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 .
Status of Claims
This office action is in response to the patent application 18/972,553 originally filed on December 6, 2024. Claims 1-93 were originally presented for examination.
In the preliminary amendment filed March 11, 2025, claims 21-93 were canceled. Claims 1-20 remain pending examination. Of the pending claims, claims 1, 18, and 20 are independent.
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statements (IDS) filed on 3/11/2025 and 4/6/2026 have been considered. Initialed copies of the Form 1449 are enclosed herewith.
Drawings
Regarding FIGS. 1, 3, and 7, 37 CFR 1.84(b)(1), stated in part, indicates that black and white photographs, including photocopies of photographs, are not ordinarily permitted in utility and design patent applications. The Office will accept photographs in utility and design patent applications, however, if photographs are the only practicable medium for illustrating the claimed invention. The photographs must be of sufficient quality so that all details in the photographs are reproducible in the printed patent. Therefore, the use of a black and white photographs lacking sufficient reproducible quality prevents FIGS. 1, 3, and 7 from complying with 37 CFR 1.84(b)(1).
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.
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.
Claims 1, 5-15, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sherwani et al. (hereinafter “Sherwani,” US 2018/0001194) in view of Stelovsky et al. (hereinafter “Stelovsky,” US 2015/0050998), and in further view of Verfaillie et al. (hereinafter “Verfaillie,” US 10,974,140).
Regarding claim 1, and substantially similar limitations in claim 20, Sherwani discloses a method comprising:
…
transmitting, by the first device to a content recognition server, the at least one frame of the video game (Sherwani [0033], “For example, User 1 shares a 10 minute segment from Game X with User 2”), wherein the content recognition server is configured to:
extract identifying information from the at least one frame of the video game (Sherwani [0029-0030], “In operation, a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server) identifies when a scene/segment (e.g., combat, setpiece) begins and saves a relevant state when the scene begins (or at other times) for a sender of the video game segment… to identify when a scene/segment begins, the backend (e.g., a server) assigns a scene identifier (ID) to some or all of: combat encounters, room/area entries, quest/mission starts, NPC conversations/encounters, setpiece entry points, and/or other game elements.”);
determine, based at least in part on the identifying information: (a) a content ID of the video game, and (b) a game state of the video game depicted in the at least one frame of the video game (Sherwani [0041], “while a user is playing a game, a scene is provided an ID including game state information, and a user is able to generate a competition based on the scene ID and state information while playing the game.”); and
…
based at least in part on a user-interface interaction with the generated URL, causing at least one device of the user to join a video game session of a video game that matches the content ID, wherein the video game session is configured based at least in part on the game state of the video game (Sherwani [0033], “The transition from video to playable game is able to be implemented in any manner such as having a video and a playable game accessible, and if the user selects to watch the video, the video is displayed, and if the user selects to play the game, the playable video game is displayed/played. In some embodiments, the video and the playable video game are able to be synchronized in any manner such as tracking time between both, and for the video game, tracking state information periodically (e.g., every second), so that the user is able to switch back and forth between the video and the playable game.”).
Sherwani does not explicitly teach every limitation of capturing, by a camera of a first device associated with a user, at least one frame of a video game generated for display by a second device.
However, Stelovsky discloses capturing, by a camera of a first device associated with a user, at least one frame of a video game generated for display by a second device (Stelovsky [0130], “The publication system 500 may include a QR code generator. The QR code generator may generate a unique QR code for a game based on, for example, the game identifier, the digital rights for the game, and the like. For example, printed materials can feature QR code that represents a link to a particular game. When a player takes a snapshot photo of such QR code with the camera on her smartphone this game will be directly displayed on the phone's screen so that she will be able to play it.”).
Stelovsky is analogous to Sherwani, as both are drawn to the art of multimedia games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani, to include capturing, by a camera of a first device associated with a user, at least one frame of a video game generated for display by a second device, as taught by Stelovsky, since it applies a known technique for transferring data between devices to a known method ready for improvement to yield predictable results. Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Sherwani in view of Stelovsky does not explicitly teach generate a URL based at least in part on the content ID of the video game and the game state of the video game; receiving the generated URL from the content recognition server.
