WO2018129585A1

WO2018129585A1 - A computer system and a computer implemented method for providing a customized video to a user

Info

Publication number: WO2018129585A1
Application number: PCT/AU2018/050010
Authority: WO
Inventors: Shane Heta
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2017-01-16
Filing date: 2018-01-10
Publication date: 2018-07-19
Anticipated expiration: 2019-07-16

Abstract

A computer implemented method (400) for providing a customized video to a user, comprises steps of receiving (410) an uncustomized video, receiving (420) a request to customize the uncustomized video, from a client device (102), customizing (430) the uncustomized video to obtain the customized video and providing (440) the customized video at the client device (102).

Description

A C O M PUT E R SY ST E M A ND A C O M PUT E R IM PL E M E NT E D M E T H O D FOR PROVIDING A C UST OM IZ E D V IDE O T O A USE R

T echnical F ield

[001] The present invention relates to entertainment and i n particular to movies and ani mations that can be customized by a user.

[002] The invention has been developed primarily for use on a computerised network that allows connected users to customize movies and download the customized movies for local playback and will be described hereinafter with reference to this application. However, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to this particular field of use.

Background

[003] In this specification unless the contrary is expressly stated, where a document act or item of knowledge is referred to or discussed, this reference or discussion is not an admission that the document act or item of knowledge or any combination thereof was at the priority date, publicly available, known to the public, part of common general knowledge; or known to be rel evant to an attempt to solve any probl em with whi ch thi s specif i cati on i s concerned.

[004] Movies and in particular, animated movies, are a popular form of entertainment for both adults and children. One disadvantage of movies is that while some are made for a general group of viewers, such as movies made specifically for children, or specifically for teenagers and so on, they cannot be tailored to specific individual viewers.

[005] Advantageously the preferred embodiment of the present invention overcomes or ameliorates at least one of the disadvantages of the prior art; or provides a useful alternative.

[006] Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the words ^"comprise_,, ^"comprises_, and ^"comprising_, will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated step or element or group of steps or elements but not the exclusion of any other step or element or group of steps or elements.

[007] Any one of the terms: ^"including_, or ^"which includes_, or ^"that includes_, as used herei n i s al so an open term that al so means i ncl udi ng at I east the el ements f eatures that f ol I ow the term, but not excluding others.

[008] Any discussion of the background art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such background art is prior art nor that such background art is widely known or forms part of the common general knowledge in the field. Summary

[009] According to a first aspect of the present i nvention, there is provided a computer implemented method for providing a customized video to a user, the method comprising steps of receiving an uncustomized video, receiving a request to customize the uncustomized video, from a client device, customizing the uncustomized video to obtai n the customized video and providi ng the customized video at the client device.

[010] It is an advantage of the present invention, that the customizing of the uncustomized video to obtain the customized video ensures that the customized video can be tailored for any given occasion or purpose, such as for celebration, education and training and personal entertainment etc. The customized videos can include names, location, media preferences and content personalized for target audience giving them a more engaging experience with contents of the video.

[011] In one embodiment of the invention, the uncustomized video includes a plurality of layers of data, wherein the step of customizing the uncustomized video includes customizing one or more of the plurality of layers.

[012] In one embodiment of the invention, the plurality of layers includes text data, image data, audio data, speech data, visual data and synthetic data.

[013] In one embodiment of the invention, each layer of the plural ity of layers of data includes a predetermined number of respective customizable elements.

[014] In one embodiment of the invention, customizing a layer of the plurality of layers includes adding an additional standard or a custom element to the layer and/or replacing an existing element by the additional standard or the custom element.

[015] In one embodiment of the i nvention, the additional custom element is generated from user provided data.

[016] In one embodiment of the invention, the user provided data incl udes a name of a character, a name of a city and a video or a photograph having a face of a character.

[017] In one embodi ment of the i nventi on, the step of customizi ng the uncustomized vi deo, includes steps of generating an MPEG-7 description of the uncustomized video, storing the M PEG-7 description and customizing the M PEG-7 description.

