WO2016127148A1

WO2016127148A1 - System and methods for managing side challenges between users in fantasy gaming

Info

Publication number: WO2016127148A1
Application number: PCT/US2016/016912
Authority: WO
Inventors: Daniel G. KEHOE
Original assignee: Zco, Llc
Priority date: 2015-02-06
Filing date: 2016-02-06
Publication date: 2016-08-11
Also published as: CA2975618A1; EP3253470A4; EP3253470A1

Abstract

Interactive systems and methods for creating game and game-like applications, including a side challenge application for building a head-to-head challenge between users, are presented. The first user selects the second user that is a target of the challenge. The first user then selects a fantasy performer, a performance goal for the fantasy performer, a challenge time period, and a challenge wager. The challenge is presented to the second user whom accepts, rejects or proposes a modification to the challenge. A result of the challenge is scored and reported to both of the first and second users. The fantasy performer can include a single player or entity, an entire roster or multiple players.

Description

SYSTEM AND METHODS FOR MANAGING SIDE CHALLENGES BETWEEN USERS

IN FANTASY GAMING

PRIORITY

[0001] The present application claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional

Application 62/113,130, filed February 6, 2015.

[0002] The present application is also a continuation-in-part of, and claims priority benefit of, U.S. Patent App. No. 14/975,595, filed December 18, 2015, and which claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Application 62/094,661, filed December 19, 2014, and which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Patent App. No. 14/927,445, filed October 29, 2015, which is a continuation of PCT/US2014/036241, filed April 30, 2014, which claims the priority benefit of (1) U.S. Provisional Application 61/936,501, filed February 6, 2014, and (2) U.S. Provisional Application 61/818,028, filed May 1, 2013.

[0003] The present application is further a continuation-in-part of, and claims priority benefit of, U.S. Patent App. No. 14/975,642, filed December 18, 2015, and which claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Application 62/094,674, filed December 19, 2014, and which is a continuation-in-part of, and claims priority benefit of U.S. Patent App. No. 14/927,445, filed October 29, 2015, which is a continuation of PCT/US2014/036241, filed April 30, 2014, which claims the priority benefit of (1) U.S. Provisional Application 61/936,501, filed February 6, 2014, and (2) U.S. Provisional Application 61/818,028, filed May 1, 2013.

[0004] All of the foregoing applications are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

FIELD

[0005] Certain disclosed embodiments relate to the field of fantasy sports systems and methods.

BACKGROUND

[0006] Currently available fantasy sports systems prohibit in-game player substitutions, which is limiting user enjoyment and preventing users from behaving more like the coaches and owners of real sports teams. The limits are currently in place, at least in part, because designing and administering a more highly interactive system of player substitutions presents a variety of technical and logistical chal lenges. Nevertheless, many fantasy users strongly desire more interaction and flexibility, particularly during fantasy matchups when their players are participating in real-world sporting events. Thus, there is a need in the art for improved roster management and player substitution applications for fantasy sports systems and methods.

[0007] Currently available fantasy sports systems monitor and record individual player performance as part of the means for scoring the competitions between fantasy teams. Because team results are driven, in part, by individual player performance, many fantasy users follow individual players very closely. Many fantasy sports users strongly desire a way to more actively apply and use their knowledge of individual players, in contests with other users, within the context of fantasy sports. Thus, there is a need in the art for improved game systems and contest applications that allow users to compete with others in contests that are based, at least in part, on individual player performance.

[0008] Rookie players represent one of the biggest risks in fantasy sports. Many rookies either do not play well or spend much of their first season on the bench. Currently available fantasy sports systems require users to treat rookies just like any other player. Many users, however, strongly desire a fantasy system that handles rookies in a different and more realistic way. Thus, there is a need in the art for improved roster management systems that accommodate the risks and benefits associated with rookie players.

SUMMARY

[0009] Interactive systems and methods for creating game and game-like applications, including a side challenge application for building a head-to-head side challenges between users, are presented. A system for building and managing a plurality of side challenges in some embodiments includes an application services interface, a plurality of user interfaces, a side challenge application, and a plurality of external data services for tracking the progress and player performance during real- world events, such as sporting events.

[0010] The disclosure includes a side challenge method between a first user and a second user in a fantasy gaming system wherein the first user is not presently playing the second user in a fantasy league matchup. The method includes receiving input from the first user via a first graphical user interface regarding the second user that is a target of the challenge. Input is received from the first user via the first graphical user interface of a plurality of challenge parameters, including: a first fantasy performer; a challenge performance parameter; a challenge time period; and a challenge wager. The challenge parameters are presented to the second user on a second graphical user interface. Input is received from the second user via the second user interface of a second fantasy performer, I nput is received from the second user via the second graphical user interface including whether the challenge is accepted or countered and a second fantasy performer. A result of the challenge is scored based upon the plurality of performance parameters in the challenge time period and the input from the second user. The scored result is reported to both of the first and second users. The scored result can also be stored in a database. The fantasy performers can be a single player or entity, an entire roster, two players, three players, etc.

[0011] The disclosure also includes a side challenge method between a first user and a second user in a fantasy gaming system wherein the first user is not currently playing in a matchup against the second user. The method includes receiving input from the first user via the first graphical user interface of a plurality of challenge parameters for a side challenge, including: a first fantasy performer; a challenge performance parameter; a challenge time period; and a challenge wager. The side challenge is posted as an entry in a list of open challenges to a lobby screen of a second graphical user interface. Input is received from the second user via the second user interface to view the plurality of challenge parameters of the side challenge. I nput is received from the second user via the second graphical user interface, including whether the challenge is accepted or countered; and a second fantasy performer. A result of the side challenge is scored based upon the plurality of performance parameters in the challenge time period and the input from the second user. The scored result to both of the first and second users. The fantasy performer can be a single player or entity, an entire roster, two players, three players, etc.

[0012] The disclosure further includes a computer program product configured to conduct fantasy gaming side challenges between a first user and a second user that is not currently in a game against the first user. The computer program product includes a computer readable storage medium having program code embodied therewith. The program code comprising computer readable program code is configured to: receive from the first user an identity of a second user that is a target of the challenge via the first graphical user interface; receive from the first user an identity of a fantasy performer via a first graphical user interface; receive from the first user a performance goal for the fantasy performer via the first graphical user interface; receive from the first user a challenge time period via the first graphical user interface; receive from the first user a challenge wager via the first graphical user interface; present to the second user via a graphical user interface the identity of the fantasy performer, the performance goal, challenge time period and the challenge wager; receive an input from the second user via the second graphical user interface indicating whether or not the challenge was accepted by the second user; present to the first user via the first graphical user interface the input from the second user indicating whether or not the second user accepted the challenge; score a result of the challenge; and report the scored result to both of the first and second users.

[0013] The graphical user interfaces can be a web browser displayed on a screen of an internet-connected computer, or the interfaces can be a touch-responsive screen of a smartphone or a tablet computer, or the interfaces can be any other display and input means for a computing system.

[0014] In certain embodiments, the computer readable program code can be stored on a computer readable storage medium of a computing device located remote from each of the first and second user's graphical user interfaces, or the code can be an application stored locally on the memory of the user's own computing device, or any combination thereof.

[0015] One or more processors may further execute the program code to: present the side direct challenge to the second user on a graphical user display; provide the second user with an option to submit a response consisting of an indicator selected from the group consisting of accept, decline, and counteroffer; receive the response from the second user; and in response to receiving the response equal to counteroffer, present one or more attributes of the first direct challenge to the second user for review and modification.

[0016] The first fantasy performer may comprise a first team, and the second fantasy performer may comprise a second team.

[0017] The first fantasy performer may comprise a first group of two or more, and the second fantasy performer may comprise a second group of two or more, wherein the second group has the same number of participants as the first group. [0018] The side challenge may involve a wager of real money, fantasy dollars or a virtual currency.

[0019] The graphical user interfaces may further comprise a challenge reporting tool for displaying a plurality of direct challenges, arranged by date, to one or more of the fellow users.

[0020] The systems and methods may further comprise a social reporting engine for collecting and storing user data in a user database, the user data comprising demographic facts and game-play behavior, for at least a first subset of the fellow users during a predetermined subset of interactions with the application services interface.

[0021] In other embodiments, an interactive system for a plurality of game-like activities includes: (a) a content management system comprising a plurality of game templates, a game content database in communication with a plurality of external data services; (b) a plurality of application services, in communication with the content management system, comprising one or more game-like applications; and (c) one or more user interfaces to facilitate access to the plurality of application services for a plurality of users, wherein the one or more game-like applications comprises a challenge application.

[0022] The interactive system may further include a social reporting engine, in communication with the content management system, for collecting and storing user data in a user database, the user data comprising demographic facts and game-play behavior, for at least a first subset of the plurality of users during a predetermined subset of interactions with the plurality of application services.

[0023] The above summary is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, or describe each embodiment, aspect, implementation, feature or advantage of the invention. The detailed technology and preferred embodiments for the subject invention are described in the following paragraphs accompanying the appended drawings for people skilled in this field to well appreciate the features of the claimed invention. It is understood that the features mentioned hereinbefore and those to be commented on hereinafter may be used not only in the specified combinations, but also in other combinations or in isolation, without departing from the scope of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Features of the various embodiments disclosed will become more apparent in the detailed description, in which reference is made to the appended drawing, wherein:

[0025] FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a system for game creation and management, shown in one exemplary platform architecture, according to various embodiments.

[0026] FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a system for managing head-to-head challenges in fantasy sports or other applications, according to various embodiments.

[0027] FIGS. 3 through 13 are a series of sample displays, with interactive user interfaces, for a system for building and managing direct challenges, according to various embodiments.

[0028] FIG. 14 is a sample display of a list of direct challenges, according to various embodiments.

[0029] FIGS. 15 through 32 are a series of interactive user interfaces on a display for executing the roster management system, according to various embodiments.

[0030] FIGS. 33 through 37 are diagrams of aspects of system architecture for head- to-head challenges, according to various em bodiments.

[0031] FIG. 38 illustrates user interfaces for player swaps during live game play, according to various embodiments.

[0032] FIGS. 39 through 43 illustrate various different types of game play subjects, according to various embodiments.

[0033] FIGS. 44 and 45 illustrate user interfaces for swapping players in a direct challenge game, according to various embodiments.

[0034] FIG. 46 illustrates a user interface for researching players before performing a challenge or a swap, according to various embodiments.

[0035] FIG. 47 illustrates a Head to Head Record pop up showing relevant historical data from particular opponents, according to various embodiments.

[0036] FIG. 48 illustrates a whole lineup challenge feature, according to various embodiments. [0037] FIGS. 49 through 54 are a series of sample user displays, with interactive user interfaces, for a system for building and managing direct challenges, according to various embodiments.