However, Verfaillie discloses generate a URL based at least in part on the content ID of the video game and the game state of the video game; receiving the generated URL from the content recognition server (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67, “local server component 126 may support a structured schema that maps uniform resource locators (URLs) to entities, components, and properties in the game state. This structured schema may allow display item elements to easily and efficiently retrieve statistics for the current game state. For example, in some cases, upon receiving a URL associated with a particular entity and/or component, the local server component 125 may employ a handler that maps the URL to the entity and/or component and returns associated statistical information. Also, in some examples, upon receiving a URL, the local server component 125 may execute associated script to retrieve a custom data set. In some examples, instructions for adding and including the local server component, the structured schema for URL mapping, and other features within the video game may be provided by a computing service provider, such as a service provider that hosts and executes video game server 110.”).
Verfaillie is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, to include generate a URL based at least in part on the content ID of the video game and the game state of the video game; receiving the generated URL from the content recognition server, as taught by Verfaillie, in order to allow easy integration of features within a video game (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 5, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie discloses wherein the capturing comprises capturing a video clip of the video game generated for display, wherein the video clip comprises the at least one frame, the method further comprising: computing a plurality of fingerprints for each frame of the video clip, respectively (Sherwani [0030], “to identify when a scene/segment begins, the backend (e.g., a server) assigns a scene identifier (ID) to some or all of: combat encounters, room/area entries, quest/mission starts, NPC conversations/encounters, setpiece entry points, and/or other game elements. The game (software and/or console) reports the scene identification and name as part of the Rich Presence (which is an existing API). The Rich Presence should have a scene ID. All shared screenshots/videos are tagged with a scene ID.”).
Regarding claim 6, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie discloses wherein the game state is determined by analyzing the identifying information respectively associated with a plurality of frames (Sherwani [0029-0030], “In operation, a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server) identifies when a scene/segment (e.g., combat, setpiece) begins and saves a relevant state when the scene begins (or at other times) for a sender of the video game segment… to identify when a scene/segment begins, the backend (e.g., a server) assigns a scene identifier (ID) to some or all of: combat encounters, room/area entries, quest/mission starts, NPC conversations/encounters, setpiece entry points, and/or other game elements.”).
Regarding claim 7, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie discloses wherein the identifying information is added to the at least one frame of the video game by a game streaming origin server providing the video game (Sherwani [0029-0030], “In operation, a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server) identifies when a scene/segment (e.g., combat, setpiece) begins and saves a relevant state when the scene begins (or at other times) for a sender of the video game segment… to identify when a scene/segment begins, the backend (e.g., a server) assigns a scene identifier (ID) to some or all of: combat encounters, room/area entries, quest/mission starts, NPC conversations/encounters, setpiece entry points, and/or other game elements,” the video game system identifies the video game).
Regarding claim 8, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie discloses wherein the game streaming origin server is configured to generate the identifying information for a livestream of the video game, wherein the identifying information corresponds to a reference point in the livestream, and wherein the reference point comprises the content ID and a current game state of the video game, the method further comprising: transmitting the identifying information to the content recognition server; providing, via the first device, first identifying information to the content recognition server, wherein the first identifying information corresponds to the at least one frame of the video game captured by the first device; and receiving, at the first device, the content ID and the current game state corresponding to the first identifying information (Sherwani [0029-0030], “In operation, a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server) identifies when a scene/segment (e.g., combat, setpiece) begins and saves a relevant state when the scene begins (or at other times) for a sender of the video game segment… to identify when a scene/segment begins, the backend (e.g., a server) assigns a scene identifier (ID) to some or all of: combat encounters, room/area entries, quest/mission starts, NPC conversations/encounters, setpiece entry points, and/or other game elements,” the video game system and server identifies data about the game segment).
Regarding claim 9, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie discloses computing, by the first device, the identifying information based at least in part on the at least one frame of the video game (Sherwani [0029-0030], “In operation, a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server) identifies when a scene/segment (e.g., combat, setpiece) begins and saves a relevant state when the scene begins (or at other times) for a sender of the video game segment… to identify when a scene/segment begins, the backend (e.g., a server) assigns a scene identifier (ID) to some or all of: combat encounters, room/area entries, quest/mission starts, NPC conversations/encounters, setpiece entry points, and/or other game elements,” video game system identifies the game segment).
Regarding claim 10, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky does not explicitly teach every limitation of wherein the video game session is depicted in a livestream of a streamer video game session and is provided by a virtual machine, wherein the virtual machine is associated with a plurality of game states respectively represented by a plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session comprises the content ID and a current game state of the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session corresponds to the identifying information for the livestream, wherein the generated URL comprises a first URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session, and wherein causing the at least one device of the user to join the video game session comprises: joining the at least one device of the user to the streamer video game session by adding the user to the virtual machine; and generating for display, via the at least one device of the user, frames of the video game based at least in part on the content ID and the current game state associated with the generated URL.
