U.S. patent application number 09/753415 was filed with the patent office on 2001-12-13 for method and apparatus for telecommunications advertising.
Invention is credited to Strietzel, Jonathan.
Application Number | 20010051517 09/753415 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 24341544 |
Filed Date | 2001-12-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010051517 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Strietzel, Jonathan |
December 13, 2001 |
Method and apparatus for telecommunications advertising
Abstract
A telecommunications advertising means is desclosed. The
telecommunication advertising means includes an advertisement
database coupled to a processing means. The advertisement database
stores subscriber specific or third party advertisements that are
selectively associated with communications in a telecommunications
network. The selective association is carried out by the processing
means. In one embodiment, a router is coupled to the advertisement
database. The router routes communications from source to
destination within the telecommunications network. The router also
routes advertisements that have been associated with the
communications to the sources and destinations of the
communications. A telecommunications system is also disclosed. The
telecommunications system comprises a network subsystem, which
includes a telecommunications advertising means. The
telecommunications advertising means comprises an advertisement
database and a processing means.
Inventors: |
Strietzel, Jonathan; (Long
Beach, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
LYON & LYON LLP
633 WEST FIFTH STREET
SUITE 4700
LOS ANGELES
CA
90071
US
|
Family ID: |
24341544 |
Appl. No.: |
09/753415 |
Filed: |
January 2, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09753415 |
Jan 2, 2001 |
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09585460 |
Jun 1, 2000 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
455/414.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04M 3/4878 20130101;
G06Q 30/0269 20130101; H04W 4/12 20130101; G06Q 30/0277 20130101;
G06Q 30/0267 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
455/414 ;
455/426 |
International
Class: |
H04M 003/42 |
Claims
What is claimed:
1. A wireless communication system, comprising: a radio interface;
a plurality of terminals configured to play advertisements and to
communicate voice and data over the radio interface; at least one
network node configured to communicate with the plurality of
terminals over the radio interface, the network node including: a
fixed network interface; a telecommunications advertising means
comprising an advertisement database and a processing means coupled
with the advertisement database, the processing means configured to
selectively associate at least one advertisement in the
advertisement database with an incoming communication; and a
switching center coupled to the telecommunications advertising
means, the switching center configured to route communications
between the terminals, to route communications from the terminals
to fixed network users via the fixed network interface, to route
advertisements associated with a source of the incoming
communication by the telecommunications advertising means to a
terminal associated with the source, and to route advertisements
associated with a destination of the incoming communication by the
telecommunications advertising means to a terminal associated with
the destination.
2. The wireless communication system of claim 1, wherein the
advertisements associated with the source and/or destination of the
incoming communication are used to replace a busy signal that would
otherwise be sent to the source and/or destination.
3. The wireless communication system of claim 1, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to forward advertisements
received by the terminals to other terminals within the wireless
communication system.
4. The wireless communication system of claim 1, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to optionally connect, through
the switching center to the source of any advertisement routed to
the terminal by the switching center.
5. The wireless communication system of claim 4, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to navigate through information
provided by the source of the advertisement once the terminal is
connected to the source of the advertisement.
6. The wireless communication system of claim 4, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to facilitate purchasing of
products or services once the terminal is connected to the source
of the advertisement.
7. The wireless communication system of claim 6, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to allow charge account
information to be input into the terminal, and wherein the terminal
provides the charge account information to the source of the
advertisement to facilitate the purchasing of products or
services.
8. The wireless communication system of claim 6, wherein the
telecommunication advertising means stores charge account
information associated with each terminal, and wherein the
telecommunications advertising means automatically supplies the
charge account information to the source of the advertisement to
facilitate purchasing of products or services.
9. The wireless communication system of claim 4, further configured
to allow the source and/or destination of the incoming
communication to be connected to the source of an advertisement
prior to completion of the incoming communication.
10. The wireless communication system of claim 4, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to store a list of
advertisements played during the completion of the incoming
communication.
11. The wireless communication system of claim 10, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to connect to the source of an
advertisement selected from the list of advertisements after the
completion of the incoming communication.
12. The wireless communication system of claim 4, further
comprising a packet data server configured to interface the
plurality of terminals to the Internet, and wherein some or all of
the terminals are configured to optionally connect, through the
packet data server, to the source of any advertisement routed to
the terminal.
13. The wireless communication system of claim 1, wherein the
advertisements routed to the source of the incoming communication
are played during at least one of the following points: prior to a
ring back signal being applied to the source of the incoming
communication; in place of ring tones associated with the ring back
signal; in place of the ring back signal, and after the ring back
signal, but before the source of the incoming communication is
connected with the destination of the incoming communication.
14. The wireless communication system of claim 13, wherein the
advertisements routed to the destination of the incoming
communication are played prior to the source of the incoming
communication being connected with the destination of the incoming
communication.
15. The wireless communication system of claim 1, wherein at least
a portion of the advertisement database is stored in each terminal
in the plurality of terminals, and wherein the switching center
routes a command provided by the telecommunications advertising
means to the terminals indicating which advertisement to play.
16. The telecommunications advertising means of claim 15, wherein
the portion of the advertisement database stored in the terminals
is updated by the telecommunications advertising means over the
radio interface.
17. A wireless communication system, comprising: a packet data
carrier; a plurality of terminals configured to communicate packet
data over the packet data carrier; a telecommunications advertising
means comprising an advertisement database and a processing means
coupled with the advertisement database, the processing means
configured to selectively associate at least one advertisement in
said advertisement database with an incoming packet data
communication; a packet data server configured to interface the
terminals with the Internet, to route communications between the
terminals and the Internet over the packet data carrier, and to
route advertisements associated with a source of the incoming
packet data communication to the source, and to route
advertisements associated with a destination of the incoming packet
data communication to the destination.
18. The wireless communication system of claim 17, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to optionally connect through
the packet data server to the source of any advertisement routed to
the terminal by the packet data server.
19. The wireless communication system of claim 18, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to navigate through information
provided by the source of the advertisement once the terminal is
connected to the source of the advertisement.
20. The wireless communication system of claim 19, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to facilitate purchasing of
goods and services once the terminal is connected to the source of
the advertisement.
21. The wireless communication system of claim 20, wherein some or
all of the terminals are configured to allow charge account
information to be input into the terminal, and wherein the terminal
provides the charge account information to the source of the
advertisement to facilitate the purchasing of goods and
services.
22. The wireless communication system of claim 20, wherein the
telecommunication advertising means stores charge account
information associated with each terminal, and wherein the
telecommunications advertising means automatically supplies the
charge account information to the source of the advertisement to
facilitate purchasing of goods and services.
23. A method of telecommunications advertising in a wireless
communication system configured for voice and/or data communication
between a source and a destination, the method comprising: storing
a plurality of advertisements; selectively associating one or more
of said plurality of advertisements with a communication in the
wireless communication system; playing or otherwise displaying the
one or more advertisements through a terminal associated with the
source or destination of the communication prior to connecting the
source to the destination for purposes of completing the
communication; and connecting the terminal with a company
associated with one of the one or more advertisements.