[0038] FIGS. 55 through 57 are a series of sample user displays, with interactive user interfaces, for a system for building and managing side challenges, according to various embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] In the following descriptions, the present invention will be explained with reference to various exemplary embodiments. Nevertheless, these embodiments are not intended to limit the present invention to any specific example, environment, application, or particular implementation described herein. Therefore, descriptions of these example embodiments are only provided for purpose of illustration rather than to limit the present invention.

[0040] The present systems and apparatuses and methods are understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description, examples, drawings, and claims, and their previous and following description. However, before the present devices, systems, and/or methods are disclosed and described, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the specific devices, systems, and/or methods disclosed unless otherwise specified, as such can, of course, vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular aspects only and is not intended to be limiting.

[0041] Like parts are marked throughout the following description and drawings with the same reference numerals. The drawings may not be to scale and certain features may be shown exaggerated in scale or in somewhat schematic format in the interest of clarity, conciseness, and to convey information.

[0042] The following description of the invention is provided as an enabling teaching of the invention in its best, currently known embodiment. To this end, those skilled in the relevant art will recognize and appreciate that many changes can be made to the various aspects of the invention described herein, while still obtaining the beneficial results of the present invention. It will also be apparent that some of the desired benefits of the present invention can be obtained by selecting some of the features of the present invention without utilizing other features. Accordingly, those who work in the art will recognize that many modifications and adaptations to the present invention are possible and can even be desirable in certain circumstances and are a part of the present invention. Thus, the following description is provided as illustrative of the principles of the present invention and not in limitation thereof.

[0043] As used throughout, the singular forms "a," "an" and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to a component can include two or more such components unless the context indicates otherwise.

[0044] Ranges can be expressed herein as from "about" one particular value, and/or to "about" another particular value. When such a range is expressed, another aspect includes from the one particular value and/or to the other particular value. Similarly, when values are expressed as approximations, by use of the antecedent "about," it will be understood that the particular value forms another aspect. It will be further understood that the endpoints of each of the ranges are significant both in relation to the other endpoint, and independently of the other endpoint.

[0045] As used herein, the terms "optional" or "optionally" mean that the subsequently described event or circumstance may or may not occur, and that the description includes instances where said event or circumstance occurs and instances where it does not.

GAMES

[0046] As used herein, the term games refers to activities undertaken for play or amusement, as well as game-like interactive activities that are used to facilitate the pursuit of a specific object or purpose. In a broad sense, the games described herein enable users to interact with both the game content itself and with game-related insertions or requests (sometimes referred as calls to action). As described, the games and game-like interactive systems herein, including the game systems for creating supersets of games, provide deeper engagement between the user and the game. As used herein, user engagement refers to the frequency of play, duration of play, and the depth of interaction with game content and/or calls to action. Deeper user engagement increases the value of games, especially in the commercial context. Games created and managed by the game system described herein are lower in cost, faster to deploy, and easier to manage than those produced by existing game systems.

[0047] FANTASY SPORTS GAMES. Fantasy sports is a competition in which each user selects and manages an imaginary or fantasy team com prised of real players of a particular sport. Each user accumulates points according to the real-world performance of each player. Typically, the user assumes the role of team manager or coach, choosing players in a draft process, trading players, establishing active rosters and inactive (bench) rosters, changing rosters, and the like, in accordance with each particula r league's set of rules and regulations.

[0048] Currently availa ble fantasy sports systems prohibit in-ga me player substitutions, which is limiting user enjoyment and preventing users from behaving more like the coaches and owners of real sports tea ms. The limits are currently in place, at least in part, because designing a nd ad ministering a more highly interactive system of player substitutions presents a variety of technica l and logistical cha llenges. Nevertheless, many fantasy users strongly desire more interaction and flexibility, particularly during fa ntasy matchups when their players are participating in real-world sporting events.

[0049] NON-SPORTS GAMES. Although many of the systems a nd methods described herein are discussed in the context of fantasy footba ll, the technology disclosed herein is a lso useful a nd applica ble for a variety of sports and other qua ntifia ble performa nces. For example, FIG. 39 illustrates game play examples relating to stock performance of companies, professional hockey, NASCAR and NCAA basketball. FIG. 40 illustrates game play examples for reality television program outcomes. FIG. 41 illustrates game play examples for rushing yards of professional football teams and for music record sales. FIG. 42 illustrates game play examples for politics and news outcomes. FIG. 43 illustrates game play examples for weather predictions and a selection of news events in categories such as U.S., world, politics and justice.

SYSTEM

[0050] FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a system 100 for game creation and management, according to particular embodiments. As shown, the system 100 may include a variety of elements in communication with one another, including a content management system 200, application services 300, user interfaces 400, and a social reporting engine 500. The system 100 may also include a game content database 220, an active game-play database 320, a user database 520, and external data sources 380. The external data sources 380 may include external content sources 382 and external applications 388.

[0051] FIG. 1 also illustrates an example system platform architecture. The game systems and methods described herein may be provided using a self-service platform that facilitates the creation and management of games through a friendly set of user interfaces 400. The system architecture, according to various embodiments, may include the components and modules illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0052] The application services interface 300, as shown, may include a REST API 370 to make calls to independent modules. REST (Representational State Transfer) is a style of software architecture for distributed systems, such as the internet. The REST API 370 allows for improved scalability, control of components and related rules, development of interfaces, and the deployment of additional components.

[0053] The Event Handler 460 according to particular embodiments includes a user interface that allows an unskilled user or Admin to create, edit, modify, and update a wide variety action-event combinations without any technical programming assistance. The user interface includes access to a wide variety of assets stored in a library - such as stock-photo image of social-media logos with clickable links, and the like - for the user to choose from. The user interface also allows the user or Admin to populate an entire series of event-action relationships in a user-friendly format. The user interface, for example, may include a series of drop-down menus with options for actions, events, and the rules associated with each (including, for example, usage counters, time/clock counters, and the like). The Event Handler 460 takes the user input and builds a series of computing instructions, such as decision trees and the like, for use by the game.

[0054] The gaming engine or system and the user's computing devices can be computing devices comprising a processor, non-transitory memory and software code stored in the memory to execute the specific functions and features of each of the respective gaming engine, systems and user computing devices.

[0055] SOCIAL REPORTING ENGI NE. In another aspect, the ga me system 100, according to particular embodiments, is designed to facilitate the creation and play of a superset of games by providing a wide selection of game types and categories and by actively collecting user data across the entire superset of games using a module referred to as the Social Reporting Engine 500. The Social Reporting Engine 500, according to particular embodiments, gathers user data including user behavior during registration and use of the game system, during game play, during related interactions (such as answering surveys and responding to other types of calls to action), and during social-media actions (entering likes, sharing content, and the like) - across multiple games, over an extended period of time, resulting in the population and updating of potentially millions of user data profiles, which may be stored in a user database 520.

[0056] User data includes initial profile data provided voluntarily by the user, typically beginning with the sharing of information already contained in a Facebook profile, Twitter account, Foursquare history, or other integrated third-party application. The game system provider may also gather user data by query or otherwise at any time during membership. User data also includes game performance, by specific game played; including, for example, whether the user makes accurate predictions in a particular sport, and whether the user consistently likes or prefers a certain product, service, or company. In a preferred embodiment, user data will be aggregated in order to derive business intelligence and other useful information in a manner that does not sell or disclose personally-identifiable information. The user data may be provided in an aggregated or anonymized format; however, such user data is valuable because the user data collected and stored by the game system of the present invention includes a variety of useful demographic information, combined with a history of user behavior within the game system and related activities, as described herein. This combination of demographic information and actual user behavior contributes to the value of the user data collected and stored by the game system.

H EAD-TO-HEAD CHALLENGES

[0057] The systems and methods described herein include a head-to-head or direct challenge application and system, sometimes referred to herein as "Mano e Mano." A head- to-head or direct challenge as used herein refers to a direct challenge between two individual users of an application such as a game or fantasy sports application.

[0058] The challenge application, according to particular embodiments, may be configured to allow a first user to create a matchup, send a challenge to a second user, monitor the outcome of the matchup, process the challenge, identify the winner, calculate and post scores, and update leaderboards. Wagers can be processed if/when applicable.

[0059] The challenge may be constructed according to the following general format:

"A will [outperform or beat] B in [given performance] in [field of endeavor] during [this event or time period]." The outcome of the matchup may be determined by each rival's statistical performance in a real-world game or competition as the case may be.

[0060] The challenge application, as described herein, may be used to select the challenge subjects or rivals ("A" and "B") and create a challenge such as this one: "Barry Sanders will rush for more total yards than Marcus Allen during this Sunday's football game." The outcome may be determined or scored based on the real- world performance (total yards rushed) during the selected period (the Sunday football game).

[0061] The Mano e Mano challenge application, according to particular embodiments, may be configured to allow users to create matchups by selecting players or rivals from a list, a database, or an external source of content.

[0062] According to particular embodiments, FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a challenge system 1100 for generating and managing a plurality of direct challenges between users of a game application. As shown, the challenge system 1100 may include a variety of elements in communication with one another, including an a pplication services interface 1300, a plurality of user interfaces 1400, and a social reporting engine 1500. The challenge system 1100 may also include a database 1220, a user database 1520, and one or more external data services 1280. The external data services 1280 may include a sports feed A 1282, a content API B 1284, and a sports feed B 1286, for example.

[0063] In alternative embodiments, the challenge system 1100 may include a content management system similar to the one depicted in FIG. 1.

[0064] The application services interface 1300, as shown, may include a REST API 1370 to make calls to independent modules. REST (Representational State Transfer) is a style of software architecture for distributed systems, such as the internet. The REST API 1370 allows for improved scalability, control of components and related rules, development of interfaces, and the deployment of additional components. [0065] At the logic level, the application services interface 1300 in particular embodiments, as shown, includes modules for Scoring and Leaderboards, a User Manager, Picks Engine 1340, Matchup Logic 1310, and an Event Data Handler 1360. At the data level, the application services interface 1300 in particular embodiments, as shown, includes a Persistence Manger, Settings Manager, Manual Data Interface, and one or more External Data Readers 1380.

[0066] The challenge application, according to particular embodiments, may be implemented using a programmed computer. A direct challenge may be a contest between competitors or rivals (or perceived rivals) in any of a variety of fields of endeavor such as sports, politics, or entertainment. The challenge may be constructed in the following general format: "[First Competitor] will [outperform according to this performance parameter] the [Second Competitor] during [this event or time period]." The outcome or score of the challenge may be determined by comparing each competitor's actual performance; for example, in real-world games or competitions. The challenge application allows users to build each element of a direct challenge using an interface that is dynamic and user friendly. The challenge application may include any or all of the features and functions of the game systems described herein. For example, a challenge application may include access to game content or other data accessible by the system; for example, a photograph of one or both competitors.

