ANALYZING A QUERY LOG FOR USE IN MANAGING CATEGORY-SPECIFIC ELECTRONIC CONTENT

• US 20080222125A1
• Filed: 05/21/2008
• Published: 09/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AOL LLC (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chowdhury, Abdur R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,073,867 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/4
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2425 Iterative querying; Query formulation based on the results of a preceding query
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24575 using context
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/285 Clustering or classification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/3325 Reformulation based on results of preceding query
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/345 Summarisation for human users
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/948 Product or catalog
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure

Abstract

Providing category-specific electronic content includes receiving a request for electronic content. The request has an attribute. The attribute of the received request is compared to an attribute related to a query included in a log of search queries. An indication of a category that represents a search query from a log of search queries that is related to an attribute that matches the attribute of the received request is accessed, and electronic content that is representative of the identified category is accessed and provided.

Claims

1. A method for providing category-specific electronic content, the method comprising:

receiving a request for electronic content;

determining a time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

determining a time period associated with the request for electronic content based on the time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

accessing information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine at a time corresponding to the determined time period, the accessed information being generated based on an analysis of a query log of the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period;

based on the accessed information, identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a search query; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises performing a search process based on the search query and the at least one identified category.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a request for an advertisement; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises selecting an advertisement based on the at least one identified category.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content;

accessing information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content, the accessed information being generated based on an analysis of a query log of the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content;

based on the accessed information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content, identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content,

wherein handling the request for electronic content comprises handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period and based on the at least one identified category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content,

wherein identifying at least one category comprises identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content.

6. A computer readable storage medium comprising a computer program product, the computer program product comprising instructions that, when executed, operate to cause a computer to perform operations comprising:

receiving a request for electronic content;

determining a time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

determining a time period associated with the request for electronic content based on the time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

accessing information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine at a time corresponding to the determined time period, the accessed information being generated based on an analysis of a query log of the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period;

based on the accessed information, identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category.

7. The computer readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a search query; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises performing a search process based on the search query and the at least one identified category.

8. The computer readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a request for an advertisement; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises selecting an advertisement based on the at least one identified category.

9. The computer readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein the computer program product further comprises instructions that, when executed, operate to cause a computer to perform operations comprising:

determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content;

accessing information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content, the accessed information being generated based on an analysis of a query log of the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content;

based on the accessed information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content, identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content,

wherein handling the request for electronic content comprises handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period and based on the at least one identified category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content.

10. The computer readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein the computer program product further comprises instructions that, when executed, operate to cause a computer to perform operations comprising:

determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content,

wherein identifying at least one category comprises identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine at the time corresponding to the determined time period by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content.

11. A method for providing category-specific electronic content, the method comprising:

receiving a request for electronic content;

determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content;

accessing information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content, the accessed information being generated based on an analysis of a query log of the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content;

based on the accessed information, identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a search query; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises performing a search process based on the search query and the at least one identified category.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a request for an advertisement; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises selecting an advertisement based on the at least one identified category.

14. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

determining a time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

determining a time period associated with the request for electronic content based on the time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

wherein identifying at least one category comprises identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content at a time corresponding to the determined time period.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content comprises determining a gender of a user that submitted the request for electronic content.

16. A computer readable storage medium comprising a computer program product, the computer program product comprising instructions that, when executed, operate to cause a computer to perform operations comprising:

receiving a request for electronic content;

determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content;

accessing information that reflects one or more categories that correspond to previously received search queries submitted to a search engine by users having an attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content, the accessed information being generated based on an analysis of a query log of the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content;

based on the accessed information, identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category.

17. The computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a search query; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises performing a search process based on the search query and the at least one identified category.

18. The computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein:

receiving the request for electronic content comprises receiving a request for an advertisement; and

handling the request for electronic content based on the at least one identified category comprises selecting an advertisement based on the at least one identified category.

19. The computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the computer program product further comprises instructions that, when executed, operate to cause a computer to perform operations comprising:

determining a time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

determining a time period associated with the request for electronic content based on the time at which the request for electronic content was submitted;

wherein identifying at least one category comprises identifying at least one category that corresponds to the previously received search queries submitted to the search engine by users having the attribute that matches the determined attribute of the user that submitted the request for electronic content at a time corresponding to the determined time period.

20. The computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein determining an attribute of a user that submitted the request for electronic content comprises determining a gender of a user that submitted the request for electronic content.