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 .
Amendment
This Office Action is made in response to amendment, filed 6/24/2026. Applicant has amended independent claims 1, 9, and 10, claims 8 and 17 are cancelled.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments set forth in the “Remarks” filed 6/24/2026, have been fully considered. The Applicant submitted a Terminal Disclaimer filed on 6/24/2026 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of US Patent No. 12,262,095. It has been reviewed and is accepted. The terminal disclaimer has been recorded, and the Double Patent rejection is withdrawn..
With respect to the rejection of claim 1 under 35 USC § 103, Applicant presents the following arguments:
Fixed positions of Agarwal’s ad avails – Applicant argues that Agarwal’s ad avails occur at fixed positions, whereas the claimed first multimedia content is presented in response to detecting a reminding event. However, claim 1 does not require the first multimedia content to lack a fixed position or to be presented at a dynamically determined position. Agarwal detects reaching an ad avail during playback and, in response, presents advertisement content. Accordingly, Applicant’s argument relies on a limitation not recited in claim 1.
Agarwal’s predetermined pause duration – Applicant argues that Agarwal’s disclosure of resuming playback after a pause lasting a predetermined amount of time does not teach detecting that the user’s viewing duration exceeds a threshold. Although this particular disclosure concerns the duration of a pause rather that the duration of viewing, amended claim 1 recites the four triggering conditions alternatively using “at least one of.” Thus, the references need only teach or suggest one of the recited conditions.
Agarwal’s determination of the number of advertisements - Applicant argues that Agarwal’s determination of the number of advertisements does not teach an index representing the user’s fatigue degree. The Examiner agrees that this particular disclosure does not expressly establish a fatigue-degree index. Nevertheless, this does not overcome the rejection because the triggering conditions are recited in the alternative.
Pierre’s event-priority value - Applicant argues that Pierre’s event priority does not represent the user’s fatigue degree. Even assuming Applicant is correct, Pierre separately teaches that an incoming event may be an appliance timer, such as an oven timer, and that expiration of the timer causes a notification to be presented and the current broadcast to be paused so the viewer may attend to the timed event (Pierre, col.5, lines 20-24; col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37). Expiration of an oven timer teaches or suggests detecting that the current time reaches a set time, which is one of the alternatively recited triggering conditions.
Applicant further contends that Claim 1 is allowable for the reasons presented above; that amended claims 9 and 10 are allowable for at least the same reasons as claim 1; and that dependent claims 2-7, 11-16, and 18-20 are allowable based on their dependency from allegedly allowable independent claims. The Examiner disagrees because the amendments and arguments do not overcome the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre. Applicant’s arguments regarding independent claims 1, 9 and 10, and dependent claims 2-7, 11-16, and 18-20 have been fully considered but are moot in view of the new grounds of rejection set forth below).
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 of this title, 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 set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Agarwal et al., Pub No US 2011/0145856 (hereafter Agarwal) and further in view Pierre et al., Pat No US 7,536, 704 (hereafter Pierre).
Regarding Claim 1, Agarwal discloses an information presentation method [FIG.7, para.0071: Illustrates an information presentation method], comprising:
during a process of an application presenting a multimedia stream, detecting that a reminding event is triggered [para.0074: Discloses reaching an ad avail during playback of the VOD content item. Thus, detects when an advertisement avail is reached during playback of a VOD multimedia stream, which corresponds to detecting an event during presentation of multimedia content.];
in response to the triggering of the reminding event, presenting first multimedia content [para.0037: Discloses advertisements may be displayed on the television during playback of a VOD content item. Upon reaching the ad avail event, presentation of the advertisement is presented during playback of the VOD stream, corresponding to presenting first multimedia content.], wherein the first multimedia content includes prompt content associated with the reminding event [para.0060: Discloses a message counting down to a beginning of video playback may be shown. Teaches displaying a message associated with the advertisement indicating when playback will resume, which constitutes prompt content presented with the first multimedia content.]; and
in response to a switching operation acting on first multimedia content by the current user is received [para.0058: Discloses trick mode playback (e.g., fast-forward, skipping, rewinding). Describes user trick-mode inputs such as fast-forwarding or skipping, which corresponds to user switching operations acting on the currently presented content.], determining whether a presented duration of the first multimedia content is less than a first duration [para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds (a first duration) of unviewed advertisements in the ad avail remain during playback of the ad avail, trick mode playback may be enabled. Thus, evaluates whether a threshold amount of advertisement viewing has occurred, corresponding to determining whether the duration of the first multimedia content is below a threshold (a first duration).], and if yes, continuing to display the first multimedia content without switching to second multimedia content [para.0077: Discloses disabling trick mode playback may also include disallowing a user to fast-forward or skip within an ad avail. Thus, when the advertisement has not yet been sufficiently viewed, trick-mode playback is disabled so the advertisement continues to display without switching to the next content.], wherein the second multimedia content is the next multimedia content in the multimedia stream [para.0060: Discloses a message counting down to a beginning of video playback may be shown. The countdown message indicates that after the advertisement completes, playback of the underlying VOD video resumes, which corresponds to the next multimedia content in the stream.];
Agarwal does not explicitly disclose wherein the first multimedia content includes prompt content associated with the reminding event for reminding a current user to pause viewing the multimedia stream (emphasis on what is not taught by Agarwal); wherein the detecting that the reminding event is triggered comprises at least one of: detecting that a duration of the current user viewing the multimedia stream using the application is greater than a duration threshold; detecting that a number of multimedia contents in the multimedia stream viewed by the current user using the application is larger than a number threshold; detecting that a value of an index of the current user reaches an index threshold, wherein, the index represents a fatigue degree of the current user; or detecting that a current time reaches a set time. However, in analogous art, Pierre discloses presenting an event notification to a viewer and automatically pausing the current broadcast so that the viewer may respond to the event without missing the broadcast (Pierre, col.2, lines 21-40; col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37). Pierre further discloses an incoming event may be an appliance timer, such as an oven timer, and that expiration of the timer causes a notification to be presented and the current broadcast to be paused so the viewer may attend to the timed event (Pierre, col.5, lines 20-24; col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37). Expiration of an oven timer teaches or suggests detecting that the current time reaches a set time, which is one of the alternatively recited triggering conditions
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify Agarwal with these features, as taught by Pierre in order to yield predictable result such as allowing a viewer to be notified of an incoming event while preventing the viewer from missing portions of the multimedia stream by automatically pausing the current broadcast during the notification (Pierre: col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37).