[0067] In the context of a bracket game, the First Competitor and/or Second

Competitor may be a player selected from any of the teams competing in the bracket. The performance parameter may be score more points. The time period may be during the second period of play in each respective Competitors ' first game of the tournament. As illustrated in FIG. 2, schematically, the application services interface 1300 may include matchup logic 1310. Matchup logic 1310, according to particular embodiments, may include rules, logic, limits, and standard representations for the matchup data. The matchup data for the example above may include data or attributes to complete this sample challenge phrase: "First Competitor" will "score more points" than the "Second Competitor" during "the second period of play in each respective Competitors' first game of the tournament."

[0068] The picks engine 1340, according to particular embodiments, is configured to present options on a display and enable selections for users to pick. I n another aspect, the picks engine 340 may also include rules, logic, limits, and standard data representations for the selections made by users. For example, the picks engine 340 for a particular game may display options to users according to rules and related conditions (whether this user has selected a time period or not, for example), and may limit user selections (not allowing picks to be changed once submitted, for example). The picks engine 1340 includes the data representation and specific processes for each challenge, as defined by the matchup logic 1310.

[0069] The event data handler 1360, according to particular embodiments, is configured to manage incoming data from each of the external data services 1280. Each external data service 1280 may have its own arrangement of data, which is different from other external data services. The event data handler 1360 includes a specific set of semantics for mapping the incoming data from each of the external data services 1280 to corresponding data locations according to the matchup logic 1310. In this aspect, event data handler 1360 parses, sorts, names, maps, and otherwise coordinates the incoming matchup data that is processed according to the matchup logic 1310.

[0070] The event data handler 1360, for example, may include semantics for mapping the incoming data about parameters such as the "starting roster" for real-world events like sporting events or competitions. Because the two competitors in a direct challenge may be playing in different games, on different days, the event data handler 1360 may be configured to receive and analyze data such as the "starting roster" in order to facilitate the building of a direct challenge.

[0071] The event data handler 1360, for example, may include semantics for mapping the incoming data about parameters such as the "start time" for real- world events like sports games. Because the two competitors in a direct challenge may not be competing against one another in a real-world game, and because their respective games may take place at different times, the event data handler 1360 handles start times and other parameters in order to facilitate the accurate gathering - and scoring - of data about each respective competitor in a direct challenge.

[0072] The matchup data, according to particular embodiments, may have the following attributes for describing and processing a direct challenge. For example, each Challenge may have these attributes: Event Date, Status (pending, in progress, completed, processed), and Source (the data feed or content service used to build the challenge and, later, to score the challenge). Each Challenge may include a Question with these attributes: Title, Mapping Pattern (the rules for calculating the score, such as the performance parameter and the time period), Correct Answer (including a reference to the Competitor who wins the challenge), and Score (the score defined for winning the challenge).

[0073] The Mano e Mano challenge application, according to particular embodiments, may be configured to allow users to build direct challenges by selecting competitors from a list, a database, or an external source of content. Information about upcoming competitions and games may be obtained from a variety of external data sources 1280 and presented to users as options in a drop-down list or other user-friendly interface. The challenge application may use a manual data interface, to allow challenges to be built by users without reference to external data.

[0074] In another aspect, the challenge application may be configured to automatically select and create a number of direct challenges between and among various competitors, and to then suggest such challenges to users for use in a direct challenge to a fellow user.

[0075] In particular embodiments, each external data source may have its own corresponding external data reader, which in turn uses its own corresponding event data handler. In this aspect, the system may include multiple external data readers 1380, and the event data handler 1360 may include multiple data handlers that work together to collect and organize data.

[0076] A variation of the head-to-head or direct challenge is a side challenge. In a side challenge, at least one of the challenger (first user) and the recipient (second user) need not be scheduled to play each others' teams in a game or other fantasy matchup at the time the challenge is sent, accepted or when the activity that is the subject of the challenge will take place. For example, one or both of the challenger or recipient could be in different leagues, or in no league at all, at the time the challenge is sent. The challenger and recipient alternatively may be in the same league, but are not scheduled to play each other in the currently scheduled game or matchup. Thus, the challenge is a "side challenge" outside of the normal schedule of fantasy matchup games. The side challenges allow for two or more fantasy players to compete in a challenge outside of their league, tournament or fantasy game's normally scheduled competitions (which are sometimes referred to as "league schedule"). These competitions may be called Side challenges, Side Play Challenges, or similar, but are not limited to these titles or names.

[0077] The side challenge between the first user and the second user can relate to any field of endeavor, including sports, politics, entertainment, current event, etc. One example of a side play challenge might involve one individual's starting roster in fantasy football vs another individual's starting roster in fantasy football in a head to head side match up that is not part of a league's normal schedule of competitions or match ups for that particular time period. The side challenges can match up single players, multiple players, entire rosters, etc.

[0078] The two or more competing players need not be scheduled to play each other at any point of a season or duration of competition. The side challenge play is not tied to any existing schedules or match ups.

[0079] The first and second players need not be individuals. Either or both of the first and second players can be groups of two or more individuals. The fantasy game play system facilitates, tracks and reconciles (if a prize or wager of some sort is involved), the side challenges as discussed throughout this application. Also, the first user can challenge more than one second user, resulting in a challenge amongst three or more users.

[0080] The Side challenges may be set for different durations, such as one day, two days, one week, a full season, or less than a day (e.g. 5 minute challenges) as discussed throughout this application.

[0081] Users may each may play fantasy on a singular software platform, or they may utilize one or more different software platforms to facilitate their normal fantasy game play. However, one aspect of certain embodiments of the invention includes methods for obtaining user rosters for inclusion in a side challenge. The rosters for such users can be established by several means, including: manual input; screen capture and import; automated screen scrape (side challenge game engine provides a tool login, which goes into any platform and grabs existing lineups for import into side competition software); copy/paste, via API or by other means.

[0082] In the event that participants in side play challenges use rosters from different leagues or software platforms that have different roster and/or scoring configurations then the side challenge system provides for normalization of each by adjusting so that it is an equivalent scenario for the side play challenges, despite the differences in the platforms or leagues where the rosters/competitors originate.

[0083] In an example of side challenge game play, each user participating agrees to terms and conditions and validates they are eligible to play based on state and federal laws, if applicable. Then the first user challenges the second user (and any additional user) to side a play game.

[0084] Challenge parameters may be fixed in whole or part, or user configurable in whole or part. Configurable parameters of a side challenge can include one or more of the following: (a) Set Opponent(s) (e.g., another player from an individual fantasy league where there is no pre-scheduled competition with that user for the timeframe selected for the side play challenge); (b) Data Set (e.g., particular sport or financial market); (c) Type (e.g., head to head, or group competition); (d) Competitors included (e.g., full starting lineup in sports or single stock in financial market); (e) I n-Competition Changes (i.e., are player "swaps" allowed?) (e.g., use full roster of fantasy sports teams including "bench" players and allow participants of side play challenges to make in-game substitutions during the competition); (f) Scoring Method which determines winners (e.g., most points, greatest value, etc. at end of competition or during increments of competition); (g) Scoring System (e.g., exact points scored for real world outcomes such as fantasy sports scoring systems that may or may not include points per reception or certain values for yardage or touchdowns); (h) Duration (e.g., five minutes, one hour, one day, two games, one week, full sports season); (i) Challenge Currency (e.g., real money, virtual currency; bragging rights only); (j) Challenge Amount (e.g., $20, $100, 1000 points or units of virtual currency); (k) Private or Public Challenge (e.g., only show on individual users' ledgers of competition results or also show on league and global Leaderboards; (I) Confirm Challenge; (m) Send Challenge (e.g., through electronic communications such as an in-app notifications, via email, text message, or through social media such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.); and (n) whether users receiving challenges may accept or decline upon viewing (e.g., click accept or decline), or propose a modification (counter-offer).

[0085] Side Challenge outcomes include winners and losers, sometimes with only one winner or in cases of group challenges there may be a subset of individuals that win. [0086] The side challenge system will automatically reconcile the currency used for the challenge if tangible currency or virtual currency was part of the challenge (e.g., collect cash challenge fees from participants and pay winners, minus service costs). The wager function can be optional. The wager amount can also be set to zero dollars or other risk for a given challenge.

[0087] The side challenge system will log the outcomes of all challenges including each option choice of the above-noted options where applicable in a configurations settings database. The system can provide various player detail to the individuals competing in side challenges, including statistics, scoring summaries, trending charts or other similar data.

[0088] Scoring data can be provided in real-time or near real-time as a given challenge progresses to the respective challengers in a progress screen.

[0089] An optional draft may be performed as part of the side challenge play. If a user wishes to initiate or participate in a side challenge but does not already have a fantasy team, roster or competitors (such as athletes, stocks, entertainers, etc.) then that user can participate in a "draft" in order to create their roster.

[0090] In an example of a side challenge game play, the first user selects their fantasy performer and the challenge parameters and the second user. The challenge is then sent to the second user to designate their second fantasy performer and propose any modifications to the challenge parameters (e.g. duration, wager, etc.). Then the second user's challenge input is relayed to the first user to accept, decline or counter-offer. First user counter-offers can be relayed to the second user to accept or decline. Then the challenge proceeds.

[0091] The first user can also create a challenge and pick challenge parameters without selecting a second user or recipient for the challenge. Such non-targeted or open challenges once created are posted by her system to a "lobby" or "waiting room" where the open side challenge is listed along with other open side challenges for potential second users (or third users, etc.) to review and potentially select and accept. The acceptance can include selecting a second fantasy performer and proposing a counter-offer. The first user can be provided with a n option to withdraw the challenge invitation before the challenge is finalized or upon receiving the second user's input.

[0092] Referring to FIG. 55, a home screen for the fantasy challenge system is shown on a user screen (graphical user interface). This screen allows the user to create new challenges, including side challenges) by selecting the "new challenge" button along the bottom row of icons, among other functions. The icon in the lower left corner is labeled "lobby" which takes the user to the "lobby" screen of FIG. 56 when selected.

[0093] The lobby, as seen in FIG. 56, lists each open challenge as a row. Some of the parameters of each open invitation, including the fantasy performer(s), performance statistic, time frame for the challenge, challenge wager and time/date that the challenge was posted. The second user can select the "details" button to be taken to a subsequent screen, such as FIG. 57, where further details of the open side challenge can be provided. This subsequent screen allows the user to propose modifications to the challenge parameters, to research the first user (opponent) and interact with the second user's payment options. The second user can accept the open chal lenge as-is or propose a counter-offer (modified parameters) back to the first user. Once the challenge parameters are accepted by both the first and second users without further counters, then the challenge proceeds according to the accepted parameters.

