Content Preview Generation Using Social Network Analysis

1. A method operating within a content distribution server comprising: identifying a first interesting portion of a digital content item having a plurality of portions, the first interesting portion identified based upon a first input signal received at a first content presentation device, the first content presentation device operated by a first person associated with a first social network; identifying a second interesting portion of the digital content item, the second interesting portion identified based upon a second input signal received at a second content presentation device, the second content presentation device operated by a second person associated with a second social network; determining that a third person operating a third content presentation device is associated with the first social network; determining that a fourth person operating a fourth content presentation device is associated with the second social network; generating a first digital content preview of the digital content item for presentation on the third content presentation device, the first digital content preview including the first interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network; and generating a second digital content preview of the digital content item for presentation on the fourth content presentation device, the second digital content preview including the second interesting portion based upon the fourth person being associated with the second social network.

2. The method according to claim 1 further comprising: enabling presentation of the first digital content preview by the third content presentation device; receiving an acquisition signal associated with the presentation of the first digital content preview; and enabling presentation of the plurality of portions of the digital content item by a content presentation device operated by the third person based upon the acquisition signal.

3. The method according to claim 2 further comprising communicating information related to a second digital content item to the first person based upon the acquisition signal.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the digital content item includes text information having a plurality of passages corresponding to the plurality of portions and the first interesting portion corresponds to at least a first of the plurality of passages and the first input signal is based upon a first annotation to the text information received from the first person at the first content presentation device.

5. The method according to claim 4 wherein the first annotation includes at least one of text highlights, interlineations and bookmarks.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein the digital content item includes text information having a plurality of passages corresponding to the plurality of portions and the first interesting portion corresponds to at least a first of the plurality of passages and the first input signal is based upon an amount of time spent reading the first of the plurality of passages by the first person at the first presentation device.

7. The method according to claim 1 wherein the digital content item includes multimedia information having a plurality of multimedia portions corresponding to the plurality of portions and the first interesting portion corresponds to at least a first of the plurality of multimedia portions and the first input signal is based upon at least one of replaying, voting and highlight made on the first of the plurality of multimedia portions by the first person at the first presentation device.

8. The method according to claim 1 wherein the digital content item includes a plurality of interactive portions corresponding to the plurality of portions, wherein presentation of a subsequent interactive portion is based upon inputs received during presentation of a prior interactive portion and the first interesting portion corresponds to at least a first of the plurality of interactive portions and the first input signal is based upon at least one of replaying, voting and highlight made on the first of the plurality of interactive portions by the first person at the first presentation device.

9. The method according to claim 1 wherein the identifying the first interesting portion identifies the first interesting portion based upon a first plurality of input signals, the first plurality of input signals including the first input signal, identifying the first interesting portion, and received at a first plurality of content presentation devices including the first content presentation device, the first plurality of content presentation devices operated by a first plurality of persons including the first person, the first plurality of persons associated with the first social network.

10. The method according to claim 9 wherein the first plurality of input signals are included within a first multiplicity of input signals identifying a first multiplicity of interesting portions including the first interesting portion, the first plurality of content presentation devices are included with a first multiplicity of content presentation devices, the first plurality of persons are included with a first multiplicity of persons operating the first multiplicity of content presentation devices, the first multiplicity of persons being associated with the first social network, and the identifying the first interesting portion further includes determining the first plurality of input signals to indicate that the first interesting portion is a more identified portion of the first multiplicity of interesting portions identified by the first multiplicity of input signals.

11. The method according to claim 10 wherein the identifying does not identify the first interesting portion if the first plurality of input signals identifying the interesting portion is not equal to or greater than two.

12. The method according to claim 1 further comprising: identifying a third interesting portion of the digital content item, the third interesting portion identified based upon a fifth input signal received at a fifth content presentation device, the fifth content presentation device operated by a fifth person associated with the first social network, wherein, the determining further determines a first relationship magnitude between the third person and the first person and a second relationship magnitude between the third person and the fifth person, and the generating generates the digital content preview to include the first interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the first relationship magnitude being greater than the second relationship magnitude, the second interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the second social network, or the fourth interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the second relationship magnitude being greater than the first relationship magnitude.

