Message based network configuration of domain name purchase

• US 7,743,093 B2
• Filed: 11/10/2004
• Issued: 06/22/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Roberts, Theodore H. III, Fishman, Neil S., Mazur, Leszek, Satkunanathan, Lingan, Damour, Kevin T., Manchester, Scott A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Abdullahi; Salad
• Assistant Examiner(s): SALL, EL HADJI MALICK
• Application Number:
  US10/985,177
• Publication Number:
  US 20060101155A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,050 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709218-219, 709/223, 709/200, 705/26
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

Systems and methodologies that facilitate purchase and/or transfer of a domain name and access of users to the internet by using a well defined protocol to interact with a plurality of domain name registrars via employing a purchasing component and a mapping component. Once a user has identified a domain name, the purchasing component can automatically query the provider(s) for terms of the service plan to obtain such domain name. The mapping component can then point to a DNS provider designated to host such domain name, to manage in-bound traffic. The subject invention can also be implemented in web services based hosted solutions directory, for example by designation of a trusted on-line registry that registers a plurality of service providers to supply services to clients, with a secure communication between the clients and the trusted on-line registry for selection of a service provider.

Claims

1. A system that facilitates standardized interaction between a user and one or more of a plurality of domain name registrars, comprising:

one or more processors that execute the following computer executable components stored on a computer readable medium;

a subscription component that automatically publishes to a client device when a service of interest is listed or when any service is listed for the first time;

a purchasing component that uses a standardized message schema, wherein the schema operates between an end user machine and a domain name registrar, and wherein the schema is exchanged between the domain name registrar and a user machine, wherein the purchasing component;

automatically queries at a domain name registrars using a the standardized message schema, to offer at least one plan for sale of a domain name, using one or more standardized messages of the standardized message schema that have the same structure for defining details of the at least one plan for sale of a domain name, independent of the domain name registrar queried, wherein the at least one plan contains terms of sale organized according the standardized schema,

characterizes the terms of sale of the at least one plan according to the standardized schema, and

displays the characterized terms of sale of the at least one plan using a standardized presentation format independent of the domain name registrar, by interpreting the terms of the sale according to the standardized schema; and

a mapping component that, as part of the standardized message schema exchanged between the domain name registrar and the user machine, maps the domain name to a Domain Name Service (DNS) provider designated to manage inbound traffic to the domain name.

2. The system of claim 1, the messaging component queries a plurality of domain name registrars for a plurality of plans and displays the plurality of plans with a uniform format independent of the domain name registrars.

3. The system of claim 1, the terms of sale include at least one of a plan selection, a renewal option, a promotional call, a transfer option from business to business, an identification of a top level domain name or a billing plan.

4. The system of claim 1, the mapping component supplies a pointer mechanism that points to the DNS provider.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a domain information component that provides a list of contact information to the domain name registrar.

6. The system of claim 5, the list of contact information comprises at least one of a technical contact, an administrative contact, or a contact in case of host server failure.

11. The system of claim 1, the terms of sale include availability of the domain name.

12. The system of claim 11, the purchasing component provides hints for suggesting additional domain names available for purchase.

13. The system of claim 12, the hints relate to at least one of a trademark, a location or a nature of a business.

14. The system of claim 1, the purchasing component displays additional domain names available for purchase.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a data structure, comprising:

a first computer executable component that implements a subscription component that automatically publishes to a client device when a service of interest is listed or when any service is listed for the first time

a second computer executable component that implements a purchasing component that uses a standardized message schema, wherein the schema operates between an end user machine and a domain name registrar, and wherein the schema is exchanged between domain name registrars in the plurality of domain name registrars and a computer of an end user, wherein the purchasing component;

automatically queries at a domain name registrars using a the standardized message schema, to offer at least one plan for sale of a domain name, using one or more standardized messages of the standardized message schema that have the same structure for defining details of the at least one plan for sale of a domain name, independent of the domain name registrar queried, wherein the at least one plan contains terms of sale organized according the standardized schema; and

characterizes the terms of sale of the at least one plan according to the standardized schema, the characterization of the service agreement to purchase a domain name being structured the same, independent of the domain name registrar selected by being structured according to the standardizes message schema, and presents the characterized service agreement at the computer via a uniform format according to the standardized message schema that is consistent between domain name registrars irrespective of the domain name registrar used; and

a third computer executable component that implements a mapping component that as part of the standardized message schema exchanged between the domain name registrar and the user machine maps the domain name to a DNS provider designated to manage inbound traffic to the domain name.

8. The computer-readable medium of claim 7, the first computer executable component further comprises a domain information component that provides a list of contacts to the domain name registrar.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 7, the designated DNS provider identifies an IP address of the computer.

10. The computer readable medium of claim 7, the first computer executable component provides for a transfer of the domain name.

15. The system of claim 8, the list of contacts includes at least one of an administrative contact, a technical contact or a contact in case of host server failure.

16. The system of claim 7, the service agreement includes at least one of an availability of the domain name, whether a transfer of the domain name is required, an identification of a top level domain name, renewal options, or promotional calls.

17. The system of claim 7, the first computer executable component provides the domain name registrar with hints for suggesting additional names that are available for purchase.

18. The system of claim 17, the hints relate to at least one of a business nature, a trademark or a location.

19. The system of claim 7, the first computer executable component suggests additional names available for purchase.

20. The system of claim 19, the first computer executable component provides a uniform presentation of the additional names available for purchase and corresponding purchase plans offered by a plurality of domain name registrars.