[0094] Any of the users considering initiating a challenge or accepting a challenge can be provided with a link to their opponents challenge performance statistics so that the user can research a potential opponent for a challenge. The statistics can include the win/loss record of a user, including breakdowns by type of fantasy performer (football vs. stocks, vs. soccer, etc.). Wager histories can also be provided in the statistics. Other statistical filters for user performance can be provided without departing from the scope o the invention. The same or similar statistical reports can be provided for a user's own historical performances. The types and time frame of data available to a user about their own performances can be different than the data of that user available for review by other users.

[0095] The side challenge game play can be a product be delivered directly via software (or through a web browser) to the end users or to other fantasy providers as a service. Side play challenges may be monetized or provided as a free service. Monetizing can include subscriptions; transactional fees without cash payouts; contest entry fees with cash payouts; and free via sponsorship or advertising support.

H EAD-TO-H EAD CHALLENGE GAME PLAY

[0096] The following description and figures describe one example of the process of building a direct or head-to-head challenge. A direct challenge may be constructed in the following general format: "[First Competitor] will [outperform according to this performance parameter] the [Second Competitor] during [this event or time period]." I n the following example, a first user (the Kehoesabe team) sends a direct challenge to a second user (the Dragon Army team), asserting that a First Competitor (Knowshon Moreno) will achieve more total yards than a Second Competitor (Matt Forte), during an entire day, placing a non- currency wager in the amount of 500 fantasy dollars, and paying a fee of 99 cents to cover both players.

[0097] In an alternative embodiment, the first user may send a direct challenge to all his friends, to all users in a particular group or category, or to all users system-wide. I n this aspect, the direct challenge may be constructed and issued to a select group of users as an invitation to compete.

[0098] FIG. 3 illustrates a display 10 and includes a start button 20 (labeled Mano

Start) for initiating the process of building a direct challenge. Next, when the button 20 is selected, the challenge application, according to particular embodiments, may open a display showing a list of teams or opponents 30 (or other users in a group, league or contacts of the user), as shown in FIG. 4. In this example, each team represents a Fantasy Sports Team, which is a collection of players selected by a particular user. In this aspect, the list of teams 30, in effect, represents a list of users.

[0099] In this example, the first user is the user who owns the Kehoesabe team. The first user may select an opponent - here, he selects the Dragon Army team - after which, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application opens a display listing the attributes 40 of the challenge, as illustrated in FIG. 5. The attributes 40 include selectable icons for My Player 41 (or the First Competitor), Your Player 42 (the Second Competitor), Stat 43 (the performance parameter), Time Frame 44 (the time period), Fantasy Dollars 45 (an optional, non-currency wager on the outcome) or real world money wagers, Options 46 (for making payment to the provider of the direct challenge feature or other participating entity), and Send Challenge 47 (for sending the direct challenge once all the attributes have been selected).

[00100] As shown in FIG. 6, in response to selecting My Player 41, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application opens a display of competitors (on the first user's own team) who may be selected as the First Competitor for the direct challenge. In this example, the first user selects a player named Knowshon Moreno. The list of competitors may be limited to those already on that user's team, or the list may include a general pool of players, including all players. The user can also be provided with the ability to perform research on each member of the list of available players. An example of the research screen is shown in FIG. 46.

[00101] As shown in FIG. 7, in response to selecting Your Player 41, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application opens a display of competitors (on the opposing second user' s team) who may be selected as the Second Competitor for the direct challenge. In this example, the first user selects a player named Matt Forte.

[00102] As shown in FIG. 8, in response to selecting Stat 43, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application opens a display of statistics or other performance metrics that are available for this particular competition. In this example, the available metrics include Touchdowns, Receptions, and Yards. I n this example, the first user selects Yards. For a basketball competition, for example, the available metrics may include Rebounds, Free Throws, and Three-Point Goals.

[00103] As shown in FIG. 9, in response to selecting Time Frame 44, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application opens a display of time periods, durations, or other temporally limited parameters that are available for this particular competition. I n this example, the available time frames include Quarter, Half, Day, and Week. I n this example, the first user selects Day.

[00104] As shown in FIG. 10, in response to selecting Fantasy Dollars 45, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application opens a display of non-currency wager amounts. In this example, the available wagers include $100, $500, $1000, and $ I Own This All In. In this example, the first user selects $500.

[00105] As shown in FIG. 11 , in response to selecting Options 46, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application opens a display of payment options. In this example, the available payment options include $.59 per Player or $.99 Cover Both Players. In this example, the first user selects $.99 Cover Both Players.

[00106] As shown in FIG. 12, in response to selecting Send Challenge 47, according to particular embodiments, the challenge application displays a notice 50 confirming that the direct challenge has been sent to the second user (owner of the Dragon Army team). If no second user has been selected, the challenge may be published or displayed to a selected subset of users or to all users, as an invitation to compete.

[00107] FIG. 13 illustrates the presentation of a direct challenge to the second user, according to particular embodiments of the challenge application. As shown, the challenge application may display the two Competitors (along with related information), the challenge metric ("Total Yards"), the time period (date), and the fantasy wager. The display may also include a message about which user paid the fee.

[00108] As shown in FIG. 13, the challenge application, according to particular embodiments, includes a display of reply attributes 60 for use by the second user upon receiving the direct challenge. The reply attributes 60 includes selectable icons for Accept 61, Decline 62, and Counter 63. In response to selecting Accept 61, the challenge application sends a notice to the first user that the challenge has been accepted without changes. I n response to selecting Decline 62, the challenge application sends a notice to the first user that the challenge has been declined. In response to selecting Counter 63, the challenge application provides a series of displays to the second user, along with selectable icons for making changes to the attributes of the direct challenge. When completed, the challenge application provides the second user with a "Send Challenge" icon in order to send the amended challenge (the Counter) back to the first user for consideration.

[00109] FIG. 14 illustrates a list of challenges 70 on a display. In response to selecting the icon labeled Challenges 22, the challenge application displays a list of challenges 70 along with one or more filters or categories. I n this exam ple, the list 70 includes the name of the opposing user (the second user), the title of the challenge, the score, the date, the status (won or lost), and the wager amount if any. A Head to Head Record pop up can also be provided to the user as illustrated in FIG. 47, which shows relevant historical data from particular opponents. The user can also submit a whole lineup challenge as is illustrated in FIG. 48.

TWO-VERSUS-TWO DI RECT CHALLENGES AND MORE

[00110] The challenge application, according to particular embodiments, may be configured to allow users to build a two-versus-two challenge; that is, a contest between two first competitors and two second competitors. In this aspect, the First Competitor may be a group of two or more, and the Second Competitor may be a group of two or more, where both groups have the same number of participants. In this embodiment, each pair of opposing competitors may have its own performance parameter (rushing yards or total yards, for example), each pair may have its own wager and/or fees, and the time period may be long enough to include several real-world games. I n this aspect, the challenge application may be configured to facilitate the building of challenges with three or more competitors - or an entire team - on each opposing side.

SOCIAL REPORTING ENGIN E FOR CHALLENGES

[00111] In another aspect, the challenge system 1100, according to particular embodiments, is designed to facilitate the creation and play of a plurality of direct challenges and to actively collect user data across an entire superset of challenges between users using a module referred to as the Social Reporting Engine 1500, as shown in FIG. 2. The Social Reporting Engine 1500, according to particular embodiments, gathers user data - including user behavior during registration and use of the game system, during game play, during interactions, during social-media actions, and during challenges - across multiple games, over an extended period of time, resulting in the population and updating of potentially millions of user data profiles, which may be stored in a user database 1520.

[00112] User data includes initial profile data provided voluntarily by the user. The challenge system and/or game system provider may also gather user data by query or otherwise at any time. User data also includes game performance by specific game played; including, for example, whether the user makes accurate predictions in a particular sport, and whether the user consistently likes or prefers a certain product, service, or company. In a preferred embodiment, user data will be aggregated in order to derive business intelligence and other useful information in a manner that does not sell or disclose personally-identifiable information. The user data may be provided in an aggregated or anonymized format; however, such user data is valuable because the user data collected and stored by the game system of the present invention includes a variety of useful demographic information, combined with a history of user behavior within the game system and related activities, as described herein. This combination of demographic information and actual user behavior contributes to the value of the user data collected and stored by the game system. CROWD WISDOM FROM CHALLENGES

[00113] In another aspect, the social reporting engine 1500, according to particular embodiments, includes a crowd wisdom module for analyzing and ranking a number of head- to-head challenges, by subject, over a predetermined time period, in order to identify the crowd wisdom about a particular subject. In use, the module may identify a subset of challengers that are most often correct about a particular subject, and build a report about that subset for a customer.

[00114] In this aspect, the crowd wisdom module is tasked with exploring a particular subject (sports, movie awards, and the like), identifying the challengers that are most often correct about the subject, and analyzing those predictions over a period of time for consistency and accuracy. Because the challenge system 1100 includes a large number of players, participating in multiple head-to-head challenges, over an extended period of time, the challengers that are most often correct represent the crowd wisdom of all the players who use the challenge system. In the commercial context, the crowd wisdom has value because it represents actionable business intelligence that is useful in a variety of contexts.

CROWD GURU FOR CHALLENGES

[00115] In a related aspect, the social reporting engine 1500, according to particular embodiments, includes a crowd guru module for analyzing and ranking a number of head-to- head challenges, by user and by subject, over a predetermined time period, in order to identify an expert subset of users (i.e., the crowd gurus) who most often win challenges about a particular subject. I n use, the crowd guru module may identify the users who are most often winning challenges about a subject, and may report the identity or those gurus to a customer.

[00116] In this aspect, the crowd guru module finds those users who most often win challenges about a particular subject (sports, movie awards, and the like) and identifies each such user as a Crowd Guru. According to particular embodiments, each user's challenges are analyzed over time, by subject, to determine the user(s) who win challenges most often. Because the game system includes a large number of players, participating in multiple head- to-head challenges, over an extended period of time, the users who win challenges most often may be identified as Crowd Gurus about that particular subject. In the commercial context, the game challenges made by a Crowd Guru, or a subset of Crowd Gurus, has value because it represents actionable business intelligence that is useful in a variety of contexts. The crowd guru module will score users on the number of challenge wins, in specific verticals, and aggregate the challenges made by the top experts (the Crowd Guru performers who are members of a rolling list, based on most-recent results), analyze the data using the Social Reporting Engine 1500 and other tools, and use that data to generate Crowd Guru data for commercial sale, presented for example in the business intelligence reporting console, described herein.

[00117] The crowd guru module, according to particular embodiments, is configured to identify the best-performing users in each game category, by aggregating challenge scores and wins over time, by category or by other selected metric, and maintain a rolling subset of top performers. For example, the Top 5% Winners of Monday Night Football Challenges, the Top 10% Winners of Challenges During March Madness, and the like.