Regarding Claim 2, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the method according to claim 1, and further discloses wherein in response to a switching operation acting on first multimedia content by a current user is received [Agarwal - para.0045: Discloses updated ad decision may be obtained when a user starts a new viewing session of a previously selected VOD content item. Thus, teaches a user initiating a new viewing session (switching), which is a user-driven action affecting multimedia playback. Under BRI, initiating a new viewing session constitutes a switching operation acting on multimedia content.], determining whether a presented duration of the first multimedia content is less than a first duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses determining whether a remaining duration of multimedia content satisfies a threshold condition (if less than 30 seconds of unviewed advertisements in the ad avail remain). This explicitly teaches comparing a presented duration of multimedia content against a predefined duration threshold. Under BRI, the remaining unviewed duration corresponds to the presented duration of the multimedia content, and the ’30 seconds’ value corresponds to the claimed “first duration,” thereby satisfying the limitation of determining whether the presented duration is less than a first duration.], and if yes, continuing to display the first multimedia content without switching to second multimedia content [Pierre – claim 11 col.9 lines 0043-45: Discloses continue display of the content. Thus, teaches maintaining playback of current content without transitioning, which corresponds to continuing to display without switching.] further comprises:
displaying first copywriting information and playing first voice information matched with the first copywriting information [Pierre – col.6 lines 0050-0051 and lines 62-63: Discloses non-obtrusive event notification that may be audio or visual or both. Visual notification are graphical popups that are superimposed on the video program. Such notifications include textual message content conveyed to the user (e.g., alerts or reminders). Under BRI, the displayed textual content of these notifications constitutes ‘copywriting information,’ and presenting such popups corresponds to ‘displaying first copywriting information.’ Even if the notification includes graphical elements, the informational content conveyed to the user necessarily includes textual or symbolic information, which falls within the scope of ‘copywriting information’ under BRI.], wherein the first copywriting information and/or the first voice information includes countdown information [Pierre – col.8 lines 3-6: Discloses the remaining duration of the broadcast determines how often and at what time retries will be attempted. If five minutes are left, a single retry will occur at the three minutes remaining mark. Thus, time-based notifications convey remaining time corresponding to countdown information.], and a starting value in the countdown information is the first duration [Pierre – col.8 lines 3-5: Discloses the remaining duration of the broadcast determines how often and at what time retries will be attempted (started). Pierre explicitly bases notification timing on the remaining duration of content, which corresponds to using a duration value as the starting point for countdown-related operations.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 1.
Regarding Claim 3, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the method according to claim 2, and Pierre further discloses further comprising:
detecting that the reminding event is triggered again [col.8 lines 4-5: Discloses retries will be attempted. Retry mechanism directly teaches repeated event triggering.];
presenting third multimedia content, wherein the third multimedia content includes prompt content [col.6 lines 62—64: Discloses typical visual notification are graphical popups that are superimposed on the video program. Pierre discloses graphical popups presented during video playback, which constitute additional multimedia content (third multimedia content) including prompt information presented to the user.]; and
in response to a switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received, continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to fourth multimedia content [claim 1 col.9 lines 42-43: Discloses continuing display of the content, in response to determining said priority is relatively low. Maintains same content without switching. Pierre teaches that even after user interaction (a switching operation), playback of the current content may continue without interruption, which corresponds to continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching.], displaying second copywriting information and playing second voice information matched with the second copywriting information [col.7 lines 1-2: Discloses increasing volume for an audio notification. Pierre discloses intensified notification outputs, including audio, which correspond to a second set of notification information (copywriting and voice) distinct from the first.], wherein, the fourth multimedia content is the next multimedia content in the multimedia stream [col.7 lines 27-30: Disclose remaining duration of the broadcast. Pierre describes sequential playback of multimedia streams, where subsequent content follows the currently displayed content, corresponding to the next multimedia content in the stream.], a reminding intensity of the second copywriting information is greater than that of the first copywriting information [col.6 lines 66-67: Discloses enlarging, brightening. Explicitly teaches increasing visual prominence (e.g., enlarging, brightening) which corresponds to increasing the intensity of copywriting information relative to prior notifications.], and/or a reminding intensity of the second voice information is greater than that of the first voice information [col.7 lines 1-2: Discloses increasing volume for an audio notification. Directly corresponds to increasing the intensity of second voice information relative to first voice information].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 2.
