VENUE-ORIENTED SOCIAL FUNCTIONALITY VIA A MOBILE COMMUNICATION DEVICE

• US 20120308035A1
• Filed: 05/31/2012
• Published: 12/06/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amg Ip LLC, Andrew Lentvorski, Carolyn Newbold, Chapman A. Michael, Keith Newbold, Lshadi Partners, Ltd., Margaret Martinson William, Jr., Rock Systems Holdings, LLC
• Original Assignee: Airborne Media Group, Inc.
• Inventors: Ginn, Justin, Danford, Ryan, Lile, Chip, Brown, Cordell
• Granted Patent: US 9,088,816 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25841 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; arrangements for identifying locations of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/51; location of the user terminal in data switching networks H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4126 The peripheral being portable, e.g. PDAs or mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41415 involving a public display, viewable by several users in a public space outside their home, e.g. movie theatre, information kiosk
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42202 environmental sensors, e.g. for detecting temperature, luminosity, pressure, earthquakes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43637 involving a wireless protocol, e.g. Bluetooth, RF or wireless LAN [IEEE 802.11] arrangements for wireless networking or broadcasting of information in indoor or near-field type systems H04B10/114
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8106 involving special audio data, e.g. different tracks for different languages
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences

Abstract

Methods and systems for social functionality via a mobile communication device are presented. An example system may include an access device and a communication node. The access device may be located at a commercial venue and communicatively coupled via a local area network with a mobile communication device located at the venue. The communication node may be communicatively coupled to the access device via a wide area network to provide a social networking service related to the venue to a user of the mobile communication device. The access device may exchange information relating to the social networking service between the communication node and the mobile communication device.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

an access device located at a commercial venue, the access device being communicatively coupled via a local area network with a mobile communication device located at the commercial venue; and

a communication node communicatively coupled to the access device via a wide area network, the communication node to provide a social networking service related to the commercial venue to a user of the mobile communication device;

the access device to exchange information between the communication node and the mobile communication device, the information relating to the social networking service.

2. The system of claim 1, the social networking service comprising a chat service, the access node to receive from the mobile communication device an identification of the user, the access node to transmit an indication of chat rooms available for the user to join, the access node to receive a request from the mobile communication device for the user to join an indicated one of the chat rooms, the access node to facilitate establishment of a communication connection between the mobile communication device and the chat room in response to the request.

3. The system of claim 2, the communication node to transmit the indication of the chat rooms available for the user to join to the access device.

4. The system of claim 2, the communication node to transmit an invitation for the user to join one of the chat rooms via the access node to the mobile communication device.

5. The system of claim 1, the social network service comprising a chat service, the access device to transmit chat content of a chat room between the mobile communication device and a second mobile communication device located at the commercial venue.

6. The system of claim 1, the social networking service comprising a chat service, the access device to transmit chat content of a chat room between the mobile communication device and a second access device located at a second commercial venue via the wide area network.

7. The system of claim 1, the social networking service comprising a social network to facilitate at least one of a friend invitation, a friend identification, and a friend location between the mobile communication device and a second mobile communication device located at the commercial venue.

8. The system of claim 1, the social network service comprising interconnection between the mobile communication device and an external social network, the communication node providing the interconnection via an application programming interface provided by the external social network.

9. The system of claim 1, the social network service comprising access to a social network, the communication node to receive at least one of a location and a current status of the user from the mobile communication device via the access device, the communication node to forward the at least one of the location and the current status of the user to other mobile communication devices located at the commercial venue via the access device.

10. The system of claim 9, the communication node to receive the at least one of the location and the current status of the user in response to a communication connection being established between the mobile communication device and the access node.

11. The system of claim 1, the social network service comprising a gaming service, the commercial venue comprising a gambling establishment, the access device to receive a wager to be placed with the gambling establishment from the mobile communication device over a secure communication connection, the access device to transmit a result of the wager to the mobile communication device over the secure communication connection.

12. The system of claim 1, the social network service comprising a gaming service, the access device to receive an answer to a question posed to the user at the commercial venue.

13. The system of claim 1, the access node to receive a plurality of digital audio streams, each of the digital audio streams corresponding to video content being presented by a video presentation device at the commercial venue to the user, and to transmit wirelessly the received digital audio streams to the mobile communication device.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising at least one audio relay device to transmit each of the digital audio streams to the access node, each of the digital audio streams being based on an audio signal received at the at least one audio relay device from the video presentation device.

15. An access device comprising:

at least one receiver to receive a plurality of digital audio streams, each of the digital audio streams corresponding to video content being presented by a video presentation device;

a wireless transceiver to transmit to a mobile communication device for presentation to a user a plurality of wireless digital audio streams, each of the wireless digital audio streams corresponding to one of the received digital audio streams; and

control logic to exchange information with the mobile communication device via the wireless transceiver to provide a social networking service to the user of the mobile communication device.

16. The access device of claim 15, the at least one receiver to receive each of the digital audio streams from an audio relay device coupled to the video presentation device presenting the video content corresponding to the digital audio stream.

17. The access device of claim 15, further comprising a communication network interface to receive at least one of the digital audio streams from a communication node communicatively coupled with the communication network interface.

18. A method comprising:

receiving a plurality of digital audio streams, each of the digital audio streams corresponding to video content presented to a user via a video presentation device located at a commercial venue;

transmitting wirelessly the plurality of digital audio streams to a mobile communication device of the user; and

providing at least one social networking service related to the commercial venue to the user via the mobile communication device.

19. The method of claim 18, the at least one social networking service comprising a chat service for use between the mobile communication device and a second mobile communication device.

20. The method of claim 19, the second mobile communication device being located at the commercial venue and communicatively coupled with the access device.

21. The method of claim 19, the second mobile communication device being located at a separate commercial venue and communicatively coupled with the access device via a wide area network and a second access device located at the separate commercial venue.

22. The method of claim 18, the at least one social networking service comprising a social network.

23. The method of claim 18, the at least one social networking service comprising a gaming service.