Delivering electronic content

• US 7,127,515 B2
• Filed: 01/15/1999
• Issued: 10/24/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Digital Reg of Texas, LLC (DRM Technologies LLC)
• Original Assignee: DRM Technologies LLC
• Inventors: Patterson, Patrick E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kang, Paul H.
• Application Number:
  US09/231,714
• Publication Number:
  US 20030028608A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,839 Days
• Field of Search: 709/231, 709/233, 709/202, 709/235, 709/232, 709/238, 709/203, 709/207
• US Class Current: 709/229
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

Delivering electronic content includes providing instructions that cause a computer to collect information including an e-mail address and transmitting the collected information to a receiving computer. The computer that receives the transmitted information selects electronic content based on the received information and e-mails the selected electronic content to the e-mail address included in the received information.

Claims

1. A method of delivering electronic content, the method comprising the steps of:

providing instructions that causes a first computer to dynamically transmit a user'"'"'s email address to a second computer in response to a request for data;

processing the request for data at the second computer;

emailing the requested data to the user'"'"'s email address; and

attempting to transmit notification information to a server upon an attempt to access the requested data,

wherein the instructions are executable instructions and collect the notification information and the instructions are configured to grant or deny access to the requested data based on the results of the attempt to transmit.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein providing instructions comprises providing web-page instructions.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the instructions comprise form instructions.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the instructions comprise instructions that query the computer for information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the instructions comprise instructions that receive user input.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises demographic information.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises system information.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises executing a script.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the script comprises a Common Gateway Interface script.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the instructions remain present at the first computer during processing.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic content comprises text.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic content comprises graphics.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic content comprises video information.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic content comprises audio information.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic content comprises executable instructions.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein processing comprises selecting electronic content based on transmitted information.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the information comprises identification of the instructions that transmitted the information.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the information comprises identification of a computer that transmitted the information.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting notification information when the requested data is subsequently accessed by a third computer.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the first computer is the server.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to grant or deny access to the requested data during creation of an envelope that includes the instructions.

23. The method of claim 1 further comprising preventing repeated transmission of the notification information.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein the instructions distinguishes between a plurality of users of the first computer and avoids sending notification information for one of the plurality of users when the information has been previously transmitted for the one of the plurality of users.

3. The method of clam 2, wherein web-page instructions comprise HTML instructions.

25. A method of delivering electronic content, the method comprising the steps of:

providing web-page form instructions that causes a first computer to dynamically transmit the first computer'"'"'s email address to a second computer in response to a request for data;

processing the request at the second computer to select electronic content and e-mailing the electronic content to the first computer'"'"'s email address; and

attempting to transmit notification information when triggered by an accessing event at the first computer,

wherein the instructions are executable instructions and collect the notification information and the instructions are configured to selectively grant or deny access to the electronic content based on results of the attempt to transmit.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising transmitting notification information when the electronic content is accessed at a third computer.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the processing step selects electronic content based on demographic data collected at the first computer.

28. The method of claim 25, wherein the notification information includes an identifier identifying a web site producing the instructions.

29. A computer-implemented method of providing access to electronic content, the method comprising the steps of:

displaying in a browser a web-page that includes a link corresponding to electronic content;

dynamically transmitting, in response to a user'"'"'s selection of the link, information including an e-mail address to a remote server;

sending electronic content from the remote server to the e-mail address based on the transmitted information, wherein the electronic content contains executable instructions; and

attempting to transmit notification information when an attempt to access the electronic content occurs,

wherein the executable instructions collect the notification information and is configured to selectively grant or deny access to the electronic content based on results of the attempt to transmit.

30. A computer program, disposed on a computer readable medium, the computer program including instructions for causing a first computer'"'"'s processor to:

receive dynamically transmitted information from a second computer including the second computer'"'"'s email address;

based on the received information, select electronic content, and transmit the selected electronic content to the second computer'"'"'s e-mail address included in the received information, wherein the electronic content contains executable instructions; and

attempt to transmit notification information when triggered by an access event,

wherein the executable instructions collect the notification information and selectively grants or denies access to the electronic content based on results of the attempt to transmit.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the instructions that cause the processor to select electronic content comprise instructions that cause the processor to use a table that includes electronic content corresponding to data included in the received information.

32. The computer program of claim 30, further including instructions to transmit notification information when the electronic content is accessed in at least one of the second computer and a third computer.

33. A computer implemented method of providing access to electronic content, the method comprising the steps of:

displaying in a web page a link representing electronic content;

dynamically transmitting, in response to a user'"'"'s action, information including a network address associated with the user to a remote server;

sending electronic content from the remote server to the network address associated with the user based on the transmitted information, the electronic content containing executable instructions; and

attempting to transmitting notification information when triggered by an access event,

wherein the executable instructions collect the notification information and selectively grants or denies access to the electronic content based on the results of the attempt to transmit.