System and method for hosting images embedded in external websites

• US 20070067493A1
• Filed: 09/21/2005
• Published: 03/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IP3 2017, Series 200 of Allied Security Trust I (Allied Security Trust)
• Original Assignee: Qurio Holdings Incorporated
• Inventors: Issa, Alfredo
• Granted Patent: US 8,447,828 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context

Abstract

A system and method are provided for hosting digital images embedded in an external website, wherein the digital images are modified to include additional content such as advertisements when served to a guest of the external website. In general, a host website including a web server and an image database operates to host digital images for external websites. When the web server associated with the host website receives a request for a digital image embedded within a webpage of the external website, the web server analyzes metadata associated with the digital image to produce selection criteria and selects additional content to add to the digital image based on the selection criteria. The web server then modifies the digital image to include the additional content, thereby generating a modified image, and provides the modified image to the requesting node.

Claims

1. A web server in a system for hosting a digital image embedded in an external website comprising:

a) a communication interface coupled to a network; and

b) a control system associated with the communication interface and adapted to;

i) receive a request from a requesting node for one of a plurality of digital images embedded within the external website;

ii) obtain the one of the plurality of digital images from an image database;

iii) analyze metadata associated with the one of the plurality of digital images to provide selection criteria;

iv) select additional content to add to the one of the plurality of digital images based on the selection criteria;

v) modify the one of the plurality of digital images to add the additional content, thereby generating a modified image; and

vi) provide the modified image to the requesting node.

2. The web server of claim 1 wherein the metadata comprises information stored in association with the one of the plurality of digital images.

3. The web server of claim 1 wherein the metadata is stored within an image file corresponding to the one of the plurality of digital images.

4. The web server of claim 1 wherein the metadata is stored within an application file associated with the web server.

5. The web server of claim 1 wherein the metadata comprises data selected from the group consisting of:

a caption entered by a user associated with the one of the plurality of digital images, at least one keyword, a time stamp indicating a time and date at which the one of the plurality of digital images was captured, and location information indicating a location at which the one of the plurality of digital images was captured.

6. The web server of claim 1 wherein the control system is further adapted to modify the one of the plurality of digital images by adding pixels corresponding to the additional content to the one of the plurality of digital images.

7. The web server of claim 1 wherein the control system is further adapted to modify the one of the plurality of digital images by modifying pixels of the one of the plurality of digital images such that the additional content is added to the one of the plurality of digital images.

8. The web server of claim 1 wherein the control system is further adapted to store the modified image and serve the modified image in response to subsequent requests for the one of the plurality of digital images.

9. The web server of claim 1 wherein the requesting node is a guest node that provides the request in response to requesting and receiving a webpage having the one of the plurality of digital images embedded therein from the external website.

10. The web server of claim 9 wherein the control system is associated with a host website and the one of the plurality of digital images is embedded in the webpage from the external website as a web hyperlink to a predetermined Uniform Resource Locator (URL) associated with the host website.

11. The web server of claim 10 wherein the control system is further adapted to:

receive a request for the predetermined URL from the guest node; and

redirect the guest node to a website associated with the additional content added to the one of the plurality of digital images in response to receiving the request for the predetermined URL.

12. The web server of claim 1 wherein the control system is further adapted to receive the request from the one of the plurality of digital images from the external website.

13. A web server in a system for hosting a digital image embedded in an external website comprising:

a) a communication interface;

b) a control system associated with a hosting website and the communication interface and adapted to;

i) receive a request for one of a plurality of digital images from a requesting node;

ii) if the request is due to the one of the plurality of digital images being embedded within a webpage at the external website;

A) obtain the one of the plurality of digital images from an image database;

B) modify the one of the plurality of digital images to add additional content, thereby generating a modified image; and

C) provide the modified image to the requesting node;

iii) if the request is due to the one of the plurality of digital images being embedded within a webpage at the hosting website;

A) obtain the one of the plurality of digital images from the image database; and

B) provide the one of the plurality of digital images to the requesting node.

14. The web server of claim 13 wherein the control system is further adapted to determine whether the request is due to the one of the plurality of digital images being embedded within the external website.

15. The web server of claim 14 wherein the request is a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request and the control system is further adapted to determine whether the request is due to the one of the plurality of digital images being embedded within the webpage at the external website by examining a HTTP referrer header field in the HTTP request.

16. The web server of claim 13 wherein if the request is due to the one of the plurality of digital images being embedded within the webpage at the external website, the control system is further adapted to:

analyze metadata associated with the one of the plurality of digital images to provide selection criteria; and

select the additional content to add to the one of the plurality of digital images based on the selection criteria.

17. The web server of claim 13 wherein if the request is due to the one of the plurality of digital images being embedded within the webpage at the external website, the control system is further adapted to select the additional content based on a geographic location of the requesting node.

18. The web server of claim 17 wherein the control system is further adapted to determine the geographic location of the requesting node based on an Internet Protocol (IP) address of the requesting node.

19. A method for hosting a digital image embedded in an external website comprising:

receiving a request at a host website from a requesting node for one of a plurality of digital images embedded within the external website;

obtaining the one of the plurality of digital images from an image database;

analyzing metadata associated with the one of the plurality of digital images to provide selection criteria;

selecting additional content to add to the one of the plurality of digital images based on the selection criteria;

modifying the one of the plurality of digital images to add the additional content, thereby generating a modified image; and

providing the modified image from the hosting website to the requesting node.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the metadata comprises data selected from the group consisting of:

a caption entered by a user associated with the one of the plurality of digital images, at least one keyword, a time stamp indicating a time and date at which the one of the plurality of digital images was captured, and location information indicating a location at which the one of the plurality of digital images was captured.