24. The method of claim 23, further comprising permitting the
terminal to browse information and/or products or services offered
by the company.
25. The method of claim 24, further comprising permitting the
terminal to purchase one or more products or services offered by
the company.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 09/585,460, filed Jun. 01, 2000.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates generally to
telecommunications and, more particularly, to a method and
apparatus for telecommunications advertising.
[0004] 2. Background of the Invention
[0005] Currently, the area of telecommunications is rapidly
expanding. As a result, new products and services are constantly
coming into the market, which promise more information, of more
relevance to an individual user, and presented in a more timely
fashion. It is an exciting time for consumers interested in such
products and services; however, such products and services can be
very costly. For example, Personal Digital Assistants (PDA's) and
cellular phones can cost hundreds of dollars depending on the
features and functions included. Moreover, sending a megabyte of
data content over a wireless network can cost hundreds of times
what it costs to send the same data over a fixed network.
Obviously, consumers would prefer that the costs come down, before
they start using many of these new telecommunications products and
services. Unfortunately, the providers of these products and
services need more users before they can bring the costs down
significantly. Advertising is one way to subsidize the costs of new
products and services, thus making them more affordable for the
consumer.
[0006] It has been suggested that in a telecommunications network,
advertising messages could be applied to a calling party's line in
between rings of the ringback signal. For example, such a system is
disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,811,382 issued to Sleevi (the Sleevi
patent). The Sleevi patent further suggests that a message could be
associated with the calling party based on the calling party's
phone number, the called party's phone number, or the long distance
carrier of either party. In addition, messages could be changed
based on the time of day, or the day of the week or month. One
drawback to these suggestions, however, is that only the calling
party is targeted and the association of messages is based on a
limited number of criteria. Moreover, only using the period in
between the ringback signals limits the type and number of messages
that can be played to the caller. Another drawback is that the
suggestions above only contemplate a fixed analog
telecommunications network. New telecommunications systems,
however, provide expanded opportunity to provide advertisers with
highly targeted advertising and to subsidize the costs to the
consumer of the products and services associated with these new
systems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] A telecommunications advertising means is disclosed. The
telecommunication advertising means includes an advertisement
database coupled to a processing means. The advertisement database
stores subscriber specific or third party advertisements that are
selectively associated with communications in a telecommunications
network. The selective association is carried out by the processing
means. In one embodiment, a router is coupled to the advertisement
database. The router routes communications from source to
destination within the telecommunications network. The router also
routes advertisements that have been associated with the
communications to the sources and destinations of the
communications.
[0008] A telecommunications system is also disclosed. The
telecommunications system comprises a network subsystem, which
includes a telecommunications advertising means. The
telecommunications advertising means comprises an advertisement
database and a processing means.
[0009] A method of telecommunications advertising is also disclosed
as well as various other embodiments of the telecommunications
advertising means. These other embodiments and further features and
advantages of the invention are described in detail below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] In the figures of the accompanying drawings, like reference
numbers correspond to like elements, in which:
[0011] FIG. 1 illustrates a telecommunications advertising means in
accordance with the invention.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a process flow diagram illustrating the operation
of a fixed-line telecommunications network.
[0013] FIG. 3 illustrates a telecommunications system that includes
a telecommunications advertising means in accordance with an
embodiment of the invention.
[0014] FIG. 4 illustrates a cellular telecommunications system that
includes the telecommunications advertising means of FIG. 1 in
accordance with another embodiment of the invention.
[0015] FIG. 5 illustrates a plurality of cellular
telecommunications system interfaced to a fixed network switch,
wherein each cellular telecommunications system includes a
telecommunications advertising means in accordance with the
embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 4.
[0016] FIG. 6 illustrates a paging network system that includes the
telecommunications advertising means of FIG. 1 in accordance with
another embodiment of the invention.
[0017] FIG. 7 is a process flow diagram that illustrates a process
for communicating a paging message.
[0018] FIG. 8 is a process flow diagram that illustrates a method
of telecommunications advertising in accordance with the
invention.
[0019] FIG. 9 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method of
updating a user profile used in conjunction with the
telecommunications advertising means of FIG. 1.
[0020] FIG. 10 illustrates a wireless communication system that
includes the telecommunications advertising means of FIG. 1 in
accordance with another embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0021] FIG. 1 illustrates an example embodiment of a
telecommunications advertising means 100 in accordance with the
present invention. Telecommunications advertising means 100 is
preferably an integral part of a telecommunications service
provider's network and comprises an advertisement database 102,
processing means 104, and router 106. Advertisement database 102
stores advertisements that can be played to system users at
appropriate times based on appropriate criteria. In one
implementation, the advertisements may comprise messages that are
specific to a certain subscriber, or messages that are
advertisements from third party advertisers. Processing means 104
selectively associates at least one advertisement in advertisement
database 102 with incoming communications 108. For example, in one
implementation processing means 104 associates an advertisement
with a source 110 of incoming communication 108. In another
implementation, processing means 104 associates an advertisement
with a destination 112 associated with incoming communication 108,
and, in a further implementation, processing means 104 associates
an advertisement with both source 110 and destination 112 of
incoming communication 108. In each of the above implementations,
processing means 104 may actually associate multiple advertisements
with source 110 and/or destination 112 of incoming communication
108, as opposed to a single advertisement.
[0022] Router 106 receives incoming communication 108 and connects
it to the appropriate destination 112. Router 106 may, for example,
be part of a fixed-line telecommunications network, such as a PSTN
or ISDN, which generally connect ordinary telephone sets together
via switching centers. In this case, telecommunications advertising
means 100, and therefore router 106, may be included in such a
switching center. In the typical fixed telecommunications network
example, the switching center is normally a telephone company
facility called a central office, but the switching center may be a
toll office, a private branch exchange (PBX), or the like.
[0023] A typical process by which router 106 would function within
a switching center is illustrated by the steps in FIG. 2. First, in
step 202, the calling party removes his telephone from the
telephone hook, which closes the switch hook contacts and informs
the local switching center of a request for service. As those
skilled in the art will appreciate, however, the request for
service may also be generated in a variety of other ways that are
well known in the art. For example, for cordless phones, the
request for service signal may be generated by pressing a TALK or
CALL button. Similarly, some phones include a NEW CALL button for
initiating service. Accordingly, the present invention is not
limited to any particular manner of generating a request for
service signal. The request for service is an incoming
communication 108 shown in FIG. 1.
[0024] In step 204, the switching center will apply a dial tone to
the calling party's line and wait for the calling party to dial a
number. In step 206, the number is dialed and the switching center
interprets the digits making up the number. Some portion of the
number, typically the first three digits, will indicate whether the
call is an inter-office call or a same office call, i.e., whether
the call needs to be routed through a second central office or not.
