Portable media player recommendation system

A computer-implemented method for a first portable device, comprising:

• storing user preferences with respect to media content on the first portable device, user preferences pertaining to a first user of the first portable device, the user preferences comprising metadata identifying media content desirable to the first user;
• discovering, by the first portable device, a second portable device located in a proximity to the first portable device, the second portable device having user preferences pertaining to a second user of the second portable device, the user preferences comprising metadata identifying media content desirable to the second user, the metadata in the user preferences of the first and second users having the same format as metadata of media content files stored on the first and second portable devices;
• contacting the second portable device by the first portable device to facilitate sharing of desirable media content between the first user and the second user, wherein contacting the second portable device by the first portable device comprises:
• requesting a list of metadata describing media content files stored on the second portable device, receiving the list of metadata from the second portable device, comparing the metadata of the media content files on the list with the metadata of the user preferences of the first user, and selecting one or more files from the list that are desirable to the first user of the first portable device;
• and
• when the selected files are shared between the first user and the second user, deleting metadata identifying the selected files as desirable from the user preferences of the first user.

A portable device comprising:

• a local store having user preferences of a user of the portable device with respect to media content, the user preferences comprising metadata identifying media content desirable to the user of the portable device;
• and
• a recommendation system, coupled to the local store, to discover a second portable device located in a proximity to the first portable device, the second portable device having user preferences pertaining to a second user of the second portable device, the user preferences comprising metadata identifying media content desirable to the second user, the metadata in the user preferences of the first and second users having the same format as metadata of media content files stored on the first and second portable devices, to contact the second portable device to facilitate sharing of desirable media content between the first user and the second user of the second portable device based on the user preferences, wherein contacting the second portable device by the first portable device comprises:
• requesting a list of metadata identifying media content on the second device, receiving the list of metadata from the second portable device, comparing the metadata of the media content files on the list with the metadata in the user preferences of the first user, and selecting one or more files from the list that are desirable to the first user of the first portable device;
• and, when the selected files are shared between the first user and the second user, to delete metadata identifying the desirable media content that has been shared as desirable from the user preferences of the first user.

A non-transitory machine-accessible medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method comprising:

• storing user preferences with respect to media content on the first portable device, user preferences pertaining to a first user of the first portable device, the user preferences comprising metadata identifying media content desirable to the first user;
• discovering, by the first portable device, a second portable device located in a proximity to the first portable device, the second portable device having user preferences pertaining to a second user of the second portable device, the user preferences comprising metadata identifying media content desirable to the second user, the metadata in the user preferences of the first and second users having the same format as metadata of media content files stored on the first and second portable devices;
• contacting the second portable device by the first portable device to facilitate sharing of desirable media content between the first user and the second user, wherein contacting the second portable device by the first portable device comprises:
• the first portable device requesting the metadata of the user preferences of the second user, comparing metadata of media content files stored on the first portable device with the metadata of the user preferences of the second user, selecting one or more files from the metadata of media content files that are likely to be desirable to the second user based on the metadata in the user preferences of the second user, and offering the selected files to the second user;
• and
• when the selected files are shared between the first user and the second user, causing metadata identifying the selected files as desirable to be deleted from the user preferences of the second user.