Associating an indication of user emotional reaction with content items presented by a social networking system

• US 8,918,339 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Issued: 12/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rubinstein, Yigal Dan, Doshi, Abhishek, Ebberson, Reshma Khilnani, Gleason, Cole
• Primary Examiner(s): JOHNSON, GREGORY L
• Application Number:
  US13/842,705
• Publication Number:
  US 20140279418A1
• Time in Patent Office: 648 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 715/977 Dynamic icon, e.g. animated or live action

Abstract

A social networking system user may associate an emoji representing the user'"'"'s emotional reaction with a content item presented by the social networking system. The user is presented with one or more emoji maintained by the social networking system and selects an emoji for associating with the content item. If certain emoji are selected, the social networking system prompts the user for compensation or requests compensation from an entity associated with the selected emoji. The selected emoji is associated with the content item and a connection, or other information, between the user and the object identifying the selected emoji is stored by the social networking system. The selected emoji may be displayed with the content item to the user and to other users connected to the user.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method comprising:

storing one or more emoji in a social networking system, each emoji providing a visual representation of an emotional state associated with a user;

presenting content items to a viewing user of the social networking system;

receiving a request from the viewing user to associate an emoji with a selected content item from the presented content items;

retrieving one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user;

presenting the retrieved one or more emoji to the viewing user;

receiving a selection of a selected emoji from the one or more emoji from the viewing user;

prompting the viewing user for payment information associated with the selected emoji;

associating, by a computer, the selected emoji with the content item when payment information is received; and

displaying the selected emoji along with the content item to one or more additional users of the social networking system connected to the viewing user and viewing the selected content item.

2. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein retrieving one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user comprises:

retrieving one or more emoji for which the social networking system previously received payment information from the viewing user.

3. The computer implemented method of claim 2, wherein retrieving one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user further comprises:

retrieving one or more emoji for which the social networking system does not require payment information.

4. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein associating the selected emoji with the content item when payment information is received comprises:

associating the selected emoji with the content item when a portion of the payment information is received from an entity associated with the selected emoji and a remaining portion of the payment information is received from the viewing user.

5. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein associating the selected emoji with the content item when payment information is received comprises:

associating the selected emoji with the content item when the payment information is received from an entity associated with the selected emoji.

6. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein associating the selected emoji with the content item when payment information is received comprises:

associating the selected emoji with the content item when the payment information is received from the viewing user.

7. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein displaying the selected emoji along with the content item to one or more additional users of the social networking system connected to the viewing user and viewing the content item comprises:

displaying the selected emoji and an identifier of the viewing user to the one or more additional users of the social networking system connected to the viewing user along with the selected content item.

8. The computer implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing a connection between the viewing user and the content item, the connection identifying the selected emoji.

9. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein the content items comprise one or more stories describing actions of other social networking system users connected to the viewing user.

10. A computer implemented method comprising:

storing one or more emoji in a social networking system, each emoji providing a visual representation of an emotional state associated with a user;

presenting content items to a viewing user of the social networking system;

receiving a request from the viewing user to associate an emoji with a selected content item from the presented content items;

retrieving one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user;

identifying one or more of the retrieved one or more emoji associated with information included in the selected content item;

presenting the identified one or more emoji to the viewing user;

receiving a selection of a selected emoji from the identified one or more emoji from the viewing user; and

storing, by the computer, information identifying the viewing user, the selected emoji, and the content item in the social networking system.

11. The computer implemented method of claim 10, wherein retrieving one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user comprises:

retrieving one or more emoji for which the social networking system previously received payment information from the viewing user.

12. The computer implemented method of claim 11, wherein retrieving one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user further comprises:

retrieving one or more emoji for which the social networking system does not require payment information.

13. The computer implemented method of claim 10, further comprising:

displaying the selected emoji and an identifier of the viewing user to one or more additional users of the social networking system connected to the viewing user and viewing the selected content item.

14. The computer implemented method of claim 10, wherein receiving the selection of the selected emoji from the identified one or more emoji from the viewing user comprises:

determining whether to request compensation from the viewing user based on the selected emoji; and

requesting payment information from the viewing user if compensation is determined to be requested.

15. A computer implemented method comprising:

storing one or more emoji in a social networking system, each emoji providing a visual representation of an emotional state associated with a user;

presenting one or more content items to a viewing user of the social networking system;

receiving a request from the viewing user to associate an emoji with a selected content item from the presented content items;

presenting one or more of the stored emoji to the viewing user;

receiving a selection of a selected emoji from the presented one or more emoji from the viewing user;

associating, by a computer, the selected emoji with the content item when payment information is received; and

displaying the selected emoji along with the content item to one or more additional users of the social networking system connected to the viewing user and viewing the selected content item.

16. The computer implemented method of claim 15, wherein presenting one or more of the stored emoji to the viewing user comprises:

retrieving one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user;

selecting a group of the one or more emoji eligible to be used by the viewing user; and

presenting the group of the one or more emoji to the viewing user.

17. The computer implemented method of claim 15, wherein presenting one or more of the stored emoji to the viewing user comprises:

retrieving one or more emoji for which the social networking system previously received payment information from the viewing user.

18. The computer implemented method of claim 17, wherein presenting one or more of the stored emoji to the viewing user further comprises:

retrieving one or more emoji for which the social networking system does not require payment information.

19. The computer implemented method of claim 15, wherein receiving the selection of the selected emoji from the presented one or more emoji from the viewing user comprises:

determining whether the social networking system requires compensation to associate the selected emoji with the content item; and

responsive to determining the social networking system requires compensation to associate the selected emoji with the content item, requesting payment information from the viewing user.