Method and system for scheduling of messages
First Claim
1. A scheduling method for generating a schedule for use in triggering a transmission of message content according to an available inventory of messaging events, the method comprising:
- maintaining category data identifying one or more message categories;
defining an allocation of part of the inventory to at least one of the message categories;
identifying a category for first message content to be sent to a plurality of recipients; and
inserting scheduling data into said schedule for use in triggering the transmission of said first message content to a plurality of recipients according to the allocation defined for the category of the first message content.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Embodiments of the invention provide a scheduling process and apparatus which may include constraints which determine the amount of messaging events available in a particular category (e.g. sports, music, food content) in a particular time period, for example on a particular day (or perhaps even within smaller time periods, such as afternoon/morning slots or even hourly slots.) The amount allocated per category may vary according to the time period—so that, for example, Monday may be “Music Day”, during which the content will be predominantly music-related. By having a variation period-by-period, e.g. day-by-day (or according to other slots) over a weekly (or other) period then the recipient becomes more familiar with, and involved in, receiving the message content. Since the recipient gets to understand the periodic formatting, they will come to expect a particular type of message content at a particular time, or at least during a particular period or timing characteristic.
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Citations
85 Claims
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1. A scheduling method for generating a schedule for use in triggering a transmission of message content according to an available inventory of messaging events, the method comprising:
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maintaining category data identifying one or more message categories; defining an allocation of part of the inventory to at least one of the message categories; identifying a category for first message content to be sent to a plurality of recipients; and inserting scheduling data into said schedule for use in triggering the transmission of said first message content to a plurality of recipients according to the allocation defined for the category of the first message content. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63)
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64. A method of scheduling the transmission of message content to a plurality of recipients in a communications system, the method comprising conducting a scheduling process to generate a schedule for use in triggering the transmission of message content according to an available inventory of messaging events, the scheduling process comprising:
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accessing category data identifying one or more message categories; accessing data identifying an allocation of part of the inventory to at least one of the message categories; identifying a category for first message content to be sent to a plurality of recipients; and inserting scheduling data into said schedule for use in triggering the transmission of said first message content to a plurality of recipients according to the allocation defined for the category of the first message content.
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65. A scheduling system for generating a schedule for use in triggering a transmission of message content, the scheduling system comprising:
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a storage system arranged to store a plurality of messaging events and category data identifying one or more message categories, each message category having an allocation of said messaging events associated therewith, and a processing system arranged; to identify a category for first message content to be sent to a plurality of recipients; and to insert scheduling data into said schedule for use in triggering the transmission of said first message content to a plurality of recipients according to the allocation of messaging events defined for the category of the first message content. - View Dependent Claims (66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79)
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80. A method of transmitting a message to a recipient in a communications network, the method comprising:
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identifying a schedule defining message transmission times, a message recipient, and identifying message content for transmission; at a defined transmission time, transmitting a message comprising said identified content, in which the transmission time is defined, at least in part, on the basis of a category assigned to the message content, said category being associated with an allocation within an available inventory of messaging events within a predetermined time period. - View Dependent Claims (81, 82, 83, 84, 85)
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Specification