Sharing a streaming video

Abstract

A video segment can be shared over a computer network by first receiving the video segment at a receiving computer on the network. The receiving computer assures that the video segment is in a streaming video format, and creates at least one identification tag for the video segment. The receiving computer also stores the video segment, and communicates the identification tag to another computer on the network. Upon subsequent receipt of that identification tag, the receiving computer streams the video segment to a destination computer on the network.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A method of sharing a video segment over a computer network, the network comprising a receiving computer and a plurality of other computers including a destination computer, the method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) receiving at the receiving computer the video segment sent over the computer network from one of the plurality of other computers;    (b) performing automatically at the receiving computer, in response to a command received over the network, the steps of: 
 (b1) assuring that the video segment is in a streaming video format;  
 (b2) creating at least an identification tag for the video segment to identify the video segment;  
 (b3) storing the video segment under the control of the receiving computer in the streaming video format; and  
 (b4) returning the identification tag to the one of the plurality of other computers;  
   (c) receiving the identification tag at the receiving computer; and    (d) in response to the receipt of the identification tag at the receiving computer, streaming the video segment in the streaming video format over the network to the destination computer.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising causing the video segment to be displayed at the destination computer.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the video segment comprises an image with associated audio information.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the video segment comprises a still image.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computer network comprises a wire connection.  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computer network comprises a cellular communication connection.  
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computer network comprises a wireless networking connection.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computer network comprises a terrestrial satellite communication connection.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (a) comprises receiving the video segment which includes an identifier.  
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the identifier comprises a selected one of an image, a file handle, a storage location, an address, a Universal Resource Locator (URL), a file name, an interactive control, and a control object operating according to the Component Object Model (COM).  
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (a) comprises receiving the video segment which is sent in association with an electronic mail message.  
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (a) comprises receiving the video segment which is sent in association with a HyperText Markup Language (HTML) mail message.  
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (a) comprises receiving the video segment which is sent in association with an upload form residing on a World Wide Web (Web) page  
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (a) comprises receiving the video segment which is sent in association with a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) transfer.  
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (a) comprises receiving the video segment which includes information supplied by a sender at the one of the plurality of other computers.  
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , where the information comprises information describing a streaming format into which the receiving computer converts the video segment.  
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises an identification of the sender.  
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the identification of the sender comprises a proper name.  
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the identification of the sender comprises a username.  
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the identification of the sender comprises a password.  
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises a return address of the sender.  
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the return address comprises an e-mail address.  
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises an identifier of the video segment.  
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the identifier comprises a title.  
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the identifier comprises a name.  
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the identifier comprises a date the video segment was produced.  
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the identifier comprises a location relating to the video segment.  
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the identifier comprises a subject relating to the video segment.  
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises a comment about the video segment.  
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises a period of time during which the video segment will be available.  
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises information relating to a priority order of processing a video segment by the receiving computer.  
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises an instruction for transmittal of a response.  
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the instruction comprises a formatting instruction.  
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the instruction comprises a speed of transmission.  
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the instruction comprises a transmission protocol to be used.  
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the instruction comprises a format of a physical medium to be used in sending a physical machine-readable copy of the video segment.  
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the instruction comprises a resolution of the video segment.  
     
     
         38 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the instruction comprises an image quality of the video segment.  
     
     
         39 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the instruction comprises a display format of the video segment on a destination computer.  
     
     
         40 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the information comprises financial information.  
     
     
         41 . The method of  claim 40 , wherein the financial information comprises a credit card number.  
     
     
         42 . The method of  claim 40 , wherein the financial information comprises a financial account identifier.  
     
     
         43 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein step (b1) comprises converting the video segment, if it is not in a streaming video format at the time of receipt by the receiving computer, to a streaming video format, independent of a received command to perform such conversion.  
     
     
         44 . The method of  claim 43 , wherein step (b1) comprises automatically converting the video segment from a first streaming video format characteristic of the video segment upon receipt at the receiving computer to a second streaming video format.  
     
     
         45 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising queuing a second video segment and a command transmitted with the second video segment for processing by the receiving computer according to steps (b) through (d) in the event that the receiving computer is performing any of steps (b) through (d) in response to receipt of a first video segment.  
     
     
         46 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing to a sender of a video segment an estimate of a duration of the required processing time for the conversion of the video segment.  
     
     
         47 . The method of  claim 46 , wherein the estimate is provided prior to performing any of steps (b) through (d).  
     
     
         48 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing to the destination computer of a video segment an estimate of a duration of the required processing time for the conversion of the video segment.  
     
     
         49 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the video segment is converted into multiple video formats.  
     
     
         50 . The method of  claim 49 , wherein the receiving computer streams the video segment in a format of the available streaming video formats, the format based on a selected one of the receiving computer responding to user settings at the destination computer, the receiving computer responding to display software installed on the destination computer, the receiving computer responding to information received in association with the receipt of the identification tag, and the receiving computer determining an optimal viewing format for the destination computer of the formats available.  
     
     
         51 . The method of  claim 50 , wherein the receiving computer sends to the destination computer a video segment that is not in streaming format prior to the display of the video segment.  
     
     
         52 . The method of  claim 49 , wherein the multiple video formats comprise a format not compatible with streaming video.  
     
     
         53 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the identification tag received by the destination computer is communicated by the receiving computer in association with one of an electronic mail message, an HTML electronic mail message, and an instant message.  
     
     
         54 . The method of  claim 53 , wherein the identification tag is a hyperlink provided in the message sent to the destination computer, the hyperlink pointing to a Web page that causes the streaming of the video.  
     
