Patent ID: 7945099

Claim:
A system for selecting image content, the system comprising: one or more processors configured to: perform image analysis on a collection of image content items that individually include one or more images, including determining a color of individual portions of the one or more images that comprise each of the image content items; analyze image data of each of the one or more images in order to (i) identify one or more objects depicted in the one or more images; (ii) determine a category of each identified object, the category of each object being one of a plurality of possible object categories; (iii) identify a set of visual features that are specific to the determined category of the identified object in each image content item, and (iv) determine information based on the set of features for the determined category that characterizes the identified object, the information characterizing the object to be separately identifiable from at least some other identified objects in the determined category; memory resources that store the information obtained from the image analysis in one or more data stores; wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify one or more criteria determined from a text or image content provided in connection with either a user or programmatically identified input; communicate with the memory resources to perform a search operation to identify one or more image content items from the collection that satisfy the one or more criteria of the input, using the stored information in the one or more data stores; wherein at least some of the collection of image content items include images of merchandise objects; wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: present images, from at least some of the image content items identified from the search operation, with a document in response to said input specifying a merchandise object, wherein the presented images depict a select set of merchandise objects that are each determined to be visually similar to the specified merchandise object; and provide a link with each of the merchandise objects in the select set, wherein the link is selectable by a user operating a computer to purchase the merchandise objects from a network site operated by the merchant.