13. The method according to claim 12 wherein the determining the first and the second the relationship magnitude includes evaluating at least one of a degree centrality, betweenness centrality, closeness, Eigenvalue hub and authority.

14. The method according to claim 12 further wherein the relationship magnitude includes at least one of a family relationship, an employment relationship, a social media relationship status, and an interest in a topic related to the digital content item.

15. The method according to claim 1 further comprising: identifying a third interesting portion of the digital content item, the third interesting portion identified based upon a fifth input received at a fifth content presentation device, the fifth content presentation device operated by a fifth person associated with the first social network, wherein, the determining further determines a first role magnitude of the first person within the first social network and a second role magnitude of the fifth person within the first social network, and the generating generates the digital content preview to include the first interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the first role magnitude, the second interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the second social network, or the fourth interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the second role magnitude.

16. The method according to claim 15 wherein the digital content item is included within a multiplicity of digital content items having a plurality of subject classifications and the first role magnitude is based upon a first analysis of the multiplicity of digital content items having interesting portions identified by the first person and included with a subject classification associated with the digital content item, and the second role magnitude is based upon a second analysis of the multiplicity of digital content items having interesting portions identified by the fifth person and included with the subject classification associated with the digital content item.

17. A content distribution server comprising: a content distributor having a digital memory for storing a digital content item having a plurality of portions, the content distributor for distributing the digital content item to a first content presentation device and second content presentation device; an interesting portion analyzer coupled to the first and second content presentation devices for receiving a first input signal from the first content presentation device indicative of a first interesting portion of the plurality of portions of the digital content identified by a first person included within a first social network; receiving a second input signal from the second content presentation device indicative of a second interesting portion of the plurality of portions of the digital content identified by a second person included within a second social network; a social network analyzer coupled to the first and second content presentation devices and a third content presentation device for determining if a third person operating the third content presentation device is included in either the first social network or the second social network; and a digital content preview generator coupled to the third content presentation device for generating a first digital content preview of the digital content item including the first interesting portion and not the second interesting portion based upon the third person being a member of the first social network, and for generating a second digital content preview of the digital content item including the second interesting portion and not the first interesting portion based upon the third person being a member of the second social network.

18. The content distribution server according to claim 17 wherein the digital content preview generator is further coupled to a fourth content presentation device for selecting a preview of the digital content item excluding the first interesting portion and the second interesting portion if a fourth person operating the fourth content presentation device is not associated with either the first social network or the second social network.

19. The content distribution server according to claim 18 wherein the interesting portion analyzer is further coupled to a fifth content presentation device for receiving a third input signal from the fifth content presentation device indicative of a third interesting portion of the plurality of portions of the digital content item identified by a fifth person included within the first social network, the social network analyzer is further coupled to the fifth content presentation device for determining a first relationship magnitude between the third person and the first person and a second relationship magnitude between the third person and the fifth person, and the digital content preview generator generates the digital content preview to include the first interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the first relationship magnitude being greater than the second relationship magnitude, the second interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the second social network, or the third interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the second relationship magnitude being greater than the first relationship magnitude.

20. The content distribution server according to claim 18 wherein the interesting portion analyzer is further coupled to a fifth content presentation device for receiving a third input signal from the fifth content presentation device indicative of a third interesting portion of the plurality of portions of the digital content item identified by a fifth person included within the first social network, the social network analyzer is further coupled to the fifth content presentation device for determining a first role magnitude of the first person within the first social network and a second role magnitude of the fifth person within the first social network, and the digital content preview generator generates the digital content preview to include the first interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the first role magnitude being greater than the second role magnitude, the second interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the second social network, or the third interesting portion based upon the third person being associated with the first social network and the second role magnitude being greater than the first role magnitude.