Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/80—Generation or processing of content or additional data by content creator independently of the distribution process; Content per se
  • H04N21/81—Monomedia components thereof
  • H04N21/812—Monomedia components thereof involving advertisement data
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/20—Servers specifically adapted for the distribution of content, e.g. VOD servers; Operations thereof
  • H04N21/23—Processing of content or additional data; Elementary server operations; Server middleware
  • H04N21/234—Processing of video elementary streams, e.g. splicing of video streams or manipulating encoded video stream scene graphs
  • H04N21/23424—Processing of video elementary streams, e.g. splicing of video streams or manipulating encoded video stream scene graphs involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for inserting or substituting an advertisement
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/20—Servers specifically adapted for the distribution of content, e.g. VOD servers; Operations thereof
  • H04N21/25—Management operations performed by the server for facilitating the content distribution or administrating data related to end-users or client devices, e.g. end-user or client device authentication, learning user preferences for recommending movies
  • H04N21/266—Channel or content management, e.g. generation and management of keys and entitlement messages in a conditional access system, merging a VOD unicast channel into a multicast channel
  • H04N21/2668—Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles

Definitions

• the need for synchronization between all participants causes challenges around displaying advertisements, especially personalized advertisements, at all computing devices of a group watch session, not least to ensure that synchronized playback of the content item can resume after the advertisements are output at the respective computing devices.
• group watch sessions are initiated for a content item such that, on initiation of the group watch session, the content item starts at the beginning. This makes it prohibitive for a user to share a portion, such as a funny clip, of a content item and to initiate a group session based on that portion with other users.
• a method includes initiating a media content item group session between a first computing device and a second computing device and receiving a first portion of the media content item at the first computing device and the second computing device.
• a period of time for outputting one or more advertisements is identified.
• a first selection of one or more advertisements is identified for the first computing device and a second selection of one or more advertisements is identified for the second computing device, wherein the first and second selections have respective first and second run-times based on the period of time.
• the first selection of advertisements is received at the first computing device and the second selection of advertisements is received at the second computing device.
• An advertisement of the first selection of advertisements is output at the first computing device and an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements is output at the second computing device.
• a group watch session is initiated between a plurality of computing devices.
• a content item is displayed via the plurality of computing devices, and, after a period of time, a commercial break is initiated. Advertisements to display in the break may be personalized for each participant, and, to ensure that the content item can resume at the same time, the advertisements are selected based on a common period of time for the commercial break, such that the run-time of the advertisements is the same for all participants. After display of the advertisements at the computing devices, the content item resumes at the computing devices at the same time.
• the selection’s first run-time and/or the second run-time may be equal to the period of time.
• the first selection’s first run-time may be less than the period of time and a shortform advertisement with a run-time equal to the difference in the first advertisement’s runtime and the period of time may be identified.
• the short-form advertisement may be incorporated into the first selection of advertisements.
• the first run-time may be different from the time period, and the difference between the first advertisement’s run-time and the period of time may be identified.
• a playback speed for an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements may be identified that causes the first runtime to be equal to the period of time and outputting the advertisement of the first selection of advertisements may further comprise outputting the advertisement of the first selection of advertisements at the identified playback speed.
• a first user profile associated with the first computing device and a second user profile associated with the second computing device may be identified. Identifying the first selection of advertisements may further comprise identifying the first selection of advertisements based on the first user profile and identifying the second selection of advertisements may further comprise identifying the second selection of advertisements based on the second user profile.
• the first selection of advertisements may comprise a first personalizable advertisement having a first portion and a second portion and the second selection of advertisements may comprise a second personalizable advertisement having and a first portion and second portion.
• the first portion may be common to the first and second personalizable advertisements and first and second user profiles associated with the respective first and second computing devices may be identified.
• the second portion of the first personalizable advertisement may be identified based on the first user profile and the second portion of the second personalizable advertisement may be identified based on the second user profile.
• Outputting an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements may further comprise concurrently outputting the first and second portions of the first personalizable advertisement.
• Outputting an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements may further comprise concurrently outputting the first and second portions of the second personalizable advertisement.
• Receiving the first selection of advertisements may further comprise receiving a first manifest file comprising a link to a second portion of the media content item, a link to an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements and a link to a third portion of the media content item.
• Receiving the second selection of advertisements may further comprise receiving a second manifest file comprising a link to the second portion of the media content item, a link to an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements and a link to the third portion of the media content item.
• Generating the invitation may further comprise generating an invitation that expires at an identified expiration time and receiving the indication that the invitation has been accepted may further comprise receiving the indication before the expiration time.
• the user profile may be a first user profile.
• the contact is a first contact, and identifying the contact may further comprise identifying a second user profile associated with the first contact and identifying, via the second user profile, a preference for the media content item.
• Generating the invitation may further comprise generating the invitation based on the first contact in response to identifying a positive preference for the media content item.
• a second contact may be identified based on the first user profile.
• a third user profile may be identified with the second contact, a preference for the media content item may be identified via the third user profile, and generating the invitation may further comprise generating the invitation based on the second contact. Identifying a preference for the media content item may further comprise identifying whether the second user profile or the third user profile can receive the media content item.
• a timestamp associated with the first user profile and the media content item may be identified and a second user profile associated with the contact may be identified.
• a progress associated with the media content item may be identified via the second user profile and it may be identified whether the content item comprises a spoiler based on the timestamp and the progress.
• generating the invitation to join the media content item group session may further comprise generating an invitation that indicates that the media content item comprises a spoiler.
