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 .
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 9-12 and 15-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Friesen et al. (US 2009/0011836 A1) in view of Eklund (US 2021/0279762 A1).
Regarding claims 9 and 15, Freisen discloses a non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions recorded thereon, wherein the instructions, when executed by at least one data processor of a system, cause the system to: present a player of an electronic game with one or more travel-related experiences (para [0106] and [0111]), receive a reservation from the player of a travel-related experience from the one or more travel-related experiences, wherein the reservation includes a confirmation that the player made a payment to reserve the travel-related experience (para [0082], [0106] and [0111]).
Friesen does not disclose determine an in-game virtual award to be granted to the player based on the reservation; and provide the in-game virtual award to the player within the electronic game in response to the reservation, thereby allowing the player to access the in-game virtual award before beginning or completing the travel-related experience.
However, Eklund teaches determining an in-game virtual award to be granted to the player based on the reservation (para [0103]-[0104]); and provide the in-game virtual award to the player within the electronic game in response to the reservation, thereby allowing the player to access the in-game virtual award before beginning or completing the travel-related experience (para [0043] and [0103]-[0104]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to disclose determining an in-game virtual award to be granted to the player based on the reservation; and provide the in-game virtual award to the player within the electronic game in response to the reservation, thereby allowing the player to access the in-game virtual award before beginning or completing the travel-related experience, as taught by Eklund to the system of Freisen, as it would allow the system to provide virtual rewards to a player booking a travel experiences, as specified by the tenant application (see Eklund para [0043] and [0103]-[0104]).
Regarding claims 10 and 16, Eklund teaches upon receiving an indication that the reservation was modified, adjust the in-game virtual award based on the modified reservation (para [0043], [0103]-[0104], [0166] and [0188]); and upon receiving an indication that the reservation was cancelled, remove access to the in-game virtual award from the player or deduct an amount of in-game currency from the player equal to an in-game currency value associated with the in-game virtual award (para [0043], [0103]-[0104], [0166] and [0188]).
Regarding claims 11 and 17, Eklund teaches prompting the player to reserve an accompanying travel-related experience, wherein the accompanying travel-related experience relates to the travel-related experience the player has already reserved (para [0103]-[0104] and [0126]-[0128]); receiving an indication of interest from the player in reserving an accompanying travel-related experience (para [0126]-[0128]); and presenting the player with one or more accompanying travel-related experiences (para [0103]-[0104] and [0126]-[0128]).
Regarding claims 12 and 18, Eklund teaches causing display of a notification indicating that the player has received the in-game virtual award, wherein the notification contains information regarding at least one of the in-game virtual award received or an in-game currency value associated with the in-game virtual award, and wherein the notification contains information regarding the travel-related experience (para [0103]-[0104] and [0134]).
Claim(s) 13, 14, 19, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Friesen et al. (US 2009/0011836 A1) in view of Eklund (US 2021/0279762 A1) and further in view of Fan et al. (US 2012/0150695 A1).
Regarding claims 13 and 19, the combination of Friesen and Eklund discloses the non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium as discussed above. However, the combination of Friesen and Eklund does not explicitly disclose the in-game virtual award is a promotional item not otherwise available within the electronic game.
Fan teaches wherein the in-game virtual award is a promotional item not otherwise available within the electronic game (para [0032]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to disclose the in-game virtual award is a promotional item not otherwise available within the electronic game, as taught by Fan to the system of Friesen in view of Eklund, as it would allow the system to maintain unique promotional incentives to the players, as specified by the tenant application (see Fan para [0032]).
Regarding claims 14 and 20, the combination of Friesen and Eklund discloses the non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium as discussed above. However, the combination of Friesen and Eklund does not explicitly disclose wherein the in-game virtual award is fungible in-game currency, wherein the fungible in-game currency has a corresponding real-world currency value, and wherein the fungible in-game currency can be exchanged for at least one of items within the electronic game or access to premium features within the electronic game.
Fan teaches wherein the in-game virtual award is fungible in-game currency, wherein the fungible in-game currency has a corresponding real-world currency value, and wherein the fungible in-game currency can be exchanged for at least one of items within the electronic game or access to premium features within the electronic game (para [0032] and [0052]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to disclose wherein the in-game virtual award is fungible in-game currency, wherein the fungible in-game currency has a corresponding real-world currency value, and wherein the fungible in-game currency can be exchanged for at least one of items within the electronic game or access to premium features within the electronic game, as taught by Fan to the system of Friesen in view of Eklund, as it would allow the system to purchase unique items in game using in-game currency, as specified by the tenant application (see Fan para [0032] and [0052]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-8 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: None of the references, alone or in combination, teach or suggest calculating a projected commission based on the payment made for the reservation; determining an in-game virtual award to be granted to the player, wherein the in-game virtual award has an in-game currency value within the electronic game, wherein the in-game currency value has a corresponding real-world currency value less than or equal to the projected commission; upon receiving an indication that the reservation was modified, recalculating the projected commission based on a modified payment made for the modified reservation and adjusting the corresponding real-world currency value of the in-game virtual award to be less than or equal to the recalculated projected commission; and upon receiving an indication that the reservation was cancelled, removing access to the in-game virtual award from the player or deducting an amount of in-game currency from the player equal to the in-game currency value of the in-game virtual award.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Heintzeman et al. (US 2002/0038250 A1), Walker et al. (US 2019/0139166 A1), Buchheit et al. (US 8,540,152 B1)
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALLEN CHAN whose telephone number is (571)270-5529. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 11:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST.
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/ALLEN CHAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3715 5/30/2026
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