Advertiser pays information and messaging system and apparatus

• US 5,870,030 A
• Filed: 04/04/1996
• Issued: 02/09/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: DeLuca, Michael J., Kraul, Douglas R., DeLuca, Joan S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Horabik, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Application Number:
  US08/627,642
• Time in Patent Office: 1,041 Days
• Field of Search: 340/825.44, 340/825.47, 340/825.35, 340/825.31, 340/825.34, 379/57, 379/58, 379/91, 379/114, 379/123, 235/375, 235/380, 235/382, 235/382.5
• US Class Current: 340/7.48
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 5/229 with other provisions not elsewhere provided for
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8083 involving reduced rates or discounts, e.g. time-of-day reductions or volume discounts
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2083 Confirmation by serviced party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/658 Combination of voice calls and paging
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• 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 2215/0192 Sponsored, subsidised calls via advertising, e.g. calling cards with ads or connecting to special ads, free calling time by purchasing goods
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42 Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers specially adapted for wireless communication networks H04W4/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/487 Arrangements for providing information services, e.g. recorded voice services or time announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4872 Non-interactive information services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 Advertisement messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5322 for recording text messages

Abstract

A system and apparatus for permitting a user of a selective call receiver (31) to receive a certain number of personal messages and information service updates without paying a fee for such services in return for reading advertisements wirelessly transmitted to the selective call receiver. The user is allowed to read the advertisements at any time prior to receiving the personal messages and information service updates. The certain number is proportional to the number of advertisements read. The certain number can be increased by the user responding to questions within advertisements using reverse channel messaging capabilities of a selective call transceiver (32), or by using a conventional telephone (22).

Claims

1. A selective call apparatus comprising:

a receiver for receiving messages including personal messages and advertisements;

a message memory for storing received messages;

a display for displaying the messages, such that the advertisements are not displayed at a time advertisements are received by the receiver;

a credit memory for storing credit units;

a manual user input device for selectively, separately displaying on the display, at a display time chosen by the user, each of the advertisements stored in the message memory; and

a microcomputer coupled to the receiver and to the display

for calculating, only after the occurrence of the display time and in response to displaying on the display one of the advertisements stored in the message memory, a number of credit units to be added to the credit memory,

for enabling display of at least one personal message in response to the credit memory having at least a pre-determined number of credit units,

for inhibiting display of personal messages in response to the credit memory having less than the pre-determined number of credit units, and

for calculating a number of credit units to be subtracted from the credit memory after display of a personal message.

2. The selective call apparatus of claim 1 which the advertisements are displayable for a duration selectable by the user through the manual input device.

3. The selective call apparatus of claim 2 in which the microcomputer calculates the number of credit units further only after displaying the advertisement on the display for a duration equal to or greater than a pre-determined credit duration.

4. The selective call apparatus of claim 3 which the pre-determined credit duration is proportional to a length of the advertisement.

5. The selective call apparatus of claim 3 which the pre-determined credit duration is proportional to a complexity of the advertisement.

6. The selective call apparatus of claim 3 which each of the advertisements has a unique identification number associated with the advertisement.

7. The selective call apparatus of claim 6 which the pre-determined credit duration for each advertisement is determined by the unique identification number associated with each advertisement.

8. The selective call apparatus of claim 1 in which the microcomputer calculates the number of credit units to be subtracted from the credit memory only after a first display of a personal message.