• the media content item may comprise a plurality of portions, and generating the media content item for output may further comprise generating a first portion of the media content item for output. Generating the invitation may further comprise generating the invitation to join a media content item group session for a second portion of the media content item. An invitation output time period may be identified, wherein the end of the time period coincides with the start of the second portion and a request to transmit the invitation to the contact at the beginning of the invitation output time period may be generated for output. [0018] Receiving the indication that the invitation has been accepted may further comprise receiving a request to delay a start time for the media content item group session and generating the request to delay the start time for output.
• An input associated with accepting the request to delay the start time may be received, and a second invitation comprising a second start time for the media item group session may be generated.
• the second invitation may be transmitted to the second computing device, and an indication that the second invitation has been accepted may be received.
• Identifying the contact may further comprise identifying a second contact, and generating the invitation may further comprise generating an invitation comprising a start time for the media content item group session. Transmitting the invitation may further comprise transmitting the invitation to a third computing device associated with the second contact. It may be identified that an indication that the invitation has been accepted has not been received from the second contact before the start time. In response to the identifying, a second user profile associated with the third contact may be identified, and the media content item may be added to a queue associated with the second user profile.
• FIG. 1 shows an example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 2 shows another example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 3 shows another example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 5 shows another example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 6 shows another example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 7 shows an example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 8 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 9 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 10 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 11 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 12 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 13 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 14 shows a block diagram representing components of a computing device and dataflow therebetween for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 15 shows a block diagram representing components of a computing device and dataflow therebetween for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure
• FIG. 16 shows a flowchart of illustrative steps involved in initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• FIG. 17 shows another flowchart of illustrative steps involved in initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• a media content item, or content item includes audio, video, text, a video game and/or any other media content.
• a content item may be a single media item. In other examples, it may be a series (or season) of episodes of content items.
• Audio includes audio-only content, such as podcasts.
• Video includes audiovisual content such as movies and/or television programs.
• Text includes text-only content, such as event descriptions.
• One example of a suitable media content item is one that complies with the MPEG DASH standard.
• An OTT, streaming and/or VOD service may be accessed via a website and/or an app running on a computing device, and the device may receive any type of content item, including live content items and/or on-demand content items.
• Content items may, for example, be streamed to physical computing devices.
• content items may, for example, be streamed to virtual computing devices in, for example, an augmented environment, a virtual environment and/or the metaverse.
• a group session, or group watch session enables a content item to be received and output at participating computing devices at the same time, or substantially the same time.
• a group session may be an audio-only group session, where the content item is an audio book. Any actions, such as pausing and/or fast-forwarding that may be performed at any participating computing device is performed at all of the participants in the group watch session. For example, if one participant pauses the content item, it is paused for all participants.
• Group watch sessions can take place on a local network, where two or more of the participants are located in a similar area, or the participants can be remote to each other and the group watch session can take place via a network such as the internet.
• a group watch session may comprise any number of computing devices, and all of the examples discussed herein can be implemented on any number of computing devices.
• the computing device can be any device comprising a processor and memory, for example, a television, a smart television, a set-top box, an integrated receiver decoder (IRD) for handling satellite television, a digital storage device, a digital media receiver (DMR), a digital media adapter (DMA), a streaming media device, a DVD player, a DVD recorder, a connected DVD, a local media server, a BLU-RAY player, a BLU-RAY recorder, a personal computer (PC), a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a WebTV box, a personal computer television (PC/TV), a PC media server, a PC media center, a handheld computer, a stationary telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile telephone, a portable video player, a portable music player, a portable gaming machine, a smartphone, a smartwatch, a smart speaker, an augmented reality device,
• IRD integrated receiver decoder
• DMR digital media receiver
• DMA digital media adapter
• Computer-readable media includes any media capable of storing data.
• the computer-readable media may be transitory, including, but not limited to, propagating electrical or electromagnetic signals, or may be non-transitory, including, but not limited to, volatile and non-volatile computer memory or storage devices such as a hard disk, floppy disk, USB drive, DVD, CD, media cards, register memory, processor caches, random access memory (RAM), etc.
• FIG. 1 shows an example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 100 comprises a first computing device, in this case smart television 102, a second computing device, in this case laptop 104, and a server 106.
• the computing devices may be any suitable computing device including, for example, a smartphone and/or a set-top box.
• the smart television 102, the laptop 104 and the server 106 are in communication via network 108.
• the network may be any suitable network, including the internet, and may comprise wired and wireless means.
• a group watch session is initiated at the smart television 102. This may comprise a user interacting with a first group watch user interface element 110 of, for example, an OTT application.
• the user may be able to select participants for the group watch session via a list of contacts associated with the OTT platform, in which case an invitation may be sent to a contact via the OTT platform.
• the OTT platform may generate a link that may be shared with one or more other users.
• the link may be shared via the smart television 102 via, for example, a messaging application.
• the link may be copied into a messaging application on a further computing device and sent to another user, or users, via the further computing device.
• the other user may initiate the group watch session on their computing device via an application associated with the, for example, OTT platform.
• the invitation may be sent via server 106, which may coordinate the group watch session between participants.
• the group watch session may be between local devices on a single local network, in which case server 106 may not be required and the coordination may be performed directly between the smart television 102 and the laptop 104.
• a second group watch user interface element 112 is generated for display at the laptop 104 that enables the user to initiate the session at the laptop 104.
• a content item 114 such as an episode of a television show and/or a movie, is transmitted to the smart television 102 and the laptop 104.
• the content item may be received from server 106, or another server, via network 108.
• the content item 114a, 114b is output at the smart television 102 and the laptop 104 at the same time, or substantially the same time.