Sherwani does disclose wherein the video game session is depicted in a livestream of a streamer video game session and is provided by a virtual machine … and wherein causing the at least one device of the user to join the video game session comprises: joining the at least one device of the user to the streamer video game session by adding the user to the virtual machine; and generating for display, via the at least one device of the user, frames of the video game based at least in part on the content ID and the current game state associated with the generated URL (Sherwani [0047], “the first user plays/records the video game segment on the network device 704 which also records state information. For example, the first user streams the video game using the network device 704 which also captures state information and records the gameplay of the first user, and then the first user shares the video game segment (including state data) with the second user who is able to play the video game segment using the second gaming console 702 or the network device 704 by streaming similar to the first user.”; also Sherwani [0033], “By updating the state dynamically during progress, the shared video is able to be more truly interactive, so a recipient is able to play the scene/segment at any point during the segment.”). Sherwani does not disclose wherein the virtual machine is associated with a plurality of game states respectively represented by a plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session comprises the content ID and a current game state of the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session corresponds to the identifying information for the livestream, wherein the generated URL comprises a first URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session.
However, Verfaillie discloses wherein the virtual machine is associated with a plurality of game states respectively represented by a plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session comprises the content ID and a current game state of the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session corresponds to the identifying information for the livestream, wherein the generated URL comprises a first URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67, “local server component 126 may support a structured schema that maps uniform resource locators (URLs) to entities, components, and properties in the game state. This structured schema may allow display item elements to easily and efficiently retrieve statistics for the current game state. For example, in some cases, upon receiving a URL associated with a particular entity and/or component, the local server component 125 may employ a handler that maps the URL to the entity and/or component and returns associated statistical information. Also, in some examples, upon receiving a URL, the local server component 125 may execute associated script to retrieve a custom data set. In some examples, instructions for adding and including the local server component, the structured schema for URL mapping, and other features within the video game may be provided by a computing service provider, such as a service provider that hosts and executes video game server 110.”; also Verfaillie col. 14 lines 26-44, “virtualization technologies may allow a physical computing device to be shared among multiple users by providing each user with one or more virtual machine instances hosted by the physical computing device. A virtual machine instance may be a software emulation of a particular physical computing system that acts as a distinct logical computing system,” using virtual machines).
Verfaillie is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, to include wherein the virtual machine is associated with a plurality of game states respectively represented by a plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session comprises the content ID and a current game state of the streamer video game session, wherein each URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session corresponds to the identifying information for the livestream, wherein the generated URL comprises a first URL of the plurality of URLs for the streamer video game session, as taught by Verfaillie, in order to allow easy integration of features within a video game (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 11, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky does not explicitly teach every limitation of wherein causing the at least one device of the user to join the video game session comprises: generating, at a game play server, a new virtual machine for the video game, wherein the new virtual machine for the video game is configured to correspond to the content ID and a current game state associated with the generated URL for the video game session; and adding the user to the new virtual machine for the video game.
However, Verfaillie discloses wherein causing the at least one device of the user to join the video game session comprises: generating, at a game play server, a new virtual machine for the video game, wherein the new virtual machine for the video game is configured to correspond to the content ID and a current game state associated with the generated URL for the video game session; and adding the user to the new virtual machine for the video game (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67, “local server component 126 may support a structured schema that maps uniform resource locators (URLs) to entities, components, and properties in the game state. This structured schema may allow display item elements to easily and efficiently retrieve statistics for the current game state. For example, in some cases, upon receiving a URL associated with a particular entity and/or component, the local server component 125 may employ a handler that maps the URL to the entity and/or component and returns associated statistical information. Also, in some examples, upon receiving a URL, the local server component 125 may execute associated script to retrieve a custom data set. In some examples, instructions for adding and including the local server component, the structured schema for URL mapping, and other features within the video game may be provided by a computing service provider, such as a service provider that hosts and executes video game server 110.”; also Verfaillie col. 14 lines 26-44, “virtualization technologies may allow a physical computing device to be shared among multiple users by providing each user with one or more virtual machine instances hosted by the physical computing device. A virtual machine instance may be a software emulation of a particular physical computing system that acts as a distinct logical computing system,” using virtual machines).
