AD SPONSORS FOR MOBILE DEVICES BASED ON DOWNLOAD SIZE

• US 20080228758A1
• Filed: 01/25/2008
• Published: 09/18/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: CVON
• Inventors: Aaltonen, Janne, Ahopelto, Timo, Antikainen, Ismo, Romppanen, Timo
• Granted Patent: US 8,700,613 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and system for ranking search results and is particularly, but not exclusively, suited to providing search results when the delivery of data corresponding to the search results is metered, such as when data are delivered to terminals connected to mobile networks.

Claims

1. A method of generating a search results list in response to a search request, the request comprising one or more search terms, said search terms being held in a storage system arranged to store a plurality of search listings, one or more said search terms, and a bid amount, wherein each search listing is associated with a network location providing access to a set of data, the method comprising:

receiving a search request;

accessing the storage system so as to identify search listings having search terms generating a match with the received search request;

retrieving data indicative of a first bid amount and a network location corresponding to the or each matched search term, the network location providing access to a set of data corresponding to the matched search term;

generating a second bid amount in dependence on the first bid amount and an amount of data associated with the set of data accessible via the network location;

ordering the identified search listings into a search results list in accordance with values corresponding to respective second bid amounts for the identified search listings; and

outputting data indicative of the ordered search result list, said outputted data comprising a plurality of selectable links, each corresponding to a said network location.

3. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2, comprising generating said second bid amount so as to account for an amount of data corresponding to at least one data item accessible from the network location.

4. A method according to claim 3, including weighting the first bid amount according to the size of at least one data element accessible from the network location, whereby to generate said second bid amount.

5. A method according to claim 4, including weighting the first bid amount according to the size of a predetermined number of data elements accessible from the network location, whereby to generate said second bid amount.

8. A method according claim 7 dependent on claim 1, in which the step of ordering the search list further comprises identifying selectable links classified as fully subsidised differently to identifying selectable links classified as partially subsidised and non-subsidised.

9. A method according to claim 8, in which the ordered list comprises a plurality of portions, each said portion corresponding to one of said classifications, whereby to identify said selectable links in accordance with said classifications.

10. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the set of data includes a link to a further network location, said further network location being accessible via said network location, and the method includes weighting the first bid amount according to the type of said link to the further network location, whereby to generate said second bid amounts.

11. A method according to claim 10, including identifying a number of said links to the further network location and classifying the or each said link.

12. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, including identifying costs of transporting data from the network location to a terminal, in which the method further comprises weighting the first bid amount in accordance with the identified transport costs, whereby to generate said second bid amounts.

13. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, including periodically accessing a given network location so as to determine the amount of data associated therewith, and updating the storage system on the basis of the determined amount of data.

14. A method according to any one of the preceding claims when dependent on claim 1, including transmitting the search results to a terminal connected to a mobile communications network.

15. A method according to claim 14, in which the search request is received from the terminal.

16. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the storage system comprises an account database arranged to hold a record for each of a plurality of network information providers, each said network information provider corresponding to said network location and each said account record comprising data indicative of one or more search terms, a specified bid amount, a storage and/or transmission characteristic corresponding to the network location, and an account balance, the method further comprising:

querying respective account balances prior to ordering the search listings into the search results list so as to identify availability of resources; and

modifying the specified bid amounts on the basis of the identified resource availability, whereby to generate said bid amounts for use in ordering the search listings.

17. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the bid amount corresponds to a metered amount that is used to offset the account of the information provider associated with the network location upon receipt of a retrieval request from the terminal for data from the network location, the method further comprising:

receiving a retrieval request from the terminal to retrieve information associated with a link selected from the ordered search result list;

recording a retrieval request event including account identification information corresponding to the network information provider;

identifying a metered amount corresponding to the request event, and

offsetting the metered amount against the account corresponding to the information provider so as to modify the account balance.

18. A computer program product, or a suite of computer program products comprising program code means being adapted to perform the steps of any one of claim 1 to claim 17 when the program is run on a computer or on a suite of computers.

19. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon a data structure comprising the computer program product according to claim 18.

2. A method of generating a bid amount for use in generating search results, the method comprising:

receiving data indicative of a first bid amount and a network location corresponding to a search term, the network location providing access to a set of data corresponding to the search term;

generating a second bid amount in dependence on the first bid amount and an amount of data associated with the set of data accessible via the network location; and

storing the generated second bid amount and search term corresponding thereto in a storage system.

