System for internet connections, method for calculating connection fees for network connection services, billing system for network connection services, and system for network connection management

• US 20010025275A1
• Filed: 12/11/2000
• Published: 09/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Freebit
• Original Assignee: Freebit
• Inventors: Tanaka, Nobuaki, Shimizu, Takashi, Ishida, Atsuki, Kusano, Takafumi
• Granted Patent: US 7,376,729 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/412
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/07 Split billing, i.e. both A-party and B-party charged for the communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/08 Metering calls to called party , i.e. B-party charged for the communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/51 for resellers, retailers or service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/7655 shared by technologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/772 per service, e.g. prepay or post-pay
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/773 per technology, e.g. PSTN or wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8005 Flat-fee
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/22 Bandwidth or usage-sensitve billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/54 Resellers-retail or service providers billing, e.g. agreements with telephone service operator, activation, charging/recharging of accounts
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/62 Called party billing, e.g. reverse billing, freephone, collect call, 0800 or 0900
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/64 Split billing, sharing the cost of calls, e.g. between calling and called parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/68 Billing calls completely to the calling party, except POTS, e.g. charge on caller's choice service
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/725 Shared by technologies, e.g. one account for different access technologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/7263 per service, e.g. prepay and post-pay
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/7268 : per technology, e.g. PSTN or wireless

Abstract

A system for Internet connections, which connects a user terminal to a network. The system generally comprises a section for relaying a network connection from a user through an access point, a monitoring section for monitoring the network connection from the user through the access point, and a network connection fee calculation section for calculating a network connection fee for the user based on a monitoring result of the monitoring unit. The connection fee calculation section comprises a line connection fee calculation section for calculating a line connection fee for a line connection made by the user to the access point based on user signal source information, which is provided from a telephone company, and a charge amount calculation section for calculating a charge amount for the user based on the line connection fee, calculated by the line connection fee calculation section.

Claims

1. A system for Internet connections, which connects a user terminal to a network, comprising:

a relaying means for relaying a network connection from a user through an access point;

a monitoring means for monitoring the network connection from the user through the access point; and

a network connection fee calculation means for calculating a network connection fee for the user based on a monitoring result of said monitoring means, wherein said connection fee calculation means comprises;

a line connection fee calculation means for calculating a line connection fee for a line connection made by the user to said access point based on user signal source information, which is provided from a telephone company; and

a charge amount calculation means for calculating a charge amount for the user based on the line connection fee, calculated by said line connection fee calculation means.

2. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 1

,

wherein said line connection fee calculation means comprises a line network type determination means for determining a line network type used by the user, and calculates the line connection fee according to the line network type based on a determination result from said line network type determination means.

3. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 1

,

wherein the line connection fee from the telephone company is charged to a call-receiving telephone number of said access point.

4. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 3

,

wherein the call-receiving telephone number of said access point comprises an identification number which indicates that a call receiver is responsible for payment of the line connection fee, and

wherein different call-receiving telephone numbers are assigned to each access point.

5. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 4

,

wherein said line connection fee calculation means calculates the line connection fee according to a distance between the user signal source and the access point.

6. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 3

,

wherein a contract telephone number of said access point comprises the identification number which indicates that the call receiver is responsible for payment of the line connection fee, and

wherein a plurality of access points share the call-receiving telephone number.

7. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 6

,

wherein said line connection fee calculation means calculates the line connection fee according to a distance between the user signal source and a predetermined access point which is determined based on the user signal source.

8. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 1

, further comprising:

a certification means for performing certification of the user,

wherein said charge amount calculation means

comprises means for selecting one of a plurality of charge amount calculation patterns based on user contract information obtained by said certification means, and

calculates the charge amount by applying the line connection fee, the line connection fee being calculated by said line connection fee calculation means, to a selected charge amount calculation pattern.

9. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 8

,

wherein said charge amount calculation patterns include a pattern in which the charge amount for a predetermined user is calculated by combining the network connection fee, the network connection fee being calculated according to a connection time, and the line connection fee.

10. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 8

,

wherein said charge amount calculation patterns include a pattern in which the charge amount for a predetermined user is only the line connection fee, the line connection fee being calculated according to the connection time.

11. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 8

,

wherein said charge amount calculation patterns include a pattern in which part of the charge amount for a predetermined user is charged to the predetermined user, and a remainder of the charge amount is charged to still other party.

12. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 8

,

wherein said charge amount calculation patterns include a pattern in which all of the charge amount for a predetermined user is charged to other party.

13. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 8

,

wherein said charge amount calculation patterns include a pattern in which the charge amount for a predetermined user is calculated by combining a network connection fee for a predetermined connection time and the line connection fee.

24. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 1

, comprising:

means for obtaining user signal source geographical region information;

a content generation means for generating contents according to a signal source geographical region; and

a content distribution means for distributing the contents generated by said content generation means to the user terminal connected to the Internet.

25. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 24

,

wherein said means for obtaining user signal source geographical region information comprises:

means for obtaining signal source information of the user, which is included in an incoming signal from a telephone company; and

a signal source geographical region determination means for determining the signal source geographical region based on this telephone number if said signal source information contains a signal source telephone number.

26. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 25

,

wherein said signal source geographical region determination means determines a geometrical region of an access point which is accessed by the user as the signal source geographical region if the signal source information does not include the signal source telephone number of the user.

27. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 24

,

wherein said content distribution means distributes said contents to the user by routing a connection of the user to a site which includes said contents.

28. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 24

, further comprising:

means for storing IP address usage information in association with the user of this IP address; and

an access log recording means for recording an access log of a Web site accessed by the user using an IP address used for the Internet connection;

wherein said content distribution means comprises means for comparing the IP address in log information recorded by the access log recording means and said IP address usage information to thereby determine a Web site accessed by the user and distribute contents related to this Web site to the user terminal.

29. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 28

,

wherein said access log recording means is provided in a substitute server, through which the user terminal is connected to the Internet.

30. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 28

,

wherein said content distribution means

comprises means for storing categorized information on various Web sites, and

determines a category to which the Web site, accessed by the user, belongs and distributes contents related to the category to the user.

32. A system for Internet connections as set forth in

claim 25

,

wherein the user signal source geographical information output means outputs the user signal source geographical information in response to an output request, the output request being from the Web site accessed by the user, for the user signal source geographical information which indicates the IP address of the user.

14. A system for Internet connections, which connects a user terminal to a network, comprising:

a relaying means for relaying a network connection from a user through an access point; and

a monitoring means for monitoring the network connection from the user through the access point; and

a network connection fee calculation means for calculating a network connection fee for the user based on a monitoring result of said monitoring means,

wherein the line connection fee from the telephone company is charged to the call-receiving telephone number of said access point, and

wherein said line connection fee calculation means

calculates the charge amount for the user by multiplying an Internet connection time by a predetermined fixed rate

if the line connection fee, the line connection fee being charged from the telephone company to the call-receiving telephone number for calls from the user signal source to said access point, is constant regardless of the distance between the user signal source and the access point.

15. An Internet connection program product for issuing a command for a computer system to establish a dial-up connection with a predetermined Internet connection access point, comprising:

storage media;

a command, the command being stored in said a storage medium, by which the computer system determines a line network type used; and

a command, the command being stored in said storage medium, by which the computer system adds a signal source information provision code to a connection target telephone number if the line network type used is a predetermined line network type.

16. A network connection method for connecting the user terminal to a predetermined network, comprising the steps of:

(a) calculating the line connection fee for the line connection, the line connection being made by the user to said access point, based on the user signal source information, the user signal source information being provided from a telephone company; and

(b) calculating a charge amount for the user based on the line connection fee, the line connection fee being calculated by said line connection fee calculation means.

17. A network connection method as set forth in

claim 16

, further comprising the steps of:

(c) charging the line connection fee from the telephone company to the call-receiving telephone number of said access point; and

(d) calculating the charge amount by multiplying an Internet connection time by a predetermined fixed rate

if the line connection fee, the line connection fee being charged from the telephone company to the call-receiving telephone number for calls from the user signal source to said access point, is constant regardless of the distance between the user signal source and the access point.

18. A system for network connection management, comprising:

a monitoring means for monitoring the network connection from the user through the access point; and

a network connection fee calculation means for calculating a network connection fee for the user based on a monitoring result of said monitoring means,

wherein the line connection fee from the telephone company is charged to the call-receiving telephone number of said access point, and

wherein said connection fee calculation means

comprises a network line connection fee calculation means calculates the line connection fee for the user by applying the line connection time of the user to said charge amount calculation patterns.

19. A system for network connection management as set forth in

claim 18

,

wherein said network connection fee calculation means calculates the charge amount for the user by combining the line connection fee, the line connection fee being calculated by said line connection fee calculation means, and the network connection fee.

20. A system for network connection management as set forth in

claim 18

,

wherein said network connection fee calculation means uses only the line connection fee, the line connection fee being calculated by said line connection fee calculation means, as the charge amount for the user.

21. A system for network connection management as set forth in

claim 18

,

wherein said network connection fee calculation means uses part of the line connection fee, the line connection fee being calculated by said line connection fee calculation means, as the charge amount for the user, and uses a remainder of the line connection fee as the charge amount for other party.

22. A system for network connection management as set forth in

claim 19

,

wherein said network connection fee calculation means uses the line connection fee, the line connection fee being calculated by said line connection fee calculation means, as the charge amount for other party.

23. A system for network connection management, comprising:

a monitoring means for monitoring the network connection from the user through the access point; and

a network connection fee calculation means for calculating a network connection fee for the user based on a monitoring result of said monitoring means,

wherein the line connection fee from the telephone company is charged to the call-receiving telephone number of said access point, and

wherein said connection fee calculation means

calculates the charge amount for the user by multiplying an Internet connection time by a predetermined fixed rate

if the line connection fee, the line connection fee being charged from the telephone company to the call-receiving telephone number for calls from the user signal source to said access point, is constant regardless of the distance between the user signal source and the access point.

31. A system for Internet connections, which connects a user terminal to a network, comprising:

means for obtaining signal source information of the user from the telephone company;

a signal source geographical region determination means for determining the signal source geographical region for the user with this signal source information; and

a user signal source geographical information output means for outputting the signal source geographical region, the signal source geographical region determined by this signal source geographical region determination means, in association with the user.

33. A system for Internet connections, which connects a user terminal to a network, comprising:

means for assigning an IP address to the user terminal and connecting the user terminal to the Internet;

means for storing user information in association with the user; and

means for outputting the user information to a Web site accessed by the user in response to an output request from the Web site for the user information which indicates the IP address of the user.