Verfaillie is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, to include wherein causing the at least one device of the user to join the video game session comprises: generating, at a game play server, a new virtual machine for the video game, wherein the new virtual machine for the video game is configured to correspond to the content ID and a current game state associated with the generated URL for the video game session; and adding the user to the new virtual machine for the video game, as taught by Verfaillie, in order to allow easy integration of features within a video game (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 12, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky does not explicitly teach wherein adding the user to the new virtual machine for the video game comprises: adding the user to the new virtual machine along with at least one other device associated with at least one other user that interacted with the generated URL.
However, Verfaillie discloses wherein adding the user to the new virtual machine for the video game comprises: adding the user to the new virtual machine along with at least one other device associated with at least one other user that interacted with the generated URL (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67, “local server component 126 may support a structured schema that maps uniform resource locators (URLs) to entities, components, and properties in the game state. This structured schema may allow display item elements to easily and efficiently retrieve statistics for the current game state. For example, in some cases, upon receiving a URL associated with a particular entity and/or component, the local server component 125 may employ a handler that maps the URL to the entity and/or component and returns associated statistical information. Also, in some examples, upon receiving a URL, the local server component 125 may execute associated script to retrieve a custom data set. In some examples, instructions for adding and including the local server component, the structured schema for URL mapping, and other features within the video game may be provided by a computing service provider, such as a service provider that hosts and executes video game server 110.”; also Verfaillie col. 14 lines 26-44, “virtualization technologies may allow a physical computing device to be shared among multiple users by providing each user with one or more virtual machine instances hosted by the physical computing device. A virtual machine instance may be a software emulation of a particular physical computing system that acts as a distinct logical computing system,” using virtual machines).
Verfaillie is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, to include wherein adding the user to the new virtual machine for the video game comprises: adding the user to the new virtual machine along with at least one other device associated with at least one other user that interacted with the generated URL, as taught by Verfaillie, in order to allow easy integration of features within a video game (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 13, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky does not teach wherein: a game play server maintains a data structure comprising a mapping of relationships between a plurality of game states and a plurality of URLs for the video game; the plurality of URLs for the video game comprises the generated URL; the game play server periodically stores new game states in the data structure as game play of the video game progresses; the data structure is shared with the content recognition server; and the content recognition server provides the generated URL to the user in response to receiving the user-interface interaction.
However, Verfaillie discloses wherein: a game play server maintains a data structure comprising a mapping of relationships between a plurality of game states and a plurality of URLs for the video game; the plurality of URLs for the video game comprises the generated URL; the game play server periodically stores new game states in the data structure as game play of the video game progresses; the data structure is shared with the content recognition server; and the content recognition server provides the generated URL to the user in response to receiving the user-interface interaction (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67, “local server component 126 may support a structured schema that maps uniform resource locators (URLs) to entities, components, and properties in the game state. This structured schema may allow display item elements to easily and efficiently retrieve statistics for the current game state. For example, in some cases, upon receiving a URL associated with a particular entity and/or component, the local server component 125 may employ a handler that maps the URL to the entity and/or component and returns associated statistical information. Also, in some examples, upon receiving a URL, the local server component 125 may execute associated script to retrieve a custom data set. In some examples, instructions for adding and including the local server component, the structured schema for URL mapping, and other features within the video game may be provided by a computing service provider, such as a service provider that hosts and executes video game server 110.”; also Verfaillie col. 10 lines 32-67, “the local server component may interact with one or more schemas within the video game that map URL's to entities, components, and/or properties within the video game” mapping URL to game components).
Verfaillie is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky, to include wherein: a game play server maintains a data structure comprising a mapping of relationships between a plurality of game states and a plurality of URLs for the video game; the plurality of URLs for the video game comprises the generated URL; the game play server periodically stores new game states in the data structure as game play of the video game progresses; the data structure is shared with the content recognition server; and the content recognition server provides the generated URL to the user in response to receiving the user-interface interaction, as taught by Verfaillie, in order to allow easy integration of features within a video game (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 14, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie discloses wherein the game state of the video game comprises at least one of: a most recent checkpoint in the video game, an indication of progress in the video game, and data related to one or more players participating in the video game (Sherwani [0029-0030], “In operation, a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server) identifies when a scene/segment (e.g., combat, setpiece) begins and saves a relevant state when the scene begins (or at other times) for a sender of the video game segment… to identify when a scene/segment begins, the backend (e.g., a server) assigns a scene identifier (ID) to some or all of: combat encounters, room/area entries, quest/mission starts, NPC conversations/encounters, setpiece entry points, and/or other game elements.”).
