Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Remote data accessing – Accessing a remote server
Reexamination Certificate
1997-05-02
2001-05-01
Geckil, Mehmet B. (Department: 2152)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Remote data accessing
Accessing a remote server
C709S202000, C709S203000, C709S206000, C709S217000, C709S246000, C709S238000, C369S030050, C369S024010, C369S083000, C369S084000, C369S085000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06226672
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is related to network communications and, in particular, to a method and system for allowing users to access and/or share personal media libraries, including multimedia collections of audio and video information, via a wide area network or a group of networks, i.e., the Internet, for example.
One cannot disagree that appreciation of music is enhanced through greater understanding of the performing artists, as well as of the music itself. In most cases, music experts offer invaluable information on a particular music piece, genre or artist, which is not widely known by the public. Based on the music collection owned by an average user, the experts may reveal to the user a different listening experience by arranging the pieces to play in a particular order and by providing a personal commentary accompanying this arrangement.
The average user, however, typically has no access to this tailor-made expert information. Namely, the user may own a number of Compact Disks (CD) with classical music, for example, and he or she listens to these CDs in random order. Although the pieces in the user personal library can be researched individually to determine what every one of them represents, the user typically cannot properly digest and synthesize such a piece-meal information to obtain a collection that transcends the user's random listening. Only with the music experts' help can the user achieve that ultimate listening experience by combining individual pieces from various CDs to form a special playlist: it is as if a unique CD or tape were produced for the user by an expert or group of experts. It is possible to obtain such a unique CD by spending a lot of effort in laboriously writing down the titles of each album and sending them to the experts. Or, the experts may be invited to the user's home for advice and coffee. Both alternatives do not appear to be viable or, at best, easily achievable.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide access to the contents of multimedia information over the wide area network.
It is another object of the present invention to share the contents of multimedia information over the wide area network.
It is a further object of the present invention to transfer multimedia information over the wide area network.
It is still another object of the present invention to control by a first user a multimedia component in an audio/video/data system of a second user remotely located from the first user.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to reproduce information on a multimedia component in the audio/video/data system of the first user according to a playlist compiled by the second user.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
These and other objects, features and advantages are accomplished by a method and system for accessing, over a wide area network, multimedia equipment for reproducing multimedia information recorded on data storage media. According to the present invention, a list of contents of the multimedia information is generated and modified to include only user selected multimedia information. The modified list of contents is converted to at least one command for controlling the multimedia equipment. The multimedia equipment is then controlled based on this command, wherein the user selected multimedia information is reproduced on the multimedia equipment based on the modified list of contents.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the list of contents is generated by a first user and is transferred via the wide area network to a second user. The second user modifies the list of contents, wherein the modified list of contents is transferred via the wide area network to the first user for reproducing the multimedia information only as selected by the second user.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the list of contents is generated and modified by the first user. The modified list of contents is then transferred via the wide area network to the second user for reproducing the multimedia information only as selected by the first user.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4703465 (1987-10-01), Parker
patent: 5307456 (1994-04-01), MacKay
patent: 5499046 (1996-03-01), Schiller et al.
patent: 5579537 (1996-11-01), Takahisa
patent: 5583561 (1996-12-01), Baker et al.
patent: 5583763 (1996-12-01), Atcheson et al.
patent: 5592551 (1997-01-01), Lett et al.
patent: 5596705 (1997-01-01), Reimer et al.
patent: 5616876 (1997-04-01), Cluts
patent: 5633839 (1997-05-01), Alexander et al.
patent: 5721951 (1998-02-01), DorEl
patent: 5722669 (1998-03-01), Obata et al.
patent: 5751672 (1998-05-01), Yankowski
patent: 5787423 (1998-07-01), Hirakawa
patent: 5796945 (1998-08-01), Tarabella
patent: 5818435 (1998-10-01), Kozuka et al.
patent: 5819160 (1998-10-01), Foladare et al.
patent: 5826102 (1998-10-01), Escobar et al.
patent: 5838314 (1998-11-01), Neel et al.
patent: 5864868 (1999-01-01), Contois
patent: 5886698 (1999-03-01), Sciammarella et al.
patent: 5892915 (1999-04-01), Duso et al.
patent: 5900608 (1999-05-01), Iida
patent: 5918213 (1999-06-01), Bernard et al.
patent: 5931901 (1999-08-01), Wolfe et al.
patent: 5953005 (1999-09-01), Liu
patent: 5956716 (1999-09-01), Kenner et al.
patent: 5963916 (1999-10-01), Kaplan
patent: 5973722 (1999-10-01), Wakai et al.
patent: 5983069 (1999-11-01), Cho et al.
patent: 5995951 (1999-11-01), Ferguson
patent: 6118450 (2000-09-01), Proehl et al.
patent: 719046 (1995-11-01), None
patent: 847156 (1997-09-01), None
patent: 831608 (1997-11-01), None
MCS/Others to Offer Internet Music Service, Nov. 1996.*
The Split and Merge (SAM) Protocol for Interactive Video-on-Demand Systems, Jan. 1997.*
Scheduling Video Programs in Near Video-On-Demand Systems, Jan. 1997.*
Tunes.com.*
Musicmaker.com.
DeMartin Frank
Douma Peter
Miccoli Denise
Frommer William S.
Frommer Lawrence & Haug LLP.
Geckil Mehmet B.
Savit Glenn F.
Sony Corporation
LandOfFree
Method and system for allowing users to access and/or share... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Method and system for allowing users to access and/or share..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Method and system for allowing users to access and/or share... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2554835