DETAILED ACTION
This communication is a Final Action in response to correspondence filed on September 15, 2025. Claims 1-20 are pending in the application.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Priority
Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged. Applicant has not complied with one or more conditions for receiving the benefit of an earlier filing date under 35 U.S.C. 120 as follows:
The later-filed application must be an application for a patent for an invention which is also disclosed in the prior application (the parent or original nonprovisional application or provisional application). The disclosure of the invention in the parent application and in the later-filed application must be sufficient to comply with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, except for the best mode requirement. See Transco Products, Inc. v. Performance Contracting, Inc., 38 F.3d 551, 32 USPQ2d 1077 (Fed. Cir. 1994).
The disclosures of the prior-filed applications, Application No. 14/041,891 and Application No. 16/154,142, fail to provide adequate support or enablement in the manner provided by 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph for one or more claims of this application.
Applicant’s prior-filed disclosures do not support “display, via the controller interface on the graphical display of the mobile device, the search results in a tabbed control interface comprising multiple tabs corresponding to respective streaming audio services of the multiple streaming audio services, wherein a first tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the first search results divided into two or more first groups that correspond to respective first search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields, and wherein a second tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the second search results divided into two or more second groups that correspond to respective second search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields,” as recited by independent claim 1, and the similar recitations of independent claims 11 and 20.
The prior-filed descriptions are silent regarding “a tabbed control interface” and “tabs,” but FIGS. 12-17 depict an interface with tabs. The tabs depicted by these drawings comprise “ARTISTS,” “ALBUMS,” and “TRACKS.” Each set of tabbed results is divided into groups of streaming audio services, such as “RDIO” and “PANDORA RADIO.” However, neither the descriptions nor the drawings disclose tabs corresponding to streaming audio services. The specifications further do not disclose the search results of each tab being divided into groups corresponding to search classification fields. Therefore, the prior-filed specifications fail to support “display, via the controller interface on the graphical display of the mobile device, the search results in a tabbed control interface comprising multiple tabs corresponding to respective streaming audio services of the multiple streaming audio services, wherein a first tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the first search results divided into two or more first groups that correspond to respective first search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields, and wherein a second tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the second search results divided into two or more second groups that correspond to respective second search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields,” as recited by independent claim 1, and the similar recitations of independent claims 11 and 20.
Accordingly, claims 1-20 are not entitled to the benefit of the prior applications.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-3, 11-13, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over White et al. (US Publication No. 2007/0149115) in view of Fassett et al. (US Publication No. 2007/0033228) and further in view of Carrigan et al. (US Publication No. 2016/0357376).
As to claim 1, White teaches at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions that are executable by at least one processor such that a mobile device is configured to:
display, on a graphical display of the mobile device [communications device], a controller interface [GUI] comprising selectable controls [selectable audio information] that are selectable to control one or more playback devices [electronic devices] that are carried in respective housings that are different from a housing carrying the mobile device (see e.g., [0035] for selectable audio information being accessed utilizing a network communications device, for example, selectable audio information being displayed at an Internet website accessible by a personal computer, and in another embodiment, the selectable information being accessed utilizing a wireless communications device such as, a cellular phone, a PDA device, or other devices operable to provide access to the selectable audio information, [0036] for a user identifying or selecting audio information to be wirelessly communicated to an electronic device and for example, a user selecting an entire album to be wirelessly communicated to a PDA device, [0038] for wirelessly communicating information associated with the selected information to an electronic device, [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4, [0057] for a user using a select a device feature that allows a user to select a destination device for communicating selected audio information, and for example, a user wanting to communicate a playlist to several different devices such as a PDA, a home computer system, a work computer system, etc., and [0061] for allowing a user to select when to download the information to an electronic device, for example, a user wanting to listen to a certain genre of music at a specific time of day thereby allowing a user to select the information, as such, a user selecting a different playlist for every day of the week thereby allowing a user to listen to different songs on different days of the week, the user further identifying when the selected playlist should be available for listening, for example, if a user wanted to listen to "playlist #1" on Monday morning during the drive into work between 8:00 am and 9:00 am, the user entering the time and the day "playlist #1" would be available for listening, and in this manner, the playlist being communicated to the electronic device thereby allowing a user to listen to selective audio information at a desirable time. The communications device displays a GUI comprising selectable audio information. The selectable audio information is selectable to control devices different from the communications device.);
