METHOD AND A SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES

• US 20100312619A1
• Filed: 03/27/2008
• Published: 12/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Ala-Pietila, Pekka, Ohrling, Antti
• Application Number:
  US12/601,149
• Publication Number:
  US 20100312619A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/58 based on statistics of usage or network monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8083 involving reduced rates or discounts, e.g. time-of-day reductions or volume discounts
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0184 involving reduced rates or discounts, e.g. time-of-day reductions, volume discounts, cell discounts, group billing, frequent calling destination(s) or user history list
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0188 Network monitoring; statistics on usage on called/calling number

Abstract

An advertisement system of a mobile services operator manages advertising campaigns and comprises a database that contains all relevant information for advertisement campaigns to be run. Marketing messages are delivered to mobile users via a communication network. The mobile services operator provides mobile communications services for the mobile users in return of receiving the marketing messages. The communications services and the marketing messages are billed from advertisers.

Claims

1. A method for providing mobile communications services, comprising:

making a subscription agreement between a service provider and a plurality of users on free or subsidized mobile communications services,

collecting a user profile for each of said plurality of users, each user profile profiling a user for marketing purposes,

making an agreement between the service provider and at least one advertiser on delivering advertisement messages,

selecting target users for said advertisement messages among said plurality of users based on said collected user profiles,

delivering said advertisement messages to said target users through a mobile communications network,

providing said target users with free or subsidized mobile communications services in the mobile communications network as a reward for receiving and/or reacting to said advertisement messages,

financing the service operator by revenues from the at least one advertiser.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising providing said target users with free or subsidized mobile communications services in the mobile communications network as a reward before, during and/or after said target users receive and/or react to said advertisement messages.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

making an agreement between the service provider and a network operator operating the mobile communications network on using the mobile communications network for providing the mobile communications services for said plurality of users.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

paying said service operator for the free or subsidized mobile communications services provided to said plurality of users.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising operating the mobile communications network by the service provider.

6. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising configuring a billing system of the mobile communications system not to bill said target users for the provided free or subsidized mobile communications services.

7. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

configuring a billing system of the mobile communications system to bill the service operator for the provided free or subsidized mobile communications services.

8. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said subscription agreement includes terms and conditions to be fulfilled by the user regarding reception of advertisement messages in order to obtain free or free of subsidized mobile communications services.

9. A method as claimed in claim 8, wherein said terms and conditions include one or more of a number of advertisements which must be received by a user within a predetermined period of time and advertisement messages which must be replied to by the user.

10. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said subscription agreement defines the amount of free or subsidized mobile communications services to be provided to a user when the terms and conditions are fulfilled by the user.

11. A method as claimed claim 1, wherein the advertisement messages comprise one or more message types comprising at least one of:

multimedia message service based advertisements;

short message service based advertisements;

message tagging based advertisements;

wireless application protocol based push advertisements;

banner advertisements;

search related advertisements;

interactive advertisements;

video advertisements;

audio advertisements.

12. A mobile communications service provider system, comprising:

a database configured to store a user profile for each of a plurality of users having a subscription agreement with a service provider and a plurality of users on free or subsidized mobile communications services, each user profile profiling a user for marketing purposes,

an advertisement management unit configured to manage advertisement messages or campaigns according to an agreement made between the service provider and at least one advertiser on delivering advertisement messages, revenues from the at least one advertiser financing the operation of the mobile communications service provider system,

an advertisement gateway configured to deliver advertisement messages through a mobile communications network to target users selected for said advertisement messages among said plurality of users based on said collected user profiles, and

a billing system configured to provide said target users with free or subsidized mobile communications services in the mobile communications network as a reward for receiving and/or reacting to said advertisement messages.

13. A system as claimed in claim 12, wherein said billing system is configured to provide said target users with free or subsidized mobile communications services in the mobile communications network as a reward before, during and/or after said target users receive and/or react to said advertisement messages.

14. A system as claimed in claim 12, further comprising an advertiser self-service interface through which the at least one advertiser is capable of creating and managing advertisement messages and advertisement campaigns.

15. A system as claimed in claim 12, further comprising a further interface for receiving advertisement messages sent from third parties to be forwarded to said plurality of users by the service provider.

16. A system as claimed in any claim 12, wherein a network operator of said mobile communications network is a different from the service provider, the network operator and the service operator having an agreement on using the mobile communications network for providing the mobile communications services for said plurality of users by the service provider.

17. A system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the service provider is also a network operator of the mobile communications net-work.

18. A system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the free or subsidized mobile communication comprises one or more of speech communication, data communication and messaging.

19. A system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the free or subsidized mobile communication is related to at least one of following services;

a web page, a browsing, a file download, a video download, a picture download, a music download, a document download, a streaming service, audio streaming, video streaming, a video service, a music service, and any other digital content or service which can be accessed through a communications system.

20. A system as claimed in claim 12, wherein at least one of said user profiles comprises at least one of:

a sociological back-ground of a user;

age;

sex;

a target telephone type;

an income level;

status of a user;

a location of a user;

historical data of a user'"'"'s behavior;

information of sent direct advertisement to a user;

information of content vouchers or coupons sent to a user;

codes of vouchers or coupons sent to a user;

lifestyle and interest related;

behavior;

demographics;

education;

marital status;

zip code;

preferred times for advertisements.

21. A system as claimed in claim 12, wherein at least one or more of the following pieces of information is used in the selection of said target users for an advertisement message:

a user profile;

preferences of when to send messages;

to which target group an advertisement is sent;

on which format an advertisement is sent;

a target price level of an advertisement;

a target feedback level of the advertisement;

a target audience;

demographics of a target audience;

a duration of a advertisement campaign, cost per an adver-tisement;

type of an advertisement;

a sociological background of a target audience;

age;

sex;

a target telephone type;

an income level;

status of a user;

a location of a user;

historical data of a user'"'"'s behavior;

historical data on a behavior of a profile of users;

information of sent direct advertisement to a user;

information of content vouchers or coupons sent to a user;

codes of vouchers or coupons sent to a user;

a time of a day or a week or a month or a date.

22. A computer program resident on computer readable media and being arranged to:

store a user profile for each of a plurality of users having a subscription agreement between a service provider and a plurality of users of free or subsidized mobile communications services, each user profile profiling a user for marketing purposes,

manage advertisement messages or campaigns according to an agreement made between the service provider and at least one advertiser on delivering advertisement messages, revenues from the at least one advertiser financing the operation of the mobile communications service provider system,

deliver advertisement messages through a mobile communications network to target users selected for said advertisement messages among said plurality of users based on said collected user profiles, and

provide said target users with free or subsidized mobile communications services in the mobile communications network as a reward for receiving and/or reacting to said advertisement messages.

23. A mobile communications service provider system, comprising:

means for storing a user profile for each of a plurality of users having a subscription agreement between a service provider and a plurality of users of free or subsidized mobile communications services, each user profile profiling a user for marketing purposes,

means for managing advertisement messages or campaigns according to an agreement made between the service provider and at least one advertiser on delivering advertisement. messages, revenues from the at least one advertiser financing the operation of the mobile communications service provider system,

means for delivering advertisement messages through a mobile communications network to target users selected for said advertisement messages among said plurality of users based on said collected user profiles, and

means for providing said target users with free or subsidized mobile communications services in the mobile communications network as a reward for receiving and/or reacting to said advertisement messages.

24. A system as claimed in claim 23, wherein said means for providing provides said target users with free or subsidized mobile communications services in the mobile communications network as a reward before, during and/or after said target users receive and/or react to said advertisement messages.