Therefore, in step 208 the switching center determines if the call
is an inter-office call, in which case an idle connection or trunk
to the other central office is selected (step 210). In step 212,
once the trunk is seized, or if no trunk was necessary because it
is a same office call, the switching center determines the status
of the called party's line. As best seen in FIG. 1, the called
party is the destination 112 of incoming communication 108. If the
telephone at the called party's location is busy, then a busy
signal is applied to the calling party's line in step 214. If the
telephone at the called party's location is idle, then, in step
216, a ring signal is applied to the called party's line in order
to activate the ringer in the called party's telephone.
Simultaneously, in step 218, a ringback signal is applied to the
calling party's line. When the telephone is answered by the called
party (step 220), the off hook status causes a termination of the
ringback signal and the parties are. connected. At the end of the
conversation, the telephones are returned to their on hook status
(step 222), and the lines and trunk are released.
[0025] Thus, in the fixed telecommunications network example,
router 106 forms an integral part of the circuits and systems of
the switching center. Processing means 104 may also be integrated
into the circuits and systems making up the switching center. In
fact, in some implementations processing means 104 may be merged
with router 106. Advertisement database 102 may be a standalone
database or may be integrated into the resources present within a
particular switching center. Moreover, the components that makeup
telecommunications advertising means 100 can actually be
distributed throughout the network.
[0026] The following implementations are described in order to
further illustrate the above possibilities. In one implementation,
telecommunications advertising means 100 may be included in a
switching center such as a central office. Depending on the
particulars of the implementation, each component of means 100 may
standalone within the central office or may be integrated into the
circuits and systems that make up the central office.
Alternatively, in another implementation the components comprising
telecommunications means 100 may be distributed throughout central
offices within the network. In other words, a router 106 may be
present in each of a plurality of central offices making up the
fixed telecommunications network. Advertisement database 102 and
processing means 104 may, however, be contained within one
particular central office, or distributed along with router
106.
[0027] Although source 110 has been described above as a telephone
set, source 110 of incoming communication 108 is not limited to a
telephone set. In other implementations, for example, source 110 is
a desktop computer, a laptop, a fax machine, or an interface to an
entirely different communications system. With regard to the
latter, traditional fixed networks are interfaced to a variety of
modern telecommunication networks from which incoming communication
108 may be generated. Thus, for example, source 110 may also be a
wireless network, a local loop, a paging network, or a Local Area
Network (LAN). As will be discussed in relation to further
embodiments, each of these networks contains at least one interface
to a fixed network. Therefore, each of these network types may act
as source 110 of incoming communication 108 in various
implementations of means 100.
[0028] The switching center itself is not limited to a typical PSTN
or ISDN type of network switching center. For example,
telecommunications advertising means 100 may be integrated into a
wireless system or the Internet. In these implementations, the
method of identifying destination 112 and of connecting source 110
thereto are different, but the basic approach is the same. In
implementations involving the Internet, telecommunications
advertising means 100 may be included within a router or plurality
of routers used to route traffic across the Internet. In this case,
the Internet address or domain name is used to identify source 110
and destination 112, instead of the digits of the telephone number
dialed. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art, therefore,
that incoming communication 108 is not limited to voice
communications, but may also include data communications. In fact,
depending on the implementation, incoming communication 108 may be
a video communication, a paging communication, an email
communication, or any combination of the above. Other than what
type of advertisements may be sent, the type of communication does
not impact the functionality of telecommunication advertising means
100.
[0029] In addition to connecting source 110 with destination 112,
router 106 also routes advertisements associated with source 110 to
source 110 and any advertisements associated with destination 112
to destination 112. Because the user is captive, the user must hear
or observe the message. In this way, it can be assured that the
advertising message reaches its intended target.
[0030] Looking at FIG. 2, there are several points, depending on
the desired implementation, that a message may be associated with
and sent by router 106 to source 110, destination 112, or both. For
example, looking at step 204, an advertisement can be associated
with incoming communication 108 and sent to source 110 just prior
to the dial tone being applied. Alternatively, the message can
actually replace the dial tone. This is possible because a dial
tone alerts the user to the fact that the user is connected to the
network and may dial a number. Thus, this implementation would use
the advertisement to alert the user of the network connection. Once
the advertisement finishes playing, the user dials the desired
number.
[0031] In an alternative implementation, a short advertisement
replaces the ringback signal in step 218. Typically, the ringback
signal consists of short rings every few seconds. In this
implementation, therefore, a short advertisement is played in place
of the rings. In another implementation, once the called party's
telephone goes off hook in step 220, a short advertisement is
played to the calling party. The playing of the short advertisement
indicates to the calling party that the called party has answered
and that the calling party may begin the conversation after the
advertisement has played.
[0032] An advertisement may also be associated with the called
party (destination 112). In this implementation, the advertisement
is routed to the called party when the called party's telephone
goes off hook. The calling party preferably continues to receive
the ringback signal, or substitute advertisements, until the
advertisement is finished on the called party's side, at which
point the conversation may begin. Alternatively, when the called
party's line goes off hook a short advertisement may be played for
both parties, so that the conversation may begin after the
advertisements are complete. Ideally, the advertisements would last
the same amount of time, to avoid any feeling of disconnect by one
of the parties.
[0033] In additional variations, the implementations described
above may be further combined. For example, an advertisement in
place of the dial tone may be combined with short advertisements in
place of the ringback signal, which may be further combined with an
advertisement played to one or both parties when the called party's
telephone goes of hook. In a slightly different implementation,
instead of the ringback signal or substitute advertisements, a
continuous advertisement may be played to the calling party after
the calling party dials the number. When the called party's
telephone goes off hook, the advertisement will stop, and
conversation can then begin. This continuous advertisement may be
combined with an advertisement played before or in place of the
dial tone. In addition, it may be combined with an advertisement
played for the called party, when the called party picks up. Those
skilled in the art will appreciate, therefore, that the
implementations discussed can be combined in a variety of ways in
order to deliver to each party a variety of different messages of
different lengths, and at different times during the call
initiation process. In this respect, the calling party may receive
the same advertisement or advertisements as the called party, or
the advertisements may be different. It can be assured, however,
that each party will hear or observe the advertisement or
advertisements, just as it is assured that each party would hear
the dial tone or ringback signal. This is because the parties must
pay attention at the specific times such advertisements would be
playing in order to complete the call.
[0034] In order to ensure that the advertisements are well targeted
to the particular called or calling party, processing means 104
preferably associates advertisements stored in advertisement
database 102 based on information about the parties. As mentioned
previously, advertisements stored in advertisement database 102 may
be subscriber 5 specific advertisements or third party
advertisements. In particularly preferred implementations, a
specific advertisement is associated based on the specific
subscriber. For example, a certain subscriber may want a specific
message played for any outgoing call, incoming call, or both. This
type of implementation will be particularly advantageous for
business subscribers. By way of illustration, a business subscriber
may want to have a specific short message, such as the business
name or jingle of the business, routed back to the source of each
incoming call. Alternatively, a business may want a specific
message or messages played each time an outgoing call or
interoffice call is originated on one of the business' lines. This
concept may be extended in order to allow third party advertisers
to target specific users or groups of users for specific
advertising messages. For example, a particular advertiser may pay
the telecommunications provider to play an advertising message to
each party placing a call in the telecommunication provider's
network.
