Method for cross-promoting communications services

• US 20060167746A1
• Filed: 01/21/2005
• Published: 07/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Advanced Messaging Technologies, Inc. (J2 Global, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: J2 Global, Inc.
• Inventors: Zucker, Nehemia
• Granted Patent: US 7,835,941 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.540
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0211 Determining the effectiveness of discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0222 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0239 Online discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0256 User search
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0262 during computer stand-by mode

Abstract

A method to promote use of one communication service by associating it with another service and offering incentives to use the first service in return for use of the second service. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

offering a first communication service to a customer; and

offering a second, different communication service to the customer at a price that is less than a usual price for the second communication service, wherein the offer of the second communication service at less than the usual price can be accepted only if the customer has used a predetermined amount of the first communication service.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the first communication service is one of facsimile transmission, facsimile reception, conference call management, voice mail and machine-implemented oral recitation of textual data.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the second communication service is one of facsimile transmission, facsimile reception, conference call management, find-me/follow-me and machine-implemented oral recitation of textual data.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the second communication service is offered to the customer at no cost.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein offering the second communication service at a price that is less than the usual price comprises giving the customer a credit to receive a predetermined amount of the second communication service for free.

6. The method of claim 5 where the credit is stored in a customer account maintained for the benefit of the customer.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the first communication service is forwarding a facsimile received at an inbound telephone number assigned to the customer, to a data network address of the customer.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the data network address is an electronic mail address.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein the second communication service is forwarding via a facsimile transmitter a message received from the customer to a destination selected by the customer.

10. A computer-readable storage medium comprising processor instructions that, when executed,

provide a first communication service to a customer and present an offer of a second, different communication service to the customer at a price that is less than a usual price for the second communication service, wherein the offer of the second communication service at less than the usual price is contingent upon the customer'"'"'s prior use of a predetermined amount of the first communication service.

11. The storage medium of claim 10 further comprising instructions that maintain a customer account for the benefit of the customer and credit the customer account with an amount by which the second communication service is offered below the second communication service'"'"'s usual price.

12. The storage medium of claim 10 wherein the first communication service and the second communication service are one of facsimile transmission, facsimile reception, conference call management, and machine-implemented oral recitation of textual data.

13. The storage medium of claim 10 wherein the first service is facsimile reception and the second service is facsimile transmission.

14. The storage medium of claim 13 wherein the offer of the second service being contingent upon use of the first service is to transmit a predetermined number of free facsimile pages for every predetermined number of facsimile pages received.

15. The storage medium of claim 10 wherein the first service is voice message reception and the second service is voice message transmission.

16. The storage medium of claim 15 wherein the offer of the second service being contingent upon use of the first service is to transmit a predetermined number of free voice messages for every predetermined number of voice messages received.

17. A method comprising:

offering a first communication service to a customer;

offering a second communication service that is different from the first communication service to a customer; and

giving the customer credit for having used a predetermined amount of the first service, wherein the credit is given in the form of making a predetermined amount of the second service available to the customer for free.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the first service comprises

receiving a facsimile transmission and sending a message to the customer to notify him that the facsimile transmission has been received;

and the second service comprises

accepting an electronic message from the customer, converting the message to a format suitable for transmission via facsimile, and transmitting the converted message to a recipient; and

the credit is in the form of a predetermined number of pages that can be transmitted by the second service.

19. A method comprising:

providing a telephone number of a device that can receive facsimile transmissions to a customer;

receiving one or more pages transmitted to the device; and

offering to transmit via facsimile, at no charge to the customer, a number of pages that is proportional to the number of pages received by the device.