[018] In one embodi ment of the i nventi on, the method further comprises a step of: burni ng a DV D or Blu-Ray of the customized video; or streaming of the customised video. [019] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer system for providing a customized video to a user, comprising a memory unit configured to store machine- readable instructions and a processor operably connected with the memory device, the processor obtaining the machine-readable instructions from the memory device, and being configured by the machine- readable i nstructions to receive an uncustomized video, receive a request to customize the uncustomized video, from a client device, customize the uncustomized video to obtain the customized video and provide the customized video at the client device.

[020] In one embodiment of the invention, the uncustomized video includes a plurality of layers of data, wherein the step of customizing the uncustomized video includes customizing one or more of the plurality of layers.

[021] In one embodiment of the invention, the plurality of layers includes text data, image data, audio data, speech data, visual data and synthetic data.

[022] In one embodiment of the invention, each layer of the plural ity of layers of data includes a predetermined number of respective customizable elements.

[023] In one embodiment of the invention, for customizing a layer of the plurality of layers the processor is further configured to add an additional standard or a custom element to the layer and/or replace an existing element by the additional standard or the custom element

[024] In one embodiment of the invention, the processor is further configured to generate the additional custom element from user provided data.

[025] In one embodiment of the invention, the user provided data incl udes a name of a character, a name of a city and a video or a photograph having a face of a character.

[026] In one embodiment of the invention, for customizing the uncustomized video, the processor is further configured to generate an M PE G-7 description of the uncustomized video, store the MPEG-7 description and customize the MPEG-7 description.

[027] In one embodiment of the invention, the processor is further configured to: burn a DV D or Blu-Ray of the customized video; or stream the customised video.

Brief Description of Drawings

[028] At least one example of the i nvention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[029] Figure 1 illustrates an exemplary environment to which various embodiments of the present invention may be implemented; [030] Figure 2 ill ustrates a central server, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[031] Figure 3 illustrates an elements database, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[032] Figure 4 illustrates a computer implemented method for providing a customized video to a user, i n accordance wi th an embodi ment of the present i nventi on;

[033] Figure 5 illustrates customization of an uncustomized video, in accordance with an embodi ment of the present i nventi on;

[034] Figure 6 illustrates customization of speech data, in accordance with an embodiment of the present i nventi on;

[035] Figure 7 illustrates customization of image/Visual data, i n accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

[036] Figure 8 illustrates a method for customizing an uncustomized video using an M PEG- 7 description, in accordance with an embodi ment of the present i nvention.

[037] It should be noted in the accompanying drawings and description below that like or the same reference numerals in different drawings denote the same or si milar elements.

Description of E mbodi ments

[038] There is a growing market for customized media content and in particular for customized (or personalized) videos. The media content in that manner may be customized for a number of purposes such as celebrations, education and training or j ust simply for personal entertainment However, while customization of text based media is rather i ntuitive in today s day and age, there are a number of challenges when it comes to customization of video content. A video file generally includes a plurality of layers of data such as, but not limited to, text data, image data, audio data, speech data, visual data and synthetic data etc.

[039] Image data here is kept separate for cases where the video file is series of images or a single image with a background score, while the visual data is envisaged to include a continuation of frames having a predetermined frame rate. Similarly, speech data is kept separate from audio data to account for spoken dialogues/lyrics as against an audio piece generated by an instrument or a combination of instruments. Synthetic data represents elements of a video file that are not naturally occurring but are added to enhance an audiovisual appeal of the video file, such as special effects, animated objects and custom backgrounds etc. Customization of the video file would involve customization of all those layers in a synchronous manner. The present invention intends to achieve just that A ny kind of video file may be sourced from various sources and de- multiplexed i nto its constituent layers and then each layer may be customized in a synchronous manner. The layers are further envisaged to include respective plurality of elements. Additional custom or standard elements may be added to each layer, or some of the existing elements of each layer may be replaced by the custom or the standard elements in order to customize those layers. The customized layers may then be multiplexed (or combined) to generate the customized video.

[040] In this regard, the present invention has been il lustrated with the help of an exemplary environment of devices, as will be discussed with the help of following figures and description. However, it would be evident to a skilled addressee that the invention can be implemented to many other environments without departi ng from the scope of the present invention.