[0035] Money collected from advertisers or from business
subscribers to play their advertising messages is preferably used
to offset the cost of the service to each regular subscriber to the
telecommunications network. Alternatively, the system 100 may be
set up so that money collected from advertisers and businesses is
used to offset the cost of subscribers that have agreed to receive
advertising messages as part of the call process.
[0036] The implementations, as described so far, have not involved
highly targeted advertising. Means 100 may be used, however, to
facilitate highly targeted advertising. For example, a certain
advertiser may want to limit the playing of his advertisement to
subscribers in certain geographic areas. Further, the advertiser
may have advertising messages in multiple languages and would
therefore want to play a different message depending on the primary
language of the targeted subscriber. These types of implementations
may be achieved by programming processing means 104 to selectively
associate advertisements stored in advertisement database 102 to
the calling and/or called parties based on predetermined criteria.
One example of selective association has already been discussed,
i.e., playing a message specific to a certain business to callers
calling the business. Other example criteria, in addition to
language and geography, that can be employed to increase the
selectivity of the advertising message played are the source 110 of
incoming communication 108, the type of incoming communication 108,
the time of day of communication 108, and the destination 112 of
incoming communication 108. With respect to source 110 and
destination 112, a wide variety of factors can be used, including,
for example, area code, account type, average monthly phone bill,
frequent phone numbers called, address, the current location of the
calling or called party, etc.
[0037] Information associated with source 110 of incoming
communication 108, such as the corresponding number, is preferably
used to determine if source 110 is initiating a same office call,
an inter-office call, or a call originating in a different type of
network such as a cellular network, a LAN, a local loop, or a
paging network. Third party advertisements can then be associated
with incoming communication 108 based on the source, and in a
manner that increases the selectivity of the advertising so as to
produce a better return on the advertising dollars spent.
Similarly, the type of communication can play a useful role in
increasing the selectivity of the advertisement. As mentioned
previously, the type of communication is not limited to telephone
calls, but may include data communication, video communication,
paging communication, email, voice/audio communication, or any
combination. Thus, by taking into account the source and type of
the communication, a more selective approach may be employed to
associate specific advertisements from specific advertisers with
specific communications. Similar information about the destination
of incoming communication 108 may also be advantageously integrated
into the message association process. In a further implementation,
information related to preferences for products and services, as
well as personal data, is gathered for each subscriber and used to
make the association even more highly targeted. It should be noted
that these criteria used in the association process apply to both
advertisements sent to source 110 of incoming communication 108 and
advertisements sent to destination 112 of incoming communication
108.
[0038] Of course, the basic principles are the same for
implementations that involve other than the traditional fixed
telecommunications network implementations. For example, networks
relying in whole or in part on wireless communication lines would
still operate in the same manner. In the case of the Internet, the
selectivity can be even more beneficial in that the Internet brings
together a host of communication methods and devices. Thus, there
is an even broader range of selection criterion that can be used in
the association of advertisements with communications.
Additionally, the advertisement can be in a variety of formats. For
example, the advertisement may be an audio advertisement, it may be
a jingle, a textual message, a video message, a graphic message, or
a combination of these messages, depending on the desired
implementation. Thus, in an implementation involving the Internet,
where multimedia capable computers are usually used to access the
network, each of these message types would be applicable. But even
in the traditional telecommunications network, video conferencing
is possible, wherein text, video, or graphical advertisements are
employed. New digital technologies for fixed networks, such as
ISDN, also make implementations involving a variety of
advertisement types possible. The advantage of certain types of
advertisement messages in relation to certain types of networks
will be discussed more fully in relation to further embodiments
discussed below.
[0039] An alternative embodiment of the invention is now described
in connection with FIG. 3. As mentioned above, in some
implementations source 110 of incoming communication 108 is
actually a different type of network, such as a cellular network,
paging network, local loop, or LAN. In the alternative embodiment
of the invention shown in FIG. 3, telecommunications advertising
means 100 is contained within one of these different source
networks.
[0040] The general situation is illustrated in FIG. 3. According to
FIG. 3, one of these source networks 300 generally consists of a
switching center 312, which is interfaced to a plurality of user
terminals 302. Switching center 312 is typically contained within a
network subsystem 304, which also includes a plurality of
administration means 316. Switching center 312 handles the
switching of communications between terminals 302 and between
terminals 302 and fixed network users. Switching center 312 is
interfaced to fixed network users through fixed network interface
314. The fixed network may, for example, be a fixed
telecommunications network such as a PSTN or ISDN. Administrative
means 316 contain the administrative information for all terminals
302. The administrative information is used by switching center 312
to control communication within network 300.
[0041] Network subsystem 304 further comprises an advertisement
database 102 and a processing means 104. Like the previous
embodiment, advertisement database 102 stores advertisements that
are played to users of terminals 302 at appropriate times based on
appropriate criteria. Processing means 104 associates at least one
advertisement from advertisement database 102 with each
communication within network 300. In the embodiment illustrated in
FIG. 3, the functions of router 106, in the previous embodiment,
are performed by switching center 312. Therefore, switching center
312, advertisement database 102, and processing means 104 form a
telecommunications advertising means 100 similar to that depicted
in FIG. 1.
[0042] In network 300, incoming communications are analyzed to
determine the source, destination, type of communication, time of
day, etc., then processing means 104 selectively associates at
least one advertisement with the source and/or destination of the
communication based on the information determined. The
advertisement or advertisements are advertisements unique to a
specific subscriber, or a third party advertisement. For example,
when a terminal to terminal communication is initiated, processing
means 104 may associate an advertisement with the source and route
it back to the source terminal 302. Additionally, an advertisement
from advertisement database 102 may be associated with the
destination terminal 302 and routed to that terminal. The
advertisement may be the same for both source and destination or it
may be different depending on the implementation. If the
communication is initiated with a fixed network user, then this may
cause the advertisements associated with either the source, or
destination, or both to be different than in the terminal to
terminal situation.
[0043] When communication is established between a terminal 302 and
a fixed network user, special considerations may arise. This is
because the fixed network may also comprise a telecommunications
advertising means 100. Therefore, processing means 104 must be
capable of resolving which advertising means 100 will associate an
advertisement or advertisements with the communication. Looking at
specific implementations in the discussion below will further
develop the embodiment depicted in FIG. 3.
[0044] First, FIG. 4 illustrates a cellular network 400. In this
implementation, the terminals 302 comprise wireless mobile stations
(MS) 406. Cellular network 400 further comprises base station
subsystem 402 and network subsystem 404. MS's 406 communicate with
base station subsystem 402 across a Um interface, which is also
known as the air interface or radio link. Base station subsystem
402 includes a plurality of base station controllers (BSC) 410 and
a plurality of base station transceiver stations (BTS) 408. Each
BTS 408 houses a radio transceiver that defines a cell and handles
the radio link with a plurality of MS's 406 within the cell. Each
BSC 410 manages the radio resources, such as channel setup and
channel handoff, of one or more BTS's 408. Each BTS 408
communicates with a BSC 410 over a standard (Abis) interface.
