Personalized information for an end user transmitted over a computer network

• US 6,345,293 B1
• Filed: 07/03/1997
• Issued: 02/05/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/03/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Chaddha, Navin
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Zarni
• Assistant Examiner(s): CALDWELL, ANDREW T
• Application Number:
  US08/887,951
• Time in Patent Office: 1,678 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/231, 709/219, 345/335, 345/744-747, 707/10, 707/104, 707/512-513, 707/104.1, 725/32-36, 725/40-43, 725/46-47
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A cost effective method for generating and delivering personalized multimedia content targeted at specific end users or groups of end users via client computers coupled to local servers by a diverse computer network which includes local area networks (LANs) and/or wide area networks (WANs) such as the internet. In one embodiment, a global server provides global content via a computer network to a local server. The local server retrieves personal profile associated with the targeted end user(s) from a local database. Personalized content is generated based on the personal profile. Customized information which includes both the global and personalized content is then delivered to the targeted end user(s) via client computer(s) coupled to the computer network. Global and personalized content may or may not be related. For example, global content may be an action movie while unrelated personalized content may be an advertisement for a custom suit in the color, style and size likely to please the targeted end user. Exemplary personal profile include indicators such as family income, hobbies and ages which provide useful indicators of the consumption habits of the end users. Such an arrangement is advantageous because the personalized content is targeted at end user(s) who have a higher probability of interest in the personalized content based on the personal profile.

Claims

1. A method for data transmission, the method comprising:

retrieving global content from a global server in communication with a global database using a local server;

retrieving personal information associated with an end user from a local database using the local server;

generating personalized annotations based on the personal information using the local server;

combining the global content and the personalized annotations as customized information using the local server; and

delivering the customized information to a client computer having a display for display on the display for the end user.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the global content is retrieved via the computer network, the global content originating from the global server.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the global content includes a video stream.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the personalized content includes marketing information unrelated to the video stream.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the customized information includes regional content originating from a regional server coupled to the computer network.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the profile includes one or more indicators selected from the group consisting of family income, hobbies and ages.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the personalized annotations include subtitles in a local language.

8. A server, said server configured to:

store global content received from a global server in communication with a global database;

generate personalized annotations based on personal information associated with an end user, said personal information stored in a local database associated with the server;

combine the global content and personalized annotations as customized information; and

deliver the customized information to a client computer for display on the display, the customized information to be viewed by the end user.

9. The server of claim 8 wherein the global content is retrieved from the global server over the computer network.

10. The server of claim 8 wherein said global content includes a video stream.

11. The server of claim 10 wherein said personalized content includes marketing information unrelated to said video stream.

12. The server of claim 8 wherein the customized information includes regional content retrieved from a regional server coupled to the computer network.

13. The server of claim 8 wherein the profile include one or more indicators selected from the group consisting of family income, hobbies and ages.

14. The server of claim 8, wherein the personalized annotations include subtitles in a local language.

15. A method for data transmission comprising:

receiving customized information from a local server using a client computer having a display, said customized information a combination of both global content received from a global server in communication with a global database and personalized annotations generated by the local server that are based on personal information associated with an end user; and

displaying the customized information on the display for the end user.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the global content includes a video stream.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the personalized content includes marketing information unrelated to the video stream.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the customized information includes regional content retrieved from the local server.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the profile includes one or more indicators selected from the group consisting of family income, hobbies, and ages.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the personalized annotations include subtitles in a local language.

21. A client computer having a display configured to:

receive customized information from a local server, said customized information a combination of both global content received from a global server in communication with a global database and personalized annotations, the personalized annotations generated by the local server that are based on personal information associated with an end user; and

display said customized information on the display for the end user.

22. The client computer of claim 21 wherein said global content includes a video stream.

23. The client computer of claim 22 wherein said personalized content includes marketing information unrelated to said video stream.

24. The client computer of claim 21 wherein the customized information includes regional content retrieved from the local server.

25. The client computer of claim 21 wherein the profile include one or more indicators selected from the group consisting of family income, hobbies and ages.

26. The client computer of claim 21, wherein the personalized annotations include subtitles in a local language.

27. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions comprising:

retrieving global content from a global server in communication with a global database using a local server;

retrieving personal information associated with an end user from a local database using the local server;

generating personalized annotations based on the personal information using the local server;

combining the global content and the personalized annotations as customized information using the local server; and

delivering the customized information to a client computer having a display for display on the display for the end user.

28. The computer-readable medium of claim 27, wherein the personalized annotations include subtitles in a local language.

29. A computer-readable medium on a client computer having a display, the computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions comprising:

receiving customized information from a local server connected to the client computer, said customized information a combination of both global content received from a global server in communication with a global database and personalized annotations generated by the local server that are based on personal information associated with an end user using the local server; and

displaying the customized information on the display for the end user.

30. The computer-readable medium of claim 29, wherein the personalized annotations include subtitles in a local language.