[041] Figure 1 illustrates an exemplary environment 100 to which various embodiments of the present invention may be implemented. The environment 100 includes a client device 102 associated with a user. The client device 102 may be selected from a group comprising a mobile handheld device (such as a mobile phone, a tablet and a PDA), a desktop PC and a laptop etc. The client device 102 is connected to a network 106. T he network 106 may be for example a Local Area Network (LA N) implemented through protocols such 802.x, ZigBee and Bluetooth (includi ng B L E) etc., implanted within an organization or community etc. The network 106 may also be Wide Area Network (WA N) implemented through protocols including 802.x, HSDPA and LTE etc. There may also be other variations for the network 106, such as a Metropolitan Area Network (MA N) and so on. Preferably, the network 106 is Internet

[042] There is also connected to the network 106 a second client device 104 associated with a second user. Much like the client device 102, the second client device 104 may also be selected from a group comprising a mobile handheld device (such as a mobile phone, a tablet and a PDA), a desktop PC and a laptop etc. The purpose of depicting the second client device 104 here is to illustrate the multiple users can be connected to the network 106 and may perform the i nvention, at a same time. Further connected to the network 106 is a central server 108. The central server 108 here may represent a system of computing devices working together in a data centre (such as a cloud based data centre) or the central server 108 may be a single device. The central server 108 here is responsible for a chunk of the customization activity, however, in various other embodiments, the customization activity may be divided as per different proportions within the central server 108, the client device 102 and any other third party device, without departing from the scope of the invention.

[043] Figure 2 illustrates the central server 108, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The central server 108 is depicted to include system hardware and system logic. The system hardware is envisaged to include a communication interface 202 that allows the central server 108 to communicate with external devices and networks, such as the network 106. The central server 108 also includes a processor 204 and a memory unit 206 operably connected with the processor 204. The memory unit 206 may be a non-volatile memory device, such as, but not li mited to, E PROM, E E PORM and Flash Memory. The processor 204 may be for example a general purpose processor, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) or a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), etc. The memory unit 206 is configured to store machine readable instructions. The machine readable instructions may be loaded into the memory unit 206 from a non-transitory machine readable medi um or may downl oaded from the network 106 as a computer software program.

[044] At the system logic level, the central server 108 includes a descriptor 208 responsible for generation of descriptions of the video files to be customized, customization parameters and the customized videos. The descriptions may also include metadata pertaining to the video file. Further, the central server 108 includes a de-multi plexer 210 responsible for demultiplexing (or separating out or isolating) various layers of data of the video file. A customization module 212 is responsible to carry out the customization activity (customization of layers) or a part thereof assigned at the central server 108 end. A multiplexer 214 is responsible for combining the different customized layers to generate the customized video. While here we are introducing different and non-limiting components of the central server 108, a detailed working of the different components of the central server 108 has been discussed below.

[045] The central server 108 is in communication with a number of storage devices and/or databases (depicted in Figures 1 and 2), such as a storage device 104 that is adapted to store uncustomized videos due for customization. Of course, the uncustomized videos may be sourced from a number of sources such as online video repositories 110 connected with the network 106 or through a broadcasting network represented here by a broadcasting tower 116. Although the storage device 114 does store a number of uncustomized videos, the uncustomized videos may also be customized in real ti me (or near real time) at the central server 108, without having them stored i n the storage device 114. Of course for that the central server 108 is envisaged to have a local storage which may temporarily cache the uncustomized videos during customization. Further connected to the central server 108 is an el ements database 112.

[046] Figure 3 illustrates the elements database 112 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The elements database 112 is envisaged to i nclude a number of individual databases of standard or custom elements to be i nserted (with or without replacement) into the plurality of layers of data. The number of individual databases may include for example, a text elements database 302, an image elements database 304, an audio elements database 306, a speech elements database 308, a visual elements database 310 and a synthetic elements database 312. Custom elements may be generated at the central server 108 from user provided data provided by the user through the network 106 and then the custom elements may be stored in one or more of the number of individual databases, depending on individual types of the custom elements. In various embodiments, the custom elements may be store in additional one or more dedicated databases. V arious embodiments of the present invention may now be understood taking the exemplary environment 100 as a reference.