[0045] Network subsystem 404 comprises mobile switching center
(MSC) 412 as well as a plurality of administrative registers 416
and advertisement database 418. Network subsystem 404, of which MSC
412 is the main part, performs the switching of calls between the
mobile users and between mobile and fixed network users. MSC 412
acts like a normal switching node of a fixed network, but
additionally provides the functionality needed to handle a mobile
subscriber, such as registration, authentication, location,
updating, handoffs, and call routing. MSC 412 also provides the
connection to a fixed network through network interface 414. In the
implementation shown, MSC 412 also performs the functions of
selectively associating advertisements in advertisement database
418 with communications within network 400. In alternative
implementations, a separate processing means may be used to perform
this function. Administrative registers 416 contain all the
administrative information of each subscriber registered in network
400, along with the current location of each MS 406. It should be
noted that some or all of registers 416 may also be implemented as
part of MSC 412. Alternatively, each register 416 and MSC 412 may
be implemented as independent units. Administrative registers 416,
together with MSC 412, provide call routing and roaming
capabilities.
[0046] When a MS 406 places a call to another MS 406, the call is
routed through MSC 412. Unlike the fixed network embodiment, the
caller initiating the call does not usually receive a dial tone
indicating connection to the network. A caller will dial the number
desired and then place MS 406 to their ear. MSC 412 will determine,
based on the number dialed, that the destination of the call is
another MS 406. If the called party is using their MS 406, or if
the called party's MS 406 is turned off, then a busy tone or a
message indicating the unavailability of the called party is routed
back to the calling party. If, on the other hand, the called
party's MS 406 is on and is idle, then a ring signal is applied to
the called party's MS 406 and a ringback signal is applied to the
calling party's MS 406. When the called party answers, the ring and
ringback signals are terminated and the conversation can begin.
[0047] Because there is typically no dial tone, an advertisement
from advertisement database 418 cannot be played prior to or in
place of the dial tone. But an advertisement or advertisements from
advertisement database 418 can be, depending on the implementation,
substituted for the rings in the ringback signal, played in between
the rings of the ringback signal, or substituted for the ringback
signal entirely, i.e., one long advertisement or series of short
advertisements is played for the caller until the called party
picks up as opposed to the traditional ringback signal. In a
preferred implementation, once the called party picks up, an
advertisement is played for one or both parties after which, the
conversation can begin. In addition, implementations may combine,
in different ways, the playing of messages at these various points
during the call.
[0048] MSC 412, or a standalone processing means in those
implementations that include one, selectively associates
advertisements in advertisement database 418 based on, for example,
information related to the caller, or source of the call, and/or
the destination. As in the fixed network example, advertisements
may also be selectively associated based on the time of day,
geographic location, primary language, or the identity of the
specific caller or called party. In one implementation, the message
associated comprises billing information for one or both parties.
For example, the party's balance and minutes remaining for the
month are played for the party. In another implementation, a
specific party or subscriber specifies the message or messages to
be played under certain circumstances. For example, a business may
pay to have the business'jingle played to any caller using a MS 406
to call the business. In yet another implementation, the network
advertises new calling plans or special promotions are played. In
particularly preferred implementations, third party advertisers may
pay to have advertisements related to their products and services
played during the call. Money generated from this type of
advertising may be used to subsidize the cost of products and
services for subscribers to network 400.
[0049] Unlike routing in the fixed network example, where a
terminal is semi permanently wired to a central office, a mobile
user can roam nationally and even internationally. Therefore, the
directory number associated with a particular MS 406 usually
contains a country code as well as identification of the associated
home network 400. When a fixed network subscriber initiates a call
to a mobile user, the fixed network switching center interfaces
with one or several MSC's 412 in order to connect the call. As a
result, the steps are very similar to the ones illustrated in FIG.
2, except multiple switching centers from multiple networks are
involved. The situation gets even more complicated when, as
illustrated in FIG. 5, a mobile user in one cellular network 502
initiates a call to a user in a second cellular network 504. In
this case there are network switches from three different networks
and each may have its own telecommunication advertising means 100.
To deal with the potential conflict, each switch 412 and 500
preferably incorporates protocols for determining whether to
associate an advertisement with a particular user under these
conditions. In the typical implementation, for example, each switch
412 only associates an advertisement with the MS 406 (source or
destination) that is in the same network, and fixed network 500
does not associate any advertisements with the communication.
[0050] It should be noted that MS's 406 used in cellular systems
present unique possibilities for communicating advertisements to
subscribers. For example, one implementation takes advantage of the
fact that the ring the called party hears is completely
programmable. Therefore, in this implementation the ring is
replaced by an advertisement. This can be accomplished by storing
potential advertisements in each MS 406. When MSC 412 associates a
particular advertisement, it sends a command to a called party's MS
406 to play that advertisement in place of the ring. MS 406,
accesses the stored advertisements and plays the appropriate one at
the appropriate time. The ability to program a MS 406 over the air
to constantly update which advertisements are stored in MS 406 may
also be taken advantage of in this implementation.
[0051] Another unique method of communicating messages to mobile
users that may be employed in the present embodiment takes
advantage of the fact that a large number of MS's 406 are equipped
with a display device. Therefore, the present embodiment also
contemplates the use of graphic or text advertisements that are
displayed on the user's display device. For example, a company may
pay to have its trademark flashed on the screen of each MS 406
whenever there is an incoming call, or whenever a user pushes send
to initiate a call, or a combination thereof. The use of graphic or
text advertisements is also incorporated in implementations
involving a second example type of network 300 as illustrated in
FIG. 6.
[0052] FIG. 6 illustrates a paging network 600 comprising paging
devices 604, paging sites 610, and control point 602. The heart of
control point 602 is paging switching center 606, which connects
paging network 600 to the local telephone company through fixed
network interface 612. Fixed network interface 612 is typically
several telephone line connections, which can be direct inward dial
circuits, T1 circuits, or network connections. These different
types of connections are mixed together in order to optimize the
system and maintain overhead costs. Paging switching center 606
outputs paging and control data to paging sites 610 in order to
successfully implement the paging operation. The link between
paging switching center 606 and paging site 610 is either an RF
link of fixed line connection. Paging sites 610 transmit the paging
information to all of the paging devices 604 in the area.
Alternatively, the links between paging sites 610 and paging
switching center 606 may be implemented as a satellite link system.
In addition, control point 602 includes advertisement database 608,
and optionally storage 614 if paging network 600 includes voicemail
capabilities. In certain implementations, a stand alone processing
means is included for selectively associating advertisements stored
in database 608 with communications within network 600. In the
implementation shown in FIG. 6, however, paging switching center
606 performs the function of selectively associating
advertisements.
