Systems and methods that match search queries to television subtitles

• US 9,578,358 B1
• Filed: 07/18/2014
• Issued: 02/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Rajgarhia, Varun, Skolicki, Zbigniew, Volovich, Yaroslav, Oztaskent, Ant
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Chenea
• Application Number:
  US14/335,834
• Time in Patent Office: 949 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/738 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/7834 using audio features
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/7844 using original textual content or text extracted from visual content or transcript of audio data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/251 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies details of learning user preferences for the retrieval of video data in a video database G06F16/739; computer systems using learning methods G06N3/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4524 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; systems specially adapted for using geographical information in broadcast systems H04H60/70; protocols in which the network application is adapted for the location of the user terminal in communication control or processing H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4884 for displaying subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program

Abstract

A process identifies a search query spike from queries submitted by users during a first span of time, which is less than a predefined duration. The spike corresponds to a set of queries identified as equivalent. The frequency of submitting queries from the set during the first time span exceeds the frequency of submitting queries from the set during an average span of time. The process correlates the spike to a broadcast video program by matching terms from the set of search queries to subtitle terms appearing in the video program at a first location. The first location in the video program was broadcast within a predefined time before the first span of time. The process receives notification from a user device indicating user interest in the video program. The process transmits to the user device search results corresponding to some search queries from the set of search queries.

Claims

1. A method for providing video program information, comprising:

at a server system with one or more processors and memory storing programs configured for execution by the one or more processors;

identifying a search query spike from search queries submitted by a plurality of users in a first time zone during a first span of time, wherein the first span of time is less than a predefined duration, the search query spike corresponds to a set of one or more search queries identified as equivalent, and a frequency of submitting queries from the set during the first time span exceeds a frequency of submitting queries from the set during an average span of time by a predefined threshold percentage;

correlating the search query spike to a broadcast video program broadcast during a first time period in the first time zone by matching a plurality of terms from the set of search queries to a plurality of subtitle terms appearing in the video program at a first location, wherein the first location in the video program was broadcast within a predefined time before the first span of time, such that information relevant to the video program at a current location in the video program can be provided to users who are viewing the video program, wherein the information relevant to the video program at a current location in the video program can be displayed to users who are viewing the video program at same time of the occurrence of a related content in the video program when the users who are viewing the video program are in a time zone that is later than the first time zone;

receiving notification from a user device in the first time zone indicating user interest in the video program;

transmitting to the user device in the first time zone search results corresponding to one or more search queries from the set of search queries; and

transmitting to a user device in a second time zone the search results, the second time zone being later than the first time zone, such that the search results are presented at the user device in the second time zone at the same time as the current location in the video program when the video program is broadcast during a second time period in the second time zone corresponding to the first time period in the first time zone.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting one or more of the search queries from the set to the user device in the first time zone.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein a first search query and a second search query are identified as equivalent when an ordered sequence of search terms from the first search query is substantially identical to an ordered sequence of search terms from the second search query.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a first search query and a second search query are identified as equivalent when a linguistic concept expressed using search terms from the first search query is substantially the same linguistic concept expressed using search terms from the second search query.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving notification from the user device in the first time zone indicating user interest in the video program comprises receiving notification that the video program is currently tuned at a television proximate to the user device in the first time zone.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving notification from the user device in the first time zone indicating user interest in the video program comprises receiving an audio stream from the user device in the first time zone and correlating the audio stream to the video program.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein matching a plurality of terms from the set of search queries to a plurality of subtitle terms appearing in the video program comprises matching an ordered sequence of terms from a search query in the set to a substantially identical ordered sequence of subtitle terms.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein matching a plurality of terms from the set of search queries to a plurality of subtitle terms appearing in the video program comprises matching a linguistic concept expressed using terms from a search query in the set with substantially the same linguistic concept expressed using the subtitle terms.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the video program is a televised television program.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a second search query from a second user device, wherein the second search query includes one or more second search terms matching terms from the search queries in the set;

using the correlation between the search query spike and the video program, selecting a list of documents that are associated with the video program and are responsive to search terms in the second search query; and

transmitting the list of documents to the second user device.