[00118] In this aspect, the challenge system 1100 and social reporting engine 1500 may be used to identify: (a) the Crowd Wisdom related to a particular topic, and/or (b) the Crowd Guru performers, based on their actual win/loss performance across a subset of head-to-head challenges about the topic. Unlike existing tools sometimes referred to as prediction engines, the crowd wisdom module and crowd guru module will be based on actual performance in head-to-head challenges.

IN-GAM E ROSTER MOVES

[00119] Currently available fantasy sports systems include a Team Roster (selected by the user during a formal draft process or other process used to establish or alter a user's roster, including trades, waivers and free agent pickups). Before an upcoming game or subset of games, the user selects from the Team Roster a set of players for an Active Roster before a deadline. The remaining, unselected players remain on the user's Bench Roster. During the upcoming subset of ga mes, the fantasy sports system may follow a nd eva luate the performa nce of the players on the Active Roster, during each live game in which each player participates, signing points related to player accomplishments.

[00120] ACTIVE RESERVES. The roster management systems and methods described herein include Active Reserves. According to particu lar embodiments, the Active Reserves list describes a list of players, selected from the user's Team Roster, who are availa ble for substitution during a live, real-world sporting event or game. [00121] In one embodiment, the Active Reserves may include a subset of one or more players selected by the user from the Bench Roster before the beginning of the subset of ga mes. Alternatively, the Active Reserves list may include all the players on the Bench Roster, requiring no advance selection by the user. Providing the Active Reserves list allows the user to behave more like the coach or manager would act during a real game.

[00122] In operation, the roster management system may include a n in-game substitution modu le that is configured to permit the user to replace an active player, multiple active players, a selected group of players, or a whole team, with a substitute player, players or team selected from the Active Reserves while a fantasy matchup is in progress.

[00123] Because the active players from the Active Roster may be participating in different live games at different times, the in- ga me substitution module may be configured to first identify and select a fantasy matchup that is currently in progress - in other words, a fantasy matchup in which one of the user's players on the Active Roster is currently playing in a live game. I n a fa ntasy league for the N FL, for example, the subset of ga mes may include football ga mes played during a particular weekend; between a Thursday a nd the following Monday night. The active players from the fantasy Active Roster may be participating in different footba ll games at different times during this period. The in-game su bstitution module may be configured to monitor and control the timing of substitutions to coincide with each active player's participation in a live game. I n various embodiments, the module may receive one or more active feeds of information, referred to herein as feed data 25 and described below.

[00124] A system architecture includes a Service Interface 400 that would allow fantasy league operators to easily integrate the roster ma nagement system (including in-game substitutions) into their existing fa ntasy sports applications, such as those provided by Yahoo!, CBS, ESPN, NFL, and others. The roster management system, using the Service Interface 400, may a lso be operated as part of a separate or stand-a lone fantasy sports system.

[00125] The Active Roster for making substitutions can be applied equally to non- sporting events, such as stocks, commodities, actors/awards, current events, politics, movies and other quantifiable types of performances by persons and things. [00126] The Active Roster function can allow for substitutions to occur at any time, rather than at established breaks, predefined breaks or other defined windows of time. The Active Roster function can also be applied to regular game play and to direct challenges in certain embodiments.

[00127] FIGS. 44 and 45 illustrate user interfaces for swapping players in a direct challenge game. FIG. 44 illustrates a user selecting a button to access their list of challenges. Then in the upper portion of FIG. 45, the user selects the "swap" button to swap their player participating in the challenge. A selection screen then appears to provide options for alternate players. The swap feature can be provided at no charge or at an additional cost as shown in FIG. 45. The user then confirms their selection. The system can provide a swap results message such as in the lower screen in FIG. 45. Swaps can be performed in regular league pay as well.

[00128] FIG. 15 is a screen shot of a graphica l user interface and display, on an interactive device, with which a user may receive information, identify and select players, and execute substitutions. The display 10 may include any of a variety of usefully information from various sources about one or more fantasy sports activities, such as a list of scores, a news feed a bout ga mes and players, and a plura lity of menus and su b-menus for accessing and executing various elements of the roster ma nagement system described herein.

[00129] FIG. 16 illustrates a menu of options including My Team 40. The display for My

Tea m 40, shown in FIG. 16, may include, for example, a list of the Active Roster selected by the user for an upcoming su bset of ga mes. As shown in this exa mple, the Active Roster may include Drew Brees as quarterback, McCoy and Charles as running backs, etc. The display in FIG. 17 may also include an Active Reserves icon 50 (illustrated using a star and the letters "AR" in this example). The icon 50, when selected, allows the user to access the Active Reserves feature as described herein.

[00130] The process of selecting players for an Active Reserves list, according to particu lar embodiments, may include a Step 100 of selecting the AR icon 50, by a finger touch or mouse click, for exa mple. FIG. 18 illustrates a smaller window 60 inviting the user to select and activate (Step 110) a single player or the entire Bench Roster and then confirm the selection (Step 115). FIGS. 19-20 20 illustrate the options presented in this embodiment. Note that the screens show a fee being assessed to perform the swa p. However, the a swa p fee is optiona l. Alternatively a user in a given league may receive a given num ber of free swaps before being assed a fee.

[00131] The substitution module, according to particu lar embodiments, is illustrated in the figures, beginning at FIG. 21. As shown, the display for My Tea m may include a button or icon that, when selected, a llows the user to access the in-game substitution feature of the system described herein. I n the example shown in FIG. 21, the button 70 is la beled "Edit Line Up" and it may be selected by using a finger touch, mouse click, or other pointing and selecting device.

[00132] As illustrated in FIG. 22, the next screen display on a n interactive device may include a display of Fa ntasy League Names 20 a nd/or a list of the Tea m Names 30 selected by individua l users. Selecting one of the League Na mes 20, according to particular embodiments, may cause the system to display the status of one or more active contests with others, including a list of the user's Active Roster, as shown in FIG. 23. As shown in the display, the League Na me is "I nterstate Footba ll League" and the contest is between the users ca lled "Kitchens Krue" a nd "Kehoesabe." I n this exa mple, the user ca lled Kehoesabe may be referred to as the primary user because his user has the authority to access and operate the interactive device illustrated in the figures. The primary user's team na me (Kehoesabe) is highlighted. The Active Roster or "Starters" for Kitchens Krue are listed in left column; the Active Roster for Kehoesa be are listed in the right column. According to particu lar embodiments, the players on the primary user's Active Roster who are currently participating in a live game may be highlighted. As shown in FIG. 21, the highlighted players include "D. Brees QB" and "J. Charles RB" in the right column. As shown, the display may include statistical or performance information about the players. Because the highlighted players are currently participating in a live game, the in-game substitution feature may be configured to allow the user to make a substitution; i.e., to replace a selected active player with a player selected from the Active Reserves.

[00133] Selecting one of the highlighted players in FIG. 23 (Step 210), according to particu lar embodiments, may cause the system to display a variety of information a bout the selected player (as shown in FIG. 24). The display may include general information, statistics, news, comments by others, information about a game in progress, and any of a variety of other types of information a bout the selected player. I n this exa mple, FIG. 24 displays information about Drew Brees.

[00134] The display, as shown in FIG. 25, may include a series of icons or buttons, including a swap icon 72 (illustrated using a circular symbol with arrowhead and the word "Swap" in this example). Clicking or otherwise selecting the swap icon 72 indicates that the primary user wishes to select this player for replacement in the live game.

[00135] As il lustrated in FIG. 26, the in-ga me su bstitution modu le may then displays a selection window 74 which, according to particu lar embodiments, includes a list of the players from the Active Reserves list who are both capable of and availa ble to replace the selected player. A capable su bstitute is one who plays the same position or role in the sport. For example, only a running back may be a capable substitute for replacing a running back. As shown in FIG. 26, the selected player to be replaced is Drew Brees (a quarterback), so the in-ga me substitution modu le is configured to display in the selection window 74 a list of quarterbacks who are availa ble on the user's Active Reserves list (here, quarterbacks Andrew Luck a nd Jay Cutler are availa ble). Player availa bility, according to particu lar embodiments, is determined according to a predetermined set of conditions, discussed in more detail below.

[00136] As shown in FIGS. 26 and 27, the user may select and activate one of the players (Step 230) and then confirm the selection (Step 235). I n this example, the primary user selects Jay Cutler. After the substitution is made, the system may then display the primary user's updated Active Roster or "Starters" as shown in FIG. 28 (where "J. Cutler QB" now appears in the right column). A similar exa mple illustrating the selection and replacement of a running back is illustrated in FIGS. 30 and 31.

[00137] Reporting is another aspect of the in-game su bstitution module, according to particu lar embodiments. As il lustrated in FIG. 29, the user may click on the score achieved by a substitute player (Step 300) - J. Cutler QB in this exa mple - in order to view a message window 76 displaying data about the substitution event. As shown, the message window 76 may include scores achieved or other data about the players involved in a su bstitution, along with a message about the consequences of the su bstitution (for example, whether the substitution was a good ca ll or not). The message window 76 may also include a variety of other information, including statistics, rea l points scored, fantasy points scored, time stamps related to the substitution, and other information. A similar exa mple illustrating the reporting of results for substitution of a running back is illustrated in FIG. 32.

[00138] AVAI LABILITY CON DITIONS. The roster ma nagement system, according to particu lar embodiments, determines whether certain players are available for in-ga me substitution according to a set of predetermined conditions.

[00139] Most sporting events progress according to a nu mber of time periods, with a possible period of overtime play. A su bstitution takes place when an active player is replaced by a substitute player, subject to a set of availa bility conditions.

[00140] The active player, to be eligible, must be (1) currently on the user's Active Roster, and (2) currently playing in a real-world game that has not yet entered the final period of play. I n other words, the active player must be currently 'playing' in a fantasy matchup (a ga me between two fantasy tea ms). In the example described a bove, quarterback Drew Brees was highlighted in the display 10 as an available active player because he was on the user's Active Roster and currently playing in a footba ll game that had not yet entered the fina l period.

[00141] The substitute player, to be eligible, i n ce rta i n e m bodi ments ca n be l i mited to those that (1) play the same position as the active player, (2) are placed on the Active Reserves list prior to the dead line, and (3) are currently playing in a rea l- world game that has not yet entered the final period of play or schedu led to play in a real-world ga me that has not yet started. I n the example described a bove, two quarterback - Andrew Luck and Jay Cutler - were displayed in the su bstitute player selection window 74 because each player (1) played quarterback, (2) was on the user's Active Reserves list, and (3) was either currently playing in a football game that had not yet entered the final period or was scheduled to play in a n upcoming football ga me that had not yet started. The pool of potential substitute players can be expanded to include available free agents as wel l.