[0053] The process involved in completing a page is illustrated in
FIG. 7. First, in step 702, a person dials a number corresponding
to a paging device 602. Then in step 704, the switching center of
the local Telephone Company determines that the number dialed
corresponds to a paging device 602. In step 706, the Telephone
Company switching center routes the page to paging switching center
606. Paging switching center 606 encodes and processes the page and
outputs paging information to the paging sites 610 in step 708.
Paging sites 610 then transmit the page to the user in step 710.
Because paging networks 600 traditionally involve one way paging,
and paging terminals traditionally use a vibration or audible beep
to indicate an incoming page and not ring indicators, paging
switching center 606 preferably selectively associates graphic or
text advertisements stored on database 608 with each incoming page
received through interface 612. Thus, for example, as with the
previous embodiment, a company may pay to have its trademark
displayed on paging device 602 each time a page is received.
[0054] Two way paging, pagers with multiple programmable ring
indicators, and pagers equipped with voice audio capabilities,
however, expand the possible methods of implementing a
telecommunications advertising means 100 within a paging network
600 to many of the various implementations described above in
connection with prior embodiments. In pagers with voice audio
capabilities or voicemail, for example, an audible advertisement,
such as a jingle or slogan, may be selectively added by switching
center 606 to the beginning of each voice page received.
[0055] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other
implementations of network 300 will involve other network systems,
such as local loops, wireless local loops, or LAN's. Moreover, the
type of communication involved, in addition to calls and pages,
incorporates video and text communication depending on the system
implementation. Each of the implementations discussed may also
incorporate a means to acquire more information about a product or
service advertised during the communication. For example, a calling
or called party in a telephone network, a cellular network, or a
paging network can stay on after the communication transaction is
over and receive options or a menu allowing the party to select to
receive more information about a particular product or service. In
certain other implementations, the user can actually select to be
connected directly to the company offering the products or
service.
[0056] There is also provided a method of telecommunications
advertising comprising the steps illustrated in FIG. 8. First, in
step 802, a plurality of advertisements to be associated with
communications within a telecommunications network are stored. In
preferred embodiments, information related to users within the
network is also stored, as illustrated by optional step 810.
Depending on the particulars of the implementation, this user
information may comprise some or all of the following pieces of
information: a user's primary language, a user's preferences, a
user's communications provider, a user's communication means, a
user's communication plan, and a user's geographic location. A
user's communication means refers to the device the user uses when
communicating over the telecommunications network. The device could
be, for example, a telephone, cellphone, PDA, or computer depending
on the system. Most of the user information is known when a user
agrees or signs up for a particular communications service. User
preferences, however, may be obtained, for example, through the use
of a user questionnaire or fact sheet. For example, when a user
signs up for a service they are preferably asked to provide
personal information such as age, salary, marital status, number of
children, etc., and buying preferences such as how much the user
spends on certain items, what type of items the user typically
purchases, what type of items the user would like to receive
information on, and so on. All of the information related to the
user is then preferably stored and used in the next step.
[0057] In step 804, an advertisement or advertisements are
associated with a source of a communication within the
telecommunications network. For example, an advertisement may be
associated based simply on the identity of the source as determined
by the number or address associated with the source. Preferably,
however, the identity is combined with the user information in
order to selectively associate a highly targeted advertisement,
such as an advertisement for a particular product, with the
source.
[0058] In another embodiment, the targeting of the advertisement
can also be based on the location of one or both parties. For
example, in a fixed telecommunications network, the location
information can be determined based on the area code associated
with the called and calling party. More specific location
information, e.g., street address can be supplied by the user as
discussed above. In wireless communications systems, such as the
cellular system described in FIG. 4, well known location devices
and methods can be used to locate either party. For example, In
some wireless communications systems, triangulation using BTSs 408
can be used to determine the location of a MS 406. Alternatively,
MS 406 can include a location device such as a GPS receiver.
Coordinates from the GPS receiver are then communicated from the MS
406 to the telecommunications advertising means 100 whenever a
communication is incoming or outgoing from the MS 406. The location
information can then be used, for example, to provide targeted
advertising for near by stores or events to the user.
[0059] In step 806 the advertisement is played for the user
associated with the source of the communication. Preferably, an
advertisement is also associated with the destination of the
communication. This step is illustrated as optional step 812. If
the user associated with the destination is also a subscriber to
the telecommunications network, then user information is also
preferably used to associate an advertisement with the destination.
If the user is not a subscriber, then the identity of the
destination user will typically be the primary factor used in
associating the advertisement or advertisements. Although, in some
embodiments, i.e., embodiments that involved a wireless
communication system, the location of the destination user is also
used to associated an advertisement with the destination. In
optional step 814, the advertisement is then played for the user
associated with the destination. In step 808, after the
advertisement or advertisements are played for the source and
destination, the communication transaction is completed between the
two parties. For example, the transaction may be a telephone call
or email. After the advertisements are played the call or email
would be put through to the other party. In the email example, the
advertisement or advertisements could be attached or embedded in
the emails themselves.
[0060] It is contemplated that the users of networks including a
telecommunication advertising means 100 would be billed at a lower
rate for the communication service due to the fact that the
advertisements are included in the communication. Further, as
illustrated by step 816, one or both users, depending on the
implementation, may stay online and choose to receive further
information with regard to one or more of the advertisements played
during the communication transaction. In a particular preferred
implementation of the method, the user may choose (step 818) to be
connected directly to the company who's product or service was
advertised. In this case, the telecommunications network connects
the user to the company through the telecommunications network via
the telecommunications means employed by the user.
[0061] In an alternative embodiment, the users are given the option
to receive more information prior to the connection between source
and destination. For example, after the advertisements are played
for the user associated with the source, the user is given the
option to receive more information relating to the advertised
products or services. Depending on the implementation, the user may
choose to receive the information immediately or to wait until
after the communication transaction. In other sample embodiments,
similar options are provided to the destination user as well. In
alternative embodiments, one or both users are given the option to
receive more information at various points during the communication
transaction.
[0062] Once the user is connected to the company, the user may wish
to purchase one or more items advertised to the user during the
previous communication transaction. Therefore, in step 820, after
the user is connected to the company, the user is presented with
the option to purchase at least one item. Then, in step 822, the
user makes a selection and purchases the item or items.
[0063] For example, the user may wish to be connected to the
service of an advertisement played for the user during a
communication initiated by the user. The user can choose to connect
to the source of the advertisement in several ways. One way is for
the user to hear the advertisement and then choose to be connected
to the source immediately. In one embodiment, the user presses a
fixed key, such as the star or pound key, on his telecommunications
means to connect to the source of the advertisement. In a cellular
network, there is also the possibility for a MS 406 to have a
special dedicated key for connecting to an advertisement source.
Alternatively, some embodiments of a cellular network may use a
softkey or a voice command to connect to the advertisement
source.