[047] Figure 4 illustrates a computer implemented method 400 for providing a customized video to a user, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The method begins at step 410, when the processor 204 receives an uncustomized video. The uncustomized video may be received by the processor 204 from the online video repositories 110 or from the broadcasting tower 116. Online videos or films are available to be customized is open to commercial and non-commercial videos. It is preferred that a wide range of commercial films be made available for customisation by users. These could include fil ms by popular Hollywood studios such as 20th Century Fox, 21st Century Fox, Columbia Pictures, Sony, MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer), Paramount Pictures, V iacom, United Artists, Universal Studios, NBC Universal, Time Warner, Disney, Pixar and the like. In these embodiments the film studios make fi lms available for customisation by one of fees paid by each user, licensing fees or any other commercially negotiated fee.

[048] Popular formats for a video file include, but are not limited to, AVI, WMV, FLASH, H.264 and H.265. The uncustomized video may be in one of the previously mentioned format or in some other format altogether. Again as discussed above the uncustomized video includes a plurality of layers of data, such as, but not limited to, text data, image data, audio data, speech data, visual data and synthetic data. Each layer of data is envisaged to i nclude a predetermined number of customizable elements. Also, the uncustomized video may then be stored in the storage device 114 for future customization or may be prepped for real time customization and the central sever 108 itself.

[049] At step 420, a request to customize the uncustomized video is received by the processor 204, from the cl ient device 102. T he request may be received from a browser appl ication or a standalone application installed with the client device 102. In that manner it is envisaged that a user interface may be provided to the user at the client device 102, that allows the user to customize the uncustomized video. The user interface may present the predetermined number of customizable elements of each layer to the user, preferably in a list form, and the user may select at least one of the customisable elements to customize the uncustomized video.

[050] At step 430, the processor 204 customizes the uncustomized video to obtain a customized video. Figure 5 illustrates the customization of the uncustomized video, in accordance with an embodiment 500 of the present invention. T he de- multi plexer 210 enabl es the processor 204 to extract the pi ural ity of I ayers of data as depi cted i n f i gure 5. T ext data is extracted in step 502, image data in step 504, audio data in step 506, speech data in step 508, visual data in step 510, and synthetic data in step 512. The audio data may further be segmented into voice, music, foley and background etc. and voice data may be appended to speech data along with references linking the voice data to the audio data. One or more of these layers may be customized synchronously for customization of the uncustomized video. For example, for customizing text data as illustrated by step 514, additional text elements may be sourced from the text elements database 302 and inserted into the text data layer, or existing text elements of the text data layer may be replaced with the sourced text elements. Other layers may be customized in a similar manner, as ill ustrated by steps 516, 518, 520, 522 and 524. However, it is not necessary that all the layers of data need to be customized and therefore may be fed directly to the multiplexer 214 as depicted by stippled lines. While the customization looks similar for all the layers, there might be subtle variations depending upon individual layer types. The uncustomized video can be customized in any suitable manner which may depend on the particular user. This can be understood from following examples. [051] For example, if the uncustomized video is being customized for use as children^'s entertainment the customisable elements include the name of a character in the story contained in the video file. Typically, the name would be the name of a child for which the movie is being made. In the preferred embodiment each story contains a plurality of characters so that movies can be customized to contain character names that correspond to each of a number of children who may be part of the same family, playgroup or the like. Another customisable element is the name of the suburb, city, country or town in which the story takes pi ace. Of course al I of thi s woul d requi re customi zati on of the speech data.

[052] Figure 6 illustrates customization of speech data, in accordance with an embodiment 600 of the present invention. After the speech data has been extracted at step 508, the speech data is converted into text at step 606. At step 602 a speech element is procured from the speech elements database 308. The speech element here corresponds to the name of the child. In that manner, when the user provides the name of the child, the processor 204 may either search for the same name in the speech elements database 308 of existing names or may create a new speech element and store in the speech elements database 308. In any case, the procured speech element is converted into a text element at step 604. At step 608 the text obtained from the speech data is modified to include the new text element. This may include either replacement or addition. Once modified, the new text is again converted to customized speech data for inclusion into the customized video. An additional step of speech modulation 612 may be required to ensure that the customized speech data matches the timing and flow of the customized visual or image data or the original speech data, if the visual data is not bei ng customized. Pronunciations, accents, phonetics, pauses and stops etc. may also be taken care during speech modulation 612.

[053] It is also possible to customize the speech data without converting the entire speech data into text, while the name of the child can be received in text and converted to a speech element and then inserted into the speech data using sound manipulation tools. However, converting the speech data into text would help in indexing of the uncustomized video and make all the existing speech elements searchable. This would help in cases where large scale customization is required and the speech data has to be customized at a number of instances of time.