Regarding claim 15, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie discloses wherein the causing the at least one device of the user to join the video game session comprises: based at least in part on a current game state and the content ID of a virtual machine providing the video game session, causing the at least one device of the user to perform at least one of: transporting an in-game avatar of the user to an in-game location depicted by the at least one frame captured by the first device; providing an indicator on an in-game map of the video game, wherein the indicator indicates the in- game location; providing the in-game avatar of the user with in-game items; and providing an indication of a progression level of the current game state of the video game (Sherwani [0033], “The state is updated as the scene/segment progresses. As the player moves around and completes tasks, the state information (e.g., active Match) is updated. As the player transitions to a new scene/segment, the scene ID is updated, and a new Match representation is generated. By updating the state dynamically during progress, the shared video is able to be more truly interactive, so a recipient is able to play the scene/segment at any point during the segment,” providing game state, and progression level of the game state; also Sherwani [0049], “Statistical information is able to include any information such as number of kills, headshots, deaths, kill/death ratio, number of wins, number of goals/points, number of assists, number of perfect wins, number of collectibles obtained, favorite weapon/map, favorite team/player, favorite character and any other statistic/information,” indication of in-game map).
Claims 2 and 3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, and in further view of Brown et al. (hereinafter “Brown,” US 8,750,677).
Regarding claim 2, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie does not explicitly teach wherein the identifying information is at least one watermark extracted from the at least one frame of the video game.
However, Brown discloses wherein the identifying information is at least one watermark extracted from the at least one frame of the video game (Brown col. 10 lines 50-67, “connected device 850 could be a television screen (e.g., a smart television) or another device connected to a television (e.g., a set-top box or gaming console) or the like”; also Brown col. 5 lines 48-61, “determination of the media entry point identifier may involve use of data contained in a QR code, bar code, watermark, or other type of metadata or embedded data”).
Brown is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, as both are drawn to the art of multimedia devices. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, to include wherein the identifying information is at least one watermark extracted from the at least one frame of the video game, as taught by Brown, so that multimedia playing on one device can be quickly and easily transferred to another device for playback (Brown Abstract). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 3, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Brown does not explicitly teach wherein the at least one watermark is the generated URL, and wherein at least a portion of the generated URL indicates a corresponding game state stored by the content recognition server.
However, Verfaillie discloses wherein the at least one watermark is the generated URL, and wherein at least a portion of the generated URL indicates a corresponding game state stored by the content recognition server (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67, “local server component 126 may support a structured schema that maps uniform resource locators (URLs) to entities, components, and properties in the game state. This structured schema may allow display item elements to easily and efficiently retrieve statistics for the current game state. For example, in some cases, upon receiving a URL associated with a particular entity and/or component, the local server component 125 may employ a handler that maps the URL to the entity and/or component and returns associated statistical information. Also, in some examples, upon receiving a URL, the local server component 125 may execute associated script to retrieve a custom data set. In some examples, instructions for adding and including the local server component, the structured schema for URL mapping, and other features within the video game may be provided by a computing service provider, such as a service provider that hosts and executes video game server 110.”).
Verfaillie is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Brown, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Brown, to include wherein the at least one watermark is the generated URL, and wherein at least a portion of the generated URL indicates a corresponding game state stored by the content recognition server, as taught by Verfaillie, in order to allow easy integration of features within a video game (Verfaillie col. 6 lines 36-67). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, and in further view of Momeyer et al. (hereinafter “Momeyer,” US 8,781,152).
Regarding claim 4, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie does not teach wherein the identifying information is at least one fingerprint computed based on the at least one frame of the video game or a perceptual hash establishing a similarity of the video game perceived by the user.
However, Momeyer discloses wherein the identifying information is at least one fingerprint computed based on the at least one frame of the video game or a perceptual hash establishing a similarity of the video game perceived by the user (Momeyer col. 3 lines 29-44, “In order to quickly capture and later refer to the full content of the text-based or graphical article or video media content, the user can use a camera-enabled mobile device (e.g., smart phone, portable game console, personal digital assistant, etc.)”; also Momeyer col. 4 lines 12-44, “A portion of the captured content, perhaps pre-processed for machine vision recognition, can be sent to a server to find which movie this sequence is from. For example, such systems could use a hash table to quickly find which scenes from which movies should be further examined. The key to the hash table would be to use localized histogram of colors found in the frames.”).
