DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because it contains an embedded hyperlink and/or other form of browser-executable code. Applicant is required to delete the embedded hyperlink and/or other form of browser-executable code; references to websites should be limited to the top-level domain name without any prefix such as http:// or other browser-executable code. See MPEP § 608.01.
Claim Objections
Claims 1, 15, 20 and 21 are objected to because of the following informalities: claims 1, 15, 20 and 21 recite claim limitations “player/s,” “processor/s,” “attribute/s,” “option/s” and “button/s”.
Claims 2-14 are objected to because of the following informalities: claims 2-14 recites the preamble “Apparatus according to claim 1.” It is recommended to change to “The platform apparatus according to claim 1.”
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-14 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claims 1 and 20, the phrase "aka" and “e.g.” renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitation(s) following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05(d).
Claim 12 recites the limitations "the server" and “said at least one Esport game”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-4 and 9-21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Crowd Control [How to price your crowd control effects, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6Iv4q6_4aQ, published December 20, 2022, also evidenced by Setting up a Crowd Control.pdf, https://crowdcontrol.medium.com/set-up-your-own-crowd-control-enabled-minecraft-server-with-grryno-97cee3667329, published January 27, 2022].
Regarding claim 1, Crowd Control discloses platform apparatus operative in conjunction with legacy games, the apparatus comprising:
a back-end server comprising a hardware processor which, responsive to at least one control parameter, changes at least one attribute, respectively, of at least one legacy game, in real-time or near realtime (Setting up a Crowd Control.pdf, p. 2, “Server setup”, and p. 7, “Crowd Control is an interactive video game application that takes community engagement to another dimension by letting streamer’s viewers interact with the games they play in real time while generating extra income”); and
a user interface which is configured to present options for changing said at least one attribute to end-users viewing the legacy game being played by player/s other than the end-users; accept inputs aka requests, from at least one of the end-users aka viewers, which select a subset of said options and, responsively to said inputs, supply control parameters to the back-end server, thereby to yield a platform configured to apply end-user selected options for changing said at least one attribute, to said at least one legacy game (How to price your crowd control effects, 15:56 – 39:00, one example shown in the screen copy below);
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Regarding claim 2, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein each of said options comprises a game update effected by a legacy modding tool which is associated with the legacy game, and which is configured to modify the legacy game's code, and wherein the game update to be effected by the modding tool is selected by the platform apparatus responsive to a request from an end-user (How to price your crowd control effects, 16:07, “this is the Super Mario 64 crowd control pack”).
Regarding claim 3, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein said options for changing are presented to the end-users, while they are viewing the legacy game being played (How to price your crowd control effects, 16:07, “this is the Super Mario 64 crowd control pack”).
Regarding claim 4, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein the options are presented as an overlay of interaction buttons where each individual button corresponds to an individual option for changing an attribute of the game (How to price your crowd control effects, 16:07, “this is the Super Mario 64 crowd control pack”).
Regarding claim 9, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein the legacy game comprises a video game (How to price your crowd control effects, 16:07, “this is the Super Mario 64 crowd control pack”).
Regarding claim 10, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein the legacy game comprises an Esport game (evidenced by crowd control esports, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Te0JSE_rm5E, published on Feb 27, 2022).
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Regarding claim 11, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein the legacy game comprises a multiplayer game played by plural streamers, each of whom publishes the game as an event to her or his own viewers, thereby to provide an audience of spectators (How to price your crowd control effects, 1:14:43, “event and seeing like all of these giant Minecraft streamers”).
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Regarding claim 12, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein the server changes said at least one aspect without requiring cooperation from said at least one Esport game (The claim limitation is indefinite as being illustrated in the 112(b) rejection.).
Regarding claim 13, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein the user input device comprises a virtual button (How to price your crowd control effects, 54:10, “back” “save” “add” buttons).
Regarding claim 14, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1 and wherein the legacy game has a legacy modding tool and wherein game updates are typically effected by the modding tool which modifies the game's code according to the request received (How to price your crowd control effects, 16:07, “this is the Super Mario 64 crowd control pack”).
Regarding claims 15, 20 and 21, please refer to the claim rejections of claims 1 and 2.
Claims 16-19 are directed to intended use since claim 15 is directed to a game control method to enable the streamers to play at least one legacy game generated by a game server. So the legacy game generated by a game server is considered as “intended use.” Nevertheless, the following youtube videos also teach these intended uses.
Regarding claims 16 and 17, Crowd Control discloses the method according to claim 15 and wherein the legacy game comprises GTA or GTA5 (Crowd control GAT 5 online, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9lJzgWWYbU, 0:12, “standard and Elite as crowd control was a different road”, published Sep 26, 2022).
Regarding claim 18, Crowd Control discloses the method according to claim 15 and wherein the legacy game comprises Minecraft Setting up a Crowd Control.pdf, p. 3, “Server connection --- Navigate to Minecraft”.
Regarding claim 19, Crowd Control discloses the method according to claim 15 and wherein the legacy game comprises a Roblox game (Oblivion Remodel Ship Review - Crowd Control Empowered: Roblox Galaxy | Ship Review 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-CI5h76_yA, published June 12, 2020).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 5-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Crowd Control, in view of streamloots [Streamloots Auctions Tutorial, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOQ8uRSAHHA, published on July 20, 2021].
Regarding claim 5, Crowd Control discloses the apparatus according to claim 1. However, Crowd Control does not explicitly disclose wherein a duration is defined for each option selected via the user interface, during which no other change request is accepted from any viewer.
Nevertheless, streamloots teaches in a like invention, a duration is defined for each option selected via the user interface, during which no other change request is accepted from any viewer (Streamloots Auctions Tutorial, 2:45, “date and time you can then select your image that you will be promoting”).
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Thus, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the apparatus disclosed by Crowd Control, to have the duration won by auction and, during which no other change request is accepted from any viewer, as taught by streamloots, in order to give the opportunity to user who needs to maximize the promotion of his/her effect.
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Crowd Control and streamloots discloses the apparatus according to claim 5 and wherein, once an option for changing the game has been effected and the duration defined for said option has lapsed, only a single end-user is entitled to select a next option to be effected (Streamloots Auctions Tutorial, 2:45, “date and time you can then select your image that you will be promoting” – auction always have only one user win).
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Crowd Control and streamloots discloses the apparatus according to claim 6 and wherein the single end-user is an end-user from among the end-users who selected a next option after the duration defined for said option lapsed and before any other end-user selected a next option (Streamloots Auctions Tutorial – auction process).
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Crowd Control and streamloots discloses the apparatus according to claim 6 and wherein the single end-user is an end-user from among the end-users who bid higher than other end-users, to select the next option (Streamloots Auctions Tutorial – auction process).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YINGCHUAN ZHANG whose telephone number is (571)272-1375. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 - 4:30 M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Xuan Thai can be reached at (571) 272-7147. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/YINGCHUAN ZHANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3715