System and method for an online speaker patch-through
First Claim
1. A system, comprising:
- a first logic unit to provide a list of service providers via a communication connection, indicating a real-time availability and a rate of at least one service provider of the service providers;
a second logic unit to receive from a user a selection of a service provider from the list of service providers;
a third logic unit to attempt to establish a real-time communications connection to the selected service provider in response to the selection; and
a fourth logic unit to search a database for an alternate service provider, in response to a failed attempt to connect the selected service provider and the user, and to offer the user an option of connecting with the alternate service provider.
32 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A systems and methods described herein may be incorporated into a “service marketplace” system that matches users with potential information or service providers and establishes a real-time communications connection between the user and a selected information provider. In one embodiment, an alternate is selected for the user when the service provider that the user is trying to connect with cannot be reached. In an alternative embodiment, the alternates can be used in conjunction with the service provider that does connect with the user in order to provide a second opinion or possibly deeper background information. In one embodiment, the service providers can either be a live person at the other end of the connection or a recording.
464 Citations
63 Claims
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1. A system, comprising:
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a first logic unit to provide a list of service providers via a communication connection, indicating a real-time availability and a rate of at least one service provider of the service providers; a second logic unit to receive from a user a selection of a service provider from the list of service providers; a third logic unit to attempt to establish a real-time communications connection to the selected service provider in response to the selection; and a fourth logic unit to search a database for an alternate service provider, in response to a failed attempt to connect the selected service provider and the user, and to offer the user an option of connecting with the alternate service provider. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A system for establishing a real-time communication connection between two parties, the system comprising:
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a communications interface; and a controller computer linked with the communications interface, the controller computer having; a first logic unit to provide a list of service providers over an Internet connection, indicating a real-time availability and a rate of each service provider of the service providers; a second logic unit to receive from a user a selection of a service provider from the list of service providers; a third logic unit to attempt to establish a real-time communications connection to the selected service provider; and a fourth logic unit to search a database of alternate service providers, in response to a failed attempt to connect the selected service provider and the user, for an alternate service provider based on a pre-established set of criteria and to offer the user an option of connecting with the alternate service provider, wherein the set of criteria comprises one or more of;
a rate within a predetermined range of a rate of the selected service provider, subject matter, and a reliability factor indicating a ratio of successful attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users to total attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method comprising:
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sending a user a list of service providers via an Internet connection, indicating a real-time availability and a rate of each service provider on the list; receiving from the user a selection of a service provider on the list; attempting to establish real-time communications between the user and the selected service provider; and offering the user an option to connect to an alternate service provider elected in advance by the selected service provider, including searching a database of alternate service providers, in response to a failed attempt to connect the selected service provider and the user, for an alternate service provider based on a pre-established set of criteria comprising one or more of;
a rate within a predetermined range of a rate of the selected service provider, subject matter, and a reliability factor indicating a ratio of successful attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users to total attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35)
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36. A method of rerouting a user from a selected service provider to an alternate service provider, the method comprising:
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providing access to a database of alternate service providers when a selected provider cannot be reached; searching a database of alternate service providers, in response to a failed attempt to connect the selected service provider and the user, for an alternate service provider based on a pre-established set of criteria comprising one or more of;
a rate within a predetermined range of a rate of the selected service provider and a reliability factor indicating a ratio of successful attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users to total attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users; andproviding a user with a list of alternate service providers. - View Dependent Claims (37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49)
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50. A computer-readable storage medium tangibly embodying a sequence of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method comprising:
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sending a user a list of service providers via an Internet connection, indicating a real-time availability and a rate of each service provided on the list; receiving from the user a selection of a service provider; attempting to establish real-time communications between the user and the selected service provider; and offering the user an option to connect to an alternate service provider elected in advance by the selected service provider, including searching a database of alternate service providers, in response to a failed attempt to connect the selected service provider and the user, for an alternate service provider based on a pre-established set of criteria comprising one or more of;
a rate within a predetermined range of a rate of the selected service provider and a reliability factor indicating a ratio of successful attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users to total attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users. - View Dependent Claims (51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60)
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61. A system for establishing a real-time communication connection between two parties, the system comprising:
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a communications interface; and a controller computer linked with the communications interface, the controller computer having; a first logic unit to provide a list of service providers via an Internet connection, the list to indicate a real-time availability and a rate of each of the service providers; a second logic unit to receive from a user a selection of a service provider from the list of service providers; a third logic unit to attempt to establish a real-time communications connection to the selected service provider; and a fourth logic unit to search a database of alternate service providers, in response to a failed attempt to connect the selected service provider and the user, for an alternate service provider based on a pre-established set of criteria and to offer the user an option of connecting with the alternate service provider, wherein the set of criteria comprises one or more of;
a rate within a predetermined range of a rate of the selected service provider and a reliability factor indicating a ratio of successful attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users to total attempts to connect the alternate service provider and previous users, the fourth logic unit to reconnect the selected service provider to the user when the selected service provider signals availability. - View Dependent Claims (62, 63)
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Specification