• Any actions, such as pausing and/or fast- forwarding may be performed at any participating computing device, such as the smart television 102 or the laptop 104 and the action is performed at all of the participants in the group watch session. For example, if one participant pauses the content item, it is paused for all participants.
• a period of time for the commercial break is identified 116, in this example, at server 106.
• the run-time of the commercial break may be identified as four minutes and 30 seconds.
• the commercial break may be five seconds, 15 seconds, one minute, three minutes and/or five minutes and 45 seconds.
• a first selection of advertisements is identified at 118, and a second selection of advertisements is identified at 120.
• the selections may comprise different numbers of advertisements.
• a selection may comprise, for example, one, two, five, seven and/or ten advertisements.
• the first and second selections of advertisements may be received from one or more advertising services, and one or more advertisements within the selection may be personalized for each computing device based on, for example, an advertising profile associated with smart television 102 and the laptop 104, such that different advertisements are delivered to the smart television 102 and the laptop 104.
• the advertisements are selected based on the run-time of the commercial break, such that the selection of advertisements is equal to the run-time of the commercial break. It is recognized that it may not always be possible to select advertisements that fill the identified time period exactly, and examples for addressing this problem are discussed below.
• the first and second selections of advertisements are transmitted 122 to the respective smart television 102 and laptop 104, where they are received and output 124, 126.
• an advertisement service may be notified of the formation of a group session and a parent session identification (ID) may be shared with the advertisement service.
• ID may include child session IDs, or streaming session IDs, associated with the different participants (e.g., the smart television 102 and the laptop 104) to coordinate the serving and playing of advertisements on the participant devices, as well as to enable accurate audience measurements.
• an advertisement server may serve creatives for an advertisement, or information about their location, to a manifest manipulation server, but the advertisement server chooses the advertisements within a selection, or pod, such that the total run-time, or playtime, is equal for all the participants of a group session. This allows targeted advertisements to still be served to different participants but ensures that the playback of the main content item is always synchronized across participants. Different advertisements within an advertisement selection can have different time lengths; however, an advertisement selection served to a first user amounts to the same amount of time as the advertisement selection served to a second user.
• step 224 the selection of advertisements and the identified playback speed are transmitted to the respective smart television 202 and/or laptop 204.
• step 230 it is identified whether filler advertisements are available. If filler advertisements are not available, the process proceeds to step 228 where a different playback speed is identified for at least one advertisement of the selection of advertisements, so that the selection of advertisements fits within the identified 216 period of time. For example, if the identified period of time is 60 seconds and the runtime of the selection of advertisements is 54 seconds, a playback speed of 0.9x will be identified. Smaller increments of playback speed may also be utilized, for example 0.95x and/or 0.99x. If filler advertisements are available, at 232, one or more filler advertisements are identified to bring the run-time of the advertisements to the identified 216 time period and the selection of advertisements is updated.
• Identifying 318, 323 the first and second selections of advertisements comprises identifying 320, 324 respective first and second interactive advertisements.
• only one of the first, or second, selections of advertisements comprise an interactive advertisement.
• the interactive advertisements typically comprise one or more user interface elements that a user can interact with.
• the user interface elements will be overlaid on a static or looped moving image.
• first and second interaction periods are identified 322, 326.
• the interaction time period is the time that the interactive advertisement is generated for output at a computing device of the group session, for example, the smart television 302 and/or the laptop 304.
• a selection of advertisements may comprise both interactive and non-interactive advertisements.
• the non-interactive advertisements may be served via server side advertisement insertion and the interactive advertisements may be served via the client side (i.e., at smart television 302 and/or laptop 304).
• this example may apply when a decision on which advertisements to serve is performed in realtime, or substantially in real-time, such as during real-time advertisement bidding.
• the first selection of advertisements may comprise one or more interactive advertisements and the second selection of advertisements may comprise solely non- interactive advertisements. The interaction time, or total interaction times, associated with each of the one or more interactive advertisements of the first selection may be based on, or equal to, the run time of an advertisements, or advertisements of the second selection.
• the first selection of advertisements may comprise a single interactive advertisement and the second selection of advertisements may comprise a plurality of non- interactive advertisements.
• the interaction time associated with the single interactive advertisement may be equal to the run-time of the plurality of non-interactive advertisements.
• FIG. 4 shows another example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 400 comprises a smart television 402, a laptop 404 and a server 406 that communicate via network 408.
• a group watch session is initiated in a similar manner, in this example, via user interface elements 410, 412 and, on initiating the group watch session, a content item 414a, 414b is received and is output at the smart television 402 and the laptop 404.
• a period of time is identified 416 for the commercial break, in this example at server 406.
• First and second selections of advertisements are identified 418, 425 based on the identified period of time.
• the first portion for the travel agency, may be common between the participants, but the advertised vacation may be different. Both the first and second portions may be output concurrently.
• the first portion may be a background portion of the advertisement and the second portion may be a foreground portion of the advertisement.
• an advertisement may be for a chain of supermarkets and a first portion advertising the chain of supermarkets may be common between participants, but a second portion that indicates a local supermarket of the chain may be different for each participant based on, for example, a location associated with a user profile.
• both the first and second portions may be output concurrently.
• the first portion may be a background portion of the advertisement and the second portion may be a foreground portion of the advertisement.
• the second portions of the advertisements may comprise different video and/or audio from one another.
• the first and second selections of advertisements are transmitted 432 to the respective smart television 402 and laptop 404, where they are output 434, 436.
• FIG. 5 shows another example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 500 comprises a content item processing and compression module 502, a packaging module 504, a storage module 506, a personalized advertisement insertion module 508, an advertisement insertion decision module 510, a distribution service module 512, a plurality of content delivery network (CDN) servers 514a, 514b, 514c and a plurality of clients, i.e., computing devices, 516a, 516b, 516c.