[054] It should be noted that any particular or desired element of the uncustomized video can be customized according to the particular requirements of the user. If a particular element of the video is not customized by the user, generic and/or predetermined elements stored in the elements database 112 can be used to complete the customized video. For example, if a name of one of the characters (for example, E Isa) is to be customized or changed, each time the name is mentioned i n the uncustomized video this would be tagged so that upon customisation the processor 204 replaces the default name with the chosen name for the customized video. It is preferred that the audio qualities of the name are able to be changed so that when the customized audio is played it fits in with the rest of the audio and speech, as discussed in reference to speech modulation 612. For example, if the video has audio speech in a particular accent (for example, North American accent) then if the user uploads the desired name by speaking with an Australian accent, then the audio qualities of the name are changed to that of a North American accent This ensures the customized audio is not out of place. T he processor 204 can include voice recognition technologies in regards with this desi red feature.

[055] A further customi sable element offered by the preferred embodiment is to customize the face of one or more of the characters contai ned i n a story. T hi s feature al I ows the user to upload a photograph of a person and identify the person s face in the photo. In the preferred system the user can also upload a video and to use the video to customize the face of the at least one character in the video and further the user i nterface can use facial recognition technology, pattern recognition and elements of Artificial Intelligence (AI) such as neural networks and fuzzy logic, to take a series of photos and/or videos and/or likenesses of the user^'s face that are used to customize the video. When using the facial recognition technology, the facial recognition can determine the style of the video to be customized for example cartoon, black and white, colour and adapt and stylise the face according to the style of the video. For example, if the chosen video or film is a cartoon then the facial recognition wi 11 create a cartoon versi on of the user s face to f i t the face i nto the f i I m to ensure i t does not look out of place. For example, if the video is being made for a child, the child can become part of the video as a character having his or her face and name will be present in the video. Here, all of this would require customization of image/visual data.

[056] Figure 7 illustrates customization of image/Visual data, i n accordance with an embodiment 700 of the present invention. After the image or visual data has been extracted at step 504 or 514, respectively, the pixel elements to be customized of the image/visual data are identified at step 706. At step 602 an image or a visual element is procured from the image elements database 304 or visual elements database 310, respectively. The image/visual element here corresponds to the face of the child. In that manner, when the user provides the photo or the video of the child, the processor 204 creates a new image/visual element as the case may be, usi ng the tools discussed in the previous paragraph and stores the image/visual element in a corresponding database. Pixel elements to be inserted into the customized video are identified at step 704. At step 708 the pixel elements identified from the image/visual data is modified to include the new pixel elements. This may include either replacement or addition. Once modified, the new pixel elements are again converted to customized image/visual data for incl usion into the customized video. An additional step of 3- Dimensional (3D) visualization 710 may be required to ensure that the customized image/visual data fits into the customized video seamlessly. Therefore, proper relighting, boundary corrections, occlusion effects, facial expressions modifications etc. may be carried out dependi ng upon physi cal make of the face of the chi I d.

[057] Once the one or more of the plurality of layers of data have been customized, the plurality of customized layers are combined by the processor 204 to generate the customized video. This step may be enabled by the multiplexer 214 and wherever needed, descriptions (including metadata) may be provided by the descriptor 208, to the processor 204.

[058] Another technique that can be used to achieve a high level customization of the uncustomized video is use of M PEG-7 description. While this may not offer the granularity that the above discussed techniques offer, it does allow quick and economical customization, without use of excessive hardware resources. This is highly beneficial in scenarios where the customization of the uncustomized video is carried out for purposes of improving accessibility of the uncustomized videos, for example for visually impaired or colour blind users or when the video has to be adapted for male female demographics. This generally involves perception driven customization, such as colour transformation, text/font size transformation, sensations transformation and speech gender adaptations.