Regarding Claim 4, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the method according to claim 3, and further discloses wherein in response to a switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received [Pierre – col.9 lines 54-56: Discloses resuming display of the paused content, in response to detecting an acknowledgement of said event from the viewer. Thus, explicitly teaches detecting a user input that causes a change in multimedia playback state. Such user acknowledgement constitutes a user-initiated control affecting content presentation. Under BRI, this corresponds to a “switching operation acting on the multimedia content.], continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to the fourth multimedia content [Pierre – claim1 col.9 lines 42-43: Discloses continuing display of the content, in response to determining said priority is relatively low. Pierre discloses maintaining presentation of multimedia content without transitioning to other content. This teaching directly corresponds to continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to a subsequent (fourth) multimedia content under BRI.] comprises:
in response to the switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received [Pierre – claim 3 col.9 lines 54-56: Discloses resuming display of the paused content, in response to detecting an acknowledgement of said event from the viewer. Pierre explicitly teaches detecting a user acknowledgement and using that input to control playback behavior. Such acknowledgement is a user-initiated interaction affecting content state, which under BRI constitutes a switching operation acting on multimedia content.], determining whether a presented duration of the third multimedia content is less than a second duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds of unviewed advertisements remain. Agarwal discloses explicitly comparing a remaining duration of multimedia content to a predefined temporal threshold. This constitutes determining whether a presented duration is less than a defined duration. Under BRI, the remaining unviewed duration corresponds to the presented duration of the third multimedia content, and the 30 second threshold corresponds to the claimed second duration.], and if yes, forbidding switching to the fourth multimedia content [Agarwal - para.0059: Discloses trick mode playback may be disabled. When conditions are not satisfied then forbid switching.], wherein, the second duration is greater than the first duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds. Agarwal discloses use of a specific temporal threshold governing playback control. The presence of defined threshold durations reflects comparative duration values. Under BRI, the claimed second duration (threshold) being greater that the first duration is satisfied by the system’s use of threshold-based duration comparisons controlling playback behavior.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 3.
Regarding Claim 5, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the method according to claim 1, and Pierre further discloses wherein the prompt content includes a reminding video of a target character image dictating reminder information [co.5 lines 20-21: Discloses the event notification includes an event identification code defining the type of event. Thus, teaches providing event-related content associated with playback, corresponding to reminder-type content.], the target character image is included in a character image set which includes character images of a first user in the application [col.5 line 15: Discloses Viewer Manager stores client/user information. Teaches storing user-related data, corresponding to maintaining sets of user-associated content.], the first user having an association with the current user in the application [col.4 lines 26-28: Discloses subscriber profiles in Viewer Profile and Viewer Category (viewer buying and viewing habits). Discloses user profile indicating associations between users and stored data.] wherein before the presenting the first multimedia content, further comprising:
determining a target character image from the character image set according to historical interaction data generated during the process of using the application by the current user [col.4 lines 29-31: Discloses the Service Platform (application used) gathers the viewer habits, for example, interruption scenarios or how a viewer reacts to an interruption, for statistical purposes and stores them in the User Data. Thus, teaches using historical interaction data to determine system behavior.];
screening a target reminding video from a reminding video set of the target character image [col.6 lines 10-11: Discloses appropriate response scenario based on the viewer preferences and interruption rules. Teaches selecting appropriate content based on stored data.]; and
determining the first multimedia content to be presented according to the target reminding video [col.6 lines 19-20: Discloses automatically pause the current broadcast and render the event to the viewer.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 1.
Regarding Claim 6, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the method according to claim 1, and Pierre further discloses wherein the prompt content includes a reminding video of a character image of a second user dictating reminder information, recorded by the application [col.5 lines 20-23: Discloses the event notification includes an event identification code defining the type of event and a relative priority. The event can be an incoming email, a reminder for an upcoming show on TV, a phone call, or an appliance timer such as an oven timer. Thus, teaches generating and presenting reminder-type content (e.g., reminders for upcoming shows) as part of event notifications, which correspond to reminding video content recorded and presented by the application.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 1.
Regarding Claim 7, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the method according to claim 1, and further discloses further comprising, after receiving the switching operation acting on first multimedia content input by the current user [Pierre – col.6 lines 20-22: Discloses the viewer responds to the event via a voice or digital command from a remote control. Teaches receiving a user-initiated switching operation acting on multimedia content via user input.]:
if the presented duration of the first multimedia content is greater than or equal to the first duration [Agarwal - para.0028: Discloses ad decision request may … be sent … resumption of playback after a pause that lasts a pre-determined amount of time… Teaches evaluating playback duration relative to a predefined threshold, corresponding to comparing presented duration to a first duration.] switching to the second multimedia content [Pierre – col.6 lines 31-32: Discloses resume viewing. Pierre teaches switching playback states/content based on user, corresponding to switching to second multimedia content.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 1.
