User Association of a Computing Application with a Contact in a Contact List

• US 20080263069A1
• Filed: 06/30/2008
• Published: 10/23/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Checkfree Services Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Checkfree Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Dreyer, Hans D., Hobday, Donald Kenneth, Harris, Mark T.
• Granted Patent: US 8,463,831 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/33 using certificates
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

Methods and systems may be provided for user association of a computing application with a contact in a contact list. A view of one or more contacts of the user may be transmitted to a user, the view included a first contact. A request may be received from the user to associate an application with the first contact. A revised view may be transmitted to the user responsive to the received request, the revised view including a user-selectable mechanism for invoking the application on the first contact. The user may be redirected to a user interface of the application subsequent to the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the contact in the revised view, and the redirection may include transmission of information associated with the user and information associated with the first contact.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

transmitting, to a user, a view of one or more contacts of the user, including a first contact;

receiving, from the user, a request to associate an application with the first contact; and

transmitting, to the user and responsive to receiving the request, a revised view that includes a user-selectable mechanism for invoking the application on the first contact,

wherein the user is redirected to a user interface of the application subsequent to the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the first contact in the revised view, and wherein the redirection includes transmission of information associated with the user and information associated with the first contact.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the view or the revised view includes at least one of (i) a name, (ii) a company, (iii) primary contact information, or (iv) a category, for each of the one or more contacts of the user.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more contacts of the user are hosted by one of (i) a contact service, (ii) a computing system of the user, or (iii) an application service provider.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a first entity transmits the view, receives the request transmits the revised view, and redirects the user, and wherein a second entity hosts the one or more contacts of the user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the application is selected from a closed list of available applications.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the application is an electronic billing and payment (EBP) application comprising one or more types of functionality selected from the group consisting of (i) electronic payments, (ii) electronic bill presentment, (iii) electronic bill issuance, and (iv) financial transaction viewing.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the application determines that the information associated with the user and the information associated with the first contact are insufficient to fulfill a transaction associated with a desired one of the one or more types of functionality, and wherein the application obtains further information from one of (i) the user or (ii) another source.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the application determines that the information associated with the user and the information associated with the first contact are insufficient after determining that the first contact has not yet been activated by the user for the desired one of the one or more types of functionality.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the user-selectable mechanism comprises one of (i) an icon, (ii) a link, or (iii) an item included in a displayed set of selectable options.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more contacts include a second contact, the application is a first application, the user interface is a first user interface, and the revised view associates a second user-selectable mechanism with the second contact, and

wherein the user is redirected to a second user interface of a second application, different than the first application, subsequent to the user selecting the second user-selectable mechanism associated with the second contact in the revised view.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the application is a first application, and

wherein the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the first contact invokes a second application that invokes the first application based on at least a portion of the information associated with the first contact.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the user interface of the application comprises one or more fields populated from at least a portion of the information associated with the user or the information associated with the first contact.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the information associated with the first contact includes one or more of (i) a contact identifier, (ii) a contact name, (iii) an address, (iv) an email identifier, (v) an account number of the user with the first contact, or (vi) a phone number.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is a first request, and further comprising:

receiving, from the user, a second request to invoke the application based on the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the first contact in the revised view,

wherein the user is redirected to the user interface of the application responsive to receiving the second request.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the application, updated or new values associated with the first contact; and

directing the storage of the updated or new values in association with the first contact.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the updated or new values are hidden values that are not presented to the user.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the user selection of the user-selectable mechanism is a first user selection,

wherein the redirection is a first redirection,

wherein a second user selection of the user-selectable mechanism facilitates a second redirection of the user to the user interface of the application, the second user selection occurring subsequent to receiving the updated or new values, and

wherein the second redirection includes transmission of at least a portion of the updated or new values associated with the first contact.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the application obtains further information associated with the first contact from an entity hosting the one or more contacts of the user, based on at least a portion of the information associated with the user or the information associated with the first contact.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein the application is selected from a closed list of available applications.

