Methods and systems for selecting and presenting content based on activity level spikes associated with the content

• US 8,949,231 B2
• Filed: 03/07/2013
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Veveo, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Veveo, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Aravamudan, Murali, Rajasekharan, Ajit, Ramakrishnan, Kajamalai G.
• Primary Examiner(s): MOSER, BRUCE M
• Application Number:
  US13/788,274
• Publication Number:
  US 20130318080A1
• Time in Patent Office: 698 Days
• US Class Current: 707/727
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/152 using file content signatures, e.g. hash values
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2453 Query optimisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2457 with adaptation to user needs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24575 using context
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2462 Approximate or statistical queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/284 Relational databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/335 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles filtering in web context G06F16/9535, G06F16/9536
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/337 Profile generation, learning or modification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/435 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/437 Administration of user profiles, e.g. generation, initialisation, adaptation, distribution
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/438 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/686 using information manually generated, e.g. tags, keywords, comments, title or artist information, time, location or usage information, user ratings
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0205 Location or geographical consideration
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44222 Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44224 : Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4524 : involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; systems specially adapted for using geographical information in broadcast systems H04H60/70; protocols in which the network application is adapted for the location of the user terminal in communication control or processing 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 21/4532 : involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/466 : Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies services using the results of monitoring in broadcast systems H04H60/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 : for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 : Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 : Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99937 : Sorting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 : Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 : Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A method of selecting and presenting content based on detecting an increased level of activity associated with the content is presented. The method includes providing a set of content items with associated descriptive terms. The method includes receiving user search input for identifying desired content items and, in response to the input entered by the user, presenting a subset of content items to the user. The method further includes receiving actions from the user selecting content items from the subset and analyzing the descriptive terms associated with the selected content items to detect an increased level of activity for descriptive terms associated with the content items selected by the users. The method includes, in response to receiving subsequent user search input, selecting and ordering a collection of content items based on promoting the ranking of content items associated with descriptive terms that have an increased level of recent activity.

Claims

1. A user-interface method of selecting and presenting a collection of content items in which the presentation is ordered at least in part based on analyzing activity associated with content items having descriptive terms that describe the content items and promoting the presentation ranking of content items associated with descriptive terms that have an increased level of current activity, the method comprising:

providing access to a set of content items, each content item having at least one associated descriptive term to describe the content item;

receiving input entered by users for identifying desired content items;

in response to the input entered by the users, presenting corresponding subsets of content items to the users;

receiving actions from the users selecting content items from the corresponding subsets;

analyzing the selection actions received from the users to detect an increased level of current activity relative to a normal level of activity associated with the content items selected by the users;

selecting and ordering a collection of content items from the provided set of content items based on promoting the ranking of content items associated with descriptive terms that are associated with content items that have the increased level of current activity relative to the normal activity level; and

presenting the collection of content items to at least one user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing sets of descriptive terms describing preferences of corresponding users; and

presenting the collection of content items to selected users based on matching (i) descriptive terms that are associated with content items that have the increased level of current activity with (ii) the descriptive terms describing preferences of the corresponding users.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising analyzing the descriptive terms associated with content items selected by users to learn the descriptive terms describing preferences of the corresponding users.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein each of at least a plurality of the content items is associated with a corresponding popularity value indicating a relative measure of a likelihood that the corresponding content item is desired by the at least one user relative to the other content items of the plurality, and wherein ordering the collection of content items is further based on promoting the order of content items having popularity values that are higher relative to popularity values associated with other content items.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of content items includes at least one of television program items, movie items, audio / video media items, music items, contact information items, personal schedule items, web content items, and purchasable product items.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of content items includes at least one of television program items, movie items, and audio / video media items and the at least one associated descriptive term includes at least one of title, cast, director, content description, and keywords associated with the content.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of content items is contained on at least one of a cable television system, a video-on-demand system, an IPTV system, and a personal video recorder.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the input is entered by the user on a hand-held device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the hand-held device has a plurality of overloaded keys, each of the overloaded keys representing two or more characters.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the input is entered by the users on at least one of a telephone, a PDA, a computer, and a remote control.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the collection of content items is presented on at least part of a television screen.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the collection of content items is presented on a hand-held device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the hand-held device is at least one of a telephone, a PDA, and a remote control.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the input comprises at least one prefix of a word for describing the desired content items.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the input comprises at least two prefixes of a phrase for describing the desired content items.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of receiving input, presenting the subsets of content items, receiving actions from the users, analyzing the descriptive terms, and selecting and ordering the collection of content items is performed on a server system remote from the at least one user.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of receiving input, presenting the subsets of content items, receiving actions from the users, analyzing the descriptive terms, and selecting and ordering the collection of content items is performed on a user client device.