11. A server system for providing video program information, comprising:

one or more processors;

memory; and

one or more programs stored in the memory configured for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more programs comprising instructions for;

identifying a search query spike from search queries submitted by a plurality of users in a first time zone during a first span of time, wherein the first span of time is less than a predefined duration, the search query spike corresponds to a set of one or more search queries identified as equivalent, and a frequency of submitting queries from the set during the first time span exceeds a frequency of submitting queries from the set during an average span of time by a predefined threshold percentage;

correlating the search query spike to a broadcast video program broadcast during a first time period in the first time zone by matching a plurality of terms from the set of search queries to a plurality of subtitle terms appearing in the video program at a first location, wherein the first location in the video program was broadcast within a predefined time before the first span of time, such that information relevant to the video program at a current location in the video program can be provided to users who are viewing the video program, wherein the information relevant to the video program at a current location in the video program can be displayed to users who are viewing the video program at same time of the occurrence of a related content in the video program when the users who are viewing the video program are in a time zone that is later than the first time zone;

receiving notification from a user device in the first time zone indicating user interest in the video program;

transmitting to the user device in the first time zone search results corresponding to one or more search queries from the set of search queries; and

transmitting to a user device in a second time zone the search results, the second time zone being later than the first time zone, such that the search results are presented at the user device in the second time zone at the same time as the current location in the video program when the video program is broadcast during a second time period in the second time zone corresponding to the first time period in the first time zone.

12. The server system of claim 11, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions for transmitting one or more of the search queries from the set to the user device in the first time zone.

13. The server system of claim 11, wherein a first search query and a second search query are identified as equivalent when an ordered sequence of search terms from the first search query is substantially identical to an ordered sequence of search terms from the second search query.

14. The server system of claim 11, wherein a first search query and a second search query are identified as equivalent when a linguistic concept expressed using search terms from the first search query is substantially the same linguistic concept expressed using search terms from the second search query.

15. The server system of claim 11, wherein the instructions for receiving notification from the user device in the first time zone indicating user interest in the video program comprise instructions for receiving notification that the video program is currently tuned at a television proximate to the user device in the first time zone.

16. The server system of claim 11, wherein the instructions for receiving notification from the user device in the first time zone indicating user interest in the video program comprise instructions for receiving an audio stream from the user device in the first time zone and correlating the audio stream to the video program.

17. The server system of claim 11, wherein the instructions for matching a plurality of terms from the set of search queries to a plurality of subtitle terms appearing in the video program comprise instructions for matching an ordered sequence of terms from a search query in the set to a substantially identical ordered sequence of subtitle terms.

18. The server system of claim 11, wherein the instructions for matching a plurality of terms from the set of search queries to a plurality of subtitle terms appearing in the video program comprise instructions for matching a linguistic concept expressed using terms from a search query in the set with substantially the same linguistic concept expressed using the subtitle terms.

19. The server system of claim 11, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions for:

receiving a second search query from a second user device, wherein the second search query includes one or more second search terms matching terms from the search queries in the set;

using the correlation between the search query spike and the video program, selecting a list of documents that are associated with the video program and are responsive to search terms in the second search query; and

transmitting the list of documents to the second user device.

20. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs configured for execution by a server system having one or more processors and memory storing one or more programs configured for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more programs comprising instructions for:

identifying a search query spike from search queries submitted by a plurality of users in a first time zone during a first span of time, wherein the first span of time is less than a predefined duration, the search query spike corresponds to a set of one or more search queries identified as equivalent, and a frequency of submitting queries from the set during the first time span exceeds a frequency of submitting queries from the set during an average span of time by a predefined threshold percentage;

correlating the search query spike to a broadcast video program broadcast during a first time period in the first time zone by matching a plurality of terms from the set of search queries to a plurality of subtitle terms appearing in the video program at a first location, wherein the first location in the video program was broadcast within a predefined time before the first span of time, such that information relevant to the video program at a current location in the video program can be provided to users who are viewing the video program, wherein the information relevant to the video program at a current location in the video program can be displayed to users who are viewing the video program at same time of the occurrence of a related content in the video program when the users who are viewing the video program are in a time zone that is later than the first time zone;

receiving notification from a user device in the first time zone indicating user interest in the video program;

transmitting to the user device in the first time zone search results corresponding to one or more search queries from the set of search queries; and

transmitting to a user device in a second time zone the search results, the second time zone being later than the first time zone, such that the search results are presented at the user device in the second time zone at the same time as the current location in the video program when the video program is broadcast during a second time period in the second time zone corresponding to the first time period in the first time zone.