Systems and Methods to Provide Information and Connect People for Real Time Communications

• US 20090070205A1
• Filed: 10/22/2007
• Published: 03/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thryv, Inc. (Mudrick Capital Management LP)
• Original Assignee: UTBK, Inc.
• Inventors: TRAN, Tu Thuy Cam, HIRSON, Ron, FABER, Scott, ALTBERG, Ebbe, VAN DER LINDEN, Sean
• Granted Patent: US 8,838,476 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.140
• 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 30/0212 Chance discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0239 Online discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

Methods and apparatuses to provide communication connections at a cost reduced via advertising. One embodiment includes: receiving a request from a first user over a data communication network; response to the request, initiating a first telephonic connection to the first user and a second telephonic connection to a second user to provide a telephonic connection between the first and second users; presenting an advertisement to at least one of the first and second users; and reducing a communication fee for the telephonic connection between the first and second users using a portion of an advertisement fee charged for the advertisement.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a request from a first user over a data communication network;

response to the request, initiating a first telephonic connection to the first user and a second telephonic connection to a second user to provide a telephonic connection between the first and second users;

presenting an advertisement to at least one of the first and second users; and

reducing a communication fee for the telephonic connection between the first and second users using a portion of an advertisement fee charged for the advertisement.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the advertisement is presented to the first user using the first telephonic connection prior to completing the telephonic connection between the first and second users.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the advertisement is presented to the second user using the second telephonic connection prior to completing the telephonic connection between the first and second users.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the advertisement is presented to the at least one of the first and second users after the first and second users complete a telephonic conversation over the telephonic connection provided between the first and second users.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

determining a keyword from the telephonic conversation over the telephonic connection provided between the first and second users; and

selecting the advertisement based on the determined keyword.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

providing an option to connect the at least one of the first and second users to an advertiser of the advertisement.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

charging an advertisement fee according to a bid price of the advertiser in response to connecting the at least one of the first and second users to the advertiser.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the advertisement is presented to the first user over the first telephonic connection or to the second user over the second telephonic connection.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

assigning a call button to the first user, wherein the request is generated in response to the first user selecting the call button; and

maintaining an account of the first user to charge the first user communication fees for telephonic connections established via the call button.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the request is received from a user terminal of the first user;

and the method further comprises;

authenticating the first user to associate the user terminal with the call button.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

in response to the request, determining a telephonic reference of the first user to initiate the first telephonic connection to the first user based on a reference embedded in the call button.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the communication fees comprise fees for long distance calls or fees for international calls.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

presenting the call button to the first user, the call button including a user interface to accept a telephonic reference of the second user to initiate the second telephonic connection to the second user.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

storing information to associate the call button with a telephonic reference of the first user to initiate the first telephonic connection and a telephonic reference of the second user to initiate the second telephonic connection; and

in response to the request, determining the telephonic reference of the first user and the telephonic reference of the second user based on a reference embedded in the call button and the stored information.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

assigning a call button to the second user, wherein the request is generated in response to the first user selecting the call button; and

in response to the request, authenticating the first user to initiate the first and second telephonic connections to provide the telephonic connection between the first and second user.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

presenting the call button to the first user;

responsive to the first user selecting the call button, presenting a user interface to authenticate the first user to determine a telephonic reference of the first user to initiate the first telephonic connection and to receive a telephonic reference of the second user to initiate the second telephonic connection to the second user.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

response to the request, initiating a third telephonic connection to the third user to provide a telephonic connection among the first, second and third users.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

presenting an option to receive the advertisement to reduce the communication fee.

19. A machine readable media embodying instructions, the instructions causing a machine to perform a method, the method comprising:

receiving a request from a first user over a data communication network;

response to the request, initiating a first telephonic connection to the first user and a second telephonic connection to a second user to provide a telephonic connection between the first and second users;

presenting an advertisement to at least one of the first and second users; and

reducing a communication fee for the telephonic connection between the first and second users using a portion of an advertisement fee charged for the advertisement.

20. A system, comprising:

means for receiving a request from a first user over a data communication network;

means for, response to the request, initiating a first telephonic connection to the first user and a second telephonic connection to a second user to provide a telephonic connection between the first and second users;

means for presenting an advertisement to at least one of the first and second users; and

means for reducing a communication fee for the telephonic connection between the first and second users using a portion of an advertisement fee charged for the advertisement.