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Virtual user interface including playback control provided over computer network for client device playing media from another source

  • US 9,648,378 B2
  • Filed: 09/25/2015
  • Issued: 05/09/2017
  • Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2010
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A system for providing virtual user interfaces over a network, the system comprising:

  • one or more computer servers deployed on the network and managing operation of a plurality of server instances each with an associated virtual frame buffer, and managing operation of a plurality of user interface applications; and

    a client device coupled to both the network and a display;

    wherein the client device sends a request to the one or more servers over the network;

    the one or more servers allocate one of the server instances to the client device in response to receiving the request, and associate one of the user interface applications with the server instance allocated to the client device, the user interface application rendering a graphical user interface to the virtual frame buffer of the server instance allocated to the client device;

    the one or more servers forward to the client device updates of the graphical user interface from the virtual frame buffer of the server instance allocated to the client device, at least some of the updates including transparency information for use in blending the graphical user interface with video rendered by the client device;

    the one or more servers receive user input from the client device, provide the user input to the user interface application, and generate playback instructions for controlling playback of the video on the client device according to the user input, the user input representing interaction by a user of the client device with a representation of the graphical user interface;

    the one or more servers send the playback instructions to the client device via the network; and

    the client device receives the graphical user interface updates and playback instructions from the one or more servers, receives media content for rendering the video from a source different than the one or more servers, plays the video on the display according to the media content, further renders on the display the representation of the graphical user interface overlaid on the video according to the updates and the transparency information, controls playback of the video shown on the display according to the playback instructions, and transmits the user input to the one or more servers.

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