METHODS AND SYSTEMS TO DELIVER ELECTRONIC MAIL USING PAYMENTS
First Claim
1. A method, comprising:
- receiving an electronic mail message at a server;
determining whether the electronic mail message includes information indicative that a sending entity has posted an electronic mail delivery payment to enable delivery of the electronic mail message;
when the electronic mail message includes the information indicative that the sending entity has posted the electronic mail delivery payment, polling a funds account of an intended recipient of the electronic mail message to determine whether the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account; and
not sending the electronic mail message to a mailbox of the intended recipient unless the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account regardless of whether the sending entity is on a permissions list.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Methods, apparatus, and systems to deliver electronic mail using payments are disclosed. An example method involves receiving an electronic mail message at a server. It is then determined whether the electronic mail message includes information indicative that a sending entity has posted an electronic mail delivery payment to enable delivery of the electronic mail message. When the electronic mail message includes the information indicative that the sending entity has pasted the electronic mail delivery payment, a funds account of an intended recipient of the electronic mail message is polled to determine whether the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account. The electronic mail message is not sent to a mailbox of the intended recipient unless the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account regardless of whether the sending entity is on a permissions list.
54 Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method, comprising:
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receiving an electronic mail message at a server; determining whether the electronic mail message includes information indicative that a sending entity has posted an electronic mail delivery payment to enable delivery of the electronic mail message; when the electronic mail message includes the information indicative that the sending entity has posted the electronic mail delivery payment, polling a funds account of an intended recipient of the electronic mail message to determine whether the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account; and not sending the electronic mail message to a mailbox of the intended recipient unless the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account regardless of whether the sending entity is on a permissions list. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. An apparatus comprising:
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an electronic mail storage area to store the electronic mail; a payment verifier to poll a funds account of an intended recipient to determine whether an electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account to enable delivery of an electronic mail message to the intended recipient; and a notification generator configured to send a notification to a sending entity of the electronic mail message to request the electronic mail delivery payment when the payment verifier determines that the electronic mail delivery payment has not been deposited in the funds account regardless of whether the sending entity is on a permissions list. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A machine accessible medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause a machine to:
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receive an electronic mail message at a server; determine whether the electronic mail message includes information indicative that a sending entity has posted an electronic mail delivery payment to enable delivery of the electronic mail message; when the electronic mail message includes the information indicative that the sending entity has posted the electronic mail delivery payment, poll a funds account of an intended recipient of the electronic mail message to determine whether the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account; and conditionally sending the electronic mail message to a mailbox of the intended recipient based on whether the electronic mail delivery payment has been deposited in the funds account regardless of whether the sending entity is on a permissions list. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A method, comprising:
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receiving an electronic message; determining whether a monetary amount associated with delivering the electronic message has been deposited in an account; determining whether the monetary amount is available for withdrawal by the intended recipient of the electronic message; and delivering the electronic message to the intended recipient if the monetary amount is available for withdrawal by the intended recipient of the electronic message. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification