VIDEO IN E-MAIL

• US 20110037767A1
• Filed: 05/25/2010
• Published: 02/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Liveclicker Incorporated (CM Group LLC)
• Original Assignee: Liveclicker Incorporated (CM Group LLC)
• Inventors: Mann, Walter Rezin, Foster, Justin Michael, Casanova, Xavier
• Granted Patent: US 8,878,855 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/473
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/10 Multimedia information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

To allow a video clip to be rendered within an e-mail, the video stream is converted into an animated image object (e.g. a GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) object) and stored on a server system. An HTML image element/tag (<img . . . >) is created that references the animated image object at the server, for embedding in a conventional HTML-encoded e-mail message. When the receiving e-mail application processes the HTML encoding, the processing of the HTML image element causes the referenced animated image object to be downloaded and displayed, thereby automatically presenting a recreation of the video stream. To facilitate efficient transmission to the receiving device, the size of the animated image object is preferably optimized before transmission, the optimization including general optimization techniques, as well as optimizations based on the particular characteristics associated with the receiving device and/or the communications link to the receiving device.

Claims

1. A server system comprising:

a transceiver system that is configured to communicate with a plurality of user devices,

a processing system, operably coupled to the transceiver system, that is configured to;

receive video content and creation parameters from a first user device,

convert the video content into an animated image object, based on the creation parameters,

store the animated image object at a memory location,

transmit a reference to the animated GIF image to the first user device for inclusion in an image element of an e-mail message,

receive a request for the animated image object from a second user device that receives the e-mail message from the first user device, based on a processing of the image element in the e-mail message, and

transmit the animated image object to the second user device.

2. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to convert the video content by a process that includes creating a preliminary image object based on the video content and the creation parameters, and reducing a size of the preliminary image object to create the animated image object.

3. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to convert the video content by a process that includes creating a preliminary image object based on the video content and the creation parameters and creating a plurality of animated image objects based on a plurality of device parameters.

4. The server system of claim 3, wherein the processing system is configured to determine parameters associated with the second user device, and selecting the animated image object from among the plurality of animated image objects based on the parameters associated with the second user device.

5. The server system of claim 3, wherein the device parameters include one or more of:

a connection speed and a frame speed.

6. The server system of claim 3, wherein the device parameters include one or more application-specific parameters.

7. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to:

provide a redirect response upon receiving the request for the animated image object,

determine a channel response time based on receiving a redirected request, and

select the animated image object based on the determined channel response time.

8. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to convert the video content by creating one or more static image objects and one or more dynamic image objects to create the animated image object.

9. The server system of claim 8, wherein at least one of the static image objects includes a background image, and each of the one or more dynamic image objects is based on differences from the background image.

10. The server system of claim 8, wherein the static image objects include an associated time duration during which at least a portion of video content is substantially constant.

11. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to perform a blending among frames of the animated image object.

12. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to optimize a selection of colors used to encode the frames of the animated image object.

13. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to facilitate control of brightness of one or more of the frames of the animated image object

14. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to provide a graphic symbol with the animated image object, and selection of the graphic symbol by the second user causes an associated action to be performed.

15. The server system of claim 1, wherein the animated image object is encoded using one of:

GIF, APNG, and MNG.

16. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to maintain an accounting of requests for the animated image object, and to provide one or more reports based on the accounting.

17. The server system of claim 1, wherein the creation parameters include a frame rate.

18. The server system of claim 1, wherein the creation parameters include a duration of the animated image object.

19. The server system of claim 1, wherein the creation parameters include one or more of:

color-depth, static post-roll, play button, cropping, and placement.

20. The server system of claim 1, wherein the processing system receives multiple requests for the animated image object, and is configured to provide statistics based on these requests.

21. The server system of claim 20, wherein the statistics are based on one or more of:

a number of the requests, a frequency of the requests, and characteristics of requesting devices.

22. The server system of claim 20, wherein the statistics are based on a duration of viewing of the animated image object.

23. The server system of claim 20, wherein the statistics are based on an amount of data transmitted in response to the requests.