receive data representing a particular search input (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4 and [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results. The communications device receives search input.);
in response to receipt of the data representing the particular search input, perform a search of a streaming audio service [digital engine] across multiple search classification fields for audio tracks having metadata that matches the particular search input, the multiple search classification fields comprising artist name, track title, and Internet radio stations, wherein the streaming audio service provides one or more of: (i) a library of on-demand streaming audio tracks [streaming audio on storage device] or (ii) Internet radio stations (see e.g., [0021] for digital engine 101 being directly or indirectly coupled to storage device 105 operable to store information, digital engine 101 maintaining information or data associated with selected information in a digital format, and the information being stored within storage device 105 or other storage devices operable to maintain data or information associated with the selected information, [0022] for digital engine 101 being operable to maintain information associated with the selected audio information, for example, the information being several songs or titles configured as an audio file and formatted in a digital format such as an MP3 file, wave file, etc., and the maintained information also being a reference to a network location where a network broadcast of audio information may be located, etc., [0032] for high-speed wireless communication networks being used to communicate the selected audio information, a user wanting to listen to an Internet broadcast of an Internet radio station, and therefore, high-speed communication being required to wirelessly communicate or stream the selected audio information to an electronic device, [0041] for an Internet website being operable to display selectable links for downloading information and the information including audio information such as MP3s, streaming audio, streaming,. Internet broadcasts, etc., and [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc. The communications device searches a digital engine across artist name, track title, and Internet radio stations. The digital engine provides streaming audio from a storage device, as well as Internet radio stations.);
receive, via a network interface of the mobile device, data representing search results to the search (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4 and [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results. The communications device receives search results.);
display, via the controller interface on the graphical display of the mobile device, the search results in a tabbed control interface (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4, [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results, and FIG. 4 for a tabbed control interface. The GUI displays search results in a tabbed control interface.);
receive, via the tabbed control interface on the graphical display of the mobile device, input data representing a selection of one or more particular audio tracks from among the search results (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4, [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results, and FIG. 4 for a tabbed control interface. The GUI receives selections of audio tracks.); and
send, via the network interface of the mobile device to one or more playback devices, one or more instructions to play back the one or more particular audio tracks from among the search results, wherein playing back the selected one or more particular audio tracks comprises at least one playback device of the one or more playback devices streaming the one or more particular audio tracks from the streaming audio service and the one or more playback devices playing the streamed one or more particular audio tracks via one or more speakers (see e.g., [0075] for a user accessing a webpage via the Internet, the webpage being a home page illustrated in FIG. 4 or other web pages operable to display selectable references to audio information, the method proceeding to step 801 where a user selects desirable audio information, for example, a user selecting a single song, a plurality different songs, an entire album, a broadcast station, streaming audio, etc. or other selectable audio information, and upon the user selecting a reference to audio information, the method proceeding to step 802 where a playlist may be created that represents the user's selected audio information, [0079] for the method then proceeding to step 807 where the audio information is wirelessly communicated to the selected device, and [0081] for upon communicating the selected information, the method proceeding to step 810 where the playlist may be executed, for example, a user selecting a continuous communication of selected audio information (e.g., several hours of music,. Internet broadcast, etc.), and as such, the method continuously playing or executing the received audio information. The communications device instructs the electronic device to play selected audio tracks, including streaming tracks.).
