It's a problem everyone has had: you're watching a movie and don't catch a key bit of dialogue. In September 2015, Apple unveiled a new feature for Apple TV that solves the problem. Users can ask "what did she say?" and Siri will skip back 15 seconds and temporarily enable captions.
But a Florida company says that it has patented this idea. The company, CustomPlay, filed a lawsuit on Thursday.
The patent, filed by CustomPlay CEO Max Abecassis, dates back to 1998. And it appears to exactly cover Apple's "What did she say" feature. It covers the concept of skipping back a predetermined number of seconds, enabling captions, playing the video, and then disabling captions after the replayed portion is complete.
CustomPlay says that it tried to contact Apple multiple times starting in 2014 to try to negotiate a license or business partnership, but Apple didn't respond.
CustomPlay makes companion apps designed to enhance users' movie-watching experience. The company says it offers the replay feature in its DVD player software.
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