# US 2014/0195648 A1 · Server device for recommending electronic contents

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- Number: US 2014/0195648 A1
- Document ID: US20140195648A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 13/962,166
- Filed: 2013-08-08
- Published: 2014-07-10
- Earliest claimed: 2013-01-07
- Assignees: DeNA Co., Ltd.
- Applicants: DeNA Co., Ltd.
- Inventors: Koichi Hamada
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140195648A1

## CPC

- G06Q 30/0282: Rating or review of business operators or products
- A63F 13/79: involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
- H04L 67/00: Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications (user-to-user messaging H04L51/00; network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/00)
- A63F 2300/535: for monitoring, e.g. of user parameters, terminal parameters, application parameters, network parameters
- H04N 21/251: {Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies (details of learning user preferences for the retrieval of video data in a video database G06F16/739; computer systems using learning methods G06N3/08)}
- H04N 21/44204: {Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched (monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31)}
- H04N 21/4668: {for recommending content, e.g. movies}
- 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
- A63F: CARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M)
- H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION

## Abstract

The server device according to the embodiments provides users with more reliable recommendation information on electronic contents. This server device includes a game progression control unit for controlling progression of a game, an information storage unit for storing information, and a display control unit. The information storage unit includes: a use status management table for managing use status for each user of a plurality of online games provided by the server device; and a user-to-user relationship management table for managing information on relationship between users. The display control unit determines games to be recommended to a user based on information stored in the use status management table and the user-to-user relationship management table, and causes a terminal device to display information related to the games.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A server device capable of providing a plurality of electronic contents to a plurality of users each operating a terminal device communicatively connected to the server device, the server device comprising:
an information storage unit configured to store use status information for each of the plurality of users, the use status information indicating a use status for each of the plurality of electronic contents in a plurality of stages; and
a display control unit configured to specify, in response to a display request from the terminal device requesting display of a screen from which the plurality of users are to start using the plurality of electronic contents, at least one first electronic content for which one of the plurality of users operating the terminal device is in the use status of using, specify one or more other users in the use status of using for the specified first electronic content, and specify at least one second electronic content for which the specified other users are in the use status of using, the second electronic content being other than the first electronic content, based on the use status information on the one of the plurality of users operating the terminal device and the use status information on other users other than the one of the plurality of users operating the terminal device, and cause the terminal device to display the screen including information on the specified first electronic content, information on the specified second electronic content, and related information related to the second electronic content,
wherein the related information includes information on the first electronic content for which the other users being in the use status of using for the second electronic content are in the use status of using, the first electronic content being among the at least one first electronic content.

### Claim at position 2

2-5. (canceled)

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The server device of claim 1, wherein
the information storage unit stores user-to-user relationship information on predetermined relationship between the plurality of users, in addition to the use status information; and,
the related information includes information on the other users being in the use status of using for the second electronic content and in the predetermined relationship with the one of the plurality of users operating the terminal device.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The server device of claim 1 wherein the electronic content includes at least one of online games, electronic books, video contents, and music contents.

### Claim 8

A method of recommending electronic contents by using a server device capable of providing a plurality of electronic contents to a plurality of users each operating a terminal device communicatively connected to the server device, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) storing use status information for each of the plurality of users in the server device, the use status information indicating a use status for each of the plurality of electronic contents in a plurality of stages; and
(b) specifying, in response to a display request from the terminal device requesting display of a screen from which the plurality of users are to start using the plurality of electronic contents, at least one first electronic content for which one of the plurality of users operating the terminal device is in the use status of using, specifying one or more other users in the use status of using for the specified first electronic content, and specifying at least one second electronic content for which the specified other users are in the use status of using, the second electronic content being other than the first electronic content, based on the use status information on the one of the plurality of users operating the terminal device and the use status information on other users other than the one of the plurality of users operating the terminal device, and causing the terminal device to display the screen including information on the specified first electronic content, information on the specified second electronic content, and related information related to the second electronic content,
wherein the related information includes information on the first electronic content for which the other users being in the use status of using for the second electronic content are in the use status of using.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The server device of claim 1, wherein the display control unit does not display the information on the specified second electronic content if a number of times of displaying the information on the second electronic content is equal to or greater than a predetermined number.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The server device of claim 1, wherein the display control unit does not display the information on the specified second electronic content if a predetermined number or more days have elapsed after the information on the second electronic content was first displayed.