Sony Corporation

Sony Network Entertainment International LLC

Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.

Sony Electronics Inc

Sony Interactive Entertainment America LLC

Ling Jun Wong

True Xiong

Charles McCoy

Leo Pedlow

Utkarsh Pandya

Leo M Pedlow, Jr

Davender Agnihotri

Jaime Chee

Kalyana Kota

Victor Carvajal

Abhishek Pramod Patil

Thomas Patrick Dawson

Djung N Nguyen

Aixin Liu

Xiangpeng Jing

Ted Dunn

Aran London Sadja

Nobukazu Sugiyama

Kai Liu

Dipendu Saha

Andy Nguyen

Charles McCOY

Nobukazu Sugivama

Karen Epstein

Biranchi Narayan Rout

Systems and methods are disclosed for extracting media content from social networking services and presenting the extracted content to an IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) user in a personalized and easy-to-consume manner. One or more feeds from social networking services that contain data pertaining to the user's social graph are monitored by a service in the IPTV domain for media content that meets preset criteria and preferences of the user. A social networking dashboard application is hosted in the IPTV environment and includes a user interface arranged with tools to enable the user to set preferences and specify tags that control various aspects of the media content extraction. The service can also monitor the social networking feeds in a real-time manner that enables creation of a knowledge base that is usable to present media content 'trends' to the IPTV user.

Extracting media content from social networking services

A system and method for receiving user authentication information from a secondary device and sending a list of IPTV devices associated with the user authentication information to the secondary device. IPTV device selection is received from the secondary device and device identification information corresponding to a selected IPTV device is sent to the secondary device. A content selection from an asset list is received at a server and post execution instructions for the selected IPTV device are generated. Next asset information is sent to the selected IPTV device. The asset information includes content associated with the content selection and the post execution instructions. The post execution instructions determine further IPTV device functionality.

Method and apparatus for redirecting an IPTV device

Apparatus and methods are provided to implement a technique for using a second display with a content playback device. In one implementation, this feature provides users a frequently-accessed service or asset list when browsing on a second display. Such systems and methods may be particularly advantageous when a user normally only visits a few services in an entire list of available services on a regular basis. The frequently-accessed list of services or assets may be populated by the user through the second display or may be populated by the server that is tracking service access by the user. The frequently-accessed service or asset list (or both) may be specific to the user account, a user profile within the user account, the second display, or the content playback device. In some implementations, the second display may be a smart phone that can often be found beside the user, a laptop or tablet PC, or the like.

System and method providing a frequently-accessed service or asset list on a second display

An apparatus and method for monitoring activity of a device. The method includes associating one or more monitoring devices with an electronic device. Rules that have been established to define acceptable content that can be accessed by the electronic device are accessed. Requested content, which is requested by the electronic device, is identified. The requested content is compared to the established rules. An alert condition is generated when the requested content violates the established rules. An alert signal is provided to the one or more monitoring devices based on the alert condition.

Method and apparatus for monitoring activity of an electronic device

An apparatus and method of generating a content channel that includes accessing a list of content assets, utilizing one or more content assets as settings for the content channel, and selecting additional content assets. The selection is based on the settings. The content channel is generated based on the additional content assets.

Method and apparatus for content channels using user feedback

Customizing menus for a consumer electronics device, including: preparing menu definitions for the menus to be customized on the consumer electronics device; generating menu configuration information using the prepared menu definitions; and transmitting the generated menu configuration information to the consumer electronics device. Keywords include customization of menus and consumer electronics device.

Configuration and management of menus

Systems and methods for creating and employing software to handle the playback of media, especially video, in browsers that, in addition to or instead of playing the media in the browser, may use second display protocols to instruct a separate display device to play the media. The software can of any type that can transmit the content or specify a network location of the content item for subsequent playback to a content playback device. In one implementation, the software may be in the form of a web browser or other application that is configured to use for the playback of selected media types. The browser maintains a list of favorite and/or recently viewed services and content items and is configured to filter the list to include only those content items, or services with such content items, available for play back on the separate content playback device. In this way, favorite content items and services and/or recently viewed content items and services are made accessible using the second display on any content playback device registered with the user.

Synchronization of favorites and/or recently viewed lists between registered content playback devices

A user can share Internet assets or content URLs via a second display device with other Internet content service users. Thus, the other users will be able to view the same content on their own internet protocol televisions (IPTV), as first display devices, without the need to search for the content in the content providing service. When the shared content is URLs, the recipient can even preview the content from the URL on the second display device before sending it to the recipient's internet protocol television (IPTV).

Method and apparatus for sharing internet assets or content URLs via a second display device

A method and apparatus for identifying content using one or more Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) devices by accessing a user's account using a secondary device and selecting content provided by a service provider. The service provider sends an identifier that specifies the selected content to a first IPTV device that will display content. The selected content is added to a user's content list in the user's account; and played on the first IPTV device. During the time of playback on the first IPTV device, the user is able to browse content using the secondary device or another IPTV device. Thus, the user is able to browse and search for additional content without disturbing the display of the selected content.

Method and apparatus for identifying content using IPTV devices

Remotely testing a client device, the method including: implementing an interface of a messaging and presence protocol; starting a connection of the messaging and presence protocol between the client device and a server; initiating a test to execute steps of the test over the messaging and presence protocol connection; indicating information regarding results of the test to send over the messaging and presence protocol connection. Key words include remote testing and XMPP.

Remotely testing electronic devices using messaging and presence protocol

Browsing and displaying content over multiple devices, including: displaying a graphical user interface program on a second device; associating the second device with a main device; receiving transactions performed by a user on the second device with the graphical user interface; sending at least one command to the main device after the transactions performed by the user on the second device with the graphical user interface are received by the second device; and executing the at least one command on the main device. Keywords include visual BIVL interface and IPTV client without GUI.

Interface for browsing and playing content over multiple devices

Apparatus and methods for using a second display with a network-enabled television. In one implementation, this feature allows the user to conveniently affiliate their IPTV devices with various service providers and manage such affiliations directly from a second display device instead of going to a separate affiliation website. The second display could be a smart phone that can often be found beside the user, a laptop or tablet PC, a desktop PC, or the like.

Device affiliation process from second display

A method and apparatus for customizing menus on a consumer electronic device, such as a television, based on, for example, the region where the device is located when it is connected to the network. Although the available network content and services differ by region, a single device may be manufactured and sold in all of these regions and countries, which is more efficient and flexible. This enables separate models to display menus based on uniform menu definitions.

Growing community of inventors

Escondido, CA, United States of America

Ling Jun Wong