[0064] Therefore, when the user sees or hears the advertisement,
the user presses the appropriate key or gives the appropriate voice
command and he is connected to the advertisement source. It should
be noted that the communication initiated by the user may be
terminated if the user chooses to be connected to the advertisement
source in this manner. For example, in a fixed telecommunications
or cellular network, if the user has placed a voice call to another
party, then the call is terminated and the user is connected to the
advertisement source. If, on the other hand, it is the called party
that chooses to be connected, then the calling party is simply
given a busy tone and the called party is connected to the
advertisement source. In this case, the busy tone can be replaced
by one or more advertisements. The advertisements can even be
accompanied by a message informing the calling party that the
called party is unavailable. Alternatively, the user can make his
selection when he hears the advertisement he is interested in, but
he is not connected until after the communication is completed in
step 808.
[0065] A second way for the user to connect to the advertisement
source is for the user to wait until the communication is completed
in step 808. One method to accomplish this is for the
advertisements to automatically be replayed to the user after the
communication is complete. When the user sees or hears the
advertisement he is interested in, he can then connect to the
source in the same manner discussed above. A second method is to
store a list of the advertisements played during the communication.
The list can then be accessed by the user and the user can select a
source to be connected to. The list can be, for example, stored in
the telecommunications advertising means 100 or in the user's
telecommunications means. In embodiments comprising a fixed
telecommunications or cellular network, the list can be presented
as an audible list through the user's terminal. The user can listen
to the list and then make a selection using a key on the
telecommunications means or voice command. Moreover, in some
embodiments the user can use keys or voice commands to navigate
through or replay the list. The user may even be able to select
that more information or similar advertisement sources be provided.
Alternatively, the list can be presented as a textual list. This
type of embodiment is typically used in connection with cellular or
paging networks where the terminals, i.e., cellular phones, pagers,
PDAs, etc. are equipped with displays to display the list. In this
case, the user can use the terminal keys to navigate through the
list, access more information, see similar advertising sources, and
ultimately connect to the advertising source of their choice.
[0066] A third method for the user to connect to the advertisement
source after the communication is completed is for the user to
indicate at the conclusion of the communication transaction that
they would like to hear more information related to the
advertisements that were played during the communication. For
example, in one embodiment, after the completion of the
communication the user can press a specific key to indicate that
they would like to receive more information. The key can be a
dedicated key or a softkey or, in certain embodiments, can also be
a voice command as discussed above. If there was only one
advertisement played for the user, then indicating that the user
would like to receive more information can, depending on the
embodiment, cause the user to be connected to the source of the
advertisement. Alternatively, the information may be supplied to
the user through the telecommunication means and the user must
indicate a desire to be connected to the source. Again, for
example, this can be accomplished via a dedicated key, a softkey,
or a voice command. If there are multiple advertisements, the
information will be played for the user, and the user can indicate
which source he would like to be connected to.
[0067] Once the user is connected to the source of the
advertisement, he can receive more information and/or the option to
purchase one or more products or services. For example, if the
advertisement played to the user is for a particular product or
service, the user may choose to be connected to the source of the
advertisement, whereupon the user is provided the option to
purchase the product or service. Alternatively, once the user is
connected, he may be provided a list of products or services.
Again, the list can be audible or textual and the user can use keys
or voice commands to navigate through the list, obtain more
information, and make selections of products or services to
purchase.
[0068] If the telecommunications advertising means 100 is included
in a system connected to the Internet, then the user is simply
connected to the website of the advertising source. Once connected,
the user can browse through the site and make selections. For
example, if the communication is an e-mail received by the user,
the telecommunications advertising means 100 may insert an
advertisement into the e-mail that contains a "link" to the
advertiser's website. The user would simply "click" on the link to
connect to the website.
[0069] Once the user has selected a product or service to purchase,
the user typically must provide billing information. In one
embodiment, the user can input charge account information through
keys on the user's terminal. In another embodiment, the user can
input the information verbally. The charge account information may
be a credit card number, a debit card number, or some other
financial account information, and may include residence
information for billing purposes. Alternatively, the charge account
information may be stored in telecommunications advertising means
100 or the user's telecommunications means. In either case, the
user can choose to provide the charge account information simply by
pressing the appropriate key or by providing the appropriate voice
command. In another embodiment, the charge account information is
automatically provided by the telecommunications advertising means
100 when the user makes his purchase.
[0070] It should be noted that sending account information can lead
to concerns over security of the information. To allay these
concerns, third party verification and/or security services can be
used to improve the security related to the account information.
For example, public key cryptography can be used to ensure that the
transaction is a secure transaction. Cryptography uses mathematical
algorithms to encrypt and decrypt data. The algorithm is
individualized for a particular person, application, or service
through a "key." Public key encryption refers to a certain type of
algorithm and a certain method of individualization. One example of
a public key cryptography approach is public key infrastructure
(PKI). This approach uses a known, widely distributed public key
and a different private key known only to the person, application,
or service that owns the keys to encrypt and decrypt messages. PKI
is explained in RSA Security's white paper entitled "Understanding
Public Key Infrastructure (PKI)," available at http://www.rsa.com
and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
[0071] An alternatively method to ensure secure transactions
involving the user's account information is for the network
operator to track purchases by the user and collect payment for the
purchases with the normal billing performed by the network
operator. The network operator would then transfer the payment to
the advertisement source, most likely after subtracting a small
fee.
[0072] Wireless Internet access provides alternative ways to
connect to advertising sources. FIG. 10 illustrates a wireless
communication system 1000 that provides wireless Internet access.
System 1000 comprises many of the same components as shown and
explained with regard to network 400 in FIG. 4. System 1000, like
system 400, includes a BSS 402 and a NSS 404. As in the case of
network 400, this portion of the system 1000 carries circuit
switched communications. Mainly, the circuit switched
communications are voice communications, but system 1000 can be
used for circuit switched data communications as well. The circuit
switched communications are carried out over circuit switched
carriers 1002.
[0073] In system 1000, terminals 1004 are also configured to
transmit and receive packet data over packet data carriers 1006.
Packet data refers to the way data is divided into packets as
defined in the Internet Protocol (IP), which is the protocol used
to allow terminals connected to the Internet to communicate with
each other. Data flowing into or out of the Internet 1010 is
interfaced to BSC 410 through packet data server 1008. When a
terminal 1004 initiates a packet data communication, terminal 1004
must first acquire a packet data carrier 1006. Similarly, if
terminal 1004 is to receive a packet data communication, it must
first acquire a packet data carrier 1006 and then receive the
packet data communication.
[0074] For example, if terminal 1004 is "camped" on or engaged in a
communication over a circuit switched carrier 1002, then packet
data server 1008 may send a message to terminal 1004 indicating
that there is an incoming, packet data communication for terminal
1004 and requesting that terminal 1004 receive the packet data
communication. Alternatively, packet data server 1008 may inform
MSC 412 that there is an incoming packet data communication for
terminal 1004, in which case MSC 412 may send the request to
terminal 1004. If terminal 1004 accepts the request, then it must
terminate the circuit switched communication and tune to a packet
data carrier 1006. Once terminal 1004 has acquired packet data
carrier 1006, it can accept the packet data communication.