Momeyer is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, as both are drawn to the art of multimedia devices. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, to include wherein the identifying information is at least one fingerprint computed based on the at least one frame of the video game or a perceptual hash establishing a similarity of the video game perceived by the user, as taught by Momeyer, in order to easily locate content (Momeyer col. 1 lines 50-62). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, and in further view of Garbow et al. (hereinafter “Garbow,” US 2008/0045335).
Regarding claim 16, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie does not explicitly teach every limitation of wherein the video game is depicted in a livestream, the method further comprising: determining a threshold in-game progress level based on an in-game progress level of a streamer hosting the livestream of the video game; and based at least in part on determining that an in-game progress level of the user does not meet or exceed the threshold in-game progress level: refraining from adding the user to a virtual machine associated with a video game session of the streamer; and generating a new virtual machine, wherein the new virtual machine comprises a user-interactable preview of the video game session of the streamer.
However, Garbow discloses wherein the video game is depicted in a livestream, the method further comprising: determining a threshold in-game progress level based on an in-game progress level of a streamer hosting the livestream of the video game; and based at least in part on determining that an in-game progress level of the user does not meet or exceed the threshold in-game progress level: refraining from adding the user to a virtual machine associated with a video game session of the streamer; and generating a new virtual machine, wherein the new virtual machine comprises a user-interactable preview of the video game session of the streamer (Garbow [0064], “determines whether the wait queue 164 has a record for any waiting player with a skill level that matches, is the same as, or is within a skill threshold of the skill level of the new player. If the determination at block 810 is true, then a waiting player (not currently playing the game) exists who has a skill level that matches, is the same as, or is within a skill threshold of the skill level of the new player, so control continues to block 815 where the controller 156 initializes the game state data 162 for the new player and the waiting player, removes the waiting player from the wait queue 164, adds the new player and the waiting player to the active player data 158, initializes respective play state data 160 for the new player and the waiting player, and sends the respective play state data 160 and the game state data 162 to the respective applications 170 at the respective client computer systems 132 for the new player and the waiting player,” where the system determines whether a player is viable in the current game state before allowing the player to enter it).
Garbow is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, to include wherein the video game is depicted in a livestream, the method further comprising: determining a threshold in-game progress level based on an in-game progress level of a streamer hosting the livestream of the video game; and based at least in part on determining that an in-game progress level of the user does not meet or exceed the threshold in-game progress level: refraining from adding the user to a virtual machine associated with a video game session of the streamer; and generating a new virtual machine, wherein the new virtual machine comprises a user-interactable preview of the video game session of the streamer, as taught by Garbow, in order to increase the satisfaction of players (Garbow [0004]). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, and in further view of Colenbrander (US 2017/0312626).
Regarding claim 17, Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie does not teach generating for display on the first device, a list of devices of the user that are capable of executing the video game session, wherein the list of devices comprises the at least one device of the user; and receiving a user-interface selection of a selected device from the list of devices, wherein the user-interface interaction with the generated URL causes the selected device to join the video game session.
However, Colenbrander discloses generating for display on the first device, a list of devices of the user that are capable of executing the video game session, wherein the list of devices comprises the at least one device of the user; and receiving a user-interface selection of a selected device from the list of devices, wherein the user-interface interaction with the generated URL causes the selected device to join the video game session (Colenbrander [0020], “The client device profiling module is further configured to generate a list of the secondary client devices. A handover manager within the application server is configured to obtain the list of secondary client devices, qualify the secondary client devices for playing the game, and forward a refined list of qualified secondary client devices with a handover option to the primary client device. The handover manager is further configured to receive a selection of a particular secondary client device identified by the handover option”).
Colenbrander is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, as both are drawn to the art of video games. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, to include generating for display on the first device, a list of devices of the user that are capable of executing the video game session, wherein the list of devices comprises the at least one device of the user; and receiving a user-interface selection of a selected device from the list of devices, wherein the user-interface interaction with the generated URL causes the selected device to join the video game session, as taught by Colenbrander, so that the user can join the game in a fast and seamless manner to enjoy enhanced game play experience (Colenbrander [0117]). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Claims 18 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sherwani in view of Brown.