6. A method according to any one of the preceding, wherein the set of data includes a link to the network location and the method includes identifying a cost associated with accessing said link and allocating a classification dependent on the identified cost.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein the classifications include fully subsidised, partially subsidised and non-subsidised.

20. A method of generating a search results list in response to a request for search results to be delivered to a terminal connected to a mobile communications network, the request comprising one or more search terms, said search terms being held in a storage system arranged to store a plurality of search listings, wherein each search listing is associated with a network location providing access to a set of data, one or more said search terms, and a modifiable bid amount, said bid amount being dependent on a storage and/or transmission characteristic associated with the set of data accessible from the network location, the method comprising:

receiving a search request in respect of the terminal;

accessing the storage system so as to identify search listings having search terms generating a match with the received search request;

for each said identified search listing;

identifying data indicative of costs associated with transmitting data from the corresponding network location to the terminal;

modifying the bid amount on the basis of said storage and/or transmission characteristic and the identified transmission costs;

ordering the identified search listings into a search results list in accordance with values corresponding to said modified bid amounts for the identified search listings; and

transmitting data indicative of the ordered search result list to the terminal, said transmitted data comprising a plurality of selectable links, each corresponding to a said network location.

21. A computer program product, or a suite of computer program products comprising program code means being adapted to perform the steps of claim 20 when the program is run on a computer or on a suite of computers.

22. A system for generating a search results list in response to a request for search results in respect of one or more search terms, the system comprising:

a storage system arranged to store a plurality of search listings, wherein each search listing is associated with a network location providing access to a set of data, one or more said search terms, and a bid amount;

an interface for receiving a search request;

a processor arranged to;

identify a search listing corresponding to the search request;

retrieve data indicative of a first bid amount and a network location corresponding to the or each matched search term, the network location providing access to a set of data corresponding to the matched search term;

generate a second bid amount in dependence on the first bid amount and an amount of data associated with the set of data accessible via the network location; and

generate a search results list of the identified search listings on the basis of the second bid amount, said generated list comprising a selectable link corresponding to the network location,

wherein the interface is arranged to output said generated list.

23. A system according to claim 22, wherein the storage system is arranged to hold a record for each of a plurality of network information providers, each said network information provider corresponding to said network location and each said account record comprising data indicative of one or more search terms, a specified bid amount, an amount of data corresponding to the set of data accessible from the network location, a classification of said network location, and an account balance.

24. A system according to claim 23, wherein the processor is adapted to arrange said search results list in accordance with the classification of the network location.

25. A system according to claim 24, wherein the classification includes subsidised data transmission and non-subsidised data transmission, and the processor is adapted to arrange said search results list such that the selectable links corresponding to subsidised data transmission appear at the top of the list.

26. A system for generating a search results list in response to a request for search results in respect of one or more search terms, the apparatus comprising:

storage means arranged to store a plurality of search listings, wherein each search listing is associated with a network location providing access to a set of data, one or more said search terms, and a bid amount;

interfacing means for receiving a search request in respect of the terminal;

processing means arranged to;

identify a search listing corresponding to the search request;

retrieve data indicative of a first bid amount and a network location corresponding to the or each matched search term, the network location providing access to a set of data corresponding to the matched search term;

generate a second bid amount in dependence on the first bid amount and an amount of data associated with the set of data accessible via the network location; and

generate a search results list of the identified search listings on the basis of the second bid amount, said generated list comprising a selectable link corresponding to the network location,

wherein the interfacing means are arranged to output said generated list.

27. A method of generating a search results list in response to a search request, the request comprising one or more search terms, said search terms being held in a storage system arranged to store a plurality of search listings, one or more said search terms, and a bid amount, wherein each search listing is associated with a network location providing access to a set of data and said bid amount is dependent on an amount of data associated with the set of data accessible via the network location, the method comprising:

receiving a search request;

accessing the storage system so as to identify search listings having search terms generating a match with the received search request;

ordering the identified search listings into a search results list in accordance with values corresponding to respective bid amounts for the identified search listings; and

outputting data indicative of the ordered search result list, said outputted data comprising a plurality of selectable links, each corresponding to a said network location.