APPARATUS FOR INCREASING SOCIAL INTERACTION OVER AN ELECTRONIC NETWORK

• US 20080184133A1
• Filed: 01/25/2007
• Published: 07/31/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Social Concepts Incorporated (Aristocrat Leisure Limited)
• Original Assignee: Social Concepts Incorporated (Aristocrat Leisure Limited)
• Inventors: Hedlund, Michael R., Lee, Joseph William, Grendler, Peter August
• Granted Patent: US 8,166,407 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/751
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/17306 Intercommunication techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0208 Trade or exchange of goods or services in exchange for incentives or rewards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0209 Incentive being awarded or redeemed in connection with the playing of a video game
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0211 Determining the effectiveness of discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0212 Chance discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0213 Consumer transaction fees
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0214 Referral reward systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

In one embodiment, a system includes a server that hosts webpages facilitating user interaction between multiple endpoints. The system monitors for a user input requesting initiation of a happy hour, and when the input is detected, modifies the webpages to alert users of the happy hour. The users are notified of which user initiated the happy hour, and are also notified that interaction incentives accumulate at an increased rate during the happy hour. The system also tracks user scorings that accumulate based on the user interaction, and enables certain website features based on these user scorings. The system also tracks ratings for user-uploaded objects and identifies top rated objects for displaying on webpages viewable by other users.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving an input requesting initiation of a temporary period on a website hosted by a server;

modifying one or more webpages hosted by the server to identify a user sponsoring the temporary period and identifying beginning and ending times for the temporary period;

altering the website to provide discounts during the temporary period; and

altering the website to adjust points awarded to users for interacting with each other during the temporary period.

2. The method of claim 1 configuring the server to display an email or messaging address for the sponsoring user to the other users during the temporary period.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising multiplying received bid amounts for a user advertisement space during the temporary period, the user advertisement space for displaying a visual representation and profile of a highest bidding one of the users.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

identifying a number of active users prior to the temporary period; and

using the number of active users to determine the ending time of the temporary period.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the point adjustment is determined according to a time of day that the input is received.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the ending time of the temporary period is selected based on a time of day that the input is received.

7. A system, comprising:

means for tracking user scorings for user webpage interactions over an electronic network;

means for altering the webpages during a temporary time period initiated by one of the users where the user webpage interactions are scored at different rates; and

means for readjusting the user webpage interactions to previous scoring rates after the temporary time period has expired.

8. The system of claim 7 further comprising:

means for identifying an amount that each of the user scorings increases during the temporary time period;

means for summing the identified amounts to identify a total score increase; and

means for increasing one of the user scorings that corresponds to the initiating user by a percentage of the identified total score increase.

9. The system of claim 7 further comprising means for altering the webpages to identify the initiating user by displaying, to every user connected during the temporary time period, contact information for the initiating user and a visual representation of the initiating user.

10. The system of claim 7 further comprising:

means for receiving user ratings of objects uploaded by the users;

means for ranking the objects according to the user ratings to identify top rated objects according to category; and

means for displaying the top rated objects on homepages for connected users.

11. The system of claim 7 wherein the temporary time period is a happy hour period having a duration of less than an hour.

12. The system of claim 7 further comprising means for assigning points to users that identify inappropriate user-uploaded objects during the temporary time period.

13. The system of claim 7 further comprising:

means for identifying a time that a new member is referred by an existing user;

means for comparing the identified time with a beginning and an ending time of the temporary time period to determine whether the identified time occurs during the temporary time period;

means for increasing one of the user scorings that corresponds with the existing referring user by a first predetermined amount when the identified time occurs during the temporary time period; and

means for increasing the user scoring that corresponds with the existing referring user by a second different predetermined amount when the identified time does not occur during the temporary time period.

14. The system of claim 13 further comprising means for monitoring a user scoring for the new member to identify score increases for the new member and increasing the user scoring for the referring member by a percentage of the identified score increases.

15. An apparatus comprising:

one or more processors; and

a memory coupled to the processors comprising instructions executable by the processors, the processors operable when executing the instructions to;

assign points to website members for interacting with each other through a website;

initiate a social time period on the website; and

change a rate that the website members are awarded points for interacting with each other over the website during the social time period.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the processors are further operable to:

identify a source of a request that triggers initiation of the social time; and

modify one or more webpages on the website to display an identification of the source.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein an email address of the source is displayed in an upper portion of all member homepages that are accessed using the website during the social time period.

18. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the social time period is initiated by the website according to a communication from a sponsor that is not one of the members.

19. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein price listings on the website are temporarily adjusted during the social time period to change how many tokens are required to purchase virtual gifts offered for sale on the website, the virtual gifts being transferable between the website members through the website.

20. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the processors are further operable to:

cause a message submitted by a single member and a visual representation of that single member to be broadcast to all other currently connected website members in response to a request from the single member;

deduct a first amount from an account balance for the single member when the request is received during the social time period; and

deduct a second different amount from the account balance for the single member when the request is not received during the social time period.

21. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the processors are further operable to notify the website members of the social time period by modifying a background color for member homepages accessed during the social time period, the member homepages being displayed immediately after member login.

22. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the processors are further operable to display a discount on the website during the social time period.

23. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the processors are further operable to increase a rate that the website members are awarded for updating profile descriptions during the social time period.

24. The apparatus of claim 15 the social time period is automatically initiated when a birthday of one of the website members occurs.

25. The apparatus of claim 24 wherein different rates are selected for the social time period according to whether the initiation occurs automatically or in response to a manual request submitted by one of the website users.

26. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the social time period is a happy hour corresponding to a birthday celebration, an end of a work day celebration, a work break period or a graduation celebration.