Methods of placing, purchasing and monitoring internet advertising

• US 6,401,075 B1
• Filed: 02/14/2000
• Issued: 06/04/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Global Network, Inc.
• Inventors: Mason, James C., Grant, John, Behrman, Arnold, Stillwell, Dennis
• Primary Examiner(s): GRAVINI, STEPHEN MICHAEL
• Application Number:
  US09/503,275
• Time in Patent Office: 841 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/10, 705/14, 709/219, 707/501.1, 707/513, 707/523, 707/524, 345/760, 345/788, 345/789
• US Class Current: 705/14.72
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0264 based upon schedule
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0276 Advertisement creation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement

Abstract

Methods for obtaining Internet-type advertisements, modifying those advertisements to fit designated advertising spaces allotted by a plurality of different and unrelated online newspaper websites, and automatically placing those advertisements. Preferred embodiments permit online advertisements to be tracked, audited and/or modified, at any time during an advertising campaign.

Claims

1. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements comprising the steps of:

loading at least one original advertisement into a computing device;

inputting configuration parameters for a plurality of different online newspaper website URLs into said computing device;

configuring at least one of said advertisements to conform with configuration parameters for a plurality of said different online newspaper websites thereby creating a plurality of derivative advertisement links from at least one of said original advertisements; and

transmitting said derivative advertisements to a plurality of said different online newspaper websites for display on said websites.

2. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 1 further comprising the steps of counting and recording the number of times that at least one of said derivative advertisement links is displayed on online accessing devices.

3. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 1 further comprising the step of counting and recording the number of times that each of a plurality of said derivative advertisement links are accessed.

4. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 3 further comprising the step of modifying the frequency of displays of at least one of said derivative advertisement links in response to the number of times that a plurality of said derivative advertisement links are accessed.

5. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 1 wherein said loading step comprises loading a plurality of original advertisements into said central processor;

counting and recording the number of times that each of a plurality of said derivative advertisement links are accessed and

modifying the frequency of displays of at least one of said derivative advertisement links in response to the relative frequency that said derivative advertisement links are accessed.

6. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 3 and further comprising the step of modifying the frequency of displays on a particular URL in response to the number of times that each of a plurality of said derivative advertisements are accessed.

7. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 3 further comprising the step of modifying the frequency of displays for a particular derivative advertisement during a particular time of day in response to the number of times that each of a plurality of said derivative advertisements are accessed.

8. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 3 further comprising the step of modifying the frequency of displays for a particular derivative advertisement link during at least one particular day of the week in response to the number of times that each of a plurality of said derivative advertisements are accessed.

9. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 3 further comprising the step of modifying the frequency of displays for a particular derivative advertisement link during at least one particular day of the week in response to the number of hits received at a particular website URL.

10. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 3 further comprising the step of modifying the frequency of displays for a particular derivative advertisement link during at least one particular day of the week toward the end of an advertising campaign.

11. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 2 further comprising the step of stopping the display of at least one of said derivative advertisements when said number of displays reaches a predetermined number.

12. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 1 further comprising the step of associating identifying information with said derivative advertisement links such that when a derivative advertisement link is accessed from a particular URL, the URL from which the derivative advertisement link was accessed can be identified.

13. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 1 further comprising the step of associating identifying information with said derivative advertisement links wherein when the number of times that said display has been accessed reaches a pre-determined number, the placement of the derivative advertising links is terminated.

14. A method of placing a plurality of online newspaper advertisements according to claim 1 further comprising the step of associating at least one packet of information which is downloaded onto an online accessing device and which causes said online accessing device to send a signal to a website displaying a derivative advertisement link if that website is subsequently accessed by said online accessing device with said derivative advertisement link.

15. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links comprising:

a computing device comprising means for receiving an original advertisement;

means for receiving and storing configuration criteria for a plurality of URLs from unrelated, online newspaper website advertisement spaces;

means for automatically creating derivative advertisement links which are configured for a plurality of said unrelated, online newspaper websites from said original advertisement; and

means for transferring said derivative advertisement links for display on URLs of a plurality of unrelated online newspaper websites.

16. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for counting and recording the number of hits received by each of said derivative advertisement links.

17. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 comprising means for counting and recording the number of times that each derivative advertisement link is accessed by an online accessing device.

18. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for substituting a first derivative advertisement link for a second derivative advertisement link in response to some pre-determined criteria.

19. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 18 wherein said pre-determined criteria is the relative number of times that said first derivative advertisement link and said second derivative advertisement link are accessed by online accessing devices.

20. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 18 wherein said pre-determined criteria is the relative number of times that said first derivative advertisement link and said second derivative advertisement link are accessed by different online accessing devices.

21. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for inputting changes to the criteria which control the placement of derivative advertisement links.

22. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for receiving operator input to modify the frequency of which one or more derivative advertisement links are displayed.

23. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for receiving operator input to modify the location at which one or more derivative advertisement links are displayed.

24. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for receiving operator input to modify the URLs on which one or more derivative advertisement links are displayed.

25. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for receiving operator input to modify the type of URLs on which one or more derivative advertisement links are displayed.

26. A system for automatically configuring and placing online newspaper advertisement links according to claim 15 further comprising means for substituting a first derivative advertisement link for a second derivative advertisement link.