Regarding Claim 8, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the method according to claim 1, and further discloses wherein the detecting that a reminding event is triggered [Pierre - col.5 lines 16-18: Discloses during a playback or broadcast of a program, whether or not the viewer is watching, the present invention sends an event notification to the user device. Detecting occurrence of events during playback, corresponding to triggering a reminding event.] comprises at least one of:
detecting that a duration of the current user viewing the multimedia stream using the application is greater than a duration threshold [Agarwal - para.0028: Discloses ad decision request may … be sent … resumption of playback after a pause that lasts a pre-determined amount of time… Thus, discloses evaluating playback duration relative to a predefined threshold, corresponding to determining when viewing durations exceeds a threshold.];
detecting that a number of multimedia contents in the multimedia stream viewed by the current user using the application is larger than a number threshold [Agarwal - para.0043: Discloses determining a number of advertisements to be included in the VOD content item based upon a result of comparing the VOD metadata to the set of one or more policy rules. Teaches determining and evaluating quantities (number of advertisements), corresponding to comparing a number against a threshold.];
detecting that a value of an index of the current user reaches an index threshold, wherein, the index is used to represent a fatigue degree of the current user [Pierre – col.5 lines 34-38: Discloses determining event priority based on current viewing activity, user preferences, and stored priority tables. These parameters collectively represent a dynamic measure of the user’s engagement and tolerance to interruption. Under BRI, such a computed priority value constitutes an index reflecting user state, including fatigue degree, where reaching certain priority conditions governs whether an event is triggered or presented.]; or
detecting that a current time reaches a set time [Pierre – col.6 lines 8-11: Discloses expiration of an oven timer … the user will be presented… Explicitly teaches time-based event triggering when a set time is reached.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 1.
Regarding Claim 9, Agarwal discloses an electronic device comprising a memory, a processor and a computer program stored on the memory and executable by the processor [FIG.2, para.0024: Discloses Distributor Server (an electronic device) includes memory (element 217) comprising instructions executable by a processor (element 217); and para.0079: Discloses computing devices (an electronic device) that include a processor and associated volatile and non-volatile memory, and are configured to execute programs stored in non-volatile memory using portions of volatile memory and the processor. Further discloses computer-readable media having program instructions stored thereon, which upon execution by a computing device, cause the computing device to execute.], the computer program, when executed by the processor, causes the processor to implement an information presentation method, comprising:
during a process of an application presenting a multimedia stream, detecting that a reminding event is triggered [para.0074: Discloses reaching an ad avail during playback of the VOD content item. Thus, detects when an advertisement avail is reached during playback of a VOD multimedia stream, which corresponds to detecting an event during presentation of multimedia content.];
in response to the triggering of the reminding event, presenting first multimedia content [para.0037: Discloses advertisements may be displayed on the television during playback of a VOD content item. Upon reaching the ad avail event, presentation of the advertisement is presented during playback of the VOD stream, corresponding to presenting first multimedia content.], wherein the first multimedia content includes prompt content associated with the reminding event [para.0060: Discloses a message counting down to a beginning of video playback may be shown. Teaches displaying a message associated with the advertisement indicating when playback will resume, which constitutes prompt content presented with the first multimedia content.]; and
in response to a switching operation acting on first multimedia content by the current user is received [para.0058: Discloses trick mode playback (e.g., fast-forward, skipping, rewinding). Describes user trick-mode inputs such as fast-forwarding or skipping, which corresponds to user switching operations acting on the currently presented content.], determining whether a presented duration of the first multimedia content is less than a first duration [para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds (a first duration) of unviewed advertisements in the ad avail remain during playback of the ad avail, trick mode playback may be enabled. Thus, evaluates whether a threshold amount of advertisement viewing has occurred, corresponding to determining whether the duration of the first multimedia content is below a threshold (a first duration).], and if yes, continuing to display the first multimedia content without switching to second multimedia content [para.0077: Discloses disabling trick mode playback may also include disallowing a user to fast-forward or skip within an ad avail. Thus, when the advertisement has not yet been sufficiently viewed, trick-mode playback is disabled so the advertisement continues to display without switching to the next content.], wherein the second multimedia content is the next multimedia content in the multimedia stream [para.0060: Discloses a message counting down to a beginning of video playback may be shown. The countdown message indicates that after the advertisement completes, playback of the underlying VOD video resumes, which corresponds to the next multimedia content in the stream.].
Agarwal does not explicitly disclose wherein the first multimedia content includes prompt content associated with the reminding event for reminding a current user to pause viewing the multimedia stream (emphasis on what is not taught by Agarwal); wherein the detecting that the reminding event is triggered comprises at least one of: detecting that a duration of the current user viewing the multimedia stream using the application is greater than a duration threshold; detecting that a number of multimedia contents in the multimedia stream viewed by the current user using the application is larger than a number threshold; detecting that a value of an index of the current user reaches an index threshold, wherein, the index represents a fatigue degree of the current user; or detecting that a current time reaches a set time. However, in analogous art, Pierre discloses presenting an event notification to a viewer and automatically pausing the current broadcast so that the viewer may respond to the event without missing the broadcast (Pierre, col.2, lines 21-40; col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37). Pierre further discloses an incoming event may be an appliance timer, such as an oven timer, and that expiration of the timer causes a notification to be presented and the current broadcast to be paused so the viewer may attend to the timed event (Pierre, col.5, lines 20-24; col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37). Expiration of an oven timer teaches or suggests detecting that the current time reaches a set time, which is one of the alternatively recited triggering conditions
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify Agarwal with these features, as taught by Pierre in order to yield predictable result such as allowing a viewer to be notified of an incoming event while preventing the viewer from missing portions of the multimedia stream by automatically pausing the current broadcast during the notification (Pierre: col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37).