[059] Figure 8 illustrates a method 800 for customizing an uncustomized video using an M PEG-7 description, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The method begins at step 810 when the processor 204 generates an M PEG-7 description of the uncustomized video. Many of the currently available software tools may be used to generate the M PEG-7 description. The processor 204 in this case may be enabled by the descriptor 208. The MPEG-7 description typically includes metadata corresponding to creation, producti on, usage and management. T he descri pti on i s general ly obtai ned i n X M L format and typi cal ly answers one or more of, but not I i mited to, the f ol I owi ng questi ons:

1. What a particular scene is about?

2. W hat obj ects are present i n the screen?

3. Who is talking?

4. H ow i s the col our di stri buti on pattern?

[060] Again during generation of the description, one or more of the following may be carried out:

1. Shot segmentation

2. Model learning

3. R egi on segmentati on

4. Classification

5. Annotation

6. Feature extraction

7. M PEG-7 X M L rendering.

[061] All of the above may use proprietary and generally available algorithms pertaining to machine learni ng, pattern recognition and A I.

[062] Once the M PEG-7 description is available, it may be stored i n the storage device 112 or the central server s 108 cache at step 820. At step 830, the M PEG-7 description may be customized as per user s need, so that the customized M PEG-7 description can be reintegrated with other video data to generate the customized video.

[063] At step 440, the customized video is provided at the client device 102. T he central server 108 may store the customized video for a predetermined amount of time during which the user can download the customized video using the user interface to the client device 102 and/or a suitable media player. The customized video can also be burned to a DV D that can be played on a standard DV D player. The customised video can be retained on the central server (or an alternative server such as Y outubeu or another vi deo servi ce) to be streamed on demand to a client device. This would allow the custmomized video to be viewed on a phone or tablet computer on demand. The customized video can be stored in any suitable electronic video format. Common formats that can be used by embodiments of the invention include: 3G P; ASF; AVI; DV R-MS; IFF; Matroska (M KV); MPEG-2; M P4; MOV ; Ogg; OGM and Real Media files.

[064] In some embodiments the central server 108 prepares the customized video and then sends a link to the user to download or stream the customized video. Optionally, the user can include one or more additional people who can be sent the download link so as to provide them with the customized video as a gift. In one embodiment the central server 108 retains a copy of the customized video and allow the customized video to be streamed online to the user and/or optionally to any internet user. In some instances, the videos available for customising are provided by the user or licensed from film studios such as Disney, Pixar and the like. In this manner the user can pay a fee for licensing or purchasing the video and may also pay a customisation fee to the provider of the service. Optionally in this embodiment the central server 108 is connected to one or more storage servers provided by the film studios and has access to any fi lms that the studios allow to be customized.

[065] Regarding commercial aspects and advantages, in some embodiments movies sold through retail channels can i nclude optional customisation features and software including the means to allow customising according to the features of the present invention. In this way fil m studios are able to add additional revenue channels that have not been available to this time. The customized video or film can then be saved and stored to playable medium on a computer, portable electronic device, smartphone, DV D, Blu-Ray disc or any other medium made available to the user. In some embodiments the film studio offers to prepare and provide to the user the customized fil m in original retail packaging so as to provide the user or a gift recipient with an original unopened film. In some embodiments the customized video can be purchased and streamed through media platforms such as Apple iTunesu or Google Playu .

[066] In another preferred embodiment film studios provide the functionalities of the central server 108 directly to end users and host the storage devices and user interface backend. As would be understood different variations and ownership structures including licensing agreements, software as a service agreements and software sale agreements may be implemented according to the different embodiments while sti ll staying within the scope of the invention. [067] The central server 108 stores information on each of the users. U pon initially visiting the web page users may register with the central server 108 and can be provided with or choose a unique user name and password. Information regarding the usage of each particular user can then be stored on the central server 108 and associated with that user when the user returns to the website. Information stored includes the browsing history of the user on the web page, customized videos that are available for download by the user, incomplete videos that the user is in the process of customising and the like. In addition, based on user preferences, users can be advised by email or text message when new movies become available for customisation. Especially in cases where a user has a preference for fi I ms from a particular studio, the ability to notify the user when a new film from that studio is available is advantageous.

