Enabling preference portability for users of a social networking system

• US 10,210,465 B2
• Filed: 11/11/2011
• Issued: 02/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cathcart, Robert William, Sagula, Rafael Linden, Marlow, Cameron Alexander, Chang, Jonathan, Kar, Siddharth, Sun, Eric
• Primary Examiner(s): Georgandellis, Andrew C
• Application Number:
  US13/294,998
• Publication Number:
  US 20130124624A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,657 Days
• Field of Search: 709204, 709205, 709206, 709207, 703 2, 707723, 707737, 707E17, 707E17089, 707741, 707748
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management

Abstract

Equivalent concepts expressed across multiple domains are matched and associated with a metapage generated by a social networking system. User preferences expressed on multiple domains, represented as pages in a social networking system, may be organized by concept and shared with advertisers, third-party developers, and other users using the metapages generated for the concepts. Aggregated social information may be presented to users viewing a page associated with a metapage. Information presented on external websites may be used to link pages across multiple domains with a metapage generated on the social networking system. Information on other external websites associated with the metapage may be presented as links on the pages associated with the metapage. Feedback from users may be used to include or exclude pages from being associated with a generated metapage. A best page for a concept embodied in multiple pages may be determined using a hierarchy of rules.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

maintaining, in a database, a plurality of page objects of a social networking system, each of the plurality of page objects being a representation of a page, associated with stored user interactions of users with the page that the page object represents, and attributed to an entity from a plurality of entities;

determining, by a processor, a match between a first page object and a second page object of the plurality of page objects, the match indicating the first and second page objects are attributed to a same entity;

determining, by the processor, a match score for the match between the first and second page objects based on matching rules;

responsive to the match score exceeding a predetermined threshold;

generating, by the processor, a metapage object, wherein the metapage object is stored in a database, stores identifiers of the first and second page objects as references to the first and second page objects;

receiving, from a user of the social networking system, a request for user interactions with a first page represented by the first page object;

querying for the identifier of the first page object in the database;

identifying the metapage object storing the identifier of the first page object;

identifying a best page object for the metapage object, wherein the best page object is selected from the first and the second page objects, and wherein selection of the best page object is based on the user requesting the user interactions; and

providing, based on the querying, to the user for display, stored user interactions with the page that the best page object represents.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving information about the first and second page objects, wherein the received information comprises structured information about the first and second objects including names and types of the first and second page objects, and wherein determining a match score based on matching rules further comprises:

determining the match score as a similarity of the names and the types of the first and second page objects.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving information about the first and second page objects, wherein the received information comprises links to other page objects on the social networking system, and wherein determining a match score based on matching rules further comprises:

determining the match score based on whether the other page objects correspond to the first and second page objects.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving information about the first and second page objects, wherein the received information comprises attributes of the first and second page objects describing user-generated categories of information, and wherein determining a match score based on matching rules further comprises:

determining the match score based on whether the attributes of the first and second page objects are similar.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving information about the first and second page objects, wherein the received information comprises feedback received from users of the social networking system, and wherein determining a match score based on matching rules further comprises:

determining the match score based on a percentage of the feedback received from the users of the social networking system that affirms the first and second page objects are similar.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining a match includes analyzing a page object associated with a previously generated metapage object, the method further comprising:

determining a merge score for the previously generated metapage object and the metapage object in association with the first and second page objects based on a plurality of merge factors; and

responsive to the merge score exceeding a predetermined threshold for merging, associating the first and second page objects with the previously generated metapage object.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

retrieving a first set of preference information items indicating interest from users of the social networking system for a first page represented by the first page object;

querying the identifiers stored by the identified metapage object to identify a plurality of page objects that are attributed to the same entity as the first page object;

retrieving, by the processor, a second set of preference information items indicating interest from users of the social networking system for pages represented by each of the plurality of identified page objects; and

providing, for display to the user, the first set of preference information items and the second set of preference information items as the requested user interactions.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the best page object for the metapage object further comprises:

determining the user'"'"'s affinity to a plurality of users that provided the stored user interactions with the pages that the first and second page objects represent;