24. A method comprising:

receiving, at a server system, video content and creation parameters from a first user device,

converting, at the server system, the video content into an animated image object, based on the creation parameters,

storing, at a memory system, the animated image object at a memory location,

sending, from the server system, a reference to the animated image object to the first user device,

including the reference in an image element of an e-mail from the first user device to a second user device,

processing the image element at the second user device,

receiving, at the server system, the reference to the memory location in response to the processing of the image element, and

sending, from the server system, the animated image object to the second user device.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein converting the video content includes creating a preliminary image object based on the video content and the creation parameters, and reducing a size of the preliminary image object to create the animated image object.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein converting the video content includes creating a preliminary image object based on the video content and the creation parameters, and creating a plurality of animated image objects based on a plurality of device parameters.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the device parameters include one or more of:

an application-specific parameter, a connection speed and a frame speed.

28. The method of claim 24, including:

providing a redirect response upon receiving the request for the animated image object,

determining a channel response time based on receiving a redirected request, and

selecting the animated image object based on the determined channel response time.

29. The method of claim 24, wherein converting video content includes creating one or more static image objects and one or more dynamic image objects to create the animated image object.

30. The method of claim 24, including blending among frames of the animated image object.

31. The method of claim 24, including maintaining an accounting of requests for the animated image object, and providing one or more reports based on the accounting.

32. The method of claim 24, wherein the creation parameters include one or more of:

frame rate, duration, color-depth, static post-roll, play button, cropping, and placement.

33. The method of claim 24, including receiving multiple requests for the animated image object and providing statistics based on these requests.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the statistics are based on one or more of:

a number of the requests, a frequency of the requests, a duration of viewing of the animated image object, an amount of data transmitted in response to the requests, and characteristics of requesting devices.

35. A non-transient computer readable medium that includes software that, when executed, is configured to cause a processor to:

receive video content and creation parameters from a first user device,

convert the video content into an animated image object, based on the creation parameters,

store the animated image object at a memory location,

transmit a reference to the animated GIF image to the first user device for inclusion in an image element of an e-mail message,

receive a request for the animated image object from a second user device that receives the e-mail message from the first user device, based on a processing of the image element in the e-mail message, and

transmit the animated image object to the second user device.

36. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to convert the video content by a process that includes creating a preliminary image object based on the video content and the creation parameters, and reducing a size of the preliminary image object to create the animated image object.

37. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to convert the video content by a process that includes creating a preliminary image object based on the video content and the creation parameters and creating a plurality of animated image objects based on a plurality of device parameters.

38. The medium of claim 37, wherein the software causes the processor to determine parameters associated with the second user device, and selecting the animated image object from among the plurality of animated image objects based on the parameters associated with the second user device.

39. The medium of claim 37, wherein the device parameters include one or more of:

a connection speed and a frame speed.

40. The medium of claim 37, wherein the device parameters include one or more application-specific parameters.

41. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to:

provide a redirect response upon receiving the request for the animated image object,

determine a channel response time based on receiving a redirected request, and

select the animated image object based on the determined channel response time.

42. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to convert the video content by creating one or more static image objects and one or more dynamic image objects to create the animated image object.

43. The medium of claim 42, wherein at least one of the static image objects includes a background image, and each of the one or more dynamic image objects is based on differences from the background image.

44. The medium of claim 42, wherein the static image objects include an associated time duration during which at least a portion of video content is substantially constant.

45. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to perform a blending among frames of the animated image object.

46. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to optimize a selection of colors used to encode the frames of the animated image object.

47. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to facilitate control of brightness of one or more of the frames of the animated image object

48. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to provide a graphic symbol with the animated image object, and selection of the graphic symbol by the second user causes an associated action to be performed.

49. The medium of claim 35, wherein the animated image object is encoded using one of:

GIF, APNG, and MNG.

50. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to maintain an accounting of requests for the animated image object, and to provide one or more reports based on the accounting.

51. The medium of claim 35, wherein the creation parameters include at least one of:

frame rate, duration of the animated image object, color-depth, static post-roll, play button, cropping, and placement.

52. The medium of claim 35, wherein the software causes the processor to receive multiple requests for the animated image object, and to provide statistics based on these requests.

53. The medium of claim 52, wherein the statistics are based on one or more of:

a number of the requests, a frequency of the requests, and characteristics of requesting devices.

54. The medium of claim 52, wherein the statistics are based on a duration of viewing of the animated image object.

55. The medium of claim 52, wherein the statistics are based on an amount of data transmitted in response to the requests.