An electronic device, computer program product, and method avoids presenting certain objects during a video communication session. During a video communication session with second electronic device(s), a controller of an electronic device identifies baseline image(s) from an image stream provided by an image capturing device of the electronic device. The baseline image includes a primary image portion of participant(s) and including a scene of objects within the foreground or background of participant (s), during an initial portion of the video communication session. The controller monitors the image stream for a subsequent detection of the primary image portion and of non-participant(s) or object(s) as a secondary image portion that is not included within the baseline image(s). The controller responds to detecting the secondary image portion subsequently appearing within the image stream by communicating, to the one or more second electronic devices, a substitute image stream that does not present the secondary image portion.

A telecommunication and multimedia management apparatus and method that supports voice and other media communications and that enables users to: (i) participate in multiple conversation modes, including live phone calls, conference calls, instant voice messaging or tactical communications; (ii) review the messages of conversations in either a live mode or a time-shifted mode and to seamlessly transition back and forth between the two modes; (iii) participate in multiple conversations either concurrently or simultaneously; (iv) archive the messages of conversations for later review or processing; and (v) persistently store media either created or received on the communication devices of users. The latter feature enables users to generate or review media when either disconnected from the network or network conditions are poor and to optimize the delivery of media over the network based on network conditions and the intention of the users participating in conversations.

The present technology relates to an information processing device and an information processing method, which are capable of allowing users at remote locations to each grasp more deeply the condition of the space where the partner is present. Provided is an information processing device including a control unit, wherein, between a first space where a first imaging device and a first display device are installed and a second space where a second imaging device and a second display device are installed, when a captured image captured by the imaging device in one of the spaces is displayed by the display device in the other space in real time, the control unit performs a control for presenting a state of the second space in an ineffective region excluding an effective region in which a captured image captured by the second imaging device is displayed, in a display region of the first display device. The present technology can be applied to, for example, a video communication system.

Determining the angle of sound relative to the centerline of a microphone array. The angle of the centerline of a camera field-of-view (FoV) and the angle of the camera FoV is determined. Knowing the angle from the centerline of the microphone array of the particular sound and then the angle of the centerline of the camera FoV and angles of the camera FoV allows a determination if the sound is inside the FoV of the camera. If so, the microphones are unmuted. If not, the microphones are muted. As the camera zooms or pans, the changes in camera FoV and centerline angle are computed and used with the sound angle, so that the muting and unmuting occurs automatically as the camera zoom and pan angle change.

In various embodiments, a device receives a first video stream of a video conference. The device receives a second video stream of the video conference. The second video stream includes an indicated location for video of the second video stream relative to video of the first video stream. The device merges the first video stream and the second video stream into an overlapped video having the video of the second video stream located at the indicated location relative to the video of the first video stream. The device provides the overlapped video for display.

A method comprises obtaining a video stream of a first party who is engaging with a second party in a telemedicine session; determining statuses of one or more privacy aspects of a first party environment, wherein the privacy aspects of the first party environment are aspects of the first party environment that have a potential to compromise privacy of sensitive information provided by the second party to the first party during the telemedicine session; and causing a second party computing device to present a user interface of a telemedicine facilitation application, wherein the user interface of the telemedicine facilitation application includes the video stream of the first party and also includes a set of one or more notifications, wherein each of the one or more notifications indicates the status of a different one of the privacy aspects of the first party environment.

An on-demand mobile lawyer method includes receiving a live consultation request from a user, automatically receiving a live-stream of video images of the user and surroundings and storing the video images, automatically searching a plurality of records associated with a plurality of lawyers stored in a remote database, automatically identifying at least one lawyer licensed in a jurisdiction that corresponds to a current location of the user, automatically transmitting at least one notification to the identified at least one lawyer, live-streaming captured video images of the user for viewing by the identified at least one lawyer, automatically receiving and storing live-streaming video images of the identified at least one lawyer in the remote database, and automatically transmitting the live-streaming video images of the identified at least one lawyer to be displayed on a display screen viewable by the user.

Techniques are provided herein for secure display device communications. In one example, a video communications device provides, to a display device over a first connection, communication information that enables the display device to contact a server over a second connection. The video communications device further provides, to the display device over the first connection, a command configured to initiate an interaction with the server. The server obtains, from the display device over the second connection, a message initiating the interaction in response to the command based on the communication information.

This disclosure describes techniques implemented partly by a communications service for identifying and altering undesirable portions of communication data, such as audio data and video data, from a communication session between computing devices. For example, the communications service may monitor the communications session to alter or remove undesirable audio data, such as a dog barking, a doorbell ringing, etc., and/or video data, such as rude gestures, inappropriate facial expressions, etc. The communications service may stream the communication data for the communication session partly through managed servers and analyze the communication data to detect undesirable portions. The communications service may alter or remove the portions of communication data received from a first user device, such as by filtering, refraining from transmitting, or modifying the undesirable portions. The communications service may send the modified communication data to a second user device engaged in the communication session after removing the undesirable portions.

A conference device comprising a first image sensor for provision of first image data, a second image sensor for provision of second image data, a first image processor configured for provision of a first primary videostream and a first secondary videostream based on the first image data, a second image processor configured for provision of a second primary videostream and a second secondary videostream based on the second image data, and an intermediate image processor in communication with the first image processor and the second image processor and configured for provision of a field-of-view videostream and a region-of-interest videostream, wherein the field-of-view videostream is based on the first primary videostream and the second primary videostream, and wherein the region-of-interest videostream is based on one or more of the first secondary videostream and the second secondary videostream.