Regarding Claim 10, Agarwal discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, the computer program, when executed by a processor [para.0079: Discloses computer-readable media having program instructions stored thereon, which upon execution by a computing device, cause the computing device to execute.], implements an information presentation method, comprising:
during a process of an application presenting a multimedia stream, detecting that a reminding event is triggered [para.0074: Discloses reaching an ad avail during playback of the VOD content item. Thus, detects when an advertisement avail is reached during playback of a VOD multimedia stream, which corresponds to detecting an event during presentation of multimedia content.];
in response to the triggering of the reminding event, presenting first multimedia content [para.0037: Discloses advertisements may be displayed on the television during playback of a VOD content item. Upon reaching the ad avail event, presentation of the advertisement is presented during playback of the VOD stream, corresponding to presenting first multimedia content.], wherein the first multimedia content includes prompt content associated with the reminding event [para.0060: Discloses a message counting down to a beginning of video playback may be shown. Teaches displaying a message associated with the advertisement indicating when playback will resume, which constitutes prompt content presented with the first multimedia content.]; and
in response to a switching operation acting on first multimedia content by the current user is received [para.0058: Discloses trick mode playback (e.g., fast-forward, skipping, rewinding). Describes user trick-mode inputs such as fast-forwarding or skipping, which corresponds to user switching operations acting on the currently presented content.], determining whether a presented duration of the first multimedia content is less than a first duration [para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds (a first duration) of unviewed advertisements in the ad avail remain during playback of the ad avail, trick mode playback may be enabled. Thus, evaluates whether a threshold amount of advertisement viewing has occurred, corresponding to determining whether the duration of the first multimedia content is below a threshold (a first duration).], and if yes, continuing to display the first multimedia content without switching to second multimedia content [para.0077: Discloses disabling trick mode playback may also include disallowing a user to fast-forward or skip within an ad avail. Thus, when the advertisement has not yet been sufficiently viewed, trick-mode playback is disabled so the advertisement continues to display without switching to the next content.], wherein the second multimedia content is the next multimedia content in the multimedia stream [para.0060: Discloses a message counting down to a beginning of video playback may be shown. The countdown message indicates that after the advertisement completes, playback of the underlying VOD video resumes, which corresponds to the next multimedia content in the stream.].
Agarwal does not explicitly disclose wherein the first multimedia content includes prompt content associated with the reminding event for reminding a current user to pause viewing the multimedia stream (emphasis on what is not taught by Agarwal); wherein the detecting that the reminding event is triggered comprises at least one of: detecting that a duration of the current user viewing the multimedia stream using the application is greater than a duration threshold; detecting that a number of multimedia contents in the multimedia stream viewed by the current user using the application is larger than a number threshold; detecting that a value of an index of the current user reaches an index threshold, wherein, the index represents a fatigue degree of the current user; or detecting that a current time reaches a set time. However, in analogous art, Pierre discloses presenting an event notification to a viewer and automatically pausing the current broadcast so that the viewer may respond to the event without missing the broadcast (Pierre, col.2, lines 21-40; col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37). Pierre further discloses an incoming event may be an appliance timer, such as an oven timer, and that expiration of the timer causes a notification to be presented and the current broadcast to be paused so the viewer may attend to the timed event (Pierre, col.5, lines 20-24; col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37). Expiration of an oven timer teaches or suggests detecting that the current time reaches a set time, which is one of the alternatively recited triggering conditions
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify Agarwal with these features, as taught by Pierre in order to yield predictable result such as allowing a viewer to be notified of an incoming event while preventing the viewer from missing portions of the multimedia stream by automatically pausing the current broadcast during the notification (Pierre: col.6, lines 16-21 and lines 28-37).
Regarding Claim 11, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the electronic device according to claim 9, and further discloses wherein in response to a switching operation acting on first multimedia content by a current user is received [Agarwal - para.0045: Discloses updated ad decision may be obtained when a user starts a new viewing session of a previously selected VOD content item. Thus, teaches a user initiating a new viewing session (switching), which is a user-driven action affecting multimedia playback. Under BRI, initiating a new viewing session constitutes a switching operation acting on multimedia content.], determining whether a presented duration of the first multimedia content is less than a first duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses determining whether a remaining duration of multimedia content satisfies a threshold condition (if less than 30 seconds of unviewed advertisements in the ad avail remain). This explicitly teaches comparing a presented duration of multimedia content against a predefined duration threshold. Under BRI, the remaining unviewed duration corresponds to the presented duration of the multimedia content, and the ’30 seconds’ value corresponds to the claimed “first duration,” thereby satisfying the limitation of determining whether the presented duration is less than a first duration.], and if yes, continuing to display the first multimedia content without switching to second multimedia content [Pierre – claim 11 col.9 lines 0043-45: Discloses continue display of the content. Thus, teaches maintaining playback of current content without transitioning, which corresponds to continuing to display without switching.] further comprises:
displaying first copywriting information and playing first voice information matched with the first copywriting information [Pierre – col.6 lines 0050-0051 and lines 62-63: Discloses non-obtrusive event notification that may be audio or visual or both. Visual notification are graphical popups that are superimposed on the video program. Such notifications include textual message content conveyed to the user (e.g., alerts or reminders). Under BRI, the displayed textual content of these notifications constitutes ‘copywriting information,’ and presenting such popups corresponds to ‘displaying first copywriting information.’ Even if the notification includes graphical elements, the informational content conveyed to the user necessarily includes textual or symbolic information, which falls within the scope of ‘copywriting information’ under BRI.], wherein the first copywriting information and/or the first voice information includes countdown information [Pierre – col.8 lines 3-6: Discloses the remaining duration of the broadcast determines how often and at what time retries will be attempted. If five minutes are left, a single retry will occur at the three minutes remaining mark. Thus, time-based notifications convey remaining time corresponding to countdown information.], and a starting value in the countdown information is the first duration [Pierre – col.8 lines 3-5: Discloses the remaining duration of the broadcast determines how often and at what time retries will be attempted (started). Pierre explicitly bases notification timing on the remaining duration of content, which corresponds to using a duration value as the starting point for countdown-related operations.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 9.
