Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 19/196,236

SEARCH TRIGGERING WITH MEDIA CONTENT HAVING DIFFERENT DURATIONS

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
May 01, 2025
Examiner
CHOI, YUK TING
Art Unit
2164
Tech Center
2100 — Computer Architecture & Software
Assignee
BEIJING BYTEDANCE NETWORK TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
OA Round
3 (Non-Final)
72%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
3y 3m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 72% — above average
72%
Career Allow Rate
466 granted / 652 resolved
+16.5% vs TC avg
Strong +37% interview lift
Without
With
+37.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 3m
Avg Prosecution
29 currently pending
Career history
681
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
16.8%
-23.2% vs TC avg
§103
55.0%
+15.0% vs TC avg
§102
13.5%
-26.5% vs TC avg
§112
6.8%
-33.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 652 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
DETAILED ACTION Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114 1. A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 12/05/2025 has been entered. Response to Amendment 2. This office action is in response to applicant’s communication filed on 12/05/2025 in response to PTO Office Action mailed on 09/18/2025. The Applicant’s remarks and amendments to the claims and/or the specification were considered with the results as follows. 3. In response to the last Office Action, claim 1 is amended. No claims are added or canceled. As a result, claims 1-12 are pending in this office action. Response to Arguments 4. Applicant's arguments with respect to 35 USC 103 rejections have been fully considered but are moot in view of new ground(s) of rejection. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. Claims 1-3, 6-8, 11 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable by Drochomirecki et al. (US 2018/0300335 A1), hereinafter Drochomirecki and in view of Ho et al. (US 2021/0150123 A1), hereinafter Ho. Referring to claim 1, Drochomirecki discloses a method for information searching (See para. [0028] and para. [0047], presenting a user interface that includes search result of “Movie A” and associated information), comprising: displaying an interaction interface associated with a media content (See para. [0019] and Figures 3 and 4, displaying a user interface for presenting related media content items); […] in accordance with a keyword […] matching an entity word in an entity library (See para. [0058], accessing one or more keyword sources to obtain keywords that are related to the Movie A”), displaying the keyword in association with a searching indicator […] (See para. [0050] and para. [0051] and Figure 3, displaying keywords and relatedness indicators associated with the keywords on the user interface); in response to detecting a trigger on the keyword or the searching indicator (See para. [0063], a user can indicate one or more keyword sources, one or more keyword types, and other suitable keyword information for use in determining subsets of related media content items and relatedness information, in response to detecting a user selection which indicate one or more keyword information in determining subsets of related media content items and relatedness information), displaying a searching result interface associated with the keyword (See para. [0055], para. [0056], receiving a search includes a name of a particular program, a particular movie, a particular song, a particular book or etc., and in response to the search, a search result responsive to the search can be determined with the name [e.g., “Movie A”] as shown in Figure 3), the searching result interface comprising at least a searching bar, a first region and a second region (See para. [0050], para. [0051], para. [0056], para. [0057] and Figures 3 and 4, the searching bar “Movie A”, a first region 302 and a second region 308); wherein, displaying a searching result interface associated with the keyword comprises: displaying the keyword in the searching bar; displaying, in the first region, at least one first media content […]; and displaying, in the second region, at least one second media content […], the at least one first media content and at least one second media content being determined according to different attributes (See para. [0050], para. [0051], para. [0056]- para. [0058] and Figures 3 and 4, displaying the searching bar “Movie A”; displaying a list of media content items in the first region 302, and a list of media content items in the second region 308, the first media content items are determined according to cast and the second media content items are determined from critically acclaimed movies). Drochomirecki does not explicitly disclose display text information associated with the media content in the interaction interface; in accordance with a keyword in the text information matching an entity word in an entity library, displaying, in association with the keyboard, a search indicator as a part of the text information, wherein a first style of the keyword is different from a second style of content other than the keyword in the text information. Ho discloses display text information associated with the media content in the interaction interface (See para. [0055], displaying a piece of text, or a section with the text, is linked to an animation); in accordance with a keyword in the text information matching an entity word in an entity library (See para. [0055], a number of highlighted words or keywords which are associated with the text, the highlighted number of words or keywords are linked to a dictionary), displaying, in association with the keyword, a search indicator as a part of the text information (See para. [0055] and para. [0057], displaying highlighted words such as Grievous and lightsabers, the highlighted word(s) is/are search indicator(s) to be selected and searched), wherein a first style of the keyword is different from a second style of content other than the keyword in the text information (See para. [0131] and Figure 15, identifying different collections [e.g. styles] of words or terms in the e-book for different purposes. For example, the e-book is about Star Wars. One collection [e.g. the first collection is the dark style of the story] includes “Darth Vader”, “Grievous”, “Sith”, and “Emperor”; and another collection [e.g. the second collection is the light style of the story) includes “Obiwan”, “Yoda”, “Force”, and “Jedi”. In this