Virtual private radio station via virtual private network

• US 7,571,112 B2
• Filed: 08/04/2004
• Issued: 08/04/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Verizon Business Global LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Business Global LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Sherman, Marc Adam, Sherman, Thomas W. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsang; Fan
• Assistant Examiner(s): King; Simon
• Application Number:
  US10/910,369
• Publication Number:
  US 20060029040A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,826 Days
• Field of Search: 705/14, 713/163, 709/247, 709/100, 707/100
• US Class Current: 705/14.64
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4641 Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context

Abstract

A method and a system are provided. A request is received from a first device through a network. Local content is selected from a group of different local content to send to the first device via the network, where the selecting of the local content is based on an indicator included with the request. Audio data may be sent with the selected local content to the first device via the network.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a first processing device via a network, a first request for multiple sets of audio data, each of the sets of audio data including location-specific content corresponding to each of a plurality of business locations, where the first request includes multiple client device identifiers (IDs) for ones of the business locations;

selecting, by the first processing device and from a plurality of stored, different location-specific content and responsive to the first request, location-specific content corresponding to each of the ones of the business locations based on the client device IDs included with the first request; and

sending, by the first processing device and as part of an audio data stream, the sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content to the ones of the business locations via the network, where at least some of the sets of the audio data differ and the ones of the business locations receive the audio data stream and produce sound from the audio data stream via a second processing device.

2. The method of claim 1, where the sending sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content is performed via a virtual private network.

3. The method of claim 1, where the location-specific content includes a local notice or a local advertisement.

4. A method comprising:

receiving, at a first processing device and via a network, a first request for multiple sets of audio data, each of the sets of audio data including location-specific content corresponding to each of a plurality of business locations, where the first request includes multiple client device identifiers (IDs) for ones of the business locations;

selecting, by the first processing device and from a plurality of stored, different location-specific content and responsive to the first request, location-specific content corresponding to each of the ones of the business locations based on the client device IDs included with the first request;

sending, by the first processing device, the sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content to the ones of the business locations via the network, where at least some of the sets of the audio data differ;

receiving, by a second processing device at the ones of the business locations, the sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content, the location-specific content being included as part of the audio data; and

storing the received audio data.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving, at one of the ones of the business locations, a second request from a device via a second network; and

delivering the stored audio data to the device via the second network.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

producing, at the device, sound from the audio data.

7. The method of claim 5, where the second network includes a virtual private network, and the delivering the stored audio data is performed via the virtual private network.

8. A method comprising:

receiving, at a processing device via a network, a first request for multiple sets of audio data, each of the sets of audio data including location-specific content corresponding to each of a plurality of business locations, where the first request includes multiple client device identifiers (IDs) for ones of the business locations;

selecting, by the processing device and from a plurality of stored, different location-specific content and responsive to the first request, location-specific content corresponding to each of the ones of the business locations based on the client device IDs included with the first request;

sending, by the processing device, the sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content to the ones of the business locations via the network, where at least some of the sets of the audio data differ; and

sending, by the processing device, a schedule of the location-specific content to the ones of the business locations via the network, where the sending the selected location-specific content comprises sending the sets of the audio data separate from the schedule of the location-specific content.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving and storing, at each of the ones of the businesses, the schedule of the location-specific content;

receiving and storing, at each of the ones of the businesses, at least some of the selected location-specific content; and

receiving and storing, at each of the ones of the businesses, at least some of the audio data.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

producing sound, at each of the ones of the businesses, from the at least some of the audio data; and

producing sound, at each of the ones of the businesses, from the at least some of the selected location-specific content at a time based on the stored schedule of the location-specific content.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

inserting, at each of the ones of the businesses, portions of the selected location-specific content into the at least some of the audio data.

12. A method comprising:

receiving, at a processing device and via a network, a first request for multiple sets of audio data, each of the sets of audio data including location-specific content corresponding to each of a plurality of business locations, where the first request includes multiple client device identifiers (IDs) for ones of the business locations;

selecting, by the processing device and from a plurality of stored, different location-specific content and responsive to the first request, location-specific content corresponding to each of the ones of the business locations based on the client device IDs included with the first request;

sending, by the processing device, the sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content to the ones of the business locations via the network, where at least some of the sets of the audio data differ; and

changing, by the processing device, the stored, different location-specific content based on sales data associated with each of the plurality of the business locations.

