Verizon Eyes Golfers

Would a phone’s unique golf-specific capabilities influence your selection of cell phone service provider? It probably would for me, which is exactly the hope of Verizon. This week they had a patent application publish as US Pub. No. 20120023152 titled “Methods and Systems for Providing Location-Based Interactive Golf Content for Display by a Mobile Device,” which describes the invention as:

An exemplary method includes an interactive golf content computing system detecting a geographic location of a mobile device associated with a golfer while the golfer is playing a golf hole, selecting interactive golf content associated with one or more other golfers who played the golf hole previous to the playing of the golf hole by the golfer in accordance with the detected geographic location, and providing the selected interactive golf content for display by the mobile device. Corresponding methods and systems are also described.

[0025] In some examples, interactive golf content management facility 106 may select updated interactive golf content for display by a mobile device associated with a golfer in response to a detection by location tracking facility 102 of an updated geographic location of the mobile device. For example, location tracking facility 102 may detect a movement by a golfer to another position while playing a golf hole (e.g., walking or riding from a first shot location to a second shot location). Interactive golf content management facility 106 may select updated interactive golf content in accordance with the updated geographic location and provide the selected updated interactive golf content for display by the mobile device.

[0026] In some examples, interactive golf content management facility 106 may determine that the golfer has finished playing a golf hole and moved on to playing a new golf hole. The determination may be made in response to input provided by the golfer and/or in any other manner as may serve a particular implementation. In response to the determination, interactive golf content management facility 106 may select new interactive golf content associated with the new golf hole for display by the mobile device in accordance with a detected geographic location of the mobile device while the golfer is playing the new golf hole.

[0027] In some examples, interactive golf content management facility 106 may provide weather information associated with a detected geographic location of a mobile device associated with a golfer for display by the mobile device. The weather information may include, but is not limited to, wind information, temperature information, precipitation information, and/or any other type of weather information as may serve a particular implementation. The weather information may be generated and/or acquired in any suitable manner as may serve a particular implementation.

[0028] In some examples, interactive golf content management facility 106 may automatically generate advice for the golfer based on selected interactive golf content. The advice may be provided for presentation by the mobile device. For example, the mobile device may display and/or audibly present the advice. The advice may include any type of advice relevant to playing the golf hole. For example, the advice may include golf club selection advice based on a golf club selection made by one or more other golfers who played the golf hole, aiming advice, hazard warning advice, and/or any other advice as may serve a particular implementation.

[0029] In some examples, interactive golf content management facility 106 may facilitate input by a golfer of interactive golf content associated with the golfer while the golfer is playing the golf hole. For example, interactive golf content management facility 106 may facilitate input by a golfer of social networking content, scoring content, golf club selection content, multimedia content, and/or any other interactive golf content as may serve a particular implementation. The interactive golf content input by the golfer may then be provided for display by one or more other mobile devices associated with one or more other golfers playing the golf hole and/or by a mobile device associated with the golfer when the golfer plays the golf hole again at a future time. Alternatively, the golfer may elect to keep private the interactive golf content that he or she provides.

So, would this speed-up or slow-down play?

Dave Dawsey – The Golf Patent Attorney