Regarding Claim 12, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the electronic device according to claim 11, and Pierre further discloses the computer program further causes the processor to implement the method comprising:
detecting that the reminding event is triggered again [col.8 lines 4-5: Discloses retries will be attempted. Retry mechanism directly teaches repeated event triggering.];
presenting third multimedia content, wherein the third multimedia content includes prompt content [col.6 lines 62—64: Discloses typical visual notification are graphical popups that are superimposed on the video program. Pierre discloses graphical popups presented during video playback, which constitute additional multimedia content (third multimedia content) including prompt information presented to the user.]; and
in response to a switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received, continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to fourth multimedia content [claim 1 col.9 lines 42-43: Discloses continuing display of the content, in response to determining said priority is relatively low. Maintains same content without switching. Pierre teaches that even after user interaction (a switching operation), playback of the current content may continue without interruption, which corresponds to continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching.], displaying second copywriting information and playing second voice information matched with the second copywriting information [col.7 lines 1-2: Discloses increasing volume for an audio notification. Pierre discloses intensified notification outputs, including audio, which correspond to a second set of notification information (copywriting and voice) distinct from the first.], wherein, the fourth multimedia content is the next multimedia content in the multimedia stream [col.7 lines 27-30: Disclose remaining duration of the broadcast. Pierre describes sequential playback of multimedia streams, where subsequent content follows the currently displayed content, corresponding to the next multimedia content in the stream.], a reminding intensity of the second copywriting information is greater than that of the first copywriting information [col.6 lines 66-67: Discloses enlarging, brightening. Explicitly teaches increasing visual prominence (e.g., enlarging, brightening) which corresponds to increasing the intensity of copywriting information relative to prior notifications.], and/or a reminding intensity of the second voice information is greater than that of the first voice information [col.7 lines 1-2: Discloses increasing volume for an audio notification. Directly corresponds to increasing the intensity of second voice information relative to first voice information].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 11.
Regarding Claim 13, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the electronic device according to claim 12, and further discloses in response to a switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received [Pierre – col.9 lines 54-56: Discloses resuming display of the paused content, in response to detecting an acknowledgement of said event from the viewer. Thus, explicitly teaches detecting a user input that causes a change in multimedia playback state. Such user acknowledgement constitutes a user-initiated control affecting content presentation. Under BRI, this corresponds to a “switching operation acting on the multimedia content.], continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to the fourth multimedia content [Pierre – claim1 col.9 lines 42-43: Discloses continuing display of the content, in response to determining said priority is relatively low. Pierre discloses maintaining presentation of multimedia content without transitioning to other content. This teaching directly corresponds to continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to a subsequent (fourth) multimedia content under BRI.] comprises:
in response to the switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received [Pierre – claim 3 col.9 lines 54-56: Discloses resuming display of the paused content, in response to detecting an acknowledgement of said event from the viewer. Pierre explicitly teaches detecting a user acknowledgement and using that input to control playback behavior. Such acknowledgement is a user-initiated interaction affecting content state, which under BRI constitutes a switching operation acting on multimedia content.], determining whether a presented duration of the third multimedia content is less than a second duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds of unviewed advertisements remain. Agarwal discloses explicitly comparing a remaining duration of multimedia content to a predefined temporal threshold. This constitutes determining whether a presented duration is less than a defined duration. Under BRI, the remaining unviewed duration corresponds to the presented duration of the third multimedia content, and the 30 second threshold corresponds to the claimed second duration.], and if yes, forbidding switching to the fourth multimedia content [Agarwal - para.0059: Discloses trick mode playback may be disabled. When conditions are not satisfied then forbid switching.], wherein, the second duration is greater than the first duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds. Agarwal discloses use of a specific temporal threshold governing playback control. The presence of defined threshold durations reflects comparative duration values. Under BRI, the claimed second duration (threshold) being greater that the first duration is satisfied by the system’s use of threshold-based duration comparisons controlling playback behavior.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 12.
Regarding Claim 14, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the electronic device according to claim 9, and Pierre further discloses wherein the prompt content includes a reminding video of a target character image dictating reminder information [co.5 lines 20-21: Discloses the event notification includes an event identification code defining the type of event. Thus, teaches providing event-related content associated with playback, corresponding to reminder-type content.], the target character image is included in a character image set which includes character images of a first user in the application [col.5 line 15: Discloses Viewer Manager stores client/user information. Teaches storing user-related data, corresponding to maintaining sets of user-associated content.], the first user having an association with the current user in the application [col.4 lines 26-28: Discloses subscriber profiles in Viewer Profile and Viewer Category (viewer buying and viewing habits). Discloses user profile indicating associations between users and stored data.] wherein before the presenting the first multimedia content, further comprising:
determining a target character image from the character image set according to historical interaction data generated during the process of using the application by the current user [col.4 lines 29-31: Discloses the Service Platform (application used) gathers the viewer habits, for example, interruption scenarios or how a viewer reacts to an interruption, for statistical purposes and stores them in the User Data. Teaches using historical interaction data to determine system behavior.];
screening a target reminding video from a reminding video set of the target character image [col.6 lines 10-11: Discloses appropriate response scenario based on the viewer preferences and interruption rules. Teaches selecting appropriate content based on stored data.]; and
determining the first multimedia content to be presented according to the target reminding video [col.6 lines 19-20: Discloses automatically pause the current broadcast and render the event to the viewer.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 9.
