Summary:
U.S. Patent No. 7,663,045 (the '045 Patent) describes a method for a user to replace the background music in a video game with their music. The Xbox 360 allowed users to rip music from a CD and download it to the system's hard-drive. A benefit to having the music on the 360 hard-drive was the system allowed users to listen to their music while playing a game. The system would mute game's background music and then insert the user's music. If the game had a scripted moment that required preselected music, then the system would mute the user's music until the scripted moment finished.  Sound effects remained in the game, so effectively the 360 allowed users to create customized soundtracks.

Abstract:
A user of a game system can replace background music from a game with the user's selected background music, while still hearing any other audio streams (e.g. sound effects related to gameplay). A music engine and system audio mixer allow the playback of the user's requested replacement music. The game tags background music streams with an identifier indicating that they are background music, and such streams are muted at the music engine and system audio mixer (if the game is using the provided music engine in order to play the game's audio streams) or by the game if the game is using a game music engine and has received information indicating that a mute request has been issued.


Illustrative Claim:
1. A system for providing audio playback from a gaming system running an application, wherein said application generates an application default audio stream, said system comprising: application programming interfaces, said application programming interfaces integrating gaming system audio playback control features into said application, wherein audio commands issued by said application are implemented by said gaming system concurrently with execution of said application; an audio input for receiving said audio commands and said application default audio stream from said application; an audio replacement indicator for indicating when replacement of said application default audio stream is requested; an audio output, operably connected to said audio input and said audio replacement indicator, wherein said audio output plays audio comprising said application default audio stream if said audio replacement indicator indicates that no audio replacement is requested, or an alternate audio stream if said audio replacement indicator indicates that audio replacement is requested.


Researched By: Andrew F. Thomas

On March 27, 2018, Hybrid Audio, LLC (“Hybrid Audio”) sued Nintendo of America Inc. and Nintendo Co., Ltd. (“Nintendo”) for alleged infringement of RE 40,281, a reissue of U.S. 6,252,909.  The allegedly infringing products include the Nintendo Wii and the Nintendo DS.  RE 40,281 generally relates to signal processing and is part of technology used for MP3 technology, and Hybrid Audio’s argument is that Nintendo infringes via practicing various parts of the MP3 technical standard (ISO/IEC 11172-3:1993).


As part of Hybrid Audio’s complaint, it notes that Nintendo may enter a Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory (“RAND”) agreement to license RE 40,281 as part of the MP3 Standards. Hybrid Audio also indicates that products supplied by Microsoft Corporation are not part of the allegedly infringing products, suggesting that Microsoft has possibly already entered into such an agreement.

RAND agreements, sometimes called FRAND agreements (for “Fair, Reasonable, and Non-Discriminatory”), are commonly used in patent pools. In industries where standards (e.g., audio standards like MP3 and cellular communications standards like 3G or LTE) are important, patent owners often collectively pool “standards-essential” patents and mutually agree to license those patents on FRAND/RAND terms. For patent owners, this can be a good deal: once their patents become standards-essential, users of the standard must license their patent, albeit on RAND/FRAND terms. For licensees, this can also be a good deal: because all patent owners must license their standards-essential patents on RAND/FRAND terms, they can usually acquire licenses to the standard fairly easily and with reasonable terms.

Strangely, Hybrid Audio's complaint specifically identifies the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS as infringing products.  The Nintendo Wii was launched in 2006, whereas the Nintendo DS was launched in 2004.  35 U.S.C. § 286 limits damages to six years prior to the filing of a complaint, meaning that Hybrid Audio's recovery will be limited to the period from 2012 to 2018.  During that period, Nintendo was marketing different a next generation of game consoles (the Wii U and the 3DS), which are not referenced in Hybrid Audio's complaint.  Potential damages related to sales of the Wii and DS are likely to be extremely small.