Context sensitive alerts involving muted users

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12477018-B2
Application number	US-202217728270-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 25, 2022
Priority date	Apr 25, 2022
Publication date	Nov 18, 2025
Grant date	Nov 18, 2025

Abstract

Alerts can be generated to inform a prime user to unblock another user, whose audio and/or video the prime user has blocked, owing to an emerging context that may be of interest to the prime user. The prime user can be informed of such a context and provided the ability to selectively view the blocked user's comments so the full context can be understood. This aims to help protect the prime user who may have been the subject of harassment from the blocked user originally causing the blocked user to be muted or otherwise blocked in the first place.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A device, comprising:
at least one computer storage that is not a transitory signal and that comprises instructions executable by at least one processor to: receive a mute command; responsive to the mute command, mute audio on a user terminal from a first participant in a computerized communication session and not mute, on the user terminal, audio from a second participant in the computerized communication session; without receiving a command to unmute the first participant, automatically present a prompt to unmute the first participant advising of a context in the computerized communication session, or present text representing speech of the first participant.

2 . The device of claim 1 , comprising the at least one processor programmed with the instructions.

3 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the mute command is received from the user terminal and the prompt is presented on the user terminal.

4 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the mute command is not received from the user terminal and the prompt is presented on a device other than the user terminal.

5 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are executable to:
input to a machine learning (ML) model contextual information derived from the computerized communication session; and receive from the ML model at least one indication of a context.

6 . The device of claim 5 , wherein the instructions are executable to:
without receiving a command to unmute the first participant, automatically unmute audio on the user terminal from the first participant, or present a prompt to unmute the first participant advising of a context in the computerized communication session, based at least in part on the indication of a context output by the ML model.

7 . The device of claim 6 , wherein the context comprises at least one event at a location of a participant in the computerized communication session.

8 . The device of claim 6 , wherein the context comprises at least one term spoken by a participant in the computerized communication session.

9 . The device of claim 6 , wherein the context comprises at least one user identity associated with a participant in the computerized communication session.

10 . The device of claim 6 , wherein the context comprises at least one text message sent by a participant in the computerized communication session.

11 . The device of claim 6 , wherein the context comprises at least one participant-to-participant interaction in the computerized communication session.

12 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are executable to:
input to a computer program contextual information derived from the computerized communication session; receive from the computer program at least one indication of a context; and without receiving a command to unmute the first participant, automatically unmute audio on the user terminal from the first participant, or present a prompt to unmute the first participant advising of a context in the computerized communication session, based at least in part on the indication of a context output by the computer program.

13 . An assembly comprising:
at least one user terminal comprising: at least one processor programmed to execute instructions; at least one speaker configured to play audio; and at least one communication interface configured to exchange information in a computerized communication session, wherein the instructions are executable by the at least one processor to: receive a block command; responsive to the block command, block, from presentation on the user terminal, audio and/or video information from a first participant in a computerized communication session and not block, on the user terminal, audio and/or video information from a second participant in the computerized communication session; without receiving a command to unblock the first participant, present a prompt to unblock the first participant advising of a context in the computerized communication session, or present text on the user terminal representing speech of the first participant.

14 . The assembly of claim 13 , wherein audio is muted from the first participant responsive to the block command.

Assignees

• Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc

Inventors

• Black Glenn
• Bean Celeste
• Taylor Michael

Classifications

• G10L15/22

  Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue · CPC title

• G06F40/20

  Natural language analysis (semantic analysis of natural language G06F40/30) · CPC title

• G10L2015/228

  of application context · CPC title

• G06F3/165

  Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path · CPC title

• H04L65/1089 Primary

  by adding media; by removing media · CPC title