Regarding Claim 15, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the electronic device according to claim 9, and Pierre further discloses wherein the prompt content includes a reminding video of a character image of a second user dictating reminder information, recorded by the application [col.5 lines 20-23: Discloses the event notification includes an event identification code defining the type of event and a relative priority. The event can be an incoming email, a reminder for an upcoming show on TV, a phone call, or an appliance timer such as an oven timer. Thus, teaches generating and presenting reminder-type content (e.g., reminders for upcoming shows) as part of event notifications, which correspond to reminding video content recorded and presented by the application.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 9.
Regarding Claim 16, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the electronic device according to claim 9, and further discloses after receiving the switching operation acting on first multimedia content input by the current user [Pierre – col.6 lines 20-22: Discloses the viewer responds to the event via a voice or digital command from a remote control. Teaches receiving a user-initiated switching operation acting on multimedia content via user input.]:
if the presented duration of the first multimedia content is greater than or equal to the first duration [Agarwal - para.0028: Discloses ad decision request may … be sent … resumption of playback after a pause that lasts a pre-determined amount of time… Teaches evaluating playback duration relative to a predefined threshold, corresponding to comparing presented duration to a first duration.] switching to the second multimedia content [Pierre – col.6 lines 31-32: Discloses resume viewing. Pierre teaches switching playback states/content based on user, corresponding to switching to second multimedia content.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 9.
Regarding Claim 17, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the electronic device according to claim 9, and further discloses wherein the detecting that a reminding event is triggered [Pierre - col.5 lines 16-18: Discloses during a playback or broadcast of a program, whether or not the viewer is watching, the present invention sends an event notification to the user device. Detecting occurrence of events during playback, corresponding to triggering a reminding event.] comprises at least one of:
detecting that a duration of the current user viewing the multimedia stream using the application is greater than a duration threshold [Agarwal - para.0028: Discloses ad decision request may … be sent … resumption of playback after a pause that lasts a pre-determined amount of time… Thus, discloses evaluating playback duration relative to a predefined threshold, corresponding to determining when viewing durations exceeds a threshold.];
detecting that a number of multimedia contents in the multimedia stream viewed by the current user using the application is larger than a number threshold [Agarwal - para.0043: Discloses determining a number of advertisements to be included in the VOD content item based upon a result of comparing the VOD metadata to the set of one or more policy rules. Teaches determining and evaluating quantities (number of advertisements), corresponding to comparing a number against a threshold.];
detecting that a value of an index of the current user reaches an index threshold, wherein, the index is used to represent a fatigue degree of the current user [Pierre – col.5 lines 34-38: Discloses determining event priority based on current viewing activity, user preferences, and stored priority tables. These parameters collectively represent a dynamic measure of the user’s engagement and tolerance to interruption. Under BRI, such a computed priority value constitutes an index reflecting user state, including fatigue degree, where reaching certain priority conditions governs whether an event is triggered or presented.]; or
detecting that a current time reaches a set time [Pierre – col.6 lines 8-11: Discloses expiration of an oven timer … the user will be presented… Explicitly teaches time-based event triggering when a set time is reached.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 9.
Regarding Claim 18, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 10, and further discloses wherein in response to a switching operation acting on first multimedia content by a current user is received [Agarwal - para.0045: Discloses updated ad decision may be obtained when a user starts a new viewing session of a previously-selected VOD content item. Thus, teaches a user initiating a new viewing session (switching), which is a user-driven action affecting multimedia playback. Under BRI, initiating a new viewing session constitutes a switching operation acting on multimedia content.], determining whether a presented duration of the first multimedia content is less than a first duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses determining whether a remaining duration of multimedia content satisfies a threshold condition (if less than 30 seconds of unviewed advertisements in the ad avail remain). This explicitly teaches comparing a presented duration of multimedia content against a predefined duration threshold. Under BRI, the remaining unviewed duration corresponds to the presented duration of the multimedia content, and the ’30 seconds’ value corresponds to the claimed “first duration,” thereby satisfying the limitation of determining whether the presented duration is less than a first duration.], and if yes, continuing to display the first multimedia content without switching to second multimedia content [Pierre – claim 11 col.9 lines 0043-45: Discloses continue display of the content. Thus, teaches maintaining playback of current content without transitioning, which corresponds to continuing to display without switching.] further comprises:
displaying first copywriting information and playing first voice information matched with the first copywriting information [Pierre – col.6 lines 0050-0051 and lines 62-63: Discloses non-obtrusive event notification that may be audio or visual or both. Visual notification are graphical popups that are superimposed on the video program. Such notifications include textual message content conveyed to the user (e.g., alerts or reminders). Under BRI, the displayed textual content of these notifications constitutes ‘copywriting information,’ and presenting such popups corresponds to ‘displaying first copywriting information.’ Even if the notification includes graphical elements, the informational content conveyed to the user necessarily includes textual or symbolic information, which falls within the scope of ‘copywriting information’ under BRI.], wherein the first copywriting information and/or the first voice information includes countdown information [Pierre – col.8 lines 3-6: Discloses the remaining duration of the broadcast determines how often and at what time retries will be attempted. If five minutes are left, a single retry will occur at the three minutes remaining mark. Thus, time-based notifications convey remaining time corresponding to countdown information.], and a starting value in the countdown information is the first duration [Pierre – col.8 lines 3-5: Discloses the remaining duration of the broadcast determines how often and at what time retries will be attempted (started). Pierre explicitly bases notification timing on the remaining duration of content, which corresponds to using a duration value as the starting point for countdown-related operations.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 10.