18. A user-interface system for selecting and presenting a collection of content items in which the presentation is ordered at least in part based on analyzing activity associated with content items having descriptive terms that describe the content items and promoting the presentation ranking of content items associated with descriptive terms that have an increased level of current activity, the system comprising:

at least one non-transitory computer-readable media in at least one of a user device or a remote server system in communication with the user device, the computer-readable media comprising instructions that when executed cause a computer system to;

provide access to a set of content items, each content item having at least one associated descriptive term to describe the content item;

receive input entered by users for identifying desired content items;

present corresponding subsets of content items to the users in response to the input entered by the users,

receive actions from the users selecting content items from the corresponding subsets;

analyze the selection actions received from the users to detect an increased level of current activity relative to an normal level of activity associated with the content items selected by the users;

select and order a collection of content items from the provided set of content items based on promoting the ranking of content items associated with descriptive terms that are associated with content items that have the increased level of current activity relative to the normal activity level; and

present the collection of content items to at least one user.

19. The system of claim 18, the computer-readable media further comprising instructions that when executed cause a computer system to:

provide sets of descriptive terms describing preferences of corresponding users;

wherein the presenting the collection of content items to at least one user includes presenting the collection of content items to selected users based on matching descriptive terms that are associated with the content items that have the increased level of current activity with the descriptive terms describing preferences of the corresponding users.

20. The system of claim 19, the computer-readable media further comprising instructions that when executed cause a computer system to analyze the descriptive terms associated with content items selected by users to learn the descriptive terms describing preferences of the corresponding users.

21. The system of claim 18, wherein each of at least a plurality of the content items is associated with a corresponding popularity value indicating a relative measure of a likelihood that the corresponding content item is desired by the at least one user relative to the other content items of the plurality, and wherein the selecting and ordering the collection of content items includes promoting the order of content items having popularity values that are higher relative to popularity values associated with other content items.

22. The system of claim 18, wherein the set of content items includes at least one of television program items, movie items, audio / video media items, music items, contact information items, personal schedule items, web content items, and purchasable product items.

23. The system of claim 18, wherein the set of content items includes at least one of television program items, movie items, and audio / video media items and the at least one associated descriptive term includes at least one of title, cast, director, content description, and keywords associated with the content.

24. The system of claim 18, wherein the set of content items is contained on at least one of a cable television system, a video-on-demand system, an IPTV system, and a personal video recorder.

25. The system of claim 18, wherein the input is entered by the user on the user device, the user device being a hand-held device.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the hand-held device has a plurality of overloaded keys, each of the overloaded keys representing two or more characters.

27. The system of claim 18, wherein the input is entered by the users on the user device, the user device being at least one of a telephone, a PDA, a computer, and a remote control.

28. The system of claim 18, wherein the collection of content items is presented on at least part of a television screen.

29. The system of claim 18, wherein the collection of content items is presented on the user device, the user device being a hand-held device.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the hand-held device is at least one of a telephone, a PDA, and a remote control.

31. The system of claim 18, wherein the input comprises at least one prefix of a word for describing the desired content items.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the input comprises at least two prefixes of a phrase for describing the desired content items.