Method and apparatus to restrict free hyperlinking by internet content distributors to web sites of original content producers

• US 6,772,208 B1
• Filed: 11/04/1999
• Issued: 08/03/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Dutta, Rabindranath
• Primary Examiner(s): Follansbee, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chang, Jungwon
• Application Number:
  US09/434,855
• Time in Patent Office: 1,734 Days
• Field of Search: 709/224, 709/227, 709/228, 709/219, 709/225, 707/10, 707/513.5, 707/501.1, 705/14, 710/36
• US Class Current: 709/225
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]

Abstract

The present invention enables content producers to selectively choose which content distributors may hyperlink to the content producer'"'"'s website. The content producer provides an initial URL referencing a document on the content producer server to the content distributor. The content distributor creates an HTML file that contains the initial hyperlink URL that was given to the content distributor. The content distributor allows the content producer the privilege of updating the HTML file containing the initial hyperlink URL. The content producer may periodically access the content distributor server to replace the hyperlink with a new URL reference to the document. Because the hyperlink referring to a document is modified at the will of the content producer, the content producer controls the entities that can hyperlink to the document. As a side effect, the content producer may also determine which content distributor referred a client and may also keep records of such referral.

Claims

1. A method for controlling access to a content producer server comprising the following steps:

providing an initial uniform resource identifier, independent of an actual location of a file at the content producer server, to a content distributor server;

mapping the file, at the content producer server, to the initial uniform resource identifier at the content producer, wherein the mapping is used by the content producer server to service a request for the file from a client producer server using the provided initial uniform resource identifier from the content distributor;

responsive to a given event other than a change in location of the file at the content producer server, modifying the initial uniform resource identifier, independent of the actual location of the file at the content producer server, on the content distributor server to from a modified uniform resource identifier; and

remapping the file, at the content producer server, to the modified uniform resource identifier, wherein the remapping is used by the content producer server to service a subsequent request for the file from a client using the modified uniform resource identifier from the content distributor server.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps:

providing a first document including the initial uniform resource identifier from the content distributor server to the client;

responsive to selection of a hyperlink to the initial uniform resource identifier, generating the request at the client; and

responsive to the request being received at the content producer server, transferring the file on the content producer server to the client.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the given event is one of a predetermined number of access requests and a predetermined time interval.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the initial uniform resource identifier is stored in a first markup language file on the content distributor server.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the first markup language file is embedded in a second markup language file wherein the second markup language file is transferred to a client by the content distributor server.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising the steps:

displaying the second markup language file to the user of the client to allow the user to select a hyperlink to the initial uniform resource identifier stored in the first markup language file; and

transferring the file on the content producer server to the client when the user selects the hyperlink.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the first markup language file is a hypertext markup language file.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the file on the content producer server is mapped to a plurality of uniform resource identifiers corresponding to a plurality of content distributors.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising the step determining a one of the plurality of content distributors that directed the client to the file on the content producer server based on a one of the plurality of uniform resource identifiers used by the client to request the file on the content producer server.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising the step keeping a record of requests for the file on the content producer server.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the record is used to determine a number of clients directed to the file on the content producer server by a one of the plurality of content distributors.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the content distributor server is a server of the one of the plurality of content distributors that directed the client to the file on the content producer server.

13. A system for controlling access to a content producer server comprising;

a means for providing an initial uniform resource identifier, independent of an actual location of a file at the content producer server, to a content distributor server;

means for mapping the file, at the content producer server, to the initial uniform resource identifier content producer, wherein the initial uniform resource identifier is used by the content producer server to service a request for the file from a client using the provided initial uniform resource identifier from the content distributor;

means, responsive to a given event other than a change in location of the file at the content producer server, for modifying the initial uniform resource identifier, independent of the actual location of the file at the content producer server, on the content distributor server to form a modified uniform resource identifier; and

remapping the file, at the content producer server, to the modified uniform resource identifier, wherein the remapping is used by the content producer server to service a subsequent request for the file from a client using the modified uniform resource identifier from the content distributor server.

14. The system of claim 13 further comprising a first markup language file on the content distributor server for storing the initial uniform resource identifier.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the first markup language file is embedded in a second markup language file wherein the second markup language file is transferred to a client by the content distributor server.

16. The system of claim 15 further comprising:

a means for displaying the second markup language file to the client to allow a user of the client to select a hyperlink to the initial uniform resource identifier stored in the first markup language file; and

a means for transferring the file on the content producer server to the client when the user of the client selects the hyperlink.

17. The system of claim 13 wherein the given event is one of a predetermined number of access requests and a predetermined time interval.

18. The system of claim 14 wherein the first markup language file is a hypertext markup language file.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein the system uses the hypertext transfer protocol.

20. The system of claim 13 wherein the file on the content producer server is mapped to a plurality of uniform resource identifiers corresponding to a plurality of content distributors.

21. The system of claim 20 further comprising a means for determining a one of the plurality of content distributors that directed the client to the file on the content producer server based on a one of the plurality of uniform resource identifiers used by the client to request the file on the content producer server.

22. A program product for controlling access to a content producer server comprising:

a storage medium;

first instructions for providing an initial uniform resource identifier, independent of an actual location of a file at the content producer server, to a content distributor server;

second instructions for mapping the file, at the content producer server, to the initial uniform resource identifier, wherein the uniform mapping is used by the content producer server to service a request for the file from a client actual content using the provided initial uniform resource identifier from the content distributor; and

third instructions, responsive to a given event other than a change in location of the file at the content producer server, for modifying the initial uniform resource identifier, independent of the actual location of the file at the content producer server, on the content distributor server to form a modified uniform resource identifier; and

remapping the file, at the content producer server, to the modified uniform resource identifier, wherein the remapping is used by the content producer server to service a subsequent request for the file from a client using the modified uniform resource identifier from the content distributor server,

wherein the first instructions, the second instructions, and the third instructions are stored on the storage medium.

23. The program product of claim 22 wherein the given event is one of a predetermined number of access requests and a predetermined time interval.

24. The program product of claim 22 wherein the file on the content producer server is mapped to a plurality of uniform resource identifiers corresponding to a plurality of content distributors.

25. The program product of claim 24 further comprising a third instructions for determining a one of the plurality of content distributors that directed the client to the file on the content producer server based on a one of the plurality of uniform resource identifiers used by the client to request the file on the content producer server.