[00142] The final-period condition may be imposed in order to comply with the limited substitution opportunities, as described in more detail below, which may require that substitutions take place only at the end of a play period. I n this aspect; if the active player is currently playing in a game that he already entered the final play period, then there would be no more su bstitution opportunities. [00143] The final period, as used herein, may be an extra play period following the regular or regulation play periods, such as overtime in football and other sports, extra innings in baseball, a penalty shootout in hockey, and a period of 'injury time' or 'stoppage time' in soccer. If a substitution is requested during the final period of regular play, then the system may be configured to allow the substitution to occur during the next opportunity; i.e., after the end of regular play and the beginning of overtime play. If a substitution is requested and there is no overtime, then the system may issue a credit to the user for that request.

[00144] DURATION. The Active Reserves list may be used during any of a variety of time periods. In a fantasy season, for example, the relevant time periods include: (a) the entire season, over a number of weeks, including a playoff period, (b) the entire set of regular games in a season, not including playoff games, (c) a subset of games within the season (for example, all the games played on one day, during one weekend, during a single week or group of weeks), and (d) a subset of time during a single game (one period; for example, a quarter in a football game, or a half-inning in baseball game). The roster management system may be configured to manage and coordinate the duration or time period during which the Active Reserves features is available to a user.

[00145] FEES is another aspect of the roster management system. For example, the

Active Reserves and in-game substitution feature may be provided by a particular league operator or other managers for no fee, for a single fee per time period, or some other usage- related fee. The league operator, for example, may charge a single fee, per time period (e.g., entire season, subset of games, single game, single period) for unlimited use of the Active Reserves and in-game substitution feature. The league operator, for example, may charge a first fee for a predetermined number of substitutions X and then charge a second fee for each subsequent substitution Y. The league operator may also elect to charge higher fees for elite players, or critical positions, for example. In this aspect, the roster management system as described herein may be configured to permit the league operator to establish any of a variety of fee systems for use of the features and functions described herein.

[00146] NUMBER OF ALLOWED SUBSTITUTION EVENTS is another aspect of the roster management system which may be configured and customized according to the league operator or other managers. For example, the system may be configured to allow an unlimited number of substitution events. For an Active Reserves list that includes 8 players, for exa mple, the user may execute up to 8 substitutions at each opportunity that is availa ble during a live ga me. When an Active Player is replaced, he becomes part of the Active Reserves and is thus availa ble for substitution at the next opportunity. Similarly, if an Active Reserves player is activated and then later benched, that player is again available for substitution at the next opportunity. I n this aspect, the selection of 8 players for the Active Reserves list creates a set of 8 substitution events, at each substitution opportunity, involving any Active Player and/or any Active Reserves player.

[00147] In a different exa mple, the roster management system may be configured to allow a limited number of su bstitution events. For an Active Reserves list that includes 8 players, for example, the user may be limited to a total of 8 substitution events during any single live game, and no more. The system may also limit the repeated use of players; for exa mple, if an Active Player is replaced, the system may place him on the Bench Roster instead of the Active Reserves list, thus making him not availa ble for substitution. Similarly, if an Active Reserves player is activated and then later replaced, that player is placed on the Bench Roster and is no longer available for substitution.

[00148] SUBSTITUTION OPPORTUN ITI ES. The nu mber of su bstitution opportunities may be limited to a predetermined list, according to particu lar embodiments of the roster management system. In other words, the roster management system may be configured to allow a substitution event to take place only during one or more predetermined times. For exa mple, the system may a llow substitution events to occur at the end of a period of play (except for the final period, of course, because the ga me has ended). The substitution opportunity time window would start at the end of a play period, and stop at the beginning of the next play period. The request to execute a substitution, as described below, may be made at any time, according to particu lar embodiments.

[00149] In N FL football, for exa mple, the system may be configured to allow substitution events to occur at the end of each quarter. The substitution opportunity time window would start at the end of a quarter, and stop at the beginning of the subsequent quarter.

[00150] The final period, as used herein, may be a n extra play period following the regular or regulation play periods, such as overtime in football and other sports. I n the case of overtime, the time window would start at the end of the fina l regular play period, and would end at the end of the overtime period vs. the beginning unless the user made another substitution. Substitutions last until the end of their games or until they are swapped out for another player.

[00151] I n an alternative embodiment, the roster management system may be configured to allow rea l-time substitution events - replacing a player in a live ga me during an active play; for exa mple, replacing the quarterback after the snap but before he throws a pass and/or replacing the wide receiver while the football is in the air.

[00152] This aspect is il l ustrated for bracket style play in the user interfaces depicted in FIG. 38. The left screen pertains to footba l l and the right screen pertains to NCAA basketba l l, however, the u nderlying concept is the sa me regard less of the su bject sport or event. The user selects the player to cha nge a nd is then presented with a swa p screen si mila r to that discussed with respect to FIG. 45. The user ma kes their a lternate pick a nd confirms the swa p. An extra fee may be assessed for making the swa p.

[00153] The system may alternatively be configured to allow only one substitution event - at or during the occurrence of one predetermined time or event during a game (at ha lftime, for example).

[00154] The system may a lso be configured to provide numerous substitution opportunities during a game; for exa mple, during a ny time-out, during any period when the official clock is stopped, after any change in possession, during any commercial break, or at any time period recognized by the roster ma nagement system as a finite or discrete time window. I n this aspect, the roster ma nagement system relies, to some extent, on the availability of incoming data feeds (from the rea l-world sporting events) and the level of detail contained in each such data feed. In another embodiment, the system may be configured to allow su bstitution events to take place between two discrete events in a game. In N FL football, for exa mple, the system may allow substitutions of defensive players to be made between the start of an offensive drive a nd the end of an offensive drive, and the like.

[00155] REQUESTS FOR SU BSTITUTION, according to particular embodiments, may be received and processed by the roster ma nagement system described herein of any time before a future substitution opportunity. I n other words, the roster management system may be configured so that a user may su bmit a request at any time, directing the system to execute a specific substitution at a future substitution opportunity - which might be the next available opportunity (the end of the next play period, for example), or at some future opportunity (e.g., during halftime, or at the end of the final period of regulation play (in which case, the request would only be executed if there is an overtime period)).

[00156] For example, during the first few minutes of play in an NFL game, a user may submit a request for the system to execute a quarterback substitution at the next available opportunity, which may be at the end of the first quarter. The current quarterback would complete the first quarter of play, and the system would execute the substitution so that the replacement quarterback starts play when the second quarter starts. In this aspect, the roster management system provides an active coaching experience for the user during all periods of play, and executes the substitution(s) only during the predetermined substitution opportunity times.

[00157] The time window for submitting a request for substitution would be limited by the roster management system if appropriately configured. For example, the system may be configured to require users to submit a request no later than one minute before the end of a play period. At this deadline, the system would stop receiving requests to make a substitution for the end of that period. 'Late' requests would be executed at a future opportunity; either at the next available opportunity or at a user- selected future opportunity.

[00158] NOTIFICATIONS. The roster management system may be configured to monitor real- world events and send notifications to users As illustrated in FIG. 33, the Service Interface 400 may include a notification engine 420 that is configured to access a user's roster data, to receive, parse, and otherwise process incoming real-world information from the feed data 25, and to prepare and send a variety of notifications to users containing information of interest. The notifications may include information about the players on the user's Active Roster, Bench Roster, or Active Reserves list, (or about another user's players), such as the player's performance or current statistics.

[00159] The notification engine 420 may also be configured to process data and generate notifications to a user reporting current information about a relevant player or game, and suggesting a substitution. In this aspect, such notifications might act as a proactive suggestion, prepared by the roster management system, that would be intended to prompt a user to consider making a player substitution. The notification engine 420 may be configured to create such a notification based on any of a variety of rea l-world events including, for exa mple, player injuries (user's players and opponent's players), ga me scores, player performa nce trends, weather, player penalties, players benched or ejected, player status (such as elapsed playing time, pitch count, shots taken, and the like.)

[00160] Using an N FL footba ll game as an exa mple, coaching decisions typica lly cha nge if a nd when one team achieves a large point lead over the other team. The trailing tea m usually passes the ball more often, and rushes less often, creating a scenario in which passing receivers have more opportunities to score fa ntasy points, and in which running backs have fewer opportunities to score fantasy points. I n this scenario, a fantasy user (like the trailing tea m's coach) may elect to make a substitution a nd, for exa mple, make his strongest passing receiver an active player.

[00161] Large point differentials may also cause the coach of the leading team to bench one or more starting players. While benched, those players cannot score fantasy points, so the user may wish to make a substitution from his Active Reserves, to make sure that his fa ntasy tea m has the ability to score points.

[00162] Player injuries also affect coaching decisions, sometimes dra matically. While a player is injured, that player ca nnot score fantasy points, so the user may wish to make a substitution. Also, a player injury may generate a notification regarding opposing players. For exa mple, if a key defensive player with primary responsibility for preventing wide receivers from catching passes is injured, then a less-talented defensive player will most likely play instead. This cha nge might affect a fantasy user's decision to make a substitution of one or more wide receivers, who are now possibly more able to score points during the remainder of the ga me. I n this aspect, receiving a notification about a single player or event can affect not only the user's decisions about that player, but also decisions about opposing players.

[00163] The notification engine 420 may also be configured to create a notification based on any of a variety of fa ntasy-related events, including but not limited to situations where a fantasy user may have a particu lar opportunity to score additional points. Suppose, for exa mple, in a fantasy matchup, a fa ntasy user's opponent has played a ll his players and his ga mes for the week are completed. The fantasy user may have one or more players who have not yet played. The notification engine 420 may calcu late the points needed to win and send a notification to the fa ntasy user like this: "SanderZon's team has scored 136 points and his games are completed for the week. To win your matchup with SanderZon, you need at least 34 points from your remaining players, A and B (or from their replacements, if you make substitutions)." I n this aspect, the system provides notifications so that participating fantasy users have the opportunity to make active coaching decisions, including substitutions, in conju nction with one or more real-world events, in order to improve their cha nces of winning a fa ntasy matchup.

[00164] Any of a variety of potentia l scenarios may develop in a rea l game that would prompt the notification engine 420 to generate and send a notification to select users. According to particu lar embodiments, the notification engine 420 may be configured to generate a notification in response to any event that would typica lly have an impact on the decisions made by a n active coach in a rea l-world game, or in a fa ntasy matchu p. I n this aspect, the system provides notifications so that participating fantasy users have the opportunity to make active coaching decisions, including su bstitutions, in response to rea l- world events taking place during active games.

[00165] SCORING. The roster ma nagement system may be configured to monitor and record the fa ntasy points scored by a ll the various players who are participating in a fantasy matchup. As illustrated in FIG. 33, the Service Interface 400 may include a fa ntasy score ha nd ler 440 that is configured to perform the scoring fu nction according to a set of rules.

[00166] In the context of substitutions, in general, the active player would earn fantasy points for his performa nce during a ny period before a substitution is executed. The substitute player would then earn points based on his performa nce for the remaining play periods (or until the player is replaced by another substitution). For games occurring at different times, however, the fantasy score handler 440 may be configured to adjust the scoring according to a variety of factors, including the precise time when certain events occur.

