Domain-based management of distribution of digital content from multiple suppliers to multiple wireless services subscribers

• US 20040054787A1
• Filed: 06/19/2003
• Published: 03/18/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unwired Planet LLC (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Original Assignee: Openwave Systems Incorporated (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Inventors: Liang, Sheng, Chan, William, Kjellberg, Rikard M., Lund, Tomas G.
• Granted Patent: US 7,299,033 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/102 applying security measure for e-commerce data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for e-commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• 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 3/42178 by downloading data to substation equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services

Abstract

A network server system includes a download manager that manages the publication, purchase and delivery of digital content from multiple content suppliers to wireless services subscribers in multiple domains. Each domain is defined as a different grouping of subscribers, such as a wireless carrier or subsidiary thereof, a business enterprise, or other defined group of subscribers. The download manager maintains data defining the multiple domains and associations between the domains and wireless services subscribers. Digital content suppliers can publish and manage their products on the server system via a computer network and make their products available to the subscribers for purchase or licensing. The subscribers in each of the domains can access the server remotely to purchase rights to download and use the digital content on associated wireless communication devices.

Claims

1. A method of providing access to content for use on wireless communication devices, the method comprising:

operating a server system to store domain data describing a plurality of domains, each domain representing a different subset of a plurality of wireless services subscribers;

operating the server system to enable a plurality of content suppliers to publish content on the server system via a computer network such that the content is accessible to the plurality of wireless services subscribers; and

operating the server system to enable subscribers in each of the plurality of domains to acquire the content via at least one wireless network and to use the content on associated wireless communication devices.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the domains represents a billing relationship between a business entity and a particular subset of the plurality of subscribers.

3. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein each of the subscribers is a member of exactly one of the domains.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of domains represents a partitioning of the content for purposes of making the content available to the subscribers.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of domains represents a delegation of administrative responsibilities for the content and the subscribers.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

each of the domains represents a billing relationship between a business entity and a particular subset of the plurality of subscribers;

each of the subscribers is a member of exactly one of the domains;

the plurality of domains represents a partitioning of the content for purposes of making the content available to the subscribers; and

the plurality of domains further represents a delegation of administrative responsibilities for the content and the subscribers.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the domains has an associated currency for use in presenting content to the subscribers and for billing the subscribers for content, the currency of each domain being independent of the currency of every other domain, the currency of each domain being indicated in the server system by the domain data representing each said domain.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the domains has an associated language for use in communicating with the subscribers belong to the domain, the language of each domain being independent of the language of every other domain, the language of each domain being indicated in the server system by the domain data representing each said domain.

9. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising operating the server system to enable the content suppliers to manage their respective content stored on the server system via the computer network.

10. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising determining a price for each of the items of content independently for each of the plurality of domains.

11. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising determining a currency in which the price of content is to be expressed, independently for each of the plurality of domains.

12. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising determining a language in which content is to be described to the subscribers, independently for each of the plurality of domains.

13. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from one of the subscribers to access content;

identifying the domain in which the subscriber is included in response to the request;

determining a language which corresponds to the domain in which the subscriber is included;

causing a product catalog including descriptions of available content to be presented to the subscriber in said language;

receiving a selection from the subscriber of an item of content in the product catalog;

determining a price and a currency for the selected item based on the domain in which the subscriber is included; and

causing the price to be presented to the subscriber in terms of said currency.

14. A method comprising:

maintaining, in a server system, data defining a plurality of domains, each of the domains representing a billing relationship between a business entity and a particular subset of a plurality of wireless services subscribers;

enabling a plurality of digital product providers to publish digital products on the server system;

enabling each of the subscribers to view descriptions of the digital products and to request the digital products from the server system; and

provisioning the requested digital products in wireless communications devices of the subscribers via at least one wireless network.

15. A method as recited in claim 14, wherein said maintaining data defining a plurality of domains comprises maintaining, in the server system, data defining an association between each of the subscribers and one of the domains.

16. A method as recited in claim 15, further comprising executing a payment process to charge the subscribers for said provisioning.

17. A method as recited in claim 14, further comprising maintaining a product catalog containing descriptions of the digital products.