• CDN content delivery network
• the processed and compressed content item is transmitted to the packaging module 504, where it is packaged for transmission to participants of a group session.
• the packaged content item is transmitted to a storage module, for example a cloud storage module, at 506, where it is retrievable on demand, along with a selection of advertisements.
• the distribution service 512 accesses the storage 506 and receives the packaged content item for distribution to the plurality of CDN servers 514a, 514b, 514c.
• the distribution service 512 delivers the media content item via the CDN servers 514a, 514b, 514c to the plurality of clients, i.e., computing devices, 516a, 516b, 516c.
• the advertisement insertion decision module 510 decides to insert one or more advertisements in a group session and communicates this decision to the personalized advertisement insertion module 508, which selects the advertisements to be inserted for each client 516a, 516b, 516c.
• the advertisements are retrieved from storage 506 and are transmitted to the clients 516a, 516b, 516c via the distribution service, in the manner described in connection with FIGS. 1-4 above.
• FIG. 6 shows another example environment for enabling advertisement display during a group session, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• FIG. 6 shows three schematic manifest files 600, 602, 604 for enabling synchronized, or substantially synchronized, playback of a content item and advertisements during a group session.
• the length of the depicted video and advertisement segments indicates a run-time associated with each segment.
• the manifest files 600, 602, 604 each comprise first segments 606a, 606b, 606c of video, each being the same segment of video and having a common runtime, and a first advertisement 608, 610, 612, each being a different advertisement, but having a common run-time.
• the manifest files 600, 602, 604 each comprise second segments 614a, 614b, 614c of video, each being the same segment of video and having a common run-time, and a second advertisement 616, 618, 620, each being a different advertisement, but having a common run-time.
• the manifest files 600, 602, 604 each comprise third segments 614a, 614b, 614c of video, each being the same segment of video and having a common run-time.
• the various advertisements may be associated a unique device identification and/or session identification so that a manifest manipulation service can incorporate the advertisements in the corresponding manifest before sending the manifest to a computing device.
• FIG. 7 shows an example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 700 comprises a first computing device, in this example first tablet 702, that is connected via network 704 to a second computing device, in this example, second tablet 706.
• the network 704 may be any suitable network, such as the internet, and may comprise wired and/or wireless means.
• a user profile is identified 708 at the first tablet 702.
• the user profile may be any suitable user profile, for example, a user profile associated with a social media platform, and/or video-sharing platform.
• a content item 710 such as an episode of a television series and/or a movie, is received at the first tablet 702.
• the content item 710 may be received via the network 704, from a server (not shown).
• a contact is identified 712 based on the user profile and the content item. For example, a plurality of contacts may be associated with the user profile and it may be identified that the user has watched an earlier episode of the series of programs with the contact.
• an invitation to watch the content item with the identified contact is generated 714.
• this invitation may comprise a recommendation.
• a user interface element associated with the invitation may be output at the tablet 702, for example, a request to transmit the invitation to the contact.
• the identifying 712 the contact and generating 714 the invitation may be performed in response to input received at a user interface element associated with initiating a group session.
• the invitation may automatically be transmitted to the contact.
• generating the invitation may comprise generating a link to transmit to the contact via a messaging application running on the first tablet 702 and/or another computing device.
• a user interface element 716 is generated for output at the second tablet 706 associated with the contact.
• the user interface element may comprise receiving a link via a messaging application.
• the user interface element 716 enables input 718 to be received for accepting the invitation.
• the user interface element 716 also enables input to be received for declining the invitation.
• an indication is transmitted to the first laptop 702 and a group session is initiated, such that the content item 710, 720 is received and generated for output at the first tablet 702 and the second tablet 706 at the same time, or substantially the same time.
• the content item may revert to the start of the content item.
• the content item may resume from a timestamp of the content item associated with when the invitation was generated and transmitted to the identified contact.
• a watch session based on a pre-defined portion of a content item can be initiated, for example, if the user watches a portion of a content item and believes that a friend would be interested in watching it too.
• the contact may be identified via a number of different ways, and the invitation may comprise a recommendation for content. For example, it may be determined that a contact was recommended a show that the user is already watching based on, for example, a high connection, or friendship, score.
• the invitation may comprise a recommendation to watch a portion of a content item, which may, in turn, increase the contact’s interest in the content item.
• the contact might have started watching a content item and subsequently stopped watching the content item. The invitation may be based on the time that the contact stopped watching the content item to entice the contact to resume watching the content item. Additionally, this feature can be used to prime the contact for a subsequent recommendation.
• the user may be watching content that a contact might be interested in, while the contact is finishing watching a different content item. This would allow a recommendation of a new content item to the contact through the user. All these techniques and features can be used to retain subscribers as well as to promote new content items and enable users to discover content through each other.
• a social module that is integrated with a media player (or that has access to the player) can recommend toa a contact watching a particular portion of the content (e.g., while the user is viewing the content item). Such recommendation can be made based on the contact’s profile (content preferences), and availability (e.g., that the contact is online) and/or connection strength score between the user and a contact. As such, the user can accept a recommendation to invite a contact (or contacts) to a group session, in which case an invitation is sent to the contact with an option to accept or decline. Other parameters can be considered as well, for example, if one or more content restrictions are associated with the contact’s profile. For example, content restrictions may be based on a type or genre of a portion of the content. In another example, content restrictions may be based on whether the portion of the content is appropriate for the contact. These features are discussed in more detail below.