[068] Upon visiting the webpage users can browse the available uncustomized videos and select one or more of the videos for customisation. If selecting a plurality of videos each video can be customized individually or the plurality of videos can be customized using the same information. For example, if a user chooses to customize two videos they can insert the name of a child, say ^"J ane_ and upload a photo of J ane onto the central server 108. The user can then select J ane s face from the photo (alternatively the central server 108 can automatically scan the photo to determine which portion is the face or the user can simply upload a photo of J ane s face only). As described previously, the user can alternatively upload videos and/or use facial recognition software to create a likeness or image that is to be uploaded to the server for the purposes of customising the video. The user can then select to customize both videos using J ane^'s name and face. Alternatively, the user can customize the first video with J ane s information and the second video with, say, ^"J ohn s name and photo. It would be understood that both a first and surname, in addition to any other names such as mi ddl e or non- E ngl i sh names can be used to customi ze the vi deos.

[069] In some embodiments of the invention the user can select the language in which the video plays. In these embodiments it is preferred that the central server 108 automatically selects the most popular language in the country from which the user connects to the central server 108. For example, users in Australia, the United States of America and the United K ingdom would have E nglish selected as their default language. However, users connecting from France would have French selected as thei r default language. This would again need customization of speech data using custom or standard speech elements in the language of interest Of course, users would be free to change the selected language if this is desi rable. Users may also wish to change the selected language for other reasons, for example if they wish to learn a foreign language they can customize videos in that language. In some embodiments users are also able to select their preference of accents. For example, if a user chooses E nglish as a language the user can then choose from the foil owing accents: American E nglish, Australian E nglish or United K ingdom Engl ish.

[070] Once all the customisable elements have been selected and suitably customized, the central server 108 may render the customized videos and presents them for playback or download. If downloaded the customized videos can be downloaded as ISO files which can then be burned onto DV D or Blu-Ray and played in a standard DV D or Blu-Ray player. Alternatively, the videos can be downloaded in any required format such as M PEG, Divx, Xvid, AVI, Real Media and the like for playback on a media player connected to a television, a personal computer, IPhone, Ipod, portable media player, smart phone, tablet computer and the like. In other embodiments the video can be posted onto a public website such as Y ouTube so that is can be shared with friends and family.

[071] In this embodiment each user pays an initial subscription fee to the owner of the central server 108 to allow the users to customize and download videos. According to the particular business model required by the owner of the central server 108, users could also be required to pay ongoing monthly fees. Alternatively, users si mply pay a per use fee for each video that they customize and download. In some embodiments the central server 108 allows users to customize and download predetermined promotional videos for free. The promotional videos are used to entice users and allow them to evaluate the functionality and suitability of the service prior to paying any subscription or per use fee. The promotional videos may be limited in length or may only offer a limited number of customisable elements so that users cannot obtain the full benefit of the service without paying. Payment can be made using any suitable means such as by credit card, debit card, direct bank deposit, electronic cheque, physical cheques mailed to the owner of the server, through payment gateways such as PayPal, Stripe, Paymate or the like.

[072] In some embodiments central server 108 includes an email server that sends out regular newsletters to subscribed users. E mails can also be sent to users to inform them on new videos that are available for customisation. In one preferred embodiment the user interface is provided by way of an application or app on a mobile phone or tablet computer. The application is downloaded from an application store such as the Apple App Store or Google Play and installed on the user s phone or tablet. In this embodiment the phone or tablet can be used to take photos of the user or other people that are to be included in the customized video and/or to take audio sound bites that will then be used to customize the audio track. Photos and audio files already stored on the phone or tablet can also conveniently be uploaded to the central server 108.

[073] In another preferred scenario, embodiments of the invention are pre-packaged and provided for sale in retail stores or sold online and sent to users by mail (or making it available for pickup at a predetermined location). This embodiment would allow the user to customize the video using their home computer with or without internet access according to the preferences of the supplier of the system This is advantageous if users have no or slow internet connections and prevents the necessary large transfer of data of an online system. There are hundreds of available computer languages that may be used to implement embodiments of the invention, among the more common being A da; Algol; A PL; awk; Basic; C; C++; Cobol; Delphi; E iffel; E uphoria; Forth; Fortran; HT M L; Icon; J ava; J avascri pt; Lisp; Logo; Mathematica; MatLab; Miranda; Modula-2; Oberon; Pascal; Perl; PL /I; Prolog; Python; Rexx; SAS; Scheme; sed; Simula; Smalltalk; Snobol; SQL; V isual Basic; V isual C++; and X ML.