example, both collections of words can be hyperlinked in a text sub file of the e-book for additional information) in response to detecting a trigger on the keyword or the search indicator, displaying a search result interface associated with the keyword (See para. [0055] – para. [0057], para. [0100] and in response to selected the highlighted words, the system displays additional notes or annotations to the reader to help the reader learn about a subject)); the searching result interface comprising at least a first region and a second region, wherein displaying a search result interface associated with the keyword (See para. [0067] and para. [0070] and Figure 5, the note selector is configured to retrieve or select an annotation with a position in the e-book. As an example, in FIG. 5, the note selector has retrieved study guide 1, study guide 2, note 1 and note 2 for a reader. After the notes have been retrieved, the screen layout module can be configured to assemble the notes into the corresponding positions in the e-book for display on a screen) comprises displaying in the first region, at least one first media content corresponding to a first duration type and displaying, in the second region, at least one second media content corresponding to a second duration type, the at least one first media content and at least one second media content being determined according to different attributes second duration type in a second region ( See para. [0083], a music file can be linked to a piece of text (or an icon or symbol) and when a reader selects or activates the piece of text (or the symbol), the music can be played. In the example shown in FIG. 8C, the dimension is set to be 0 pixel horizontally and vertically, indicating the illustration does not take up any display area of the screen. In another example, an audio illustration can include a picture, which occupies some display area. There can be one or more other attributes for audio files, such as, an audio illustration including a playlist of music files; the corresponding illustration descriptor including the duration or the length of time of different pieces of music). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the computer art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the search interface of Drochomirecki to display text information associated with the media content in the interaction interface and display a search as a part of the text information, taught by Ho. Skilled artisan would have been motivated to improve the interaction with readers (See Ho, para. [0154]). In addition, both of the references (Drochomirecki and Ho) teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, such as generating digital media presentation layouts dynamically. This close relation between both of the references highly suggests an expectation of success. As to claim 2, Drochomirecki discloses wherein the at least one first media content is determined based on a first media content type (See Figure 3, para. [0048], the first media content item 302 is based on a video type), the at least one second media content is determined based on a second media content type, the first media content type being different from the second media content type (See Figure 3, para. [0048], the second media content item 308 is based on an image type). As to claim 3, Drochomirecki discloses wherein displaying a searching result interface associated with the keyword comprises: displaying a first media content matching the first keyword in the first region (See para. [0048] and Figure 3, displaying playback information 302 can include individual links to the media content item indicated in the search query); and displaying a plurality of second media contents associated with the first media content in the second region (See para. [0050] and para. [0051], displaying media content items 308 associated with the first playback information 302). As to claim 6, Drochomirecki discloses wherein a first display style of the at least one media content is different from a second display style of the at least one second content (See Figure 3, the first media item 302 has a different display style than the second media content 308). As to claim 7, Drochomirecki discloses wherein the at least one first media content is displayed in the first region according to a first layout, the at least one second media content is displayed in the second region according to a second layout, and the first layout is different from the second layout (See Figure 3, the first media item 302 has a different layout style than the second media content 308). As to claim 8, Drochomirecki discloses adding the search indicator at a preset position corresponding to the keyword, wherein the search indicator indicates that a search is to be triggered based on the keyword (See para. [0029] and para. [0051], the keyword “prison escape” can be used to generate a relatedness indicator that displays the text “movies relating to prison escapes” along with the subset of related media content items). Referring to claims 11 and 12, Drochomirecki discloses an electronic device, comprising: a processor (See para. [0037], processor 202); a memory (See para. [0037], memory); and a bus (See para. [0037], bus 218), wherein the memory stores machine-readable instructions executable by the processor; and the processor is configured to, when the electronic device is running, communicate with the memory via the bus, and execute the machine-readable instructions to perform the method for information searching according to claim 1 (See claim 1). As to claim 4, Drochomirecki in view of Ho disclose a second plurality of media contents correspond to a plurality of chapters of the first media content (See Ho, para. [0090] and para. [0103], the second media can be a next chapter of the first chapter). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the computer art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the search interface of Drochomirecki to include second plurality of media contents correspond to a plurality of chapters of the first media content, taught by Ho. Skilled artisan would have been motivated to enhance user reading experience with one or more functionalities (See Ho, para. [0133]). In addition, both of the references (Drochomirecki and Ho) teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, such as generating digital media presentation layouts dynamically. This close relation between both of the references highly suggests an expectation of success. Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable by Drochomirecki (US 2018/0300335 A1) and in view of Ho (US 2021/0150123 A1) and further in view of Soldan (2009/0320064 A1). As to claim 5, Drochomirecki in view of Napolitano discloses playing the first media content starting from a chapter (See Napolitano, para. [0058], Figures 6G and para. [0121], the media contents in the second portion can be episodes of the first media content). Drochomirecki in view of Ho does not explicitly disclose in response to triggering a second media content of the plurality of second media contents, playing the first media content corresponding to the triggered second media content. Soldan discloses in response to triggering a second media content of the plurality of second media contents, playing the first media content corresponding to the triggered second media content (See para. [0062] triggering a second content media to be performed when a criterion in a criteria portion of the first trigger is satisfied during playback). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the computer art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the search interface of Drochomirecki and Hanson to trigger a second media content, taught by Soldan. Skilled artisan would have been motivated identify additional media content when one or more criteria is satisfied automatically (See Soldan, para. [0005]). In addition, all of the references (Soldan, Drochomirecki and Ho) teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, such as generating digital media presentation. This close relation between all of the references highly suggests an expectation of success. Claims 9 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable by Drochomirecki (US 2018/0300335 A1) and in view of Ho (US 2021/0150123 A1) and further in view of Zhang (US 2019/0332867 A1). As to claim 9, Drochomirecki discloses adding the search indicator at a preset position corresponding to the keyword, the method further comprises: selecting, from candidate keywords corresponding to description content of the media content the keyword in an entity library, the keyword matching the entity word in the entity library (See para. [0058], accessing one or more keyword sources to obtain keywords that are related to the Movie A”). Zhang also discloses selecting keywords matching an entity word in an entity library (See para. [0041], mapping the seed onto entity words in a preset entity library; determining relationship degrees between the seed and the entity words in the entity library; and selecting an entity word whose relationship degree is less than or equal to a set value as the candidate word, where the entity library may be established according to the preset knowledge graph). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the computer art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the search interface of Drochomirecki to select keywords matching an entity word in an entity library, taught by Zhang. Skilled artisan would have been motivated to improve recall and accuracy of a retrieval result (See Zhang, para. [0005]). In addition, all of the references (Drochomirecki, Ho and Zhang) teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, such as generating digital media presentation. This close relation between all of the references highly suggests an expectation of success. As to claim 10, Zhang also discloses wherein the entity word in the entity library is generated by: extracting an entity word in an encyclopedia knowledge library, and adding the extracted entity word to the entity library; and/or acquiring multimedia data of a plurality of types, extracting, under each of a plurality of entity dimensions, an entity word of the multimedia data of each type, and adding the extracted entity word to the entity library (See para. [0033], para. [0041], para. [0049]. newly added information may be first analyzed, to determine whether an entity word contained in the newly added information already exists in the entity library. If the entity word contained in the newly added information already exists in the entity library, the newly added information does not need to be added to the entity library. Otherwise, if the entity word contained in the newly added information does not exist in the entity library, it indicates that the entity word contained in the newly added information is a new entity word. In this case, the corresponding Internet information may be obtained, non-entity word cleaning is performed on the Internet information, then a triple relationship between the new entity word and an entity word in cleaned Internet information is constructed, and the constructed triple relationship is added to the entity library). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the computer art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the search interface of Drochomirecki to select keywords matching an entity word in an entity library, taught by Zhang. Skilled artisan would have been motivated to improve recall and accuracy of a retrieval result (See Zhang, para. [0005]). In addition, all of the references (Drochomirecki, Ho and Zhang) teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, such as generating digital media presentation. This close relation between all of the references highly suggests an expectation of success. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YUK TING CHOI whose telephone number is (571)270-1637. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9am-6pm. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, AMY NG can be reached at 5712701698. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. YUK TING CHOI Examiner Art Unit 2153 /YUK TING CHOI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2164
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Prosecution Timeline

May 01, 2025
Application Filed
Jun 02, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §103
Sep 04, 2025
Response Filed
Sep 16, 2025
Final Rejection — §103
Nov 11, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Dec 05, 2025
Request for Continued Examination
Dec 18, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Feb 23, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §103 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
72%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+37.4%)
3y 3m
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 652 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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