• FIG. 8 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 800 comprises a first tablet 802, a network 804 and a second tablet 806.
• a user profile is identified 808 at the first tablet 802.
• a content item 810 is received at the first tablet 802.
• a contact is identified 812 based on the user profile and the content item.
• an invitation comprising an expiry time, to watch the content item with the identified contact is generated 814.
• the expiry time may be five minutes. In other examples, the expiry time may be 30 seconds, two minutes and/or seven minutes.
• the expiry time may be generated based on an online status, or a last-seen status, of a contact.
• the invitation is transmitted to the contact, typically via network 804, and a user interface element 816 is generated for output at the second tablet 806 associated with the contact.
• the user interface element 816 indicates the expiry time and enables input 818 to be received for accepting the invitation.
• an indication is transmitted to the first laptop 802 and a group session is initiated, such that the content item 810, 820 is received and generated for output at the first tablet 802 and the second tablet 806 at the same time, or substantially the same time.
• FIG. 9 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 900 comprises a first tablet 902, a network 904 and a second tablet 906.
• a user profile is identified 908 at the first tablet 902.
• a content item 910 is received at the first tablet 902.
• a contact is identified 912 based on the user profile and the content item.
• a second user profile that is associated with the first contact is identified 914 and, based on the second user profile, a preference for the content item is identified at 916.
• the content item may be a comedy content item
• the second user profile may indicate that the user has a preference for comedy.
• the second user profile may indicate that the user does not like comedy items. If the preference for the content item is negative, an additional contact and user profile is identified at 918 and the process loops back to step 916.
• the preference for the content item is positive, it is identified whether the user profile can access the content item at 920.
• the content item may require a subscription to a particular OTT service, or may have a particular age limit associated with it. If the user profile is unable to access the content item, for example they are not subscribed to a particular OTT service or an age associated with the user is too young for the content item, the process proceeds to step 918, where an additional contact and user profile is identified. If the user profile can access the content item, the process proceeds to step 922, where an invitation to watch the content item with the identified contact is generated 922. The invitation is transmitted to the contact, typically via network 904, and a user interface element 924 is generated for output at the second tablet 906 associated with the contact.
• the user interface element 924 enables input 926 to be received for accepting the invitation.
• an indication is transmitted to the first laptop 902 and a group session is initiated, such that the content item 910, 928 is received and generated for output at the first tablet 902 and the second tablet 906 at the same time or substantially the same time.
• step 920 if the user cannot access the content item, the process proceeds to step 922 and an invitation is generated comprising an invitation to, for example, subscribe to an OTT service so that they can access the content item.
• the invitation may comprise a referral link that confers a benefit, such as credit, the user profile associated with transmitting the invitation.
• FIG. 10 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 1000 comprises a first tablet 1002, a network 1004 and a second tablet 1006.
• a user profile is identified 1008 at the first tablet 1002.
• a content item 1010 is received at the first tablet 1002.
• a timestamp associated with the content item is identified, for example, a current playback time of the content item. In some examples, the timestamp may be a short period, such as five seconds, before the current playback time of the content item.
• a contact is identified based on the user profile and the content item.
• an invitation to watch the content item indicating that the content item comprises a spoiler is generated. If it is identified that the content item does not comprise a spoiler, at 1024, an invitation to watch the content item with the identified contact is generated.
• the invitation is transmitted to the contact, typically via network 1004, and a user interface element 1028 is generated for output at the second tablet 1006 associated with the contact.
• the user interface element 1028 enables input 1030 to be received for accepting the invitation.
• an indication is transmitted to the first laptop 1002 and a group session is initiated, such that the content item 1010, 1026 is received and generated for output at the first tablet 1002 and the second tablet 1006 at the same time, or substantially the same time.
• FIG. 11 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 1100 comprises a first tablet 1102, a network 1104 and a second tablet 1106.
• a user profile is identified 1108 at the first tablet 1102.
• a content item 1110 is received at the first tablet 1102.
• a contact is identified 1112 based on the user profile and the content item.
• an invitation to watch the content item with the identified contact is generated 1114.
• the invitation is transmitted to the contact, typically via network 1104, and a user interface element 1116 is generated for output at the second tablet 1106 associated with the contact.
• a second content item 1122 is being output at the second tablet 1106.
• the user interface element 1116 enables input 1118 to be received for accepting the invitation.
• an indication is transmitted to the first laptop 1102 and a group session is initiated, such that the content item 1110, 1120 is received and generated for output at the first tablet 1102 and the second tablet 1106 at the same time, or substantially the same time.
• the first content item 1120 is displayed in a picture-in-picture (PiP) mode at the second tablet 1106.
• the second tablet 1106 may automatically display the first content item 1120 in PiP mode on detection of a second content time being consumed at the second tablet.
• a group session content item may be displayed in a PiP mode in response to a setting being set at the second tablet 1106, for example, a setting associated with an OTT application.
• the second tablet 1106 may automatically initiate a link with a third computing device, for example via Bluetooth and/or Wi-Fi, such that the group session is initiated at the third computing device.
• the invitation to watch may be presented on the second tablet 1106 while content is already being consumed.
• the user of the second tablet 1106 can play the suggested portion of the content item in PiP mode.
• they may consume the suggested content item in full screen and the second content item that was being consumed at the second tablet 1106 may be paused.
• the content that was being consumed at the second tablet 1106 may automatically resume playing if it got paused, or may go back to full screen if it was switched to PiP mode.
• FIG. 12 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 1200 comprises a first tablet 1202, a network 1204, a second tablet 1206 and a third tablet 1208.
• a user profile is identified 1210 at the first tablet 1202.