[00167] The feature of a llowing in-ga me substitutions in fa ntasy matchups - when the players are typica lly not playing at the sa me time, or in the sa me rea l-world game - creates a nu mber of data processing challenges including player availa bility conditions (described above, including whether the real game has entered the final play period), substitution opportunities a nd time windows (between play periods, for example, as described above), and the scoring of fantasy points. [00168] According to the timing requirements element of the availa bility conditions, described above, a n active player is typically only eligible when currently playing in a rea l- world ga me that has not yet entered the fina l play period. However, the player doesn't have to be currently playing to be substituted. The system can accommodate freeze, neutral and crossover swaps - whether games are at the same time, one before the other, or vice- versa. And if at same time the game clock doesn't matter - the system makes the swaps at the end of periods/quarters. The main general rule is that a user cannot swap back in time with regard to quarters/periods, only for future ones - i.e. the user can only substitute players that have not yet started the period(s) that the user wants to substitute them in for.

[00169] A substitute player is only eligible when either (a) currently playing in a real- world game that has not yet entered the final play period or (b) schedu led to play in a real- world ga me that has not yet started. This set of conditions creates three possible scenarios.

[00170] The first scenario occurs when the substitute player is scheduled to play in a real-world game, ca lled Ga me Two, that has not yet started. The user issues a request to substitute an active player in Game One. The fantasy score ha ndler 440 records the request time, both in rea l universal time and relative to the Game One Clock. For exa mple, a request is made when 2 minutes, 30 seconds has elapsed on the clock during period 2 in Ga me One. The Game One Clock in this example may be recorded as 2:02:30 (Period 2 :02 minutes :30 seconds).

[00171] I n a roster management system that executes substitutions only at the end of a period, the substitution of the active player wou ld not take effect until the start of period 3 in Game One. The active player would continue scoring fantasy points until the end of period 2. For Game Two (which has not yet started), for scoring purposes, as controlled by the fantasy score handler 440, the substitute player would not 'start' playing and scoring fa ntasy points until the first new play of period 3 in Game Two.

[00172] I n a roster management system that executes substitutions upon request, the substitution of the active player would take effect 'immediately' with the start of the next new play after the Ga me One Clock passes 2:02:30. For scoring purposes, as controlled by the fantasy score handler 440, the substitute player would not 'start' playing until the first new play after the Game Two Clock passes 2:02:30. In this aspect, the substitutions are time- coordinated according to the respective ga me clocks, even though Ga me Two has not yet started in real time when the substitute is requested and executed.

[00173] The second scenario occurs when the substitute player is currently playing in Game Two, (a) Game Two has not yet entered its final play period, and (b) Ga me Two started later than Ga me One a nd/or less time has elapsed on the Game Two Clock than the Game One Clock. The user issues a request to substitute an active player in Ga me One. The fa ntasy score handler 440 records the request time, both in real universa l time and relative to the Game One Clock, which may be recorded as 2:02:30 (Period 2 : 02 minutes : 30 seconds). I n this scenario, the same scoring rules would apply as those in the first scenario.

[00174] I n a roster management system that executes substitutions only at the end of a period, the substitution of the active player wou ld not take effect until the start of period 3 in Game One. The active player would continue scoring fantasy points until the end of period 2. For Ga meTwo (which started later and is still u nderway), for scoring purposes, as controlled by the fantasy score handler 440, the substitute player would not 'start' playing and scoring fantasy points until the first new play of period 3 in Ga me Two. I n a roster ma nagement system that executes substitutions upon request, the substitution of the active player would take effect 'immediately' with the start of the next new play after the Ga me One Clock passes 2:02:30. For scoring purposes, as controlled by the fantasy score ha ndler 440, the substitute player would not 'start' playing until the first new play after the Game Two Clock passes 2:02:30. In this aspect, the substitutions are time-coordinated according to the respective ga me clocks, even though Game Two has not yet started in rea l time when the substitute is requested and executed.

[00175] The third scenario occurs when the su bstitute player is currently playing in Game Two, (a) Game Two has not yet entered its final play period, and (b) Ga me Two started earlier than Ga me One and/or more time has elapsed on the Game Two Clock than the Ga me One Clock. I n other words, Game Two started first and/or is further along and will presumably end sooner. In general, the fantasy score ha ndler 440 may be configured to prevent a user from 'going back in time' and capturing points from the past performa nce of a substitute player.

[00176] The user issues a request to substitute an active player in Game One, at 2:02:30 according to the Game One Clock. Suppose, for exa mple, that the substitution is executed when 4 minutes, 50 seconds has elapsed on the clock during period 3 in Game Two. The Ga me Two Clock may be recorded as 3:04:50 (Period 3 : 04 minutes : 50 seconds).

[00177] I n a roster management system that executes substitutions only at the end of a period, the substitution of the active player wou ld not take effect until the start of period 4 in Game One. The active player would continue scoring fantasy points until the end of period 3. For GameTwo (which is in the midd le of period 3), for scoring purposes, as controlled by the fantasy score handler 440, the substitute player would not 'start' playing and scoring fantasy points until the first new play of period 4 in Ga me Two.

[00178] In a roster ma nagement system that executes substitutions upon request, the substitution of the active player would not take effect immediately. The active player would continue scoring fantasy points until the end of any active play occu rring when the Game One Clock reaches 3:04:50. The substitute player would not 'start' playing u ntil the first new play after the Game Two Clock passes 3:04:50. In this aspect, the substitutions are time- coordinated according to the respective game clocks.

[00179] REPORTI NG is another aspect of the roster ma nagement system, as described herein. The Service I nterface 400 may include a reporting engine 450 that includes a flexible and user-friend reporting interface. The reporting engine 450 may be configured to display a report to the user when a substitution is a success (results in more points or another favorable outcome) and/or when a substitution is a failure. The reporting engine 450 may monitor and report the resu lts of a single su bstitution event or, alternatively, a set of substitution events that occur during a certain time period (the entire season, subset of season, one ga me, one day, one week or weekend, a particu lar su bset of a game, etc., as described above). Comparisons with other users may be monitored and reported showing the results of the user's su bstitutions relative to those made by others during the sa me period (sa me game, same period, etc.).

[00180] Additionally, the reporting engine 450 may be configured to monitor and report the results of one or more substitution events made by a user relative to a certain person or subset, including for exa mple, a report of the user's su bstitutions: (a) relative to a particular opposing user's substitutions, including optiona lly the net effect of his substitutions, (b) relative to a subset of the opposing users in a selected group or league, (c) relative to the substitutions of every user in a league as a group, and/or (d) relative to a subset of other users who meet a particular set of criteria, such as geographic location, school or workplace affiliation, team or fan group affiliation, users with the sa me player on their Active Reserves list, users who used the sa me player for a substitution during a particu lar time window, or any other set of criteria.

[00181] The reporting engine 450 may further be configured to maintain a record of past reports in a log or data store, such as the database 500. I n this aspect, the roster management system may provide an historical record of a number of su bstitution events made by a user. The system may further include an analysis of the user's substitutions over time, in relation to other users, or relative to some other time period or metric. The system may provide a virtual 'coaching history' to the user, for example, showing the nu mber of substitutions made during a certain week or during a n entire season, displaying the percentage and number of substitutions that resulted in improved fa ntasy score, thereby providing an indication of the user's skill. The system may a lso include a comparison of the user's actual su bstitutions versus a set of other available substitutions that could have been requested, along with a n indication of which substitution would have produced more fa ntasy points.

[00182] DEVELOPM ENT PLAYER SEAT. Rookies represent one of the biggest risks in fantasy sports. Many rookies either do not play well or spend much of their first season on the bench, earning little or no fantasy points and taking up a seat on the roster. For the next season, the user must decide whether to select the rookie again in the draft, or instead select a different player.

[00183] Currently availa ble fantasy sports systems require users to treat rookies just like any other player. Many users, however, strongly desire a fa ntasy system that handles rookies in a different and more rea listic way.

[00184] Keeper-style fantasy sports leagues a llow users to keep one or more players on their fa ntasy tea m from one season to the next. League rules determine the number of players who can be kept, as well as the cost or pena lty to the user for making the election to keep a player on the tea m. For example, the ru les may a llow players to keep up to six (6) players for the next season.

[00185] In another aspect, the roster ma nagement system may include a designated seat on the Bench Roster for one Development Player. The Development Player seat may be particularly well-suited for a rookie player, in a keeper-style league, according to particular embodiments. In operation, the user would select a rookie in the draft and assign the rookie to the Development Player on the Bench Roster, where the rookie must remain for the entire first season. At the end of the first season, in a keeper-style league, the user would have the option to 'keep' the rookie and move the rookie to the Active Roster for the rookie's second season.

[00186] In one embodiment, the roster management system would provide the user with an option to use one (1) additional keeper slot in order to capture the Development Player (rookie) for his second season. For example, in a league where the rules allow users to keep up to six (6) players for the next season, the rules would allow the user to also keep the Development Player (the rookie) as a seventh keeper for the next season. In this aspect, the user accepts the rule that the Development Player remains on the Bench Roster during the entire first season, in exchange for the option to use the Development Player as One additional keep' at the end of the season.

SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE

[00187] Referring now to FIG. 33, the Service Interface 400 may be an API which, in general, specifies and controls the operation between and among various software components. In addition to accessing databases and computer hardware, an API can be used to control how the overall system executes routines, builds and accesses data structures, performs services, and makes "API calls" to other elements (for example, to provide data or seek data).

[00188] The Service Interface (API) 400, as shown, may include a variety of components connected to a database 500 and feed data 25. The database 500 may include a single database, a set of lookup tables, a set of relational databases, or any other structure for storing and accessing information. The feed data 25 may include a number of incoming data feeds containing a variety of information about all aspects of a sport. For example, the feed data 25 may include a list of the games currently in progress, a list of the players who are actively participating in each game, player status (active, benched, injured, removed, ejected, etc.), game scores, team field position, player injury reports, weather, penalties, along with any of a variety of statistics and performance information. [00189] The Service I nterface (API) 400 may be part of one or more central Server machines, which interact with remote Client devices, such as desktop computers, laptops, tablets, and ha ndheld devices.

[00190] The roster manager 410 may be configured to process roster data and to receive a nd ha nd le requests from users (Clients). The roster manager 410 may access other components, including for exa mple the feed stats data hand ler 470, in order to access and evaluate rea l-time statistics. The roster ma nager 410 may be configured to process requests for substitution (described below) and execute player substitutions according to the rules a nd conditions imposed by particular embodiments of the roster management system.

