MEDIA PLAYLIST CONSTRUCTION FOR VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS

• US 20110131239A1
• Filed: 02/07/2011
• Published: 06/02/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Activision Publishing Incorporated (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Garbow, Zachary Adam, Chen, Jim Chun-Ta, Bates, Cary Lee, Young, Gregory Edward
• Granted Patent: US 8,838,640 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/769
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/636 by using biological or physiological data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/637 Administration of user profiles, e.g. generation, initialization, adaptation or distribution
• 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: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention provide techniques for generating song playlists for use in an immersive virtual environment. Generally, playlists may be generated based on stored music preference data. The music preference data may be generated by storing user interactions with specific songs. The user interactions may be associated with characteristics of the user'"'"'s situational context within the virtual world. The music preference data may be indexed by song name, and/or by musical properties. Subsequently, the music preference data may be used to generate a playlist adapted to the user'"'"'s current situation within the virtual world.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

populating a data structure with a plurality of entries each containing information representing;

(i) an interaction of a user with a song in a virtual environment with (ii) a corresponding situational context of the user during the interaction so that the data structure represents a correlation between the respective song and the corresponding situational context; and

subsequent to populating the data structure;

determining a subsequent situational context of the avatar within the virtual environment;

accessing the data structure to identify a relationship between the subsequent situational context and at least one of the corresponding situational contexts; and

generating, by operation of one or more computer processors, a playlist based on the identified relationship.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the interaction includes at least one of:

(i) selecting the song, (ii) skipping the song, (iii) repeating the song, (iv) increasing a playback volume while listening to the song, and (v) lowering the playback volume while listening to the song.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein each situational context includes one or more characteristics.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein at least one characteristic is selected from at least one of:

(i) a location of the avatar within the virtual environment, (ii) one or more interactions performed by the avatar with respect to other virtual objects within the virtual environment, and (iii) one or more avatar companions of the user within the virtual environment.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein the one or more characteristics comprise one or more indications of the current mood of the user.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein the one or more indications of the current mood of the user comprise at least one of:

(i) one or more words included in communications of the user, (ii) one or more physical characteristics of the user, (iii) one or more actions of the user, and (iv) one or more software commands executed by the user to indicate mood.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein the one or more characteristics comprise at least one of:

(i) one or more topics included in a communication of the user, (i) one or more changes in the activities of the user, and (iii) participation in an event having a predefined list of songs.

8. A computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code embodied therewith, the computer-readable program code comprising;

computer-readable program code configured to populate a data structure with a plurality of entries each containing information representing;

(i) an interaction of a user with a song in a virtual environment with (ii) a corresponding situational context of the user during the interaction so that the data structure represents a correlation between the respective song and the corresponding situational context;

computer-readable program code configured to determine a subsequent situational context of the avatar within the virtual environment, subsequent to populating the data structure;

computer-readable program code configured to access the data structure to identify a relationship between the subsequent situational context and at least one of the corresponding situational contexts; and

computer-readable program code configured to generate a playlist based on the identified relationship.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the interaction includes at least one of:

(i) selecting the song, (ii) skipping the song, (iii) repeating the song, (iv) increasing a playback volume while listening to the song, and (v) lowering the playback volume while listening to the song.

10. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein each situational context includes one or more characteristics.

11. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein at least one characteristic is selected from at least one of:

(i) a location of the avatar within the virtual environment, (ii) one or more interactions performed by the avatar with respect to other virtual objects within the virtual environment, and (iii) one or more avatar companions of the user within the virtual environment.

12. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the one or more characteristics comprise one or more indications of the current mood of the user.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the one or more indications of the current mood of the user comprise at least one of:

(i) one or more words included in communications of the user, (ii) one or more physical characteristics of the user, (iii) one or more actions of the user, and (iv) one or more software commands executed by the user to indicate mood.

14. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the one or more characteristics comprise at least one of:

(i) one or more topics included in a communication of the user, (i) one or more changes in the activities of the user, and (iii) participation in an event having a predefined list of songs.

15. A system, comprising:

one or more computer processors;

a memory containing a program which, when executed by the one or more computer processors, is configured to perform an operation comprising;

populating a data structure with a plurality of entries each containing information representing;

(i) an interaction of a user with a song in a virtual environment with (ii) a corresponding situational context of the user during the interaction so that the data structure represents a correlation between the respective song and the corresponding situational context; and

subsequent to populating the data structure;

determining a subsequent situational context of the avatar within the virtual environment;

accessing the data structure to identify a relationship between the subsequent situational context and at least one of the corresponding situational contexts; and

generating a playlist based on the identified relationship.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the interaction includes at least one of:

(i) selecting the song, (ii) skipping the song, (iii) repeating the song, (iv) increasing a playback volume while listening to the song, and (v) lowering the playback volume while listening to the song.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein each situational context includes one or more characteristics.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein at least one characteristic is selected from at least one of:

(i) a location of the avatar within the virtual environment, (ii) one or more interactions performed by the avatar with respect to other virtual objects within the virtual environment, and (iii) one or more avatar companions of the user within the virtual environment.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the one or more characteristics comprise one or more indications of the current mood of the user.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the one or more indications of the current mood of the user comprise at least one of:

(i) one or more words included in communications of the user, (ii) one or more physical characteristics of the user, (iii) one or more actions of the user, and (iv) one or more software commands executed by the user to indicate mood.

21. The system of claim 17, wherein the one or more characteristics comprise at least one of:

(i) one or more topics included in a communication of the user, (i) one or more changes in the activities of the user, and (iii) participation in an event having a predefined list of songs.