• a content item 1212 is received at the first tablet 1202.
• Contacts are identified 1214 based on the user profile and the content item.
• a time period based on a portion of the content item is identified 1216. For example, if the content item comprises a plurality of chapters and the second chapter is being consumed, the time period may be based on the time until the start of the third chapter.
• the updated invitation is transmitted to the second and third tablets 1206, 1208, where it is accepted via a user interface element at the second tablet. No input is received at the third tablet 1208 and the content item is queued 1234 for consuming at a later time, though not via a group session.
• an indication is transmitted to the first laptop 1202 and a group session is initiated, such that the content item 1212, 1230 is received and generated for output at the first tablet 1202 and the second tablet 1206 at the same time, or substantially the same time.
• Automatic invitations to a group session may be sent out if certain criteria are met. For example, a user can designate which contact, or contacts, can be automatically invited. Future recommendations for inviting contacts may be based on a contact accepting the invitation and/or ranking the content item, for example, with a thumbs up. In some examples, future recommendations may be based on the contact being invited to a group session for a portion of a content item and watching a remaining portion of the content item and/or restarting the content item from the beginning.
• FIG. 13 shows another example environment for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• the environment 1300 comprises a first tablet 1302, a network 1304 and a second tablet 1306.
• a user profile is identified 1308 at the first tablet 1302.
• a content item 1310 is received at the first tablet 1302.
• a viewing schedule 1312 associated with the user profile 1308 is identified. For example, it may be identified that a user associated with the user profile consumes an episode of a series at 5:00 pm every Tuesday.
• a contact is identified 1314 based on the user profile, the content item and the viewing schedule.
• An advertisement-supported short watch party may serve as a means for sharing short form video. This is essentially a form of asynchronized watch party. When implemented, this enables users to post a short form video, for example via a sharing link, which can be consumed by others in either a synchronized or asynchronized manner. In this example, there is no need to re-create content from longer versions as those short portions are already available. Users, in general, have access to advertisement-supported services, which in return can serve as a platform for content posting and sharing. This creates opportunities for advertising to reach more audiences, through various ways of consuming the content. [0076] FIG.
• Computing device 1400 e.g., computing device 102, 202, 302, 402, 702, 802, 902, 1002, 1102, 1202, 1302
• input circuitry 1404 e.g., computing device 102, 202, 302, 402, 702, 802, 902, 1002, 1102, 1202, 1302
• Control circuitry 1408 may be based on any suitable processing circuitry (not shown) and comprises control circuits and memory circuits, which may be disposed on a single integrated circuit or may be discrete components and processing circuitry.
• processing circuitry should be understood to mean circuitry based on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, programmable logic devices, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc., and may include a multi-core processor (e.g., dual-core, quad-core, hexa-core, or any suitable number of cores).
• a multi-core processor e.g., dual-core, quad-core, hexa-core, or any suitable number of cores.
• Input is received 1402 by the input circuitry 1404.
• the input circuitry 1404 is configured to received inputs related to a computing device. For example, this may be via a touchscreen, a keyboard, a mouse and/or a microphone in communication with the computing device 1400. In other examples, this may be via a gesture detected via an augmented, mixed and/or virtual reality device. In another example, the input may comprise instructions received via another computing device, for example, a smart speaker.
• the input circuitry 1404 transmits 1406 the user input to the control circuitry 1408.
• the control circuity comprises a group session initiation module 1410, a media content item receiving module 1414, a period of time identification module 1418, an advertisement selection module 1422, an advertisement receiving module 1426 and an output module 1430 comprising an advertisement output module 1432.
• the input is transmitted 1406 to the group session initiation module 1410, where a group session is initiated.
• An indication of the initiation of the group session is transmitted 1412 to the media content item receiving module 1414, where a media content item is received.
• An indication of the media content item is transmitted 1416 to the period of time identification module 1418, where a period of time is identified.
• the period of time is transmitted 1420 to the advertisement selection module 1422, where a selection of advertisements is selected.
• the selection of advertisements is transmitted 1424 to the advertisement receiving module 1426, where the selection of advertisements is received.
• the selection of advertisements is transmitted 1428 to the output module 1430, where the advertisements are generated for output at the advertisement output module 1432.
• FIG. 15 shows a block diagram representing components of a computing device and dataflow therebetween for initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• Computing device 1500 e.g., computing device 102, 202, 302, 402, 702, 802, 902, 1002, 1102, 1202, 1302
• input circuitry 1504 e.g., computing device 102, 202, 302, 402, 702, 802, 902, 1002, 1102, 1202, 1302
• Control circuitry 1508 may be based on any suitable processing circuitry (not shown) and comprises control circuits and memory circuits, which may be disposed on a single integrated circuit or may be discrete components and processing circuitry.
• the indication of the user profile and an indication of the media content item are transmitted 1516 to the contact identification module, where a contact is identified based on the user profile and the media content item.
• An indication of the media content item and the contact are transmitted 1520 to the invitation generation module 1522, where an invitation is generated.
• the invitation is transmitted 1524 to the invitation transmission module 1526, where the invitation is transmitted 1528 to a second computing device (not shown) associated with the contact.
• a second computing device not shown
• an indication of the acceptance is generated and transmitted (not shown) to the computing device 1500, where it is received at the indication of acceptance receiving module 1530.
• FIG. 16 shows a flowchart of illustrative steps involved in initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• Process 1600 may be implemented on any of the aforementioned computing devices (e.g., computing device 102, 202, 302, 402, 702, 802, 902, 1002, 1102, 1202, 1302).
• one or more actions of the process 1600 may be incorporated into or combined with one or more actions of any other process or embodiments described herein.