identifying the best page object based on the user'"'"'s affinity to the plurality of users.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the best page object for the metapage object further comprises:

receiving, from the user, feedback regarding the first and the second page objects;

identifying the best page object based on the feedback received from the user.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the best page object for the metapage object further comprises:

identifying a first quantity of stored user interactions with the page that the first page object represents;

identifying a second quantity of stored user interactions with the page that the second page object represents;

identifying the best page object based on the first and second quantities of stored user interactions with the pages that the first and second page objects represent.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the best page object for the metapage object further comprises:

identifying information about the user stored by the social networking system;

identifying the best page object based on the information about the user.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the best page object for the metapage object further comprises:

identifying a first administrator associated with the first page object;

identifying a second administrator associated with the second page object;

identifying the best page object based on the first and second administrators associated with the first and second page objects.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the best page object for the metapage object further comprises:

identifying the best page object based on the user'"'"'s previous interactions stored by the first and second page objects.

14. A method comprising:

maintaining, in a database, a plurality of page objects of a social networking system, each of the plurality of page objects being a representation of a page, associated with stored user interactions of users with the page that the page object represents, and attributed to an entity from a plurality of entities;

maintaining, in the database, a plurality of metapage objects of a social networking system, wherein each metapage object is associated with at least two page objects that are both attributed to a same entity, and wherein the metapage object stores identifiers of the at least two page objects as references to the at least two page objects;

receiving, from a user of the social networking system, a request for user interactions with a particular page represented by a particular page object, the particular page object associated with a metapage object;

responsive to receiving the request, identifying, by a processor, the metapage object associated with the requested particular page object based on an identifier of the requested particular page object stored in the metapage object;

retrieving, by the processor, a plurality of page objects associated with the identified metapage object based on identifiers of the plurality of page objects stored in the metapage object;

identifying a best page object for the metapage object, wherein the best page object is selected from the plurality of page objects associated with the metapage object, and wherein selection of the best page object is based on the user requesting the user interactions;

retrieving, by the processor, stored user interactions with the page that the best page object represents; and

providing the retrieved user interactions to the user.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein receiving a request for user interactions with a particular page represented by a particular page object from a user of the social networking system further comprises:

receiving a request for a page on the social networking system, the page represented by the particular page object.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein receiving a request for user interactions with a particular page represented by a particular page object from a user of the social networking system further comprises:

receiving an application programming interface (API) request for user interactions with the particular page represented by the particular page object from a widget embedded in an external website.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the user interactions include expressions of interest from users of the social networking system.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the user interactions include actions generated by users of the social networking system.

19. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

retrieving, by the processor, stored user interactions with the plurality of pages that the plurality of page objects associated with the identified metapage object represent, wherein the retrieving comprises aggregating actions performed by users of the social networking system on the plurality of pages represented by the plurality of page objects associated with the identified metapage object; and

providing the stored user interactions with the plurality of pages that the plurality of page objects associated with the metapage object represent to the user, wherein the providing comprises providing the aggregated actions as the user interactions.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein providing the stored user interactions with the plurality of pages that the plurality of page objects associated with the metapage object represent to the user further comprises:

providing the stored user interactions with the plurality of pages that the plurality of page objects associated with the metapage object represent within a widget embedded in an external website.

21. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed is a specific movie and the at least two page objects represent different web pages attributed to the specific movie.

22. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed is a specific television show and the at least two page objects represent different web pages attributed to the specific television show.

23. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed is a specific recording artist and the at least two page objects represent different web pages attributed to the specific recording artist.

24. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed is a specific celebrity and the at least two page objects represent different web pages attributed to the specific celebrity.

25. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed is a specific geographical location and the at least two page objects represent different web pages attributed to the specific geographical location.

26. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed is a specific unique activity and the at least two page objects represent different web pages attributed to the specific activity.

27. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed and which is associated with the metapage object has a single distinctive identity, and each of the at least two page objects is attributed to a different instance of the same entity.

28. The method of claim 14, wherein the same entity to which the at least two page objects are attributed is a specific unique consumer product and the at least two page objects represent different web pages attributed to the specific consumer product.