White does not specifically disclose in response to receipt of the data representing the particular search input, perform a search of multiple streaming audio services across multiple search classification fields for audio tracks having metadata that matches the particular search input, the multiple search classification fields comprising artist name, track title, and album name, wherein each streaming audio service provides one or more of: (i) a library of on-demand streaming audio tracks; and receive, via a network interface of the mobile device, data representing search results to the search, the received search results comprising first search results from a first streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services and second search results from a second streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services. However, Fassett teaches
in response to receipt of the data representing the particular search input, perform a search of multiple streaming audio services [providers] across multiple search classification fields for audio tracks having metadata that matches the particular search input, the multiple search classification fields comprising artist name, track title, and album name, wherein each streaming audio service provides one or more of: (i) a library of on-demand streaming audio tracks [database, FTP server] (see e.g., [0004] for the Yahoo! Music Engine providing users with access to a library of structured information regarding items of audio content for browsing and selection of items of audio content for playback, [0005] for a user navigating to a given web site that is hosting audio content and selecting a given item of audio content for download to a local data store for playback, [0026] for the index that the search provider generates indexing both structured and unstructured audio content and information describing the audio content, structured content generally referring to audio content and audio content metadata from audio content providers, such as the Yahoo! Music Engine, which maintain available audio content and metadata according to a structured format, for example, maintaining structured audio content and metadata including maintaining audio content and metadata according to a known structure in a database whereby the metadata is structured according to one or more data fields that may be searched for specific data items, unstructured content generally referring to audio content and metadata that is not maintained according to a known structure, for example, unstructured audio content and metadata including one or more items of audio content made available through an FTP server whereby each item of audio content is stored on a file system and metadata for audio content is contained within a given item of audio content as ID3 tags, [0030] for a search engine 116 receiving search requests from client devices 124a, 124b and 124c communicatively coupled to the network 122, [0033] for the query planner component 118 calculating one or more logical units that a query contains, as well as a category for each of the one or more logical units, the query planner component 118 providing these data to the search engine 116 as logical units and associated annotations indicating a context for a given logical unit, and the search engine 116 executing the query against the index in the index data store 114 according to the logical units that the query planner component 118 provides to generate a result set, [0036] for an item of audio content including a stream of audio information, etc. , and [0042]-[0044] for indexing artist, album, and song information being indexed. In response to receiving a query, providers are searched across artist, album, and song information for audio content having metadata that matches portions of the search query. Structured audio content providers provide a database of on-demand streaming audio content and unstructured content sources provide an FTP of on-demand streaming audio content.); and
receive, via a network interface of the mobile device, data representing search results to the search, the received search results comprising first search results from a first streaming audio service [preferred provider] of the multiple streaming audio services and second search results from a second streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services [additional provider] (see e.g., [0048] for the ranked result set being output to the user for rendering and display on a client device, step 422, [0051] for result sets that are responsive to a user's query, which may be ranked, including links to a preferred provider of an item of audio content identified in a result set and [0053] for a check being performed to determine if the item audio content identified by the reference is available from the preferred provider of audio content, step 510, where the item of audio content is available from the preferred provider of audio content, the system presenting a link to navigate to the preferred provider of audio content for download or playback of the item of audio content, step 514, where the item of audio content is not available from the preferred provider of audio content, step 510, or after the link is presented, step 514, a check being performed to determine if additional references to items of audio content are contained in the result set, step 516, and if additional references are present, processing returning to step 502 with the selection of a subsequent reference, otherwise processing ending, step 516. The client device display receives search results, which include search results from the preferred provider and search results from an additional provider.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the communications device of White to in response to receipt of the data representing the particular search input, perform a search of multiple streaming audio services across multiple search classification fields for audio tracks having metadata that matches the particular search input, the multiple search classification fields comprising artist name, track title, and album name, wherein each streaming audio service provides one or more of: (i) a library of on-demand streaming audio tracks; and receive, via a network interface of the mobile device, data representing search results to the search, the received search results comprising first search results from a first streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services and second search results from a second streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services, as taught by Fassett, for the benefit of searching both structured and unstructured audio content, including information regarding the same (see e.g., Fassett, [0006]).
