SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CALLING ADVERTISED TELEPHONE NUMBERS ON A COMPUTING DEVICE

• US 20120002664A1
• Filed: 07/01/2010
• Published: 01/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Marchex Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Marchex Incorporated
• Inventors: Berk, Matthew
• Application Number:
  US12/829,373
• Publication Number:
  US 20120002664A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1053 IP private branch exchange [PBX] functionality entities or arrangements circuit switched PBXs H04M3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1063 Application servers providing network services systems providing special services to telephonic subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/08 Metering calls to called party , i.e. B-party charged for the communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0192 Sponsored, subsidised calls via advertising, e.g. calling cards with ads or connecting to special ads, free calling time by purchasing goods

Abstract

Advertisers submit advertising campaigns to a call advertising system, each campaign including a telephone number associated with the advertiser and an amount per call that the advertiser is willing to pay to receive calls from users at the advertised telephone number. When an advertised telephone number is contained in content that is displayed on a computing device of a user, or when a user enters a telephone number that corresponds with the advertised telephone number, the computing device highlights the advertised telephone number to indicate to the user that the call can be made at a free or reduced rate to what a user would normally pay in order to make such a call. If the user initiates a call to the advertised telephone number, the call is routed to the advertiser and the advertiser is charged the amount that they agreed to pay to receive the call.

Claims

1. A method of initiating a voice call from a user of an electronic device having a processor and a memory, the method comprising:

detecting that electronic content displayed by the electronic device includes a telephone number;

determining, by the electronic device, that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number for which an advertiser is willing to pay an amount for a voice call to the advertiser telephone number;

displaying an indication that the user is not charged for a voice call to the advertiser telephone number;

receiving from the user a request to initiate a voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

initiating the voice call to the advertiser telephone number via a voice communication connection.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the voice communication connection is routed to a call advertising system, and wherein:

the call advertising system routes the voice call to the advertiser telephone number, and,

the advertiser is charged the amount for the voice call.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the voice communication connection is a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) connection.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying context information associated with the electronic content displayed by the electronic device; and

providing an indication of the identified context information in conjunction with the voice call.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the electronic content includes a web page, and wherein the context information includes an identifier of the web page.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining an identifier of the user; and

providing the user identifier in conjunction with the voice call.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a set of advertiser telephone numbers, for each of which an advertiser is willing to pay an amount for a voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

storing the set of advertiser telephone numbers in the memory of the electronic device,

wherein determining, by the electronic device, that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number includes determining, by the electronic device, that the telephone number is a member of the set of advertiser telephone numbers stored in the memory of the electronic device.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing the telephone number to a voice communications system; and

receiving a response from the voice communications system that indicates that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number,

wherein determining, by the electronic device, that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number includes determining from the response that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number.

9. An electronic device, comprising:

a processor;

a memory;

a detection component configured to;

detect a telephone number included in electronic content of the electronic device;

determine that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number for which an advertiser is willing to pay an amount for a voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

cause the electronic device to provide an indication of an incentive to make a voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

a voice communications component configured to initiate a voice call to the advertiser telephone number via a voice communication connection in response to a request to make a voice call to the advertiser telephone number.

10. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein:

the voice connection is to a call advertising system that routes the voice call to the advertiser telephone number;

the advertiser is charged the amount for the voice call.

11. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the voice communication connection is a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) connection.

12. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the detection component is further configured to identify context information associated with the electronic content, and the voice communications component is further configured to provide an indication of the context information in conjunction with the voice call.

13. The electronic device of claim 12, wherein the electronic content includes a web page, and wherein the context information includes an identifier of the web page.

14. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the voice communications component is further configured to:

determine an identifier of the user from whom the request to make a voice call to the advertiser telephone number is received; and

provide the user identifier in conjunction with the voice call.

15. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the detection component is further configured to:

receive a set of advertiser telephone numbers, for each of which an advertiser is willing to pay an amount for a voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

store the set of advertiser telephone numbers in the memory of the electronic device; and

determine that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number by determining that the telephone number is a member of the set of advertiser telephone numbers stored in the memory of the electronic device.

16. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the detection component is further configured to:

provide the telephone number to a voice communications system;

receive a response from the voice communications system that indicates that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number; and

determine that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number from the response received from the voice communications system.

17. A computer-readable storage medium whose contents cause an electronic device to perform a method of initiating a voice call from the electronic device, the method comprising:

detecting a telephone number included in electronic content of the electronic device;

determining that the telephone number is an advertiser telephone number for which an advertiser is willing to pay an amount for a voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

providing an indication of an incentive to make a voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

initiating the voice call to the advertiser telephone number via a voice communication connection in response to a request to make a voice call to the advertiser telephone number.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein:

the voice communication connection is routed to a call advertising system;

the call advertising system routes the voice call to the advertiser telephone number; and

the advertiser is charged the amount for the voice call.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the method further comprises:

identifying context information associated with the electronic content; and

providing the identified context information in conjunction with the voice call.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, wherein the electronic content includes a web page, and wherein the context information includes an identifier of the web page.

21. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the method further comprises:

determining an identifier of a user from whom the request to make a voice call to the advertiser telephone number is received; and

providing the user identifier in conjunction with the voice call.

22. A method of providing an indication of an incentive to make a voice call, wherein the method is performed by an electronic device having a processor and a memory, the method comprising:

detecting, by the electronic device, that electronic content of the electronic device includes a reference to an entity;

receiving a determination that the referred-to entity has indicated a financial amount the entity is willing to pay for a voice call to the entity; and

providing an indication of an incentive to make a voice call to the entity.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the reference includes one or more of the following:

a telephone number of the entity;

a name of the entity; and

an identifier of the entity.

24. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

receiving a request to initiate a voice call to the entity; and

routing the voice call to a voice communications system, wherein;

the voice communications system routes the voice call to the entity;

the entity is charged the financial amount; and

the voice communications system is credited for routing the voice call to the entity.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the incentive is that a voice call made to the entity is free.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the incentive is that a cost of making a voice call to the entity is lower than the cost would be if the entity had not indicated a financial amount the entity is willing to pay for a voice call to the entity.