[074] It should be understood that the techniques of the present disclosure might be implemented using a variety of technologies. For example, the methods described herein may be implemented by a series of computer executable instructions residing on a suitable computer readable medium. Suitable computer readable media may include volatile (e.g. RA M) and/or non-volatile (e.g. ROM, disk) memory, carrier waves and transmission media. Exemplary carrier waves may take the form of electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals conveying digital data steams along a local network or a publically accessible network such as the Internet

[075] It should also be understood that, unless specifically stated otherwise as apparentfrom the following discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as "controlling" or "obtaining" or "computing" or "storing" or "receiving" or "determining" or the like, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or simi lar electronic computing device, that processes and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer X system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices

[076] The terms and descriptions used herein are set forth by way of illustration only and are not meant as limitations. Examples and limitations disclosed herein are intended to be not limiting in any manner, and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. Those skilled i n the art will recognize that many variations are possible within the spirit and scope of the disclosure, and thei r equivalents, in which all terms are to be understood i n thei r broadest possible sense unless otherwise indicated.

[077] Various modifications to these embodiments are apparent to those skilled in the art from the description and the accompanying drawings. The principles associated with the various embodiments described herein may be applied to other embodiments. Therefore, the description is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown along with the accompanying drawings but is to be providing broadest scope of consistent with the principles and the novel and inventive features disclosed or suggested herein. Accordingly, the disclosure is anticipated to hold on to all other such alternatives, modifications, and variations that fall within the scope of the present disclosure and appended clai ms.

Claims

C LAIMS

1. A computer implemented method for providing a customized video to a user, the method comprising steps of:

receivi ng an uncustomized video;

receivi ng a request to customize the uncustomized video, from a cl ient device; customizing the uncustomized video to obtain the customized video; and providing the customized video at the client device.

2. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the uncustomized video includes a plurality of layers of data, wherein the step of customizing the uncustomized video includes customizing one or more of the plurality of layers.

3. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the plurality of layers includes text data, image data, audio data, speech data, visual data and synthetic data.

4. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 2, wherein each layer of the plurality of layers of data includes a predetermined number of respective customizable elements.

5. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 4, wherein customizing a layer of the plurality of layers includes adding an additional standard or a custom element to the layer and/or replacing an existing element by the additional standard or the custom element

6. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 5, wherein the additional custom element is generated from user provided data.

7. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the user provided data includes a name of a character, a name of a city and a video or a photograph havi ng a face of a character.

8. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of customizing the uncustomized video, includes steps of:

generating an M PEG-7 description of the uncustomized video; storing the M PEG-7 description; and customizing the M PEG-7 description.

9. The computer implemented method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a step of: burning a DV D or Bl u-Ray of the customized video; or streaming of the customized video.

10. A computer system for provi di ng a customi zed vi deo to a user, compri si ng:

a memory unit configured to store machine-readable instructions; and a processor operably connected with the memory device, the processor obtaining the machine-readable instructions from the memory device, and being configured by the machine- readable instructions to:

receive an uncustomized video;

receive a request to customize the uncustomized video, from a client device; customize the uncustomized video to obtain the customized video; and provi de the customized vi deo at the cl i ent devi ce.

11. The computer system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the uncustomized video includes a plurality of layers of data, wherein the step of customizing the uncustomized video includes customizing one or more of the plurality of layers.

12. The computer system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the pl urality of layers includes text data, image data, audio data, speech data, visual data and synthetic data.

13. The computer system as claimed in claim 11, wherein each layer of the plurality of layers of data includes a predetermined number of respective customizable elements.

14. The computer system as claimed in claim 13, wherein for customizing a layer of the plurality of layers the processor is further configured to add an additional standard or a custom element to the layer and/or replace an existing element by the additional standard or the custom element

15. The computer system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the processor is further configured to generate the additi onal custom el ement from user provi ded data.

16. The computer system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the user provided data includes a name of a character, a name of a city and a video or a photograph having a face of a character.

17. The computer system as clai med in claim 10, wherein for customizing the uncustomized video, the processor is further configured to:

generate an M PE G-7 descri pti on of the uncustomized vi deo;

store the M PEG -7 description; and

customize the MPEG-7 description.

The computer system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to burn a DV D or Blu-Ray of the customized video.

18. The computer system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to: burn a DV D or Bl u-Ray of the customized video; or stream the custmoized video.