18. A method as recited in claim 14, further comprising enabling the digital product suppliers to manage digital products which they have caused to be published on the server system.

19. A method as recited in claim 14, further comprising determining a price for each of the digital products independently for each of the plurality of domains.

20. A method as recited in claim 14, further comprising determining a currency in which the price of digital products is to be expressed to subscribers, independently for each of the plurality of domains.

21. A method as recited in claim 14, further comprising determining a language in which digital products are to be described to the subscribers, independently for each of the plurality of domains.

22. A method as recited in claim 14, further comprising:

receiving a request from one of the subscribers to access digital products;

identifying the domain of which the subscriber is a member in response to the request;

determining a language which corresponds to the domain of which the subscriber is a member;

causing a product catalog including descriptions of available digital products to be presented to the subscriber in said language;

receiving a selection from the subscriber of a digital product included in the product catalog;

determining a price and a currency for the selected digital product based on the domain of which the subscriber is a member; and

causing the price to be presented to the subscriber in terms of said currency.

23. A system comprising:

means for maintaining an association between each of a plurality of subscribers of wireless services and one of a plurality of domains into which the plurality of subscribers are grouped, each domain representing a group of the wireless services subscribers and including a different subset of the plurality of subscribers; and

means for managing publication, management and delivery of digital content by a plurality of content suppliers to the subscribers in each of the plurality of domains.

24. A system to provide digital content from a plurality of digital content providers to a plurality of wireless services subscribers using a plurality of wireless communications devices, the system comprising:

a domain manager to maintain an association between each of the subscribers and one of a plurality of domains into which the plurality of subscribers are grouped, each domain representing a different subset of the plurality of subscribers;

a product manager to manage publication of digital content on the system by the plurality of content suppliers;

a delivery manager to manage delivery of an item of digital content to a wireless communications device of a requesting subscriber via a wireless network in conjunction with a received request for the item of digital content; and

a payment manager to execute a payment process for charging the requesting subscriber for the item of digital content.

25. A system as recited in claim 24, further comprising:

a product catalog containing descriptions of available digital content, and

a pricing manager to determine and indicate a price for an item of digital content in response to a signal from the wireless communications device of the requesting subscriber, wherein the price is determined according to a domain of which the requesting subscriber is a member.

26. A system as recited in claim 24, wherein each of the subscribers is a member of exactly one domain of the plurality of domains.

27. A method as recited in claim 24, wherein the plurality of domains represents a partitioning of the content for purposes of making the content available to the subscribers.

28. A method as recited in claim 24, wherein the plurality of domains represents a delegation of administrative responsibilities for the content and the subscribers.

29. A method as recited in claim 24, wherein:

each of the domains represents a billing relationship between a business entity and a particular subset of the plurality of subscribers;

each of the subscribers is a member of exactly one of the domains;

the plurality of domains represents a partitioning of the content for purposes of making the content available to the subscribers; and

the plurality of domains further represents a delegation of administrative responsibilities for the content and the subscribers.

30. A system to manage publication and delivery of digital content to users of a plurality of wireless communications devices operating on a wireless network, the users being wireless services subscribers, the plurality of wireless client devices being registered to and operable by the users to access the wireless services, the system comprising:

a domain manager to maintain data defining an association between each of the subscribers and one of a plurality of domains into which the subscribers are grouped, each domain defined as a group of the wireless services subscribers and including a different subset of the plurality of subscribers, each of the domains representing a billing relationship between a business entity and a particular subset of the plurality of subscribers, wherein each subscriber is a member of exactly one of the domains;

a set of protocol handlers, each protocol handler to enable the system to communicate with wireless client devices over at least one wireless network using a separate associated protocol;

a product manager to manage submission and publication of digital content by a plurality of content suppliers, wherein the product manager includes

a product catalog containing descriptions of available digital content, and

a pricing manager to determine and indicate a price for an item of digital content in response to a signal from a wireless communications device of the plurality of wireless communications devices, wherein the price is determined according to a domain in which a requesting subscriber is included;

a delivery manager to manage delivery of the item of digital content to the mobile client device via at least one wireless network in conjunction with a received request for the item of digital content; and

a payment manager to execute a payment process for charging the requesting subscriber for rights to use the item of digital content.