24. The system of claim 1, wherein the application is an electronic billing and payment (EBP) application comprising one or more types of functionality selected from the group consisting of (i) electronic payments, (ii) electronic bill presentment, (iii) electronic bill issuance, and (iv) financial transaction viewing.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the application determines that the information associated with the user and the information associated with the first contact are insufficient to fulfill a transaction associated with a desired one of the one or more types of functionality, and wherein the application obtains further information from one of (i) the user or (ii) another source.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the application determines that the information associated with the user and the information associated with the first contact are insufficient after determining that the first contact has not yet been activated by the user for the desired one of the one or more types of functionality.

19. A system, comprising:

a communications interface operable (i) to transmit, to a user, a view of one or more contacts of the user, including a first contact of the user, (ii) to receive, from the user, a request to associate an application with the first contact and (iii) to transmit, to the user and responsive to the received request, a revised view that includes a user-selectable mechanism for invoking the application on the first contact wherein the user is redirected to a user interface of the application subsequent to the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the first contact in the revised view, and wherein the redirection includes transmission of information associated with the user and information associated with the first contact; and

a processor operable (i) to direct the communications interface to transmit the view of the one or more contacts, and (ii) to direct the communications interface to transmit the revised view responsive to the received request.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein at least one of the view or the revised view includes at least one of (i) a name, (ii) a company, (iii) primary contact information, or (iv) a category, for each of the one or more contacts of the user.

21. The system of claim 19, further comprising:

a memory operable to store information for the one or more contacts of the user and information associated with one or more applications associated with each of the one or more contacts, wherein the memory is associated with one of (i) a contact service, (ii) a computing system of the user, or (iii) an application service provider.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the communications interface and the processor are associated with a first entity and the memory is associated with a second entity.

27. The system of claim 19, wherein the user-selectable mechanism comprises one of (i) an icon, (ii) a link, or (iii) an item included in a displayed set of selectable options.

28. The system of claim 19, wherein the one or more contacts include a second contact, the application is a first application, the user interface is a first user interface, and the revised view associates a second user-selectable mechanism with the second contact, and

wherein the user is redirected to a second user interface of a second application, different than the first application, subsequent to the user selecting the second user-selectable mechanism associated with the second contact in the revised view.

29. The system of claim 19, wherein the application is a first application, and

wherein the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the first contact invokes a second application that invokes the first application based on at least a portion of the information associated with the first contact.

30. The system of claim 19, wherein the user interface of the application comprises one or more fields populated from at least a portion of the information associated with the user or the information associated with the first contact.

31. The system of claim 19, wherein the information associated with the first contact includes one or more of (i) a contact identifier, (ii) a contact name, (iii) an address, (iv) an email identifier, (v) an account number of the user with the first contact, or (vi) a phone number.

32. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the request is a first request,

the communications interface is further operable to receive, from the user, a second request to invoke the application based on the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the first contact in the revised view, and

wherein the processor is further operable to redirect the user to the user interface of the application responsive to the received second request.

33. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the communication interface is further operable to receive, from the application, updated or new values associated with the first contact, and

the processor is further operable to direct the storage of the updated or new values in a memory in association with the first contact.

34. The system of claim 33, wherein the updated or new values are hidden values that are not presented to the user.

35. The system of claim 33, wherein:

the user selection of the user-selectable mechanism is a first user selection,

the redirection is a first redirection,

a second user selection of the user-selectable mechanism facilitates a second redirection of the user to the user interface of the application, the second user selection occurring subsequent to receiving the updated or new values, and

the second redirection includes transmission of at least a portion of the updated or new values associated with the first contact.

36. The system of claim 19, wherein the application obtains further information associated with the first contact from an entity hosting the one or more contacts of the user, based on at least a portion of the information associated with the user or the information associated with the first contact.

37. A system, comprising:

means for transmitting, to a user, a view of one or more contacts of the user, including a first contact;

means for receiving, from the user, a request to associate an application with the first contact; and

means for transmitting, to the user and responsive to receiving the request, a revised view that includes a user-selectable mechanism for invoking the application on the first contact,

wherein the user is redirected to a user interface of the application subsequent to the user selecting the user-selectable mechanism associated with the first contact in the revised view, and wherein the redirection includes transmission of information associated with the user and information associated with the first contact.