White in view of Fassett does not specifically disclose the tabbed control interface comprising multiple tabs corresponding to respective streaming audio services of the multiple streaming audio services, wherein a first tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the first search results divided into two or more first groups that correspond to respective first search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields, and wherein a second tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the second search results divided into two or more second groups that correspond to respective second search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields. However, Carrigan teaches
the tabbed control interface [page] comprising multiple tabs [“All”/”My Music”] corresponding to respective streaming audio services [music service catalog/personal collection] of the multiple streaming audio services, wherein a first tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the first search results divided into two or more first groups [“Top songs”/”Albums”] that correspond to respective first search classification fields [track names, album names] of the multiple search classification fields, and wherein a second tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the second search results divided into two or more second groups [track list for “Hot Album” and track list for “Take the Leap”] that correspond to respective second search classification fields [track names, album names] of the multiple search classification fields (see e.g., FIG. 3, FIG. 4, abstract for a listing of media content items that satisfy selection criteria being presented in a page with multiple tabs, one tab including a listing of all content items from the streaming music service that satisfy the criteria, regardless of whether the content items are associated with the user's personal collection, and another tab including a listing of all content items in the user's personal collection that satisfy the criteria, regardless of whether the content items are in the catalog of the streaming music service, [0046] for “All” tab 310 being selected to view a listing of catalog content items by the artist, and “My Music” tab 312 being selected to view a listing of content items by the artist that are in the user's personal music profile, [0048] for the “All” tab listing shown in tab content area 320 being organized by content type and “Top songs” section 332 featuring a selection of the artist's content based on a popularity metric, [0049] for “Albums” section 338 including an entry for each album by the artist that is present in catalog repository 110, [0055] for responsive to user selection of “My Music” tab 312, content area 420 providing a different listing and specifically the listing of content items in area 420 including content items that are in the user's personal music profile 200 and attributed to the artist whose artist page is being rendered, and [0056] for entries being grouped by album, and under each album is a track list showing the songs (or “tracks”) from the album that are in the user's personal media profile, for example, in the case of album 430 (“Hot Album”), all tracks being shown in track list 432, this signifying that the user has purchased, bookmarked, and/or downloaded all songs on the album, for instance, if the user purchases an album, all songs from the album being automatically included in the user's personal media profile 200, and in the case of album 434 (“Take the Leap”), only two tracks being shown in track list 436, signifying that the user has only purchased, bookmarked, and/or downloaded these two songs. The page includes an “All” tab corresponding to the music service catalog and a “My Music” tab corresponding to the personal collection. The music service catalog search results are divided into groups, including “Top songs” corresponding to track names and “Albums” corresponding to album names. The personal collection search results are divided into groups, including a track list for “Hot Album” corresponding to track names/album names and a track list for “Take the Leap” corresponding to track names/album names.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the communications device of White in view of Fassett to include the tabbed control interface comprising multiple tabs corresponding to respective streaming audio services of the multiple streaming audio services, wherein a first tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the first search results divided into two or more first groups that correspond to respective first search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields, and wherein a second tab of the tabbed control interface comprises at least a portion of the second search results divided into two or more second groups that correspond to respective second search classification fields of the multiple search classification fields, as taught by Carrigan, for the benefit of providing more holistic access to media content (see e.g., Carrigan, [0006[).
As to claim 2, the limitations of parent claim 1 have been discussed above. White teaches wherein the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium further comprises program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to:
display a search control configured to receive search strings, wherein the program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to receive data representing the particular search input comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to:
receive the data representing the particular search input via the displayed search control (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4 and [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results. The communications device receives a search string via search engine input.).
As to claim 3, the limitations of parent claims 1 and 2 have been discussed above. White in view of Fassett does not specifically disclose wherein the program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to display the search control comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to: display the search control in a first portion of the graphical display, wherein the program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to display the search results comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to: after performance of the search, display the tabbed control interface in a second portion of the graphical display that does not overlap with the first portion concurrently with display of the search control in the first portion of the graphical display. However, Carrigan teaches wherein the program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to display the search control comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to:
display the search control in a first portion of the graphical display, wherein the program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to display the search results comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to:
after performance of the search, display the tabbed control interface in a second portion [tab content area] of the graphical display that does not overlap with the first portion [band image area] concurrently with display of the search control [magnifying glass] in the first portion of the graphical display (see e.g., [0045] for artist page 300 featuring a “band” image 302 for the artist, [0047] for tab content area 320 displaying a listing of catalog content items by the artist, [0073] for a user searching for content by title, by genre, by year (or time period) of release, by content type, or by any other criterion or combination of criteria and any search result being presented in a format similar to artist page 300, and FIG. 3 for a magnifying glass being displayed in the band image area. The tabbed search results are displayed in the tab content area. The tabbed content area does not overlap the band image area, which concurrently displays a magnifying glass.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the communications device of White in view of Fassett to include wherein the program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to display the search control comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to: display the search control in a first portion of the graphical display, wherein the program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to display the search results comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such that the mobile device is configured to: after performance of the search, display the tabbed control interface in a second portion of the graphical display that does not overlap with the first portion concurrently with display of the search control in the first portion of the graphical display, as taught by Carrigan, for the benefit of providing more holistic access to media content (see e.g., Carrigan, [0006[).
