Inventors list

Assignees list

Classification tree browser

Top 100 Inventors

Top 100 Assignees


James M. Alkove, Bellevue US

James M. Alkove, Bellevue, WA US

Patent application numberDescriptionPublished
20090088233DYNAMIC PROBLEM SOLVING FOR GAMES - The claimed subject matter provides a system and/or a method that facilitates enhancing a game, game play or playability of a game. An experience component can collect a portion of data related to a game in which the portion of data indicates at least one of a tip or a tactic for the game. A game component can dynamically incorporate the portion of data into the game during game play to enhance playability of such game for a user with assistance provided by at least one of the tip or the tactic.04-02-2009
20090132326INTEGRATING ADS WITH MEDIA - The claimed subject matter relates to an architecture that can utilize special metadata to facilitate an improved advertising model in connection with media content delivery. The architecture can monitor a media player device and can launch a metadata interface on the media player device upon detection that a pause feature has been activated. Accordingly, while the media player device is paused (and therefore not presenting the media in a normal fashion), a user can interact with the metadata interface. The metadata interface can provide, e.g., advertisements or additional information related to elements or objects that exist in the media. In addition, the metadata interface can launch suitable applications in accordance with the special metadata. Additionally, the architecture can embed metadata in the media, which can be done in accordance with an advertiser bidding model.05-21-2009
20090157552DIGITAL CONTENT PACKAGING, LICENSING AND CONSUMPTION - A DRM technique involves packaging an advertisement using a data structure that encapsulates a number of advertising segments along with signed information, such as a table of hashes, associated with some of the advertising segments. In one scenario, the data structure and the signed information are separately protected using public key and/or digital signature cryptographic schemes. The advertisement is delivered to a user of a consumer electronic device (CED) separately from delivery of a digital license, which governs user consumption of the advertisement. The digital license includes keys used in connection with the cryptographic scheme, and references a condition to be satisfied with respect to consumption of the advertisement. As advertising segments are verified and consumed by the user/CED, information is recorded and used to determine whether the license condition was satisfied. Satisfaction of the license condition may result in access to program content or additional licenses.06-18-2009
20090164394AUTOMATED CREATIVE ASSISTANCE - The claimed subject matter provides a system and/or a method that facilitates generating a suggestion for a creative work. An interface component can receive a portion of a creative work. A muse component can evaluate the portion of the creative work utilizing a machine learning technique, wherein the muse component can identify a portion of suggested content based upon the evaluation. A palette can be populated with the portion of suggested content, wherein the portion of suggested content is a subset of content that is available for incorporation into the creative work.06-25-2009
20090167787AUGMENTED REALITY AND FILTERING - A system (and corresponding method) that can enhance a user experience by augmenting real-world experiences with virtual world data to is provided. The augmented reality system discloses various techniques to personalize real-world experiences by overlaying or interspersing virtual capabilities (and data) with real world situations. The innovation can also filter, rank, modify or ignore virtual-world information based upon a particular real-world class, user identity or context.07-02-2009
20090171762Advertising in an Entertainment Access Service - This document describes tools capable of managing advertising in the field of digital entertainment content. The tools may enable advertisers to know which advertisements are more effective or are more likely to be effective with all users, users having similar demographic profiles, or a particular user. The tools may do so by building and maintaining profiles for users. These profiles may include many users' interactions with various advertisements, demographic information for the users usable to compare users, explicitly selected preferences of users, users' implicit preferences based on what entertainment content they watch, and other information.07-02-2009
20090182662Federated Entertainment Access Service - This document describes tools capable of managing digital content from multiple content providers based on a user's identity. By so doing, the tools may free people from the limitations of their storage media and devices. The tools may perform these and other actions through an indirect relationship with users, such as when third-party content providers use the tools but provide their own direct interface with users.07-16-2009
20090307759Temporary Domain Membership for Content Sharing - In accordance with one or more aspects, a first device receives a digital certificate of a second device. The first device generates a digitally signed temporary domain join request and sends the request to a domain controller. The domain controller generates, for the first device, a temporary domain certificate allowing the first device to temporarily consume content bound to the domain. The temporary domain certificate is sent to the first device, allowing the first device to temporarily consume content bound to the domain.12-10-2009
20090327450USER STATUS REPORTS PROVIDED BY AN ENTERTAINMENT ACCESS SYSTEM - An entertainment access system is provided that enables a user to request and receive status reports that present current information concerning a wide variety of items pertaining to the user's devices, entertainment content and usage rights in a standard, predictable and consistent manner that enhances rather than hinders the user experience. In some illustrative examples, the user can request the status report from one of his devices that is registered with the entertainment access system. The entertainment access system responds by collecting and formatting the status information so that is can be conveniently displayed or otherwise rendered on the registered device. For instance, if the request is received from a cell phone device, which generally has a relatively small screen, the information may be presented in a relatively abbreviated format. On the other hand, if the request is received from the user's personal computer, the information may be presented by the entertainment access system to the personal computer in a more detailed or entirely different format than when the information is to be presented to a cell phone device.12-31-2009
20090328123CERTIFICATION PROGRAM FOR DEVICES OPERATING WITH AN ENTERTAINMENT ACCESS SYSTEM - In order to ensure that an entertainment access system is enabled to unify and simplify a user's enjoyment of content by managing the user's devices, entertainment content and usage rights, it is important to ensure the user devices, and the services they offer, function in accordance with well-established specifications and standards. Importantly, these specifications need to be the same from one device manufacturer to another. This is needed to ensure that the entertainment access system will be able to provide a consistent, reliable and predictable user experience to its users. In some illustrative examples, a certification program is implemented for user devices that receive and render the entertainment content received from the entertainment access system. The certification program establishes specifications to which the devices are to conform regardless of their manufacturer. The program also establishes a testing protocol to determine if the devices are manufactured in accordance with the specifications. The testing protocol is implemented on devices manufactured by the various manufacturers of the devices. Finally, a certificate is issued to those device manufacturers whose devices are demonstrated to be able to successfully complete the testing protocol. The certificate may also authorize the manufacturers to use a certificate mark on their products' packaging, literature and promotional information.12-31-2009
20100186095METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR GAP BASED ANTI-PIRACY - In order to achieve a more robust level of piracy protection, a gap protection scheme is utilized. This protection scheme may utilize the notion of a gap, which may comprise any entity or component that is withheld from a distribution that is required in order to run or execute a software title or is required in order to play and enjoy any other type of protected asset.07-22-2010