Methods for serving interactive content to a user

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017194030-A1
Application number	US-201715466603-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 22, 2017
Priority date	Oct 25, 2014
Publication date	Jul 6, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

One variation of a method for serving interactive content to a user includes, at a visual element inserted into a document accessed by a computing device: loading a first frame from a digital video; in response to a scroll-down event that moves the visual element upward from a bottom of a window rendered on the computing device toward a top of the window, seeking from the first frame through a subset of frames in the digital video in a first direction at a rate corresponding to a scroll rate of the scroll-down event, the subset of frames spanning a duration of the digital video corresponding to a length of the scroll-down event; and, in response to termination of the scroll-down event with the visual element remaining in view within the window, playing the digital video forward from a last frame in the subset of frames in the digital video.

First claim

I claim:

1 . A method for serving interactive content to a user, the method comprising:
at a visual element displayed within a window rendered on a display of a computing device:
loading frames of a digital video into the visual element;
in response to termination of a first scroll event relocating the visual element to a first position within the window, replaying the digital video forward from a first frame in the digital video to a second frame in the digital video at a preset frame rate, the second frame succeeding the first frame in the digital video;
during a scroll-down event that relocates the visual element from the first position to a second position above the first position within the window, seeking forward from the second frame to a third frame at a first frame rate corresponding to a first scroll-down rate of the scroll-down event, the third frame succeeding the second frame; and
during a scroll-up event that relocates the visual element from the second position to a third position below the second position, seeking backward from the third frame to a fourth frame at a second frame rate corresponding to a second scroll-up rate of the scroll-up event, the fourth frame between the first frame and the third frame in the digital video.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein replaying the digital video forward from the first frame in the digital video to the second frame comprises:
recording a first load time from transmission of a first query for the first frame to display of the first frame in the visual element; selecting an intermediate frame, from frames in the digital video, offset in time from the first frame in the digital video, according to the preset frame rate, by a first duration nearest and greater than the first load time; rendering the intermediate frame in replacement of the first frame in the visual element; recording an intermediate load time from transmission of an intermediate query for the intermediate frame to display of the intermediate frame in the visual element; and selecting the second frame, from frames in the digital video, offset in time from the intermediate frame in the digital video, according to the preset frame rate, by a second duration nearest and greater than the second load time.

3 . The method of claim 2 ,
wherein seeking forward from the second frame to the third frame at the first frame rate comprises seeking forward from the second frame to the third frame at the first frame rate greater than the preset frame rate and proportional to the first scroll-down rate; and wherein seeking backward from the third frame to the fourth frame at the second frame rate comprises seeking backward from the third frame to the fourth frame at the second frame rate greater than the preset frame rate and proportional to the second scroll-up rate.

4 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
in response to termination of a second scroll event relocating more than a threshold proportion of the visual element beyond a bottom of the window, pausing replay of the digital video at a fifth frame in the digital video preceding the first frame; and during the first scroll event that relocates the visual element from the fourth position to the first position, seeking forward from the fifth frame to the first frame at a third frame rate corresponding to a second scroll-down rate of the first scroll event.

5 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising, at the visual element:
generating an interaction record representing a number of scroll-up events and durations of scroll-up events occurring at the computing device; recording in the interaction record a click-through event; classifying an engagement level in the digital video based on the interaction record; and serving the engagement level to a remote interaction database.

6 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
in response to conclusion of replay of the digital video in the visual element, displaying an end frame of the digital video in the visual element; during a second scroll-up event succeeding display of the end frame in the visual element, seeking backward through the digital video from the end frame to a sixth frame in the digital video between the first frame and the end frame; and in response to termination of the second scroll-up event with the visual element remaining within the window, replaying the digital video forward from the sixth frame.

7 . A method for serving interactive content to a user, the method comprising:
at a visual element inserted into a document accessed by a computing device:
loading a first frame from a digital video;
in response to a scroll-down event that moves the visual element upward from a bottom of a window rendered on a display of the computing device toward a top of the window, seeking from the first frame through a first subset of frames in the digital video in a first direction at a rate corresponding to a scroll rate of the scroll-down event, the first subset of frames spanning a duration of the digital video corresponding to a length of the scroll-down event; and
in response to termination of the scroll-down event with the visual element remaining in view within the window, replaying the digital video forward from a last frame in the first subset of frames in the digital video loaded into the visual element.

8 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
in response to a scroll-up event that moves the visual element downward from proximal a top of the window toward the bottom of the window, seeking from a last frame loaded into the visual element through a second subset of frames in the digital video in a second direction at a rate corresponding to a scroll rate of the scroll-up event, the second subset of frames spanning a duration of the digital video corresponding to a length of the scroll-up event, the second direction opposite the first direction; and in response to termination of the scroll-up event with the visual element remaining in view within the window, replaying the digital video forward from a last frame in the second subset of frames in the digital video loaded into the visual element.

9 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising, in response to selection of the visual element within the window, opening a video player comprising video replay controls at the computing device and replaying the digital video forward from the first frame.

10 . The method of claim 7 , wherein loading the first frame from the digital video comprises loading the first frame from the digital video into the visual element contained within a web page in response to navigation to the web page in a web browser executing on the computing device; and further comprising:
generating an interaction record comprising a number of scroll-down events and scroll-up events occurring at the computing device and maintaining the visual element within the window; appending the interaction record with a total duration of the digital video represented by frames inserted into the visual element before navigation to an alternate webpage; and serving the interaction record to a remote interaction database.

11 . The method of claim 7 , wherein loading the first frame of the digital video comprises inserting the first frame of the digital video into the visual element in response to entry of a top edge of the visual element into the bottom of the window during the scroll-down event; and wherein seeking from the first frame through the first subset of frames comprises inserting a second frame in the digital frame into the visual element in replacement of the first frame in response to relocation of the visual element fully within the window during

Assignees

• Yieldmo Inc

Inventors

• Doherty Connor Francis
• Goligorsky David Michael
• Sprockett Shawn
• Wu Eric (Ge)
• Bao Yiming
• Silvernight Firecrow

Classifications

• G11B27/102

  Programmed access in sequence to addressed parts of tracks of operating record carriers (access by moving the head G11B3/08, G11B5/54, G11B7/085, G11B21/022; by moving the record carrier G11B15/005, G11B17/005, by driving of both record carrier and head G11B15/1816) · CPC title

• H04N21/431

  Generation of visual interfaces {for content selection or interaction}; Content or additional data rendering · CPC title

• G11B27/036

  Insert-editing · CPC title

• H04N21/47217

  for controlling playback functions for recorded or on-demand content, e.g. using progress bars, mode or play-point indicators or bookmarks (specific graphical features in visual interfaces H04N21/4312) · CPC title

• G11B27/031

  Electronic editing of digitised analogue information signals, e.g. audio or video signals · CPC title