As to claim 11, White teaches a method to be performed by a mobile device, the method comprising:
displaying, on a graphical display of the mobile device [communications device], a controller interface [GUI] comprising selectable controls [selectable audio information] that are selectable to control one or more playback devices [electronic devices] that are carried in respective housings that are different from a housing carrying the mobile device (see e.g., [0035] for selectable audio information being accessed utilizing a network communications device, for example, selectable audio information being displayed at an Internet website accessible by a personal computer, and in another embodiment, the selectable information being accessed utilizing a wireless communications device such as, a cellular phone, a PDA device, or other devices operable to provide access to the selectable audio information, [0036] for a user identifying or selecting audio information to be wirelessly communicated to an electronic device and for example, a user selecting an entire album to be wirelessly communicated to a PDA device, [0038] for wirelessly communicating information associated with the selected information to an electronic device, [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4, [0057] for a user using a select a device feature that allows a user to select a destination device for communicating selected audio information, and for example, a user wanting to communicate a playlist to several different devices such as a PDA, a home computer system, a work computer system, etc., and [0061] for allowing a user to select when to download the information to an electronic device, for example, a user wanting to listen to a certain genre of music at a specific time of day thereby allowing a user to select the information, as such, a user selecting a different playlist for every day of the week thereby allowing a user to listen to different songs on different days of the week, the user further identifying when the selected playlist should be available for listening, for example, if a user wanted to listen to "playlist #1" on Monday morning during the drive into work between 8:00 am and 9:00 am, the user entering the time and the day "playlist #1" would be available for listening, and in this manner, the playlist being communicated to the electronic device thereby allowing a user to listen to selective audio information at a desirable time. The communications device displays a GUI comprising selectable audio information. The selectable audio information is selectable to control devices different from the communications device.);
receiving data representing a particular search input (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4 and [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results. The communications device receives search input.);
in response to receiving the data representing the particular search input, performing a search of a streaming audio service [digital engine] across multiple search classification fields for audio tracks having metadata that matches the particular search input, the multiple search classification fields comprising artist name, track title, and Internet radio stations, wherein the streaming audio service provides one or more of: (i) a library of on-demand streaming audio tracks [streaming audio on storage device] or (ii) Internet radio stations (see e.g., [0021] for digital engine 101 being directly or indirectly coupled to storage device 105 operable to store information, digital engine 101 maintaining information or data associated with selected information in a digital format, and the information being stored within storage device 105 or other storage devices operable to maintain data or information associated with the selected information, [0022] for digital engine 101 being operable to maintain information associated with the selected audio information, for example, the information being several songs or titles configured as an audio file and formatted in a digital format such as an MP3 file, wave file, etc., and the maintained information also being a reference to a network location where a network broadcast of audio information may be located, etc., [0032] for high-speed wireless communication networks being used to communicate the selected audio information, a user wanting to listen to an Internet broadcast of an Internet radio station, and therefore, high-speed communication being required to wirelessly communicate or stream the selected audio information to an electronic device, [0041] for an Internet website being operable to display selectable links for downloading information and the information including audio information such as MP3s, streaming audio, streaming,. Internet broadcasts, etc., and [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc. The communications device searches a digital engine across artist name, track title, and Internet radio stations. The digital engine provides streaming audio from a storage device, as well as Internet radio stations.);
receiving, via a network interface of the mobile device, data representing search results to the search (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4 and [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results. The communications device receives search results.);
displaying, via the controller interface on the graphical display of the mobile device, the search results in a tabbed control interface (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4, [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results, and FIG. 4 for a tabbed control interface. The GUI displays search results in a tabbed control interface.);
receiving, via the tabbed control interface on the graphical display of the mobile device, input data representing a selection of one or more particular audio tracks from among the search results (see e.g., [0054] for FIG. 4 illustrating a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying selectable audio information and the GUI being operable with a computer system, cellular device, PDA, or other electronic devices or systems operable to display the GUI of FIG. 4, [0057] for a search engine being provided allowing a user to search for a specific type of audio information such as an artist, song title, and genre, Internet radio station, etc., and a user inputting the lyrics to a song within the search engine, as such, the search engine locating several different songs having the desirable lyrics and allowing a user to select the search results, and FIG. 4 for a tabbed control interface. The GUI receives selections of audio tracks.); and
sending, via the network interface of the mobile device to one or more playback devices, one or more instructions to play back the one or more particular audio tracks from among the search results, wherein playing back the selected one or more particular audio tracks comprises at least one playback device of the one or more playback devices streaming the one or more particular audio tracks from the streaming audio service and the one or more playback devices playing the streamed one or more particular audio tracks via one or more speakers (see e.g., [0075] for a user accessing a webpage via the Internet, the webpage being a home page illustrated in FIG. 4 or other web pages operable to display selectable references to audio information, the method proceeding to step 801 where a user selects desirable audio information, for example, a user selecting a single song, a plurality different songs, an entire album, a broadcast station, streaming audio, etc. or other selectable audio information, and upon the user selecting a reference to audio information, the method proceeding to step 802 where a playlist may be created that represents the user's selected audio information, [0079] for the method then proceeding to step 807 where the audio information is wirelessly communicated to the selected device, and [0081] for upon communicating the selected information, the method proceeding to step 810 where the playlist may be executed, for example, a user selecting a continuous communication of selected audio information (e.g., several hours of music,. Internet broadcast, etc.), and as such, the method continuously playing or executing the received audio information. The communications device instructs the electronic device to play selected audio tracks, including streaming tracks.).