13. A system for delivering audio data, the system comprising:

a first processing device; and

a second processing device,

where the first processing device is configured to;

receive a first request, via a first network, from the second processing device, for multiple sets of audio data, each of the sets of audio data including location-specific content corresponding to each of a plurality of business locations, where the first request includes multiple client device identifiers (IDs) for ones of the business locations,

select, from a plurality of stored, different location-specific content and responsive to the first request, location-specific content corresponding to each of the ones of the business locations based on the client device IDs included with the first request, and

send sets of the audio data with the selected location-specific content to the second processing device; and

the second processing device is configured to;

receive, via the first network, the sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content, and

forward the sets of the audio data to respective ones of the businesses via a second network, where at least some of the sets of the audio data differ.

14. The system of claim 13, where the first processing device is further configured to send the sets of the audio data including the selected location-specific content to the second processing device via a virtual private network.

15. The system of claim 13, where the ones of the businesses produce sound based on sets of the audio data received with the selected location-specific content.

16. The system of claim 13, where the location-specific content includes a notice or an advertisement.

17. The system of claim 13, where the second device is further configured to insert the location-specific content into the sets of the audio data.

18. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a third processing device,

where the third processing device is configured to;

send a second request to the one of the ones of the business locations via the second network, and

receive audio data and the location-specific content from the one of the ones of the business locations via the second network in response to the second request.

19. The system of claim 18, where the third processing device is further configured to produce sound from the received audio data.

20. The system of claim 18, where the second network includes a virtual private network through which the one of the ones of the business locations and the third processing device are configured to communicate with one another.

21. The system of claim 13, where the first processing device is further configured to:

send a schedule of the location-specific content to the second processing device via the first network, and

send, to the second processing device, the selected location-specific content and the schedule of the location-specific content separately from each other.

22. The system of claim 21, where the second processing device is further configured to:

receive and store the schedule of the location-specific content,

receive and store at least some of the location-specific content,

receive and store at least some audio data, and where third processing devices at each of the ones of the business locations are configured to;

produce sound based on the at least some of the audio data, and

produce sound based on the at least some of the location-specific content.

23. The system of claim 21, where the second processing device is further configured to:

receive and store the schedule of the location-specific content,

receive and store at least some of the location-specific content,

receive and store at least some audio data, and

insert portions of the location-specific content into the at least some of the audio data based on the schedule of the location-specific content.

24. A machine-readable medium containing instructions for controlling at least one processor to perform a method, the method comprising:

receiving, via a network and from a first processing device, a first request for multiple sets of audio data, each of the sets of audio data including location-specific content corresponding to each of a plurality of business locations, where the first request includes multiple client device identifiers (IDs) for ones of the business locations;

selecting, from a plurality of stored, different location-specific content and responsive to the first request, location-specific content corresponding to each of the ones of the business locations based on the client device IDs included with the first request; and

sending, separately from each other, a schedule of the location-specific content, the selected location-specific content, and the sets of the audio data, to the first processing device via the network, where at least some of the sets of the audio data differ.

25. The machine-readable medium of claim 24, the method further comprising:

sending the sets of the audio data and the selected location-specific content via a virtual private network.

26. The machine-readable medium of claim 24, where the location-specific content includes a notice or an advertisement pertaining to a particular location.

27. A machine-readable medium containing instructions for controlling at least one processor to perform a method, the method comprising:

sending a first request to a first processing device via a first network, for multiple sets of audio data, each of the sets of audio data including location-specific content corresponding to each of a plurality of business locations, where the first request includes multiple client device identifiers (IDs) for ones of the business locations;

receiving a schedule of the location-specific content from the first processing device via the virtual private network; and

receiving, from the first processing device via the first network and responsive to the first request, the sets of the audio data corresponding to each of the ones of the business locations based on the client IDs, the sets of the audio data and the location-specific content being sent separately from one another.

28. The machine-readable medium of claim 27, the method further comprising:

sending the audio data and the location-specific content to a plurality of second processing devices associated with the ones of the business locations via a second network from the first processing device.