Systems and methods for distributing published content among users of a social network

• US 10,334,071 B2
• Filed: 06/09/2015
• Issued: 06/25/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Oath Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Armstrong, Christopher, Keister, Alan, Dunham, Lark, Granito, Jennifer, Greenberg, Steven, Agrawal, Rakesh, Sommers, Michael, Glover, Carol A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lin, Shew Fen
• Application Number:
  US14/735,053
• Publication Number:
  US 20150312372A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,477 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services

Abstract

Collecting and distributing information related to recent content publication activity of an instant messaging (IM) user provides other users in a network with timely, relevant information about people known to the user or within the same social network. A user participating in a social network can quickly and efficiently perceive new information related to other users (referred to as co-users) in a social network by reviewing the co-users'"'"' recent content publication activity. A user may be made able to do so without requiring the co-user to send a communication directly to the user regarding the new facts or new content, and also without requiring the user to actively browse or request information about the co-user.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a storage device that stores a set of instructions; and

at least one processor coupled to the storage device and operative with the instructions to;

identify a first electronic content published by a first user of a social network, the first user being linked to a plurality of second users within the social network;

access permission data associated with the first user of the social network, the permission data comprising a publication permission established by the first user, to identify at least one content type permitted for presentation to at least one second user;

obtain a second electronic content published by the first user, the second electronic content being published subsequent to the first electronic content;

determine a content type associated with the second electronic content, the determined content type being associated with a corresponding indicator, the corresponding indicator comprising at least one of a digital image, animated content, or a hyperlink associated with the second electronic content;

in response to the second electronic content is of a content type permitted for presentation to the at least one second user based on the accessed permission data, generate an electronic command to transmit information identifying the first user and the corresponding indicator to a device of at least one of the second users, the information instructing the device to present a graphic representing the corresponding indicator to the at least one second user on a portion of an interface of the device;

enable the at least one second user to interact with the graphic such that the second electronic content is transmitted for display to the at least one second user; and

generate an electronic command to transmit instructions to the device to dim the graphic after the at least one second user has interacted with the graphic.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further operative with the instructions to:

determine whether the second electronic content conforms to the publication permission; and

when the second electronic content conforms to the at least one publication permission, generate the electronic command to transmit the information identifying the first user and the corresponding indicator to the device of the at least one second user.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the publication permission identifies a subset of the second users permitted to access at least one of the second electronic content or the content type associated with the second electronic content.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein at least one processor is further operative with the instructions to:

determine that the subset includes the at least one second user; and

in response to the determination, generate the electronic command to transmit the information identifying the first user and the corresponding indicator to the device of the at least one second user.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further operative with the instructions to:

receive, from the device, information indicative of a selection of the corresponding indicator by the first user;

access the second electronic content in response to the received information; and

generate an electronic command to transmit at least a portion of the second electronic content to the device for presentation to the at least one second user through the interface.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the at least one processor is further operative with the instructions to generate an electronic command to transmit at least a portion of the second electronic content to the device; and

the transmitted information further instructs the device to present the portion of the second electronic content to the at least one second user concurrently with the corresponding indicator.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further operative with the instructions to generate a second electronic command to transmit the information to devices of the plurality of second users, the second information instructing the second devices to present the corresponding indicator to corresponding ones of the second users.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the interaction comprises a click.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the at least one processor is further operative with the instructions to generate an electronic command to transmit instructions to the device to stop presenting the graphic after the at least one second user has interacted with the graphic.

10. A computer-implemented method, the method comprising the following operations performed by at least one processor:

identifying a first electronic content published by a first user of a social network, the first user being linked to a plurality of second users within the social network;

access permission data associated with the first user of the social network, the permission data comprising a publication permission established by the first user, to identify at least one content type permitted for presentation to at least one second user;

obtaining a second electronic content published by the first user, the second electronic content being published subsequent to the first electronic content;

determining a content type associated with the second electronic content, the determined content type being associated with a corresponding indicator, the corresponding indicator comprising at least one of a digital image, animated content, or a hyperlink associated with the second electronic content;

in response to the second electronic content is of a content type permitted for presentation to the at least one second user based on the accessed permission data, generating an electronic command to transmit information identifying the first user and the corresponding indicator to a device of at least one of the second users, the information instructing the device to present a graphic representing the corresponding indicator to the at least one second user on a portion of an interface of the device;

enabling the at least one second user to interact with the graphic such that the second electronic content is transmitted for display to the at least one second user; and

generating an electronic command to transmit instructions to the device to dim the graphic after the at least one second user has interacted with the graphic.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

determining whether the second electronic content conforms to the publication permission; and

when the second electronic content conforms to the at least one publication permission, generating the electronic command to transmit the information identifying the first user and the corresponding indicator to the device of the at least one second user.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the publication permission identifies a subset of the second users permitted to access at least one of the second electronic content or the content type associated with the second electronic content.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the method further comprises:

determining that the subset includes the at least one second user; and

in response to the determination, generating the electronic command to transmit the information identifying the first user and the corresponding indicator to the device of the at least one second user.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving, from the device, information indicative of a selection of the corresponding indicator by the first user;

accessing the second electronic content in response to the received information; and

generating an electronic command to transmit at least a portion of the second electronic content to the device for presentation to the at least one second user through the interface.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the method further comprises generating an electronic command to transmit at least a portion of the second electronic content to the device; and

the transmitted information further instructs the device to present the portion of the second electronic content to the at least one second user concurrently with the corresponding indicator.

16. A tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium that stores a set of instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform operations comprising:

identifying a first electronic content published by a first user of a social network, the first user being linked to a plurality of second users within the social network;

accessing permission data associated with a first user, the permission data comprising a publication permission established by the first user and wherein the publication permission identifies at least one content type suitable for presentation to at least one second user;

obtaining a second electronic content published by the first user, the second electronic content being published subsequent to the first electronic content;

determining a content type associated with the second electronic content, the determined content type being associated with a corresponding indicator, the corresponding indicator comprising at least one of a digital image, animated content, or a hyperlink associated with the second electronic content;

in response to the second electronic content is of a content type permitted for presentation to the at least one second user based on the accessed permission data, generating an electronic command to transmit information identifying the first user and the corresponding indicator to a device of at least one of the second users, the information instructing the device to present a graphic representing the corresponding indicator to the at least one second user on a portion of an interface of the device;

enabling the at least one second user to interact with the graphic such that the second electronic content is transmitted for display to the at least one second user; and

generating an electronic command to transmit instructions to the device to dim the graphic after the at least one second user has interacted with the graphic.