# US 12,225,243 B2 · Interactive video-based speed-dating platform and system for providing an immersive online-streaming production > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,225,243 B2 - Document ID: US12225243B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/059,911 - Filed: 2022-11-29 - Published: 2023-03-23 - Granted: 2025-02-11 - Earliest claimed: 2021-07-14 - Assignees: Couple.com, Inc. - Applicants: Couple.com, Inc - Inventors: Ryan Beswick; Colleen Joyce - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12225243B2 ## CPC - H04L 65/4015: {where at least one of the additional parallel sessions is real time or time sensitive, e.g. white board sharing, collaboration or spawning of a subconference} - G06Q 10/42: Determination of affinities or common interests between users - G06Q 50/10: Services - H04L 65/403: Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences (data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15) - H04N 7/15: Conference systems - H04N 21/2187: Live feed - H04N 21/431: Generation of visual interfaces {for content selection or interaction}; Content or additional data rendering - H04N 21/472: End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content {(end-user interfaces for retrieving video data from a database G06F16/739; network services for supporting unicast streaming H04L65/612)} - H04N 21/4788: communicating with other users, e.g. chatting {(arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104)} - H04N 7/147: {Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals (selecting H04Q)} - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION ## Abstract A method for hosting and exhibiting virtual speed-dates between paired participants over a web-based platform for interactive display to viewers in a serialized show format. The platform is configured to simultaneously depict all participants live streams to viewers simultaneously. Speed-dates are limited by a timer, whereby, upon expiration of the timer, the participants encounter a selection screen in which they decide to “couple,” “connect,” or “cut,” indicating their level of desire in seeing their date again in a subsequent episode of the show. Participants are eliminated from the group of participants in accordance with the amount of people with whom they “couple” or “connect.” ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for hosting and exhibiting an interactive speed-dating show online, featuring participants, displayed to viewers watching on viewer computers comprising: a server computer hosting a platform online; participants accessing the platform via the internet on a computer equipped with a camera and a microphone, referenced as participant computers; the server computer connecting the participant computers to cloud-based virtual machines; the server computer creating phantom participants as system agents running on the virtual machines, with a single system agent associated with each individual participant computer; the virtual machines opening a browser; the virtual machines logging into the platform on behalf of the phantom participants via the browser in a first browser tab; the virtual machines initiating streaming software via the browser in a second browser tab; wherein the streaming software is configured to capture and stream content from the first browser tab to the platform; the virtual machines receiving audio and video from the participants computers; the streaming software conveying the audio and video to viewers via the platform; wherein participants are matched together in pairs during one-on-one audio/visual speed-dates simultaneously; and the platform displaying live streams of all participants to all viewers via viewer computers simultaneously. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein multiple browser tabs are employed on the virtual machines. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the audio and video exhibit sub-second latency. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the virtual machines are running on a server computer connected to the internet. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, further comprising: the server computer matching participants together in pairs for speed-dates according to an algorithm; the algorithm dictating the order in which participants are paired together; and wherein parameters of the algorithm dictate the pairing of participants, the parameters including: gender, age, religion, ethnicity, location, and viewer input via viewer voting. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method of claim 5, wherein the number of viewers exceeds 10,001. ### Claim 7 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, further comprising: a timer running on the server computer; the timer showing the remaining time of the speed-dates; the server computer terminating all speed dates upon expiration of the timer; the platform displaying to the participants a selection screen, selections available on the selection screen are chosen from the group: “couple,” “cut,” and “connect;” wherein upon selection of “couple” by a participant on the selection screen, the participant is informing the server and the viewers that the participant wishes to romantically connect with the paired participant; wherein upon selection of “cut” by a participant on the selection screen, the participant is informing the server and the viewers that the participant does not wish to pursue the connection with the paired participant romantically; and wherein upon selection of “connect” by a participant on the selection screen, the participant is informing the server and the viewers that the participant wishes to pursue the connection as friends. ### Claim 8 A system for hosting and exhibiting an interactive speed-dating show online, featuring participants, displayed to viewers watching on viewer computers comprising: a server computer hosting a platform online; participants accessing the platform via the internet on a computer equipped with a camera and a microphone, referenced as participant computers; the server computer connecting the participant computers to cloud-based virtual machines; the server computer creating phantom participants as system agents running on the virtual machines, with a single system agent associated with each individual participant computer; the virtual machines opening a browser; the virtual machines logging into the platform on behalf of the phantom participants via the browser in a first browser tab; the virtual machines initiating streaming software via the browser in a second browser tab; wherein the streaming software is configured to capture and stream content from the first browser tab to the platform; the virtual machines receiving audio and video from the participants computers; the streaming software conveying the audio and video to viewers via the platform; wherein participants are matched together in pairs during one-on-one audio/visual speed-dates simultaneously; and the platform displaying live streams of all participants to all viewers via viewer computers simultaneously. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The system of claim 8, wherein multiple browser tabs are employed on the virtual machines. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The system of claim 8, wherein the audio and video exhibit sub-second latency. ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) The system of claim 8, wherein the virtual machines are running on a server computer connected to the internet. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, further comprising: the server computer matching participants together in pairs for speed-dates according to an algorithm; the algorithm dictating the order in which participants are paired together; and wherein parameters of the algorithm dictate the pairing of participants, the parameters including: gender, age, religion, ethnicity, location, and viewer input via viewer voting. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The system of claim 12, wherein the number of viewers exceeds 10,001. ### Claim 14 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, further comprising: a timer running on the server computer; the timer showing the remaining time of the speed-dates; the server computer terminating all speed dates upon expiration of the timer; the platform displaying to the participants a selection screen, selections available on the selection screen are chosen from the group: “couple,” “cut,” and “connect;” wherein upon selection of “couple” by a participant on the selection screen, the participant is informing the server and the viewers that the participant wishes to romantically connect with the paired participant; wherein upon selection of “cut” by a participant on the selection screen, the participant is informing the server and the viewers that the participant does not wish to pursue the connection with the paired participant romantically; and wherein upon selection of “connect” by a participant on the selection screen, the participant is informing the server and the viewers that the participant wishes to pursue the connection as friends.