acceptance of the at least one selectable option, a rejection of the at least one selectable option, a second selectable option, a query associated with the at least one selectable option, a query associated with the scheduling opportunity.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the determination of the associated device is made based at least in part on one of the following:

a pre-established parameter associated with a first user, an association of the associated device with a first user, a select group to which a first user belongs, a select group to which a second user of the associated device belongs, ownership of the electronic media receiver, ownership of the associated device, a relationship between a first user and a second user associated with at least the associated device.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein the communication between the computer network interface and the associated device includes at least one of the following:

audio, video, text, data.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein the interactive media transmission is corollary to at least one of the following:

content, data, an advertisement, a report, a broadcast, a sale, a concert, a movie, a service, a stage play, a repair, maintenance, a class, a sporting event, a dating service, a program, a reminder.

21. The system of claim 11, wherein the computer network interface further communicates at least the selection of the at least one selectable option, the unique identifier specific to a scheduling opportunity corollary to the interactive media transmission and the responder identifier associated with the electronic media receiver to an electronic database for processing.