Method and apparatus for routing confidential information

• US 6,363,525 B1
• Filed: 08/18/1997
• Issued: 03/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: OpenTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Original Assignee: Wink Communications Incorporated (Kudelski SA)
• Inventors: Dougherty, Brian P., Del Sesto, Eric E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Faile, Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): BROWN, RUEBEN M
• Application Number:
  US08/914,293
• Time in Patent Office: 1,681 Days
• Field of Search: H04/N.710, 348/6, 348/7, 348/10, 348/12, 348/13, 348/3, 709/217-219, 345/327, 705/40, 705/26, 705/27, 705/44, 725/24-153
• US Class Current: 725/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47815 Electronic shopping payment schemes, payment architectures or payment protocols for electronic shopping systems G06Q20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 Transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

A method and apparatus routes user information including confidential information and other information to a vendor in a secure manner without requiring the user to transmit information in a secure manner. The user provides a user identifier and information including confidential information to a response collector, who relates the user identifier to the user information. The response collector may verify the information to protect against fraud. An information provider provides an application identifier and vendor routing information to a response collector, who relates the vendor routing information to the application identifier. The application identifier corresponding to the vendor is broadcast to the user via an interactive information system application, and the interactive information system sends the application identifier, a user identifier and other response information to a response collector as directed by the user and the interactive information system application. The response collector may then route the user'"'"'s information and other response information to the vendor according to the vendor routing information. The user may send anonymous responses in the same manner without sending the user identifier to the response collector.

Claims

1. A cable system for routing confidential information to a vendor providing interactive applications, the cable system comprising:

a response collector that;

communicatively couples to a plurality of set-top decoders over a cable system;

stores a database including a plurality of application identifiers, each application identifier associated with an interactive application, a vendor, and vendor routing information for a vendor computer system of the vendor;

receives from a set-top decoder an application identifier, and user response information generated in response to an execution of the interactive application associated with the application identifier;

retrieves from the database the vendor routing information associated with the received application identifier; and

transmits at least a portion of the received user response information to a vendor computer system according to the retrieved vendor routing information.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the database further including a plurality of set-top decoder identifiers, each set-top decoder identifier uniquely identifying a set-top decoder and associated with confidential user data related to a user of the set-top decoder; and

wherein the response collector;

receives from a set-top decoder a set-top decoder identifier in conjunction with the received application identifier and user response information;

retrieves from the database at least a portion of the confidential user data associated with the received set-top decoder identifier; and

transmits at least a portion of the confidential user data in conjunction with the user response information to the vendor computer system.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising at least one a cable set-top decoder that:

receives a cable signal for a cable program and an application identifier for an interactive application accompanying the cable program, and executes the interactive application;

stores a set-top decoder identifier that uniquely identifies the set-top decoder;

receives user response information from a user of the set-top decoder in response to the executed interactive application; and

transmits the received application identifier for the interactive application, the user response information, and the set-top decoder identifier to the reception component.

4. In a cable system including a plurality of set-top decoders, each set-top decoder having a set-top decoder identifier, each set-top decoder adapted to receive a broadcast cable signal including an interactive application and execute a received interactive application, a computer implemented method of routing confidential user information to a vendor, comprising:

storing in a database a plurality of application identifiers, each application identifier associated with an interactive application, a vendor, and vendor routing information for the vendor;

receiving from a set-top decoder, an application identifier of an interactive application executed by the set-top decoder, user response information generated by a user in response to the executed interactive application;

retrieving from the database the vendor routing information associated with the received application identifier; and

transmitting at least a portion of the user response information to the vendor according to the retrieved vendor routing information.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

storing in the database a plurality of the set-top decoder identifiers, each set-top decoder identifier associated with confidential user information of at least one user of the set-top decoder identified by the set-top decoder identifier;

receiving the set-top decoder identifier of the set-top decoder;

retrieving from the database the confidential user information associated with the received set-top decoder identifier; and

transmitting at least a portion of the confidential user information in conjunction with the user response information to the vendor.

6. In a network including a plurality of reception components that receive and execute interactive applications, each interactive application associated with a vendor, a computer implemented method of routing confidential user information to selected vendors comprising:

storing a database of application identifiers, each application identifier associated with an interactive application, and further associated with a vendor and vendor routing information for a vendor computer system of the vendor;

receiving a packet from a reception component at a user location, the packet including the reception component identifier for the reception component, an application identifier of an interactive application executed by the reception component at a user location, and user response information provided by the user in response to the executed interactive application at the user location;

retrieving from the database the vendor routing information associated with the received application identifier;

combining the user response information with the packet to form a combined packet; and

transmitting the combined packet to a vendor computer system according to the retrieved vendor routing information.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

storing in the database a plurality of reception component identifiers, each reception component identifier uniquely identifying a reception component at a user location, each reception component identifier associated with confidential user data of at least one user at the user location;

retrieving from the database the confidential user data associated with the received reception component identifier, and the vendor routing information associated with the received application identifier; and

combining the combined packet and the retrieved confidential user data for transmitting to the vendor computer system.