[00191] The notification engine 420 may be configured to analyze team roster data and real-world events from the feed data 25 and, based on that analysis, configure and send one or more notifications to users. The notifications may include information about that user's team members, such as a player's performa nce or current statistics. Also, as described below in greater detail, the notifications may include one or more prompts to a user, reporting current information about a releva nt player or game and suggesting a su bstitution.

[00192] The user ma nager 430 may be configured to set and maintain the API settings so that each fantasy sports provide can manage its own set of rules.

The fa ntasy score handler 440 may be configured to perform the scoring function, based on data received about each athlete's plays a nd performa nce and, optiona lly, to award fantasy points.

[00193] The reporting engine 450 provides a flexible reporting interface for users to view how their coaching decisions (i.e., player su bstitutions) affected the outcome of their fantasy matchups. The reporting interface may allow the user to filter the views by type of substitution, by position, by time period, relative to certain opponents, etc.

[00194] The roster data handler 460 may be configured to house the logic for particular elements of the roster management system, including the storing of roster data and substitution processes on the database 500.

[00195] The feed stats data hand ler 470 may be integrated with one or more incoming sports feed services which are part of the feed data 25. The ha nd ler 470 may retrieve and parse particular statistics from the feed data 25, store the relevant data in the database 500. The handler 470 may also be configured to ma nage the relatively high frequency a nd nu mber of data requests, as well as to maintain an accurate historical log of events that take place using the roster management system.

[00196] HEAD-TO-H EAD CHALLENGES SYSTEM ARCH ITECTURE. Referring to FIGS. 34-37 system architecture relating to direct challenges or "Mano e Mano" will be discussed. FIG. 34 depicts a service interface 600 and various related elements of the direct challenge application, according to various embodiments.

[00197] The direct challenge application may be in communication with an incoming data feed from external sources 602, such as one or more sports information feeds. For each data source (internal or external) there may be an Event Data Handler 604 that is configured to manage the data source, the competitors, the matchups created by users, the real-world event times and outcomes, and the quantitative statistics and performance of competitors.

[00198] The Service Interface 600 is interacted with by the user through a variety of User I nterfaces 606, including Mobile Apps (e.g. on smartphones and tablet computers), Web Apps, Smart TV Apps and on gaming consoles. Computer kiosks can also be provided that are networked with the Service Interface to allow users to interact with the gaming system.

[00199] Referring to FIG. 35, the direct challenge system can utilize one or more external data readers 608, such as sports feeds A, B, etc., and content APIs to gather challenge data available from external data services like sport feeds and other content providers. Data for challenges can also be fed into a statistics database manually.

[00200] Referring to FIG. 36, data inbound to the challenge system from the external data readers 608 may have specific formatting of the data such as event date, competitors, quantitative stats, etc. needed by the challenge system. An event data handler 610 translator can be provided to transform the data from such external sources into a common matchup data 612 format to be used by the challenge system. This can be accomplished, for example, through the use of XML data forms.

[00201] For each data source there is an event data handler that manages data sources and creates a series of possible and actual matchups, combining competitors, event times and quantitative statistics. Matchups can be automatically created by the challenge system based on system business logic and suggest such matchups to users. [00202] Referring to FIG. 37, the challenge application may be configured to proceed from a starting point 620 in which User A selects a competitor (manually, or using a picking engine, for example) and selects one of the competitor's rivals, thereby identifying a matchup. The challenge application may further be configured to allow User A to select the parameters necessary to create a challenge 622; for example, "[Competitor] will [outperform] [Competitor's Rival] in [this field of endeavor] during [this event or time period]." Once the challenge is created, User A may use the challenge application to select a fellow user, User B, and then issue the challenge to User B.

[00203] User B may accept or reject the challenge 624. If the challenge is accepted, them the challenge is officially created 626. The challenge application is configured to monitor the performance of the competitor and rival, identify the winner of the matchup 628, process the challenge 630, and post scores to a leader board 632. The system can also perform recording, collection and reconciliation of real money wagers if real money wagers were involved in the chal lenge.

[00204] In another aspect, the challenge application may be configured to automatically select and create a number of matchups between and among various competitors, and to then suggest such matchups to users for use in a challenge.

[00205] Referring now to FIGS. 49-54, an example of a bet not buy direct challenge will be discussed with reference to an example graphical user interface.

[00206] Once the user launches the bet not buy application on their computing device they may be presented with a screen as shown in FIG. 49. This screen allows the user to designate the time duration of the challenge 700. As shown in FIG. 50, after selecting the time duration, the user is provided with options to select the subject matter of the challenge 702, such as stocks, commodities, etc.

[00207] Then, as shown in FIG. 51, the user can select the type of wager 704. Here, the illustrated wager type can be whether a specific stock will go up or down, or whether a selected stock will perform better or worse than another specific stock (mano e mano). Next, in FIG. 52, the user selects their specific "player" 706, which here is the specific stock that is the subject of the up-down challenge.

[00208] FIG. 53 allows the user to designate if the predicted performance of the specific stock by the end of the time period is to be either up or down 708 from the price of the selected stock identified in the header of the sub-window. The user further can select the amount of the wager that the user wishes to make 710. The user then selects the button "place bet" to confirm their wager and initiate the challenge 712.

[00209] FIG. 54 is a ledger screen listing the particular user's history of bet not buy challenges, including the scored outcome and wager amount of each. The currently pending challenge 714 is highlighted while past challenges 716 are not, so that the user can quickly differentiate between the current and past challenges. The user's award "player points" 718 are also indicated on the summary screen.

[00210] The left arrow in the header of each screen takes the user to the previous page. The home button will return the user to the home screen.

[00211] A mano e mano or head-to-head matchup (including side matchups) can also be the subject of a bet not buy challenge. Matchups can be created between athletes, politicians, actors, musicians, etc. - measuring stats and values, not dependent upon whether they actually compete directly with each other. As discussed above, users send head to head challenges to opponents (or the house), such as X will outperform Y in the area of Z (during this timeframe, or in this event). For example, who will have more rushing yards today, Sunday ?, Barry Sanders or Marcus Allen? I n another example, will Barry Sanders gain more or fewer rushing yards than Marcus Allen in this weekend's slate of pro football games. This same approach can be applied to many different types of subject matters as discussed throughout this specification.

[00212] Although severa l embodiments have been described herein, those of ordinary skill in art, with the benefit of the teachings of this disclosure, will u nderstand and comprehend many other embodiments and modifications for this technology. The invention therefore is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed or discussed herein, and that may other embodiments and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims or inventive concepts. Moreover, although specific terms are occasionally used herein, as well as in the claims or concepts that follow, such terms are used in a generic and descriptive sense only, and shou ld not be construed as limiting the described invention or the claims or concepts that follow.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1. A side challenge method between a first user and a second user in a fantasy gaming system wherein the first user is not currently playing in a matchup against the second user in a fantasy league, the method comprising:

receiving input by the first user via a first graphical user interface regarding the

second user that is a target of the challenge;

receiving input by the first user via the first graphical user interface of a plurality of challenge parameters, including:

a first fantasy performer;

a challenge performance parameter;

a challenge time period; and

a challenge wager;

presenting the challenge parameters to the second user on a second graphical user interface;

receiving input by the second user via the second user interface of a second fantasy performer;

receiving an input from the second user via the second graphical user interface, including:

whether the challenge is accepted or countered; a nd

a second fantasy performer;

scoring a result of the challenge based upon the plurality of performance parameters in the challenge time period and the input from the second user; and reporting the scored result to both of the first and second users.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first fantasy performer and the second fantasy performer are each a group of persons.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing in a database the challenge and the scored result of the side challenge;

determining a leaderboard of side challenge performances based upon the scored results of a plurality of side challenges; and

displaying the leaderboard one both of the first and second graphical user interfaces.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting to the first user a monetary charge for presenting the challenge to the opposing second user.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising presenting the first user with an option to pay the monetary charge on behalf of both the first user a nd the second user.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an input from at least one of the first and second users that a swap of a respective first or second fantasy performers is desired;

updating the respective first or second fantasy performers that is the subject of the side challenge; and

scoring the side challenge based upon the updated respective first or second

fantasy performers.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second fantasy performers comprises at least one of a team, an individual competitor, a group; a company; a financial instrument; an inanimate object and an animal.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising the second user forming a roster of players belonging to the second user prior to the selection of the second fantasy player.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the second user creating a user profile in the fantasy gaming system prior to the selection of the second fantasy player.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising the second user creating a user profile in the fantasy gaming system prior to the selection of the second fantasy player.

11. A side challenge method between a first user and a second user in a fantasy gaming system wherein the first user is not currently playing in a matchup against the second user in a fantasy league, the method comprising:

receiving input by the first user via the first graphical user interface of a plurality of challenge parameters for a side challenge, including:

a first fantasy performer;

a challenge performance parameter;

a challenge time period; and

a challenge wager;

posting the side challenge as an entry in a list of open challenges to a lobby screen of a second graphical user interface;

receiving input by the second user via the second user interface to view the plurality of challenge parameters of the side challenge;

whether the challenge is accepted or countered; a nd

a second fantasy performer;

scoring a result of the side challenge based upon the plurality of performance

parameters in the challenge time period and the input from the second user; and

reporting the scored result to both of the first and second users.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first fantasy performer is an individual.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the first fantasy performer is a group of individuals.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the first fantasy performer is a stock.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

crediting to an account belonging to the second user at least a majority of the

side challenge wager when the second user prevails in the side challenge; and crediting to an account belonging to the first user at least a majority of the side challenge wager when the second user prevails in the side challenge.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising the second user creating a user profile in the fantasy gaming system prior to the first user selecting the second user that is a target of the challenge.

17. A computer program product configured to conduct fantasy gaming side challenges between a first user that is not currently playing in a league game against the second, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program code embodied therewith, the program code comprising computer readable program code configured to:

receive from the first user an identity of a second user that is a target of a side

challenge via the first graphical user interface;

receive from the first user an identity of a first fantasy performer via a first graphical user interface;

receive from the first user a performance goal for the first fantasy performer via the first graphical user interface;

receive from the first user a challenge time period via the first graphical user

interface; and

receive from the first user a challenge wager via the first graphical user

interface;

present to the second user via a second graphical user interface the identity of the first fantasy performer, the performance goal, challenge time period and the challenge wager;

receive an input from the second user via the second graphical user interface

indicating whether the challenge was accepted by the second user;

present to the first user via the first graphical user interface the input from the

second user indicating whether or not the second user accepted the challenge; score a result of the side challenge; and

report the scored result to both of the first and second users.

18. The computer program product of claim, 17, wherein the program code comprising computer readable program code is further configured to receive an input from the second user via the second graphical user interface of a second fantasy performer.

19. The computer program product of claim, 19, wherein the first graphical user interface is a web browser displayed on a screen of an internet-connected computer.

20. The computer program product of claim, 19, wherein the first graphical user interface is a touch-responsive screen of a smartphone or a tablet computer.