User created tags for online social networking

• US 7,529,797 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2007
• Issued: 05/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ifwe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Tagged Incorporated
• Inventors: Tseng, Greg, Schleier-Smith, Johann
• Primary Examiner(s): WANG, LIANG CHE A
• Application Number:
  US11/829,719
• Publication Number:
  US 20080046458A1
• Time in Patent Office: 648 Days
• Field of Search: 709/201, 709/204, 709/205, 709/217, 709/218, 709/219, 709/223, 709/226
• US Class Current: 709/204
• 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 40/117 Tagging; Marking up details of markup languages G06F40/143; Designating a block; Setting of attributes style sheets, e.g. eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformation [XSLT], G06F40/154
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15

Abstract

The present invention provides a social networking system and method by which customized tags can be created by a registered user in an online social networking environment and distributed to facilitate social networking. The tags represent personal characteristics and preferences associated with users of the online social networking environment. A graphical user interface (GUI) is provided in the online social networking website that enables a specific user to create and customize tags. Tags can be embeddable in that a user can insert the tag in a website GUI for display. Also, tags may have embedded content, e.g. a photo, a song, a profile page location, etc and may be sponsored or traded in the social networking website. Also a skin that shows the personal profile page GUI style may be customized, sponsored, or traded.

Claims

1. A computer network for a social networking environment:

a communications network;

a plurality of client devices, said client devices providing a graphical user interface for social networking to a plurality of social networkers;

a database including information about said plurality of social networkers, wherein the graphical user interface enables a first social networker of said plurality of social networkers to;

create a first tag describing a second social networker of said plurality of social networkers, wherein said first tag represents a trait of said second social networker as attributed by said first social networker;

convey said first tag to said second social networker to enable said second social networker to add said first tag to said second social networker'"'"'s tag collection; and

executable for embedding said first tag into said social networking environment by bringing said first tag into said graphical user interface through an image related to said attributed trait.

2. The computer network of claim 1, wherein a customized skin that shows customized personal profile page style is traded or sponsored.

3. The computer network of claim 1, wherein tags are traded among said plurality of social networkers, tag creators, sponsors.

4. The computer network of claim 1, wherein a buddy list, a tag team list, or an external distribution list is used for the purpose of socialization, contact, or distribution of tags.

5. The computer network of claim 1, wherein a tag Container is used in the online social networking environment that conveniently stores and displays a specific social networker'"'"'s tags, which are created, selected, or received by said specific social networker.

6. A social networking method for creating customized tags, the method comprising:

establishing an online social networking environment that supports tags;

operating a user interface that enables a first user of the social networking environment to;

create a first tag describing a second user of the online social networking environment, wherein the first tag represents a trait of the second user as attributed by the first user; and

convey the first tag to the second user to enable the second user to add the first tag to the second user'"'"'s tag collection; and

displaying the first tag in a profile page associated with the second user subsequent to the second user accepting the first tag conveyed by the first user.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first user creating the first tag provides using the user interface a name for the first tag, and a graphic icon to be associated with the first tag.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the graphic icon is generated by uploading, linking to a universal resource locator, using a template, or drawing.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the user interface enables the first user to create the first tag by allowing the first user to select a specific tag from a repository of pre-established tags offered by the online social networking environment.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the user interface enables the first user to create the first tag by allowing the first user to configure a tailored tag using a tag creation tool.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the online social networking environment stores the tailored tag in association with the first user, enabling the first user to optionally reuse the tailored tag to describe a third user of the online social networking environment.

12. An advertising method in online social networking environment using sponsored tags, the method comprising:

establishing an online social networking environment that supports sponsored tags;

operating a graphical user interface that enables a sponsor to create and customize a plurality of sponsored tags, wherein each of the plurality of sponsored tags represents a product, a brand, a trademark, or an icon associated with the sponsor, without indicating personal information of users associated with the online social networking environment, further wherein the graphical user interface enables a first user of the online social networking environment to;

select a first sponsored tag from the plurality of sponsored tags to describe a second user of the online social networking environment;

convey the first sponsored tag to the second user to enable the second user to add the first sponsored tag to the second user'"'"'s tag collection; and

displaying the first tag in a profile page associated with the second user subsequent to the second user accepting the first sponsored tag conveyed by the first user.

13. The method of claim 12, the sponsored tag having contents, the contents including sound, universal resource locator, descriptive page, web application, or phone calls.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the use of sponsored tags in the online social networking environment includes selling, limited distribution, and auctioning the sponsored tag.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, in addition to a graphic image representing the first tag, the first tag further includes a embedded content that can be accessed by a third user of the online social networking environment.