Web-based information retrieval responsive to displayed word identified by a text-grabbing algorithm

• US 6,341,306 B1
• Filed: 08/13/1999
• Issued: 01/22/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Answers Corporation (Answers.com Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Atomica Corporation (Answers.com Corporation)
• Inventors: Schneiderman, Jeff, Reich, Gil, Bamberger, Naama, Bernstein, Uri, Rosen, Tamar, Rosenschein, Bob, Szmulewicz, Asher, Brief, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh, Dung C.
• Application Number:
  US09/374,478
• Time in Patent Office: 893 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200, 709/201, 709/203, 709/217, 709/218, 709/219, 705/14, 345/326, 345/335, 345/145
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/332 Query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0253 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement

Abstract

A method for retrieving information, including designating at least one word appearing in a display of a body of text generated by a first computer. Responsive to the designation, the at least one designated word is automatically transmitted via a network to a second computer. Data relating to the at least one designated word are received from the second computer.

Claims

1. A method for providing information, comprising:

contracting with one or more advertisers having respective fields of business to provide promotional data to users of a network regarding the fields of business;

receiving from a host via the network at least one word designated by one of the users, the word being in a natural language in a body of text shown on a display of the host and transmitted by the host automatically responsive to the designation;

determining that the at least one designated word relates to a given one of the fields of business; and

transmitting to the host the promotional data regarding the given field of business.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein receiving the at least one designated word from the host comprises receiving by a server which does not store the body of text.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one designated word does not have a hyperlink directly associated therewith.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the promotional data comprise electronic commerce data, selected responsive to the at least one designated word.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the display shows a television program, and wherein the body of text is generated responsive to content of the program.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the promotional data comprise dynamic data, drawn from a dynamically-changing database responsive to the at least one designated word.

7. A method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one word is designated with a pointing device.

8. A method according to claim 1, and comprising receiving from the host a context-indicating word, drawn from the body of text, wherein transmitting promotional data to the host data comprises transmitting responsive to the context-indicating word.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the context-indicating word is drawn from a position in the body of text non-adjacent to the at least one designated word.

10. A method according to claim 8, wherein the context-indicating word is drawn from a different sentence in the body of text from a sentence including the at least one designated word.