Regarding claim 18, Sherwani discloses a system comprising:
a game streaming origin server (Sherwani [0029], “a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server)”), wherein the game streaming origin server is configured to:
identify a portion of a livestream of a video game (Sherwani [0029-0030], “In operation, a video game system (e.g., the software, the console, and/or the network/server) identifies when a scene/segment (e.g., combat, setpiece) begins and saves a relevant state when the scene begins (or at other times) for a sender of the video game segment”).
Sherwani does not teach generate a digital watermark based at least in part on a content ID and a game state of the portion of the livestream of the video game; and modify the portion of the livestream of the video game to include the digital watermark; and transmit the digital watermark to a content recognition server; and a content recognition server configured to: store the digital watermark; and wherein the game streaming origin server is further configured to: provide the modified portion of the livestream of the video game to a user device.
However, Brown discloses generate a digital watermark based at least in part on a content ID and a game state of the portion of the livestream of the video game; and modify the portion of the livestream of the video game to include the digital watermark; and transmit the digital watermark to a content recognition server; and a content recognition server configured to: store the digital watermark; and wherein the game streaming origin server is further configured to: provide the modified portion of the livestream of the video game to a user device (Brown col. 10 lines 50-67, “connected device 850 could be a television screen (e.g., a smart television) or another device connected to a television (e.g., a set-top box or gaming console) or the like”; also Brown col. 5 lines 48-61, “determination of the media entry point identifier may involve use of data contained in a QR code, bar code, watermark, or other type of metadata or embedded data”; also Brown col. 9 lines 34-61, “responding to a request for a media entry point identifier and a version of transferred media playable on a specific device. This or similar methods could be used by, for example, a remote media playback transfer server to determine media entry point identifiers and media versions to be used when transferring media playback from one device to another”; also Brown col. 10 lines 13-49, “The cloud 810 may contain a particular media playback transfer server 825 that may contain information on various types and versions of playable media, as well as computational capability for determining a media entry point identifier as well as specific versions of media playable on certain types of devices. The media playback transfer server 825 may also contain information specific to certain users, such as all media entry point identifiers associated with a certain user, so as to facilitate transfer of media playback to any device connected to the cloud 810”).
Brown is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, as both are drawn to the art of multimedia devices. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, to include generate a digital watermark based at least in part on a content ID and a game state of the portion of the livestream of the video game; and modify the portion of the livestream of the video game to include the digital watermark; and transmit the digital watermark to a content recognition server; and a content recognition server configured to: store the digital watermark; and wherein the game streaming origin server is further configured to: provide the modified portion of the livestream of the video game to a user device, as taught by Brown, so that multimedia playing on one device can be quickly and easily transferred to another device for playback (Brown Abstract). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 19, Sherwani does not teach every limitation of wherein the content recognition server is further configured to: receive, from the user device, a query comprising a captured digital watermark; determine that the captured digital watermark matches the stored digital watermark; and provide the content ID and the game state to the user device.
However, Brown discloses wherein the content recognition server is further configured to: receive, from the user device, a query comprising a captured digital watermark; determine that the captured digital watermark matches the stored digital watermark; and provide the content ID and the game state to the user device (Brown col. 5 lines 48-61, “determination of the media entry point identifier may involve use of data contained in a QR code, bar code, watermark, or other type of metadata or embedded data”; also Brown col. 9 lines 34-61, “responding to a request for a media entry point identifier and a version of transferred media playable on a specific device. This or similar methods could be used by, for example, a remote media playback transfer server to determine media entry point identifiers and media versions to be used when transferring media playback from one device to another”).
Brown is analogous to Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, as both are drawn to the art of multimedia devices. It would be obvious to try by one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method as taught by Sherwani in view of Stelovsky and Verfaillie, to include wherein the content recognition server is further configured to: receive, from the user device, a query comprising a captured digital watermark; determine that the captured digital watermark matches the stored digital watermark; and provide the content ID and the game state to the user device, as taught by Brown, so that multimedia playing on one device can be quickly and easily transferred to another device for playback (Brown Abstract). Doing so is a predictable solution that one of ordinary skill in the art could have pursued with a reasonable expectation of success.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Perrin et al. (US 2015/0367238) Game system, game apparatus, a method of controlling the same, a program, and a storage medium
Perry (US 2017/0087476) Systems and methods for providing augmented data-feed for game play re-creation and dynamic replay entry points
Curley et al. (US 10,722,801) Session management for virtual environments
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/STEPHEN ALVESTEFFER/Examiner, Art Unit 3715
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