Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an avatar engine having a controller to retrieve a user profile of a user, present the user an avatar having characteristics that correlate to the user profile, detect one or more responses of the user during a communication exchange between the avatar and the user, identify from the one or more responses a need to engage in an e-commerce transaction, engage in a commercial exchange with a merchant system according to the e-commerce transaction, identify a commercial status of the e-commerce transaction from the commercial exchange with the merchant system, and present the user by way of the avatar the commercial status of the e-commerce transaction. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a system to receive a response generated by a media processor based on an analysis of a communication exchange between a user and an avatar having characteristics that correspond to a user profile. The system can identify from the response a requirement for initiation of a communication session with a content source. An avatar profile is received from the content source, including gesture information based on gestures utilized by a character supplied by the content source. An adapted avatar is generated based on the avatar profile by adapting in part the characteristics of the avatar to have a first characteristic that duplicates a gesture of the character supplied by the content source, while retaining a second characteristic corresponding to the user profile. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and computer readable-media for providing an automatic synthetically generated voice describing media content, the method comprising receiving one or more pieces of metadata for a primary media content, selecting at least one piece of metadata for output, and outputting the at least one piece of metadata as synthetically generated speech with the primary media content. Other aspects of the invention involve alternative output, output speech simultaneously with the primary media content, output speech during gaps in the primary media content, translate metadata in foreign language, tailor voice, accent, and language to match the metadata and/or primary media content. A user may control output via a user interface or output may be customized based on preferences in a user profile.

Abstract: Multi-touch interfaces allow user interaction with multiple points of contact to control external devices such as game consoles, authenticate users, partition the interface for multiple users, and so forth. The multi-touch interface may provide graphical representations that are manipulated by users through multiple points of contact to participate in games running on an external game console. Additionally, user authentication may occur through multiple points of contact with the multi-touch interface where each user has a unique contact pattern that includes points of contact, location of points of contact, rhythm of points of contact, and so forth. The graphical representations may be customized based on the authentication of a user, and the multi-touch surface may be partitioned based on the number of users present.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an avatar engine having a controller to present a user an avatar correlated to a profile of the user, detect a communication exchange between the user and the avatar, identify from the communication exchange a directive from the user to share the avatar with an other user, and submit to an other avatar engine associated with the other user a shared avatar comprising a usage policy and at least one of a replica in whole or in part of the avatar engine or in whole or in part of characteristics of the avatar. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an avatar engine having a controller to retrieve a user profile, cause a presentation device to present a user an avatar having characteristics that correlate to the user profile, detect one or more responses of the user, identify from the one or more responses a need to communicate with a merchant system, establish a communication session with the merchant system, receive a notification from the merchant system of a merchant avatar engine, establish communication with the merchant avatar engine, adapt the characteristics of the avatar at least in part according to instructions supplied by the merchant avatar engine, and cause the presentation device to present the user the adapted avatar. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an avatar engine having a controller to retrieve a user profile of a user, present the user an avatar having characteristics that correlate to the user profile, detect one or more responses of the user during a communication exchange between the avatar and the user, identify from the one or more responses a need to engage in an e-commerce transaction, engage in a commercial exchange with a merchant system according to the e-commerce transaction, identify a commercial status of the e-commerce transaction from the commercial exchange with the merchant system, and present the user by way of the avatar the commercial status of the e-commerce transaction. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) system having a controller to retrieve a user profile associated with a user of the IPTV system, cause a set-top box (STB) operating in the IPTV system to present an avatar having characteristics that correlate to the user profile, receive from the STB one or more responses of the user, wherein the one or more responses are collected by the STB from a communication exchange between the avatar and the user, identify from the one or more responses a need to communicate with a content source, establish a communication session with the content source, receive from the content source an avatar profile, adapt the characteristics of the avatar to correlate at least in part to the avatar profile, and cause the STB to present the adapted avatar. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a computing device, including a controller to: transmit a client program having a graphical user interface to a media device operating in an interactive television network, wherein the client program presents a symbolic overlay that superimposes onto media content received by the media device and enables the media device to associate commentary with the media content received at the media device; and conduct searches for one of consumer products or consumer services associated with the media content based on the commentary regarding the media content. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an avatar engine having a controller to retrieve a user profile of a user, present the user an avatar having characteristics that correlate to the user profile, detect one or more responses of the user during a communication exchange between the avatar and the user, establish a communication session with a language translation system responsive to identifying from the one or more responses a need to engage in language translations, transmit to the language translation system content in a language format other than a language understood by the user, receive from the language translation system a translation of the content in the language understood by the user, and present the user an adaptation of the avatar that presents the translated content in the user's language. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A method and system for remote control at a client of a multimedia content distribution network (MCDN) enables a user to add desired multimedia program listings to a user collection. The user collection may be saved at an MCDN server for subsequent retrieval. Multimedia programs corresponding to the listings may be stored in a user collection cache. The user may easily select the listings in a user collection for presentation at an MCDN client. The multimedia programs may be provided from a plurality of content sources, including external content providers and the Internet.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a computing device, including a controller to: transmit a client program having a graphical user interface (GUI) to a media device operating in an interactive television (iTV) network, wherein the client program presents a symbolic overlay that superimposes onto media content received by the media device and enables the media device to associate commentary with the media content received at the media device; and conduct searches for one of consumer products or consumer services associated with the media content based on the commentary regarding the media content. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and computer readable-media for providing an automatic synthetically generated voice describing media content, the method comprising receiving one or more pieces of metadata for a primary media content, selecting at least one piece of metadata for output, and outputting the at least one piece of metadata as synthetically generated speech with the primary media content. Other aspects of the invention involve alternative output, output speech simultaneously with the primary media content, output speech during gaps in the primary media content, translate metadata in foreign language, tailor voice, accent, and language to match the metadata and/or primary media content. A user may control output via a user interface or output may be customized based on preferences in a user profile.