[0075] An alternative method of receiving packet data
communications is for terminal 1004 to register in system 1000 and
then camp on a packet data carrier 1006. For example, terminal 1004
may be equipped with a special key or a soft key. When the user
presses the key, terminal 1004 acquires a packet data carrier 1006,
authenticates itself with packet data server 1008, and then camps
on the packet data carrier 1006. The user can then "pull"
information off the Internet or information can be "pushed" onto
packet data server 1008 and delivered to terminal 1004. In another
embodiment, terminal 1004 may automatically authenticate itself
with packet data server 1008, and camp on carrier 1006 without the
need for user input or a special key.
[0076] Typically, terminal 1004 must register with packet data
server 1008 in a system such as system 1000, before the terminal
1004 can send packet data. Therefore, terminal 1004 will send a
packet communication registration request which is received by
packet data server 1008. Packet data server 1008 will access user
information from MSC 412 to authenticate terminal 1004, and will
also notify MSC 412 that the terminal 1004 is engaged in packet
data communication. If terminal 1004 is authenticated, packet data
server 1008 initiates the transmission and reception of packets by
sending a packet communication registration response to the
terminal 1004.
[0077] Packet data server 1008 can be implemented in a variety of
ways. For example, packet data server 1008 may be an I-mode.TM.
server or a public switched packet data network (PSPDN).
Alternatively, packet data server 1008 may be a WAP server. A WAP
server actually communicates with terminal 1004 over a circuit
switched carrier, while communicating with the Internet 1010 using
IP. Those skilled in the art will recognize, however, that this
distinction does not effect how the invention operates other than
the particular communication protocol that is used. Therefore, in
this specification, the terms packet data carrier, packet data
communication, and packet data server, are intended to refer to any
carrier, communication, or server that is ultimately used to send
and receive packet data between a terminal 1004 and the Internet
1010.
[0078] In system 1000, telecommunications advertising means 100 can
send advertisements to the source and destination of communications
in the circuit switched portion of system 1000 in the same manner
as described above. Similarly, a terminal 1004 can be connected to
an advertising source in accordance with the methods discussed.
Alternatively, however, terminal 1004 can be used to connect to
advertising sources through packet server 1008. For example, when a
user chooses to connect to the source of an advertisement, either
after the advertisement is played or after selecting the
advertisement from a list of those played to the user during a
previous communication, terminal 1004 may establish a packet data
communication and connect the user to a website associated with the
advertisement source through server 1008. The user can then browse
the website and order products and services in a manner similar to
that discussed with relation to Internet implementations above.
Those skilled in the art will realize, however, that the amount of
the information that can be delivered to and the browsing
capabilities of mobile devices such as terminals 1004 are limited
relative to traditional methods of accessing the Internet.
[0079] In embodiments where terminals 1004 camp on packet data
carriers 1006, a telecommunications advertising means 100 may be
included in packet data server 1008. In this case,
telecommunications advertising means 100 will associate
advertisements with the source and/or destination of packet data
communications initiated or received by terminals 1004. Therefore,
if an email message is sent to a terminal 1004 through packet data
server 1008, telecommunications advertising means 100 in server
1008 may associate an advertisement with and insert it into the
email. The advertisement may include a link to the website of a
source of the advertisement. The user can then use terminal 1004 to
connect to the website through packet data server 1008, and once
connected browse and/or purchase products or services.
[0080] It should also be pointed out that wideband technologies
will increase the amount of information that can be delivered to
terminal 1004 through packet data server 1008 and will also improve
the browsing capabilities of terminal 1004. In fact, wideband
capabilities will lead to the merger of the circuit switched
portion and packet switched portion of system 1000. Thus, in future
implementations, the carrier distinction will be less important. As
technology evolves, the invention will work equally well within the
new wireless communication systems that result.
[0081] Wireless terminals, such as terminals 1004, typically are
capable of storing a list of phone numbers. In one embodiment,
advertisements received on a terminal 1004 can be forwarded to all
or some of the stored phone numbers. In a typical embodiment, the
number to which an advertisement is forwarded must belong to the
same wireless communication system 1000 as terminal 1004.
Therefore, the next time a terminal to which an advertisement has
been forwarded registers in system 1000, it will receive the
forwarded advertisement. Depending on the terminal and type of
advertisement, the terminal will receive the forwarded
advertisement when it registers with MSC 412, or when it accesses
packet data server 1008.
[0082] As illustrated in FIG. 9, there is also provided a method
for updating user preferences associated with a telecommunications
advertising means comprising the following steps: First, in step
902, a user accesses a record containing the user's preferences. In
one sample embodiment, the record is part of a larger database that
contains a plurality of records containing user information for
users within a telecommunications network. The information may
include charge account information for use in purchasing products
and services as discussed above. In one sample implementation, the
user accesses the record via the Internet. Note that access may be
accomplished using a terminal 1004 or a through more traditional
means such as a desktop or laptop computer. In this implementation,
the user would, for example, go to a website where they could
choose to access their user preference information. In a typical
implementation, the user would need to supply a password of some
sort in order to gain access to the information. PKI can also be
used to ensure secure access to the information.
[0083] Once the user has gained access, the user has the option to
change the preferences and user information contained in the
record. This step is illustrated as step 904 in FIG. 9. Then, in
step 906, the user changes the information they wish to change. For
example, in implementations that use the Internet, the user
accesses a screen or window, or series of screens or windows, from
which they can change or select new information for the record.
Depending on the implementation, the user preferences will relate
to age, salary, marital status, number of children, etc., and
buying preferences such as how much the user spends on certain
items, what type of items the user typically purchases, what type
of items the user would like to receive information on, and so
on.
[0084] In step 908, the new information is automatically updated
and stored in the record, which is automatically updated and stored
in the database. In an additional sample embodiment, the record is
accessed via telephone or mobile device such as a MS 406 or
terminal 1004. The user again uses, for example, a password or
public key to access the information and is then provided with menu
options to select new or updated information.
[0085] After the new information is updated and stored in step 908,
the updated record is used, in step 910, to automatically update
associations of advertisements to be played to the user. For
example, the telecommunications advertising means is part of a
telecommunications network. When the user initiates or receives a
communication within the network, the user information is used to
associate advertisements that are played to the user before,
during, or after the communication. In step 910, the updated user
information automatically updates which advertisements are
associated with, and played to, the user.
[0086] While various embodiments of the invention have been
presented, it should be understood that they have been presented by
way of example only and not limitation. Many other embodiments are
possible, which would not depart from the scope of the invention.
For example, certain telecommunications network systems are
described. Telecommunications technology, however, is constantly
evolving, resulting in new systems and means for communicating. The
present invention anticipates that changes in technology will
occur, but the basic invention will continue to apply to newly
developed systems.
* * * * *
References