White does not specifically disclose in response to receiving the data representing the particular search input, performing a search of multiple streaming audio services across multiple search classification fields for audio tracks having metadata that matches the particular search input, the multiple search classification fields comprising artist name, track title, and album name, wherein each streaming audio service provides one or more of: (i) a library of on-demand streaming audio tracks; and receiving, via a network interface of the mobile device, data representing search results to the search, the received search results comprising first search results from a first streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services and second search results from a second streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services. However, Fassett teaches
in response to receiving the data representing the particular search input, performing a search of multiple streaming audio services [providers] across multiple search classification fields for audio tracks having metadata that matches the particular search input, the multiple search classification fields comprising artist name, track title, and album name, wherein each streaming audio service provides one or more of: (i) a library of on-demand streaming audio tracks [database, FTP server] (see e.g., [0004] for the Yahoo! Music Engine providing users with access to a library of structured information regarding items of audio content for browsing and selection of items of audio content for playback, [0005] for a user navigating to a given web site that is hosting audio content and selecting a given item of audio content for download to a local data store for playback, [0026] for the index that the search provider generates indexing both structured and unstructured audio content and information describing the audio content, structured content generally referring to audio content and audio content metadata from audio content providers, such as the Yahoo! Music Engine, which maintain available audio content and metadata according to a structured format, for example, maintaining structured audio content and metadata including maintaining audio content and metadata according to a known structure in a database whereby the metadata is structured according to one or more data fields that may be searched for specific data items, unstructured content generally referring to audio content and metadata that is not maintained according to a known structure, for example, unstructured audio content and metadata including one or more items of audio content made available through an FTP server whereby each item of audio content is stored on a file system and metadata for audio content is contained within a given item of audio content as ID3 tags, [0030] for a search engine 116 receiving search requests from client devices 124a, 124b and 124c communicatively coupled to the network 122, [0033] for the query planner component 118 calculating one or more logical units that a query contains, as well as a category for each of the one or more logical units, the query planner component 118 providing these data to the search engine 116 as logical units and associated annotations indicating a context for a given logical unit, and the search engine 116 executing the query against the index in the index data store 114 according to the logical units that the query planner component 118 provides to generate a result set, [0036] for an item of audio content including a stream of audio information, etc. , and [0042]-[0044] for indexing artist, album, and song information being indexed. In response to receiving a query, providers are searched across artist, album, and song information for audio content having metadata that matches portions of the search query. Structured audio content providers provide a database of on-demand streaming audio content and unstructured content sources provide an FTP of on-demand streaming audio content.); and
receiving, via a network interface of the mobile device, data representing search results to the search, the received search results comprising first search results from a first streaming audio service [preferred provider] of the multiple streaming audio services and second search results from a second streaming audio service of the multiple streaming audio services [additional provider] (see e.g., [0048] for the ranked result set being output to the user for rendering and display on a client device, step 422, [0051] for result sets that are responsive to a user's query, which may be ranked, including links to a preferred provider of an item of audio content identified in a result set and [0053] for a check being performed to determine if the item audio content identified by the reference is available from the preferred provider of audio content, step 510, where the item of audio content is available from the preferred provider of audio content, the system presenting a link to navigate to the preferred provider of audio content for download or playback of the item of audio content, step 514, where the item of audio content is not available from the preferred provider of audio content, step 510, or after the link is presented, step 514, a check being performed to determine if additional references to items of audio content are contained in the result set, step 516, and if additional references are present, processing returning to step 502 with the selection of a subsequent reference, otherwise processing ending, step 516. The client device display receives search results, which include search results from the preferred p