System and method for processing web activity data

• US 20040073644A1
• Filed: 10/15/2002
• Published: 04/15/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAS Institute Incorporated
• Original Assignee: SAS Institute Incorporated
• Inventors: Grant, Thomas E. Jr., Koch, Donald O.
• Granted Patent: US 7,853,684 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/142 Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
• 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]

Abstract

A computer-implemented system and method for analyzing user browsing activity. Records from a web log that were generated during web browsing sessions are accessed. The web log includes at least one record that is detached from other records generated during the same browsing session as the one record. A web log data characteristic of the detached session record is compared with a web log data characteristic of other records in the web log. Based upon the comparison, the detached session record is associated with at least another record from the web log. The association between the detached session record and the another record is used to analyze user browsing activity.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for analyzing user browsing activity, comprising the steps of:

accessing records from a web log, wherein the records were generated during web browsing sessions,

wherein the web log includes at least one record that is detached from other records generated during the same browsing session as the detached record;

comparing a web log data characteristic of the detached session record with a web log data characteristic of other records in the web log; and

determining that the detached session record is associated with at least another record based upon the comparison,

whereby the association between the detached session record and the another record is used to analyze user browsing activity.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein user browsing activity includes requests to a web server to access content of a web site.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the web log contains data related to the browser requests to the web server.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the record was detached from the other records due to the record being written to the web log without visitor tracking data being available for the record.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the visitor tracking data includes visitor identification data used to uniquely identify a browser.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the visitor identification data includes cookie data generated by the web server.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the visitor tracking data includes visitor identification data used to uniquely identify a session.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the detached record is logically related to the other records generated during the same session as the detached record.

9. The method of claim 1 using reattachment criteria and the web log data characteristics of the records to determine that the detached session record is associated with at least another record.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the reattachment criteria includes similarity of user agent, wherein the web log data characteristics include user agent information.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the reattachment criteria includes similarity of Internet Protocol (IP) address, wherein the web log data characteristics include IP address.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the reattachment criteria includes entry point data, wherein the web log data characteristics include entry point data.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the entry point data includes entry to a web site'"'"'s home page.

14. The method of claim 9 wherein the reattachment criteria includes record time criteria, wherein the web log data characteristics include record time criteria.

15. The method of claim 9 wherein the reattachment criteria includes similarity of user agent information, similarity of IP address information, entry point data, and record time criteria.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the web log data characteristics include user agent information, IP address information, entry point data, and record time information.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein the detached session record includes a session referrer, wherein the detached session record represents a web site that referred a user to a different web site.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the detached session record represents a lost session referrer.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the session referrer contained a banner advertisement that directed a user to the different web site.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the session referrer contained a search engine that directed a user to the different web site.

21. The method of claim 18 wherein at least a portion of the non-detached session records in the web log contains session referrers that show referrals within the same web site.

22. The method of claim 1 wherein the association is used to perform analysis as to where on the internet a web browser was prior to the first request of a session kept in the web log.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the analysis is used in designing a website.

24. The method of claim 22 wherein the analysis is used in paying advertisers that refer users to a web site.

25. The method of claim 22 wherein the analysis is used in paying referring sites.

26. The method of claim 22 wherein the analysis is used in structuring advertising campaigns involving referring sites.

27. The method of claim 1 wherein a data mining application is used to analyze the user browsing activity based upon the association.

28. The method of claim 1 wherein the web log records contain date-time fields, IP address fields, uniform resource identifier (URI) stem fields, cookie fields, referrer fields, and user agent fields.

29. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps:

accessing records from the web log, wherein the records were generated during the web browsing sessions,

wherein the web log includes records detached from their respective other records generated during the same browsing session as the detached records;

comparing web log data characteristics of the detached session records with web log data characteristics of other records in the web log; and

determining with which records the detached session records are associated based upon the comparison,

whereby the associations between the detached session records and other records are used to analyze user browsing activity.

30. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of:

grouping the records from the web log by user agent data.

31. The method of claim 30 further comprising the steps of:

If a record does not have a visitor identification information, then determining whether the record represents an entry page;

if a record represents an entry point and the if a visitor identification group is within a predetermined timeout threshold, then placing the record in the visitor identification group based on the entry point.

32. The method of claim 31 further comprising the step of:

assigning a visitor identification to a record based upon comparison of the record'"'"'s IP address to the IP addresses of other records within a visitor identification group.

33. Computer software stored on a computer readable media, the computer software comprising program code for carrying out a method according to claim 1.

34. A computer-implemented system for analyzing user browsing activity, comprising:

means for accessing records from a web log, wherein the records were generated during web browsing sessions,

wherein the web log includes at least one record that is detached from other records generated during the same browsing session as the detached record;

means for comparing a web log data characteristic of the detached session record with a web log data characteristic of other records in the web log; and

means for determining that the detached session record is associated with at least another record based upon the comparison,

whereby the association between the detached session record and the another record is used to analyze user browsing activity.