Media sharing community

• US 9,811,308 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2016
• Issued: 11/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RMZ Development LLC
• Original Assignee: RMZ Development LLC
• Inventors: Zelson, Richard M., Sorisi, Joseph A.
• Primary Examiner(s): AKINYEMI, AJIBOLA A
• Application Number:
  US15/018,389
• Publication Number:
  US 20170013036A1
• Time in Patent Office: 638 Days
• Field of Search: 381 77
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/60 of audio data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/635 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/639 using playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/68 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/167 Audio in a user interface, e.g. using voice commands for navigating, audio feedback
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3827 Portable transceivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1008 Earpieces of the supra-aural or circum-aural type
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2227/003 Digital PA systems using, e.g. LAN or internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 27/00 Public address systems circuits for preventing acoustic reaction H04R3/02; circuits for distributing signals to loudspeakers H04R3/12; monitoring or testing arrangements for public address systems H04R29/007; amplifiers H03F
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

The present invention enables a user to share his/her listening experience selectively with others without sharing headphones and without disturbing others who do not want to listen. In a preferred embodiment, a first listener can accomplish this by storing in a Portable Electronic Device or similar device a library of listening experiences, listening to one of the listening experiences, and while listening to that one listening experience streaming the one listening experience to at least one other Portable Electronic Device or similar device. A second listener at the other Portable Electronic Device can then listen to the same listening experience as the first listener at the same time. It is expected that the listening experiences will typically be songs or other music but the invention may be practiced with any type of audio content. The first listener may also create a playlist of the listening experiences in the library and make the playlist available to others. Others may use the playlist to access the library and listen to one or more listening experiences stored in the library. Also, utilizing the same interface and communication methodologies as described above, the technology platform detailed in this application can be used for commercial purposes to stream location based content, audio and otherwise, to a connected network of Portable Electronic Devices. Commercial uses of this functionality include providing commercial establishments with the ability to create synchronous (users come into a stream at the exact point that it is being streamed in real time) and or asynchronous (users can select and start a transmission from the beginning) featured channels (location based) where they can stream any self created or otherwise authorized content to other Portable Electronic Devices in their range.

Claims

1. A method of operating a first network communication device having a transmitter, a receiver, and a processor comprising:

storing electronically in a memory in the first network communication device a plurality of digital files;

generating from the memory a signal representing a first digital file; and

providing the signal to the first network communication device for use by the first network communication device at a first time, and to the transmitter for transmission to a second network communication device for use at the first time in the second network communication device

at substantially the same time as the first time, receiving a second signal from the second network communication device, wherein the first network communication device and the second network communication device are configured to read data generated by the processor of the first network communication device and a processor of the second network communication device at substantially the same time.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the signal provided to the transmitter is streamed.

3. A first network communication device and a second network communication device, each network communication device including a transmitter, a receiver, a processor, and a memory, each said network communication device storing software for:

storing electronically in a memory in the first network communication device a plurality of digital files;

generating from the memory a first signal representing a first digital file; and

providing the first signal to the first network communication device for use in the first network communication device and to the transmitter of the first network communication device for transmission to a second network communication devices for use at the same time by the second network communication device, wherein the first network communication device and second network communication device are configured to read the first signal generated by the first network communication device and a second signal generated by the second network communication device at substantially the same time without first downloading the first signal or the second signal.

4. The network communication devices of claim 3 wherein the first signal provided to the transmitter of the first network communication device is streamed.

5. The network communication devices of claim 3 wherein the transmitter of the first network communication device is a digital network transmitter.

6. A method of operating a digital network comprising a plurality of devices, each device including a transmitter, a receiver, a memory, and a processor, the method comprising:

storing electronically in a memory in a first device a plurality of digital files;

generating from the memory of the first device a first signal representing a first digital file;

providing the signal to the first device and to the transmitter of the first device for transmission to a second device for use by the processor of that second device at substantially the same time;

generating from the memory of the second device a second signal representing data stored in the memory of the second device;

providing the second signal to the transmitter of the second wireless device for transmission to the first device for use at substantially the same time by the processor of that first device;

reading at the processor of the first network device and at the processor of the second network device data generated by both the first network device and the second device at substantially the same time.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the first signal is streamed.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein the transmitter of the first device is a digital network transmitter.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein the first digital the contains one of the group consisting of a listening experience, a static and/or dynamic graphic images, alpha-numeric data, and text.

10. A network comprising a plurality of network devices, a first network device comprising a first transmitter, a first receiver, a first processor, a first memory and first software that configures the first network device for:

storing electronically in a first memory in the first device a plurality of digital files;

generating from the first memory a signal representing a first digital file;

providing the signal both to the first network device and to the first transmitter for transmission to the second network device for use by a processor in the second network device at substantially the same time; and

receiving at the first receiver a signal transmitted from the second network device such that the first processor reads the data generated by the first network device and second network device at substantially the same time;

the second network device comprising a second transmitter, a second receiver, a second processor, a second memory and second software that configures the second device for;

receiving at the second receiver of the second network device the first signal transmitted from the first network device and providing to the second processor the received signal wherein the second network device is configured to read the data generated by the first network device and second network device at substantially the same time.

11. The network or claim 10 wherein one or the digital files stored in the first memory comprises a compressed file.