Multi-content presentation of unassociated content types

• US 7,831,727 B2
• Filed: 09/11/2006
• Issued: 11/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Computer Incorporated (Apple Inc.)
• Inventors: Pacurariu, Mihnea Calin, Ma, Jeffrey, Brodersen, Rainer, Goldeen, Rachel Clare, Seymour, Eric Taylor, Madden, Thomas Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar; Saleh
• Assistant Examiner(s): HENRY, MARIEGEORGES A
• Application Number:
  US11/530,822
• Publication Number:
  US 20080065720A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,520 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 709/217, 709/232, 709/231, 715/704, 715/716, 715/717, 704/208, 705/14.4, 725/32
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4393 Multimedia presentations, e.g. slide shows, multimedia albums
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4015 where at least one of the additional parallel sessions is real time or time sensitive, e.g. white board sharing, collaboration or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers

Abstract

Audio files and video files are selected for playback. One or more unassociated video items are selected for presentation during a playback of a selected audio file and presented during the playback of the selected audio file.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

selecting by a media processing system media files for playback; and

for each media file selected;

determining by the media processing system content types the media file comprises;

in response to determining that the media file comprises video content and audio content, presenting on a media device both the video content and the audio content of the media file during a playback of the media file;

in response to determining that the media file comprises only video content, selecting by the media processing system another media file comprising audio content that is unassociated with the video content of the media file and presenting on the media device the audio content of the another media file while presenting the video content of the media file; and

in response to determining that the media file comprises only audio content, selecting by the media processing system another media file comprising video content that is unassociated with the audio content of the media file and presenting on the media device the video content of the another media file while presenting the audio content of the media file.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the unassociated video content comprises photographic data.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the unassociated video content comprises video data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the media file comprising audio and video content is a music file; and

the video content of the media file comprising audio and video content comprises a digital representation of album cover art associated with the music file.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein:

selecting media files for playback comprises selecting media files according to a playlist.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein:

selecting media files for playback comprises randomly selecting media files.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising:

storing the audio content of the media file comprising only audio content and the unassociated video content of the another media file as an audio/video content association; and

presenting the unassociated video content of the another media file during subsequent selections and playback of the audio content of the media file according to the stored audio/video content association.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

selecting another media file comprising video content unassociated with the audio content of the media file comprises randomly selecting the unassociated video content.

9. The method of claim 1, comprising:

presenting the unassociated video content of the another media file based on an audio tempo of the audio content of the media file comprising only audio content.

10. A method, comprising:

storing media files in a data store;

selecting by a media processing system media files files for playback;

for each selected media file;

determining by the media processing system content types the media file comprises;

in response to determining that the media file comprises video content and audio content, presenting on a media device both the video content and the audio content of the media file during a playback of the media file;

in response to determining that the media file comprises only video content, selecting by the media processing system another media file comprising only audio content that is unassociated with the video content of the media file and presenting on the media device the audio content of the another media file while presenting the video content of the media file; and

in response to determining that the media file comprises only audio content, selecting by the media processing system another media file comprising only video content that is unassociated with the audio content of the media file and presenting on the media device the video content of the another media file while presenting the audio content of the media file.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the unassociated video content of the another media file comprises photographic data.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the unassociated video content of the another media file comprises video data.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the audio content of the media file comprising video content and audio content is a music file; and

the video content of the media file comprising video content and audio content comprises a digital representation of album cover art associated with the audio file.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein:

selecting the media files for playback comprises selecting media files according to a playlist.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein:

selecting the media files for playback comprises randomly selecting media files.

16. A method, comprising:

selecting by a media processing system a media item for presentation, the media item comprising one or more content types;

determining by the media processing system the content types of the media item;

in response to determining that the media item comprises video content and audio content, presenting on a media device both the video content and the audio content of the media item during a playback of the media item;

in response to determining that the media item comprises only video content, selecting by the media processing system another media item comprising audio content that is unassociated with the video content of the media item and presenting on the media device the audio content of the another media item while presenting the video content of the media item; and

in response to determining that the media item comprises only audio content, selecting by the media processing system another media item comprising video content that is unassociated with the audio content of the media item and presenting on the media device the video content of the another media item while presenting the audio content of the media item.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein:

the unassociated video content comprises photographic data.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein:

the unassociated audio content comprises musical data.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein selecting a media item for presentation comprises:

selecting the media item according to a shuffle criteria.

20. The method of claim 16, comprising:

storing the audio content of the media item comprising only audio content and the unassociated video content of the another media item as an audio/visual content association; and

presenting the unassociated video content of the another media item when presenting the audio content of the media item during subsequent presentations of the media item according to the stored audio/video content association.

21. A method, comprising:

selecting by a media processing system a media file for playback, the media file having content of only one of two content types, the two content types being an audio content type and a video content type;

determining by the media processing system the content type of the content of the media file;

in response to the determination of the content type of the content of the media file, selecting by the media processing system another media file having content of only the other of the two content types; and

presenting on a media device the content of the another media file while presenting the content of the media file.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the content of the another media file is unassociated with the content of the media file.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the content of the media file is of a video content type and the content of the another media is of an audio content type.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the content of the media file is of an audio content type and the content of the another media is of a video content type.