Presenting Content to an Online System User Based on Content Presented by a Scrollable Content Unit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017017352-A1
Application number	US-201514798281-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 13, 2015
Priority date	Jul 13, 2015
Publication date	Jan 19, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

An online system presents a feed of content including content items and one or more scrollable content units to a user of the online system. A scrollable content unit includes an ordered set of content items and a display area presenting fewer than all of the content items of the ordered set at a time. The user navigates through the ordered set of content items in the display area by interacting with the scrollable content unit. If the user navigates through fewer than all of the content items in the ordered set, the online system modifies the ordered set. If the scrollable content unit is again provided to the user, the scrollable content unit presents content items based the modified ordered set. For example, the modified ordered set prioritizes presentation of content items from the ordered set that were not previously presented to the user.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method comprising:
receiving, at an online system, a request to present a content feed to a user of the online system; generating the content feed, the content feed including a plurality of content items and a scrollable content unit comprising an ordered set of content items and a display area for presenting fewer than all of the ordered set of content items at a time, the scrollable content unit associated with one or more interactions for modifying a content item presented in the display area; presenting the generated content feed to the user; receiving one or more interactions of the user with the content feed; responsive to receiving the one or more interactions, presenting at least one of the ordered set of content items in the display area of the scrollable content unit; modifying the ordered set of content items based at least in part on the presentation of at least one of the ordered set of content items in the display area; receiving an additional request to present a content feed to the user of the online system; generating an updated content feed including a refreshed scrollable content unit comprising the modified ordered set of content items and a display area for presenting fewer than all of the modified ordered set of content items at a time, the refreshed scrollable content unit associated with one or more interactions for modifying the content item from the modified ordered set of content items presented in the display area; and presenting the updated content feed including the refreshed scrollable content unit for display to the user.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more interactions comprises one or more requests to display one or more of the plurality of content items included in the content feed.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting at least one of the ordered set of content items in the display area of the scrollable content unit comprises:
presenting a content item from the ordered set of content items in the display area of the scrollable content unit; and presenting an additional content item from the ordered set of content items based at least in part on a position of the additional content item in the ordered set in response to an interaction with the scrollable content unit by the user.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein modifying the ordered set of content items comprises:
removing the at least one of the ordered set of content items presented in the display area of the scrollable content unit from the ordered set.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein modifying the ordered set of content items comprises:
reordering the ordered set of content items so a content item not presented in the display area of the scrollable content unit has a position in the ordered set ahead of the at least one content item presented in the display area of the scrollable content unit.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein modifying the ordered set of content items comprises:
associating a content item from the ordered set of content items that was not presented in the display area of the scrollable content unit with an initial position in the ordered set to be initially presented in in the display area of the scrollable content unit.

7 . The method of claim 6 , wherein modifying the ordered set of content items further comprises:
associating one or more positions in the ordered set subsequent to the initial position with one or more additional content items not previously presented in the display area, the one or more positions in the ordered set subsequent to the initial position for presentation in the display area after presentation of the content item associated with the initial position in the ordered set.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein modifying the ordered set of content items comprises:
retrieving information stored by the online system describing one or more interactions by users of the online system with each content item in the ordered set; computing a score for each content item in the ordered set based at least in part on the retrieved information; and ordering the content items in the ordered set based at least in part on the computed scores.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the one or more interactions by the users of the online system are selected from a group consisting of: selecting a content item, expressing a preference for the content item, sharing the content item with an additional user of the online system, requesting additional content associated with the content item, providing a comment associated with the content item, and any combination thereof.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein modifying the ordered set of content items comprises:
receiving information describing one or more interactions of the user with content external to the online system and associated with one or more content items in the ordered set of content items; and ordering the content items in the ordered set based at least in part on the received information.

11 . A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having instructions encoded thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:
receive, at an online system, a request to present a content feed to a user of the online system; generate the content feed, the content feed including a plurality of content items and a scrollable content unit comprising an ordered set of content items and a display area for presenting fewer than all of the ordered set of content items at a time, the scrollable content unit associated with one or more interactions for modifying a content item presented in the display area; present the generated content feed to the user; receive one or more interactions of the user with the content feed; responsive to receiving the one or more interactions, present at least one of the ordered set of content items in the display area of the scrollable content unit; modify the ordered set of content items based at least in part on the presentation of at least one of the ordered set of content items in the display area; receive an additional request to present a content feed to the user of the online system; generate an updated content feed including a refreshed scrollable content unit comprising the modified ordered set of content items and a display area for presenting fewer than all of the modified ordered set of content items at a time, the refreshed scrollable content unit associated with one or more interactions for modifying the content item from the modified ordered set of content items presented in the display area; and present the updated content feed including the refreshed scrollable content unit for display to the user.

12 . The computer program product of claim 11 , wherein present at least one of the ordered set of content items in the display area of the scrollable content unit comprises:
present a content item from the ordered set of content items in the display area of the scrollable content unit; and present an additional content item from the ordered set of content items based at least in part on a position of the additional content item in the ordered set in response to an interaction with the scrollable content unit by the user.

13 . The computer program product of claim 11 , wherein modify the ordered set of content items comprises:
remove the at least one of the ordered set of content items presented in the display area of the scrollable content unit from the ordered set.

14 . The computer program product of claim 11 , wherein modify the ordered set of content items comprises:

Assignees

• Facebook Inc

Inventors

• Kanter Jeffrey Andrew
• Saxena Sanchan Sahai
• Rajani Mohit

Classifications

• G06Q10/40

  Business processes related to social networking or social networking services · CPC title

• G06F3/0482 Primary

  Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus · CPC title

• G06F3/0485 Primary

  Scrolling or panning · CPC title

• H04L67/306 Primary

  User profiles · CPC title

• H04L67/02

  based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP] · CPC title