Abstract: A method that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, the steps of transmitting media content to a group of set top boxes for presentation with an overlay superimposed onto the media content, receiving a first comment from a first set top box of the group of set top boxes where the first comment is presentable with the overlay and the media content by the group of set top boxes, determining a first advertisement based on the first comment, and transmitting the first advertisement to the first set top box for presentation with the overlay and the media content. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an avatar engine having a controller to retrieve a profile of a user, present the user an avatar having characteristics that correlate to the profile, detect one or more responses of the user during a communication exchange between the avatar and the user, identify a request of the user to apply a security protocol to a task identified in the request, retrieve the security protocol, engage in the task according to the security protocol, detect while engaged in the task a breach in the security protocol, identify a communication device of the user to engage in a communication session with the user, establish a communication session with the communication device, and present by way of the communication device the avatar describing the security breach. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: Files are easily located based on addresses associated with calls. When a call is processed to, or received at, an address, the address may be used to query a database. The database stores associates between addresses and files stored in memory. All filenames related to the address may be displayed, thus allowing a user to quickly launch the files associated with a calling number.

Abstract: A method that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, the steps of transmitting media content to a group of set top boxes for presentation with an overlay superimposed onto the media content, receiving a first comment from a first set top box of the group of set top boxes where the first comment is presentable with the overlay and the media content by the group of set top boxes, determining a first advertisement based on the first comment, and transmitting the first advertisement to the first set top box for presentation with the overlay and the media content. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a first computing device having a controller to present an avatar having characteristics that correlate to a user profile and that conform to operating characteristics of the first computing device, and transmit to a second computing device operational information associated with the avatar for reproducing at least in part the avatar at said second computing device. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may perform operations including, for example, receiving a plurality of user-generated comments associated with media content where the plurality of user-generated comments are temporally associated with a portion of the media content during a presentation of the media content at a group of communication devices, and identifying from the plurality of user-generated comments a cluster of comments associated with a segment of the media content based on satisfaction of a threshold number of comments for the segment. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and products are disclosed for displaying objects. A software application is associated to a profile storing display characteristics for the software application. A video display screen is segmented into segments. A video object produced by the software application is mapped to a segment in the video display screen that corresponds to the profile.