• a group session between a first computing device and a second computing device is initiated.
• a first portion of the media content item is received at the first and the second computing devices.
• the first portion of the media content item is output at the same time, or substantially the same time, at the first and the second computing devices.
• a period of time for outputting advertisements is identified, for example five minutes.
• a first selection of advertisements is identified based on the time period, for example, a first selection of advertisements that fits into a five-minute period is identified.
• the first selection of advertisements is received at the first computing device. These advertisements may be received, for example, from a dedicated server that delivers advertisements.
• the first selection of advertisements is output at the first computing device. Similar steps are carried out in connection with the second computing device.
• a second selection of advertisements is identified based on the time period.
• the second selection of advertisements is received at the second computing device.
• the second selection of advertisements is output at the second computing device.
• a second portion of the media content item is received at first and second computing devices. Typically, the second portion of the media content item is output at the same time, or substantially the same time, at the first and the second computing devices. Having first and second selections of advertisements based on the same time period enables the second portion of the media content item to be output at the same time at the first and the second computing devices.
• FIG. 17 shows a flowchart of illustrative steps involved in initiating a media content item group watch session with an identified contact, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure.
• Process 1700 may be implemented on any of the aforementioned computing devices (e.g., computing device 102, 202, 302, 402, 702, 802, 902, 1002, 1102, 1202, 1302).
• one or more actions of the process 1700 may be incorporated into or combined with one or more actions of any other process or embodiments described herein.
• a user profile is identified, for example a user profile associated with a social media, and/or video-sharing platform.
• a media content item is generated for output at a first computing device, such as a smartphone.
• a contact is identified via the user profile, for example a friend on a social media network.
• an invitation is generated.
• the invitation may comprise details about the content item that is being shared and details for transmitting the invitation to the contact, for example, an identifier for a user profile that is associated with the contact.
• the invitation is transmitted to a second computing device, for example, a smartphone at which the contact is logged on to a social network.
• an indication that the invitation has been accepted is received, for example, the indication is sent from the second computing device to the first computing device, in response to receiving a touch event associated with a user interface element at the second computing device.
• a group session is initiated between the first computing device and the second computing device.
• a media content item is received at the first and second computing devices and is generated for output. Typically, the media content item is output at the same time, or substantially the same time, at the first and the second computing devices.
• a method comprising: initiating, between a first computing device and a second computing device, a media content item group session; receiving, at the first computing device and the second computing device, a first portion of the media content item; identifying, for outputting one or more advertisements, a period of time; identifying, for the first computing device, a first selection of one or more advertisements, wherein the first selection of advertisements has a first run-time based on the period of time; identifying, for the second computing device, a second selection of one or more advertisements, wherein the second selection of advertisements has a second runtime based on the period of time; receiving, at the first computing device, the first selection of advertisements; receiving, at the second computing device, the second selection of advertisements; outputting, at the first computing device, an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements; and outputting, at the second computing device, an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements.
• identifying a first user profile associated with the first computing device further comprising: identifying a second user profile associated with the second computing device; and wherein: identifying the first selection of advertisements further comprises identifying the first selection of advertisements based on the first user profile; and identifying the second selection of advertisements further comprises identifying the second selection of advertisements based on the second user profile.
• identifying the first selection of advertisements further comprises: identifying, for inclusion in the first selection of advertisements, an interactive advertisement; identifying, based on the time period, an interaction time period associated with the interactive advertisement; and outputting the advertisement of the first selection of advertisements further comprises outputting the interactive advertisement for the interaction time period.
• a system comprising: a communication port; a memory storing instructions; and control circuitry communicably coupled to the memory and the communication port and configured to execute instructions to: initiate, between a first computing device and a second computing device and via the communication port, a media content item group session; receive, at the first computing device and the second computing device, a first portion of the media content item; identify, for outputting one or more advertisements, a period of time; identify, for the first computing device, a first selection of one or more advertisements, wherein the first selection of advertisements has a first run-time based on the period of time; identify, for the second computing device, a second selection of one or more advertisements, wherein the second selection of advertisements has a second run-time based on the period of time; receive, at the first computing device, the first selection of advertisements; receive, at the second computing device, the second selection of advertisements; output, at the first computing device, an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements; and output, at the second computing device, an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements.
• the system further comprising control circuitry configured to: identify the difference between the first run-time and the period of time; identify a playback speed for an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements that causes the first runtime to be equal to the period of time; and wherein: the control circuitry configured to output the advertisement of the first selection of advertisements is further configured to output the advertisement of the first selection of advertisements at the identified playback speed.
• control circuitry configured to identify the first selection of advertisements is further configured to: identify, for inclusion in the first selection of advertisements, an interactive advertisement; identify, based on the time period, an interaction time period associated with the interactive advertisement; and the control circuitry configured to output the advertisement of the first selection of advertisements is further configured to output the interactive advertisement for the interaction time period.
• control circuitry configured to output the interactive advertisement is further configured to output the interactive advertisement and a timer for display, wherein the timer is based on the interaction time period.
• control circuitry configured to receive the first selection of advertisements is further configured to: receive, from a server, a first advertisement of the first selection of advertisements; and generate, at the first computing device, the interactive advertisement of the first selection of advertisements.
• the first selection of advertisements comprises a first personalizable advertisement having a first portion and a second portion
• the second selection of advertisements comprises a second personalizable advertisement having and a first portion and second portion, wherein the first portion is common to the first and second personalizable advertisements
• the control circuitry further configured to: identify a first user profile associated with the first computing device; identify a second user profile associated with the second computing device; identify, based on the first user profile, the second portion of the first personalizable advertisement; identify, based on the second user profile, the second portion of the second personalizable advertisement; and: the control circuitry configured to output an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements is further configured to concurrently output the first and second portions of the first personalizable advertisement; and the control circuitry configured to output an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements is further configured to concurrently output the first and second portions of the second personalizable advertisement.
