Method and apparatus for accessing targeted, personalized voice/audio web content through wireless devices

• US 7,206,745 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2004
• Issued: 04/17/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sarukkai, Ramesh R., Mendhekar, Anurag
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAWAN, VIJAY B
• Application Number:
  US10/796,829
• Publication Number:
  US 20040225685A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,135 Days
• Field of Search: 704/201, 704/270.1, 704/260, 704/258, 379/88.13, 379/88.17, 379/88.14, 709/218, 709/219, 709/203, 709/231
• US Class Current: 704/270.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/08 specially adapted for optional reception of entertainment or informative matter
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/253 where a visual mode is used instead of a voice mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/308 Personal name recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/487 Arrangements for providing information services, e.g. recorded voice services or time announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53333 Message receiving aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53358 Message preview
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/537 Arrangements for indicating the presence of a recorded message , whereby the presence information might include a preview or summary of the message
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/003 Click to dial services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1235 where one of the core networks is a wireless network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/129 Details of providing call progress tones or announcements
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• 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 wireless web system allows users to navigate web pages that include links to audio content where the pages are provided over a data connection and the audio content is provided over a voice connection. An audio content reference generator generates a reference to a portion of static audio content and that audio content reference is provided to the user'"'"'s wireless web client as a link on a wireless web page, or other page retrieved by the wireless web device over the data connection. The audio content reference and a telephone number of an audio server form the link on the page, so that when a user selects that link, the wireless device establishes a voice connection to the audio server using the telephone number and then provides the audio server with the audio content reference so that the user hears the specifically referenced audio content over the voice channel.

Claims

1. A method of providing a user with audio content, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a device with an audio content menu of audio content links over a data channel, wherein an audio content link includes an audio content reference to audio content;

receiving a request from the device for audio content over a voice channel at a telephony system, wherein the request contains the audio content reference to the audio content requested;

providing the audio content reference to an audio server;

determining, using the audio server, the audio content associated with the audio content reference; and

sending the audio content to the device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a telephone number and extension.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the request comprises reading the telephone number and extension with caller-ID.

4. The method of claim 3, including the step of matching a caller identification with an identification in a user database to determine a userid.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the request further comprises:

sending a signal from the telephony system to the device;

sending the audio content reference to the telephony system when the device receives the signal.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the request includes a digit collect.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the request comprises sending the audio content reference in a series of tones.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising associating an identifier with the audio content reference.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein receiving the request comprises using the identifier to associate the audio content reference with the request.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a web page that includes the audio content menu, wherein providing the device with the audio content menu comprises providing the web page over the data connection.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the device comprises a wireless device.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the device comprises a mobile phone.

13. A telephony system for referencing audio content for a device, the system comprising:

a telephony platform configured to send a menu that includes one or more audio content links to the device over a data channel and to establish a voice connection with the device, wherein an audio content link in the one or more audio content links is received from the device over the voice connection;

a database that includes one or more database references,wherein the one or more database references correspond to the one or more audio content links, wherein a database reference in the one or more database references is associated with audio content; and

an audio server configured to receive the audio content link from the telephony platform and to determine a database reference that corresponds to the received audio content link and send audio content corresponding to the database reference to the device.

14. The telephony system of claim 13, wherein the audio content reference comprises a telephone number.

15. The telephony system of claim 14, wherein the audio content reference comprises an extension at the end of the telephone number.

16. The telephony system of claim 13, wherein the audio content comprises voicemail, email, events and music or radio on demand.

17. The telephony system of claim 13, wherein the audio content includes a state of a system, wherein the state of the system is used to determine audio content associated with the audio content reference.

18. A telephony system for referencing one or more audio content links for a wireless mobile device, the system comprising:

a web page generator configured to generate a web page that includes a menu of one or more audio content links;

a data channel system configured to send the web page to the wireless mobile device over a data connection;

a voice channel system configured to receive an audio content link in the one or more audio content links from the wireless mobile device over a voice connection; and

an audio server configured to receive the audio content link from the voice channel system and to determine a reference that corresponds to the received audio content link.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising a database that includes one or more references, wherein the one or more references correspond to the one or more audio content links, wherein a reference in the one or more references is associated with audio content.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the data channel system is configured to generate the web page using one or more references to audio content that is stored.

21. The system of claim 18, wherein the voice channel system is configured to establish an initial connection through at least one of a public switched telephone network (PSTN) and a voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) network.

22. The system of claim 18, wherein the voice channel system is configured to send audio content corresponding to the reference to the wireless mobile device.