     
         55 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the video segment in streaming video format is streamed from the receiving computer as information embedded in a message.  
     
     
         56 . The method  claim 1 , wherein, in response to the receipt of the identification tag at the receiving computer, the video segment in a first streaming video format is converted into a video segment in a second streaming format by the receiving computer, and the video segment in the second video format is streamed to the destination computer.  
     
     
         57 . A computerized system for sharing a video over a computer network, comprising: 
 a receiving computer for communicating with one or more other computers over a computer network including a destination computer, the receiving computer receiving a video segment from at least one of the one or more other computers, the receiving computer responsive to a communication from the one or more other computers that can activate the receiving computer automatically, the receiving computer comprising: 
 (i) a control module that controls a memory, the memory capable of holding computer instructions and data;  
 (ii) a receiving module that receives a message associated with the video segment sent from the at least one of the one or more other computers;  
 (iii) an analyzer module that determines whether the video segment is in a streaming video format;  
 (iv) a format conversion module that converts a format of the video segment to a format that is compatible with streaming video;  
 (v) a storage module that stores the video segment in streaming video format in the memory module;  
 (vi) an identification module that creates the identification tag identifying the video segment in streaming video format stored in the memory module;  
 (vii) a transmitter module that transmits over the network the identification tag to a computer of the one or more other computers; and  
 (viii) a sharing module that streams the video segment in streaming video format to the destination computer in response to a return of the identification tag to the receiving computer.  
   
     
     
         58 . The system of  claim 57 , further comprising an extraction module that extracts from the received message the video segment and information sent with the video segment.  
     
     
         59 . The system of  claim 58 , wherein the information sent with the video segment comprises an identity of the user of the computer of the one or more other computers.  
     
     
         60 . The system of  claim 58 , wherein the information sent with the video segment comprises a return address of the user of the computer of the one or more other computers.  
     
     
         61 . The system of  claim 58 , wherein the information sent with the video segment comprises a title of the video segment.  
     
     
         62 . The system of  claim 58 , wherein the information sent with the video segment comprises an identifier of the video segment.  
     
     
         63 . The system of  claim 58 , wherein the information sent with the video segment comprises a subject of the video segment.  
     
     
         64 . The system of  claim 58 , wherein the information sent with the video segment comprises a date of creation of the video segment.  
     
     
         65 . The system of  claim 58 , wherein the information sent with the video segment comprises a description of the video segment.  
     
     
         66 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the analyzer module that determines whether the video segment is in a streaming video format determines if the video segment is in QuickTime format.  
     
     
         67 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the analyzer module that determines whether the video segment is in a streaming video format determines if the video segment is in ASF format.  
     
     
         68 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the analyzer module that determines whether the video segment is in a streaming video format determines if the video segment is in WMF format.  
     
     
         69 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the analyzer module that determines whether the video segment is in a streaming video format determines if the video segment is in MPEG format.  
     
     
         70 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the format conversion module that converts a format of a video segment to a format that is compatible with streaming video comprises a format conversion module that creates a DirectShow filter graph that decompresses the video file into an uncompressed AVI format file.  
     
     
         71 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the identification module that creates the identification tag identifying the video segment in streaming video format stored in the memory module comprises a module that selects a video frame from the video segment in streaming video format.  
     
     
         72 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the identification module that creates the identification tag identifying the video segment in streaming video format stored in the memory module comprises a module that identifies a location where the video segment is stored.  
     
     
         73 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the identification module that creates the identification tag identifying the video segment in streaming video format stored in the memory module comprises a module that identifies how the video segment can be accessed.  
     
     
         74 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the identification module that creates the identification tag identifying the video segment in streaming video format stored in the memory module comprises a module that provides an image that represents the subject matter of the video segment.  
     
     
         75 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the identification module that creates the identification tag identifying the video segment in streaming video format stored in the memory module comprises a module that generates a file name.  
     
     
         76 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the transmitter module that transmits over the network the identification tag to at least one computer of the one or more other computers comprises a module that transmits the identification tag using an electronic mail message communication protocol.  
     
     
         77 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the transmitter module that transmits over the network the identification tag to at least one computer of the one or more other computers comprises a module that transmits the identification tag using a HyperText Markup Language (HTML) mail message communication protocol.  
     
     
         78 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the transmitter module that transmits over the network the identification tag to at least one computer of the one or more other computers comprises a module that transmits the identification tag using an upload form residing on a World Wide Web (Web) page.  
     
     
         79 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the transmitter module that transmits over the network the identification tag to at least one computer of the one or more other computers comprises a module that transmits the identification tag using a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) transfer.  
     
     
         80 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the sharing module that streams the video segment in streaming video format to one computer of the one or more other computers in response to a return of the identification tag comprises a module that streams the video segment to a specified computer.  
     
     
         81 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the sharing module that streams the video segment in streaming video format to one computer of the one or more other computers in response to a return of the identification tag comprises a module that streams the video segment at a selected bitrate.  
     
     
         82 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the sharing module that streams the video segment in streaming video format to one computer of the one or more other computers in response to a return of the identification tag comprises a module that streams the video segment at a selected transmission quality.  
     
     
         83 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the sharing module that streams the video segment in streaming video format to one computer of the one or more other computers in response to a return of the identification tag comprises a module that streams the video segment at a selected performance level.  
     
     
         84 . The system of  claim 57 , wherein the sharing module that streams the video segment in streaming video format to one computer of the one or more other computers in response to a return of the identification tag comprises a module that streams the video segment in a selected format.