• control circuitry configured to receive the first selection of advertisements is further configured to: receive a first manifest file, wherein the first manifest file comprises a link to a second portion of the media content item, a link to an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements and a link to a third portion of the media content item; and the control circuitry configured to receive the second selection of advertisements is further configured to: receive a second manifest file, wherein the first manifest file comprises a link to the second portion of the media content item, a link to an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements and a link to the third portion of the media content item.
• a non-transitory, computer-readable medium having non-transitory, computer-readable instructions encoded thereon that, when executed by control circuitry, cause the control circuitry to: initiate, between a first computing device and a second computing device and via the communication port, a media content item group session; receive, at the first computing device and the second computing device, a first portion of the media content item; identify, for outputting one or more advertisements, a period of time; identify, for the first computing device, a first selection of one or more advertisements, wherein the first selection of advertisements has a first run-time based on the period of time; identify, for the second computing device, a second selection of one or more advertisements, wherein the second selection of advertisements has a second run-time based on the period of time; receive, at the first computing device, the first selection of advertisements; receive, at the second computing device, the second selection of advertisements; output, at the first computing device, an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements; and output, at the second computing device, an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements.
• execution of the instructions to receive the first selection of advertisements further causes the control circuitry to: receive a first manifest file, wherein the first manifest file comprises a link to a second portion of the media content item, a link to an advertisement of the first selection of advertisements and a link to a third portion of the media content item; and execution of the instructions to receive the second selection of advertisements further causes the control circuitry to: receive a second manifest file, wherein the first manifest file comprises a link to the second portion of the media content item, a link to an advertisement of the second selection of advertisements and a link to the third portion of the media content item.
• the media content item comprises a plurality of portions; generating the media content item for output further comprises generating a first portion of the media content item for output; generating the invitation further comprises generating the invitation to join a media content item group session for a second portion of the media content item; the method further comprises: identifying an invitation output time period, wherein the end of the time period coincides with the start of the second portion; and generating, for output, a request to transmit the invitation to the contact at the beginning of the invitation output time period.
• receiving the indication that the invitation has been accepted further comprises: receiving a request to delay a start time for the media content item group session; generating, for output, the request to delay the start time; receiving input associated with accepting the request to delay the start time; generating a second invitation, wherein the second invitation comprises a second start time for the media item group session; transmitting, to the second computing device, the second invitation; and receiving an indication that the second invitation has been accepted.
• identifying the contact further comprises identifying a second contact
• generating the invitation further comprises generating an invitation comprising a start time for the media content item group session
• transmitting the invitation further comprises transmitting the invitation to a third computing device associated with the second contact
• the method further comprises: identifying that an indication that the invitation has been accepted has not been received from the second contact before the start time; identifying a second user profile associated with the third contact; and adding the media content item to a queue associated with the second user profile.
• the method further comprises identifying a viewing schedule associated with the first user profile; identifying the contact is further based on the viewing schedule; generating the invitation further comprises generating an invitation based on the viewing schedule; and transmitting the invitation further comprises transmitting the invitation based on the viewing schedule.
• a system comprising: a communication port; a memory storing instructions; and control circuitry communicably coupled to the memory and the communication port and configured to execute instructions to: identify a user profile; generate for output, at a first computing device and via the communication port, a media content item; identify, based on the user profile and the media content item, a contact; generate, based on the media content item and the identified contact, an invitation to join a media content item group session; transmit, to a second computing device associated with the contact, the invitation; receive an indication that the invitation has been accepted; initiate, between the first computing device and the second computing device, the media content item group session; and generate for output, at the first computing device and the second computing device, the media content item.
• control circuitry configured to identify a preference for the media content item is further configured to identify whether the second user profile or the third user profile can receive the media content item.
• control circuitry further configured to: receive, at the second computing device, a second media content item; and generate, for output at the second computing device, the received first media content item in a picture-in-picture mode.
• the media content item comprises a plurality of portions; the control circuitry configured to generate the media content item for output is further configured to generate a first portion of the media content item for output; the control circuitry configured to generate the invitation is further configured to generate the invitation to join a media content item group session for a second portion of the media content item; the control circuitry is further configured to: identify an invitation output time period, wherein the end of the time period coincides with the start of the second portion; and generate, for output, a request to transmit the invitation to the contact at the beginning of the invitation output time period.
• control circuitry configured to receive the indication that the invitation has been accepted is further configured to: receive a request to delay a start time for the media content item group session; generate, for output, the request to delay the start time; receive input associated with accepting the request to delay the start time; generate a second invitation, wherein the second invitation comprises a second start time for the media item group session; transmit, to the second computing device, the second invitation; and receive an indication that the second invitation has been accepted.
• control circuitry configured to identify the contact is further configured to identify a second contact
• control circuitry configured to generate the invitation is further configured to generate an invitation comprising a start time for the media content item group session
• control circuitry configured to transmit the invitation is further configured to transmit the invitation to a third computing device associated with the second contact
• control circuitry is further configured to: identify that an indication that the invitation has been accepted has not been received from the second contact before the start time; identify a second user profile associated with the third contact; and add the media content item to a queue associated with the second user profile.

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• 2023
  • 2023-10-11 WO PCT/US2023/034889 patent/WO2024081286A1/en not_active Ceased
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