Regarding Claim 19, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 18, and Pierre further discloses the computer program further causes the processor to implement the method comprising:
detecting that the reminding event is triggered again [col.8 lines 4-5: Discloses retries will be attempted. Retry mechanism directly teaches repeated event triggering.];
presenting third multimedia content, wherein the third multimedia content includes prompt content [col.6 lines 62—64: Discloses typical visual notification are graphical popups that are superimposed on the video program. Pierre discloses graphical popups presented during video playback, which constitute additional multimedia content (third multimedia content) including prompt information presented to the user.]; and
in response to a switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received, continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to fourth multimedia content [claim 1 col.9 lines 42-43: Discloses continuing display of the content, in response to determining said priority is relatively low. Maintains same content without switching. Pierre teaches that even after user interaction (a switching operation), playback of the current content may continue without interruption, which corresponds to continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching.], displaying second copywriting information and playing second voice information matched with the second copywriting information [col.7 lines 1-2: Discloses increasing volume for an audio notification. Pierre discloses intensified notification outputs, including audio, which correspond to a second set of notification information (copywriting and voice) distinct from the first.], wherein, the fourth multimedia content is the next multimedia content in the multimedia stream [col.7 lines 27-30: Disclose remaining duration of the broadcast. Pierre describes sequential playback of multimedia streams, where subsequent content follows the currently displayed content, corresponding to the next multimedia content in the stream.], a reminding intensity of the second copywriting information is greater than that of the first copywriting information [col.6 lines 66-67: Discloses enlarging, brightening. Explicitly teaches increasing visual prominence (e.g., enlarging, brightening) which corresponds to increasing the intensity of copywriting information relative to prior notifications.], and/or a reminding intensity of the second voice information is greater than that of the first voice information [col.7 lines 1-2: Discloses increasing volume for an audio notification. Directly corresponds to increasing the intensity of second voice information relative to first voice information].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 18.
Regarding Claim 20, the combined teachings of Agarwal and Pierre disclose the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 19, and further discloses in response to a switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received [Pierre – col.9 lines 54-56: Discloses resuming display of the paused content, in response to detecting an acknowledgement of said event from the viewer. Thus, explicitly teaches detecting a user input that causes a change in multimedia playback state. Such user acknowledgement constitutes a user-initiated control affecting content presentation. Under BRI, this corresponds to a “switching operation acting on the multimedia content.], continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to the fourth multimedia content [Pierre – claim1 col.9 lines 42-43: Discloses continuing display of the content, in response to determining said priority is relatively low. Pierre discloses maintaining presentation of multimedia content without transitioning to other content. This teaching directly corresponds to continuing to display the third multimedia content without switching to a subsequent (fourth) multimedia content under BRI.] comprises:
in response to the switching operation acting on the third multimedia content by the current user is received [Pierre – claim 3 col.9 lines 54-56: Discloses resuming display of the paused content, in response to detecting an acknowledgement of said event from the viewer. Pierre explicitly teaches detecting a user acknowledgement and using that input to control playback behavior. Such acknowledgement is a user-initiated interaction affecting content state, which under BRI constitutes a switching operation acting on multimedia content.], determining whether a presented duration of the third multimedia content is less than a second duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds of unviewed advertisements remain. Agarwal discloses explicitly comparing a remaining duration of multimedia content to a predefined temporal threshold. This constitutes determining whether a presented duration is less than a defined duration. Under BRI, the remaining unviewed duration corresponds to the presented duration of the third multimedia content, and the 30 second threshold corresponds to the claimed second duration.], and if yes, forbidding switching to the fourth multimedia content [Agarwal - para.0059: Discloses trick mode playback may be disabled. When conditions are not satisfied then forbid switching.], wherein, the second duration is greater than the first duration [Agarwal - para.0074: Discloses if less than 30 seconds. Agarwal discloses use of a specific temporal threshold governing playback control. The presence of defined threshold durations reflects comparative duration values. Under BRI, the claimed second duration (threshold) being greater that the first duration is satisfied by the system’s use of threshold-based duration comparisons controlling playback behavior.].
This claim is rejected on the same grounds as claim 19.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a). A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any extension fee pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the date of this final action.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Senechal et al. (US 2014/0200417) – Discloses inferring user fatigue while the user consumes a media presentation based on blink-rate information [ABSTRACT, paras.0006, 0020-0021].
Hudson et al. (US 8,479,246) – Discloses interacting with video by displaying one or more interface links associated with video content being displayed, pausing the video content when an interface link is interacted with, allowing the user to view ancillary content the interface link is linked to over a network, and un-pausing the video content after the user elects to continue viewing the video content. [ABSTRACT, FIG.4].
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ADIL OCAK whose telephone number is (571) 272-2774. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nasser Goodarzi can be reached on 571-272-4195. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ADIL OCAK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2426
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