Digital frame having wireless communication capability

• US 7,792,708 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2008
• Issued: 09/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: T-Mobile USA, Inc. (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: T-Mobile USA, Inc. (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Alva, Jessi
• Primary Examiner(s): Dunham; Jason B
• Assistant Examiner(s): Stopp; Courtney
• Application Number:
  US12/175,421
• Publication Number:
  US 20100017301A1
• Time in Patent Office: 782 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/26, 705/27
• US Class Current: 705/26.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]

Abstract

A digital frame that may be removed from its packaging, powered on, and automatically begin receiving content from remote sources via a wireless telecommunications network. The digital frame includes a communications card to enable the digital frame to receive content over a wireless telecommunications network operated by one or more telecommunications service providers. The digital frame has an associated frame address so that users may send content, such as text, images or video, directly to the frame via the telecommunications network. The address may be an SMS/MMS address, an ftp site, an email address, a website address or another type of frame address to which the purchaser or others can send content for eventual delivery to the digital frame. The purchaser is typically charged for telecommunication services provided to the digital frame.

Claims

1. A method in a computing system of deploying a digital frame that receives content via a wireless telecommunications network, the method comprising:

receiving from a purchaser a request to purchase a digital frame and personally-identifiable information about the purchaser;

using, by a processor of computing system, the received personally-identifiable information to identify an account that the purchaser has with a wireless telecommunications service provider and to open an account for the purchaser when the purchaser does not have a pre-existing account with a wireless telecommunications service provider;

identifying by the processor of the computing system, an electronic notice address associated with the purchaser;

creating, by processor of the computing system, an association between the purchaser and a digital frame having a frame identifier and a frame address by;

storing the frame identifier in association with the account of the purchaser; and

transmitting the frame address to the electronic notice address associated with the purchaser; and

causing, by the processor of the computing system, the provisioning of wireless telecommunications services to the digital frame under the wireless telecommunications service account of the purchaser.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the frame address is transmitted via an email message sent to an electronic notice address associated with a mobile device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the email message includes a control to store the frame address on the mobile device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the frame address is transmitted via an SMS message.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising confirming the availability of the wireless telecommunications network at a proposed installation location of the digital frame.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the personally-identifiable information is a mobile phone number of the purchaser.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the frame identifier and the frame address are identical.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising provisioning a content repository to store content that is for delivery to the digital frame.

9. A system for selling digital frames that receive content via a wireless telecommunications network, the system comprising:

one or more storage areas containing instructions; and

one or more processors that execute the stored instructions to generate;

an input module to receive a request by a purchaser to purchase a digital frame having a frame identifier and frame address, the input module additionally receiving personally-identifiable information about the purchaser;

an account management module to identify an account that the purchaser has with a telecommunications service provider and to open an account for the purchaser when the purchaser does not have a pre-existing account with a wireless telecommunications service provider, identify an electronic notice address associated with the account of the purchaser, store the frame identifier of the digital frame in association with the account of the purchaser, and provision wireless telecommunications services to the digital frame under the wireless telecommunications service account of the customer;

a sales module to transact a sale of the digital frame to the purchaser; and

a communication module for transmitting the frame address to the electronic notice address associated with the account of the purchaser.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the frame address is transmitted via an email message to the electronic notice address.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the email message includes a control to store the frame address on a mobile device that receives the email message.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the frame address is transmitted via an SMS message.

13. The system of claim 9, further comprising a network coverage module for determining the availability of a telecommunications network at a proposed installation location of the digital frame.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the account management module identifies the account of the purchaser based on a mobile phone number of the purchaser.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the frame identifier and the frame address are identical.

16. The system of claim 9, further comprising a content module to provision a content repository and assign a content repository address to the content repository.

17. A method in a computing system of provisioning wireless telecommunications services for a digital frame, the method comprising:

receiving, by a processor of the computing system, a service request for a digital frame from a customer, the service request comprising a frame identifier associated with the digital frame and personally-identifiable information associated with the customer;

identifying, by a processor of the computing system, a wireless telecommunications service account of the customer using the received personally-identifiable information;

assigning, by a processor of the computing system, a frame address to the digital frame;

assigning, by a processor of the computing system, an on-line content repository address to the digital frame, the on-line content repository address associated with an on-line content repository that stores content for delivery to the digital frame;

storing, by a processor of the computing system, the frame address and the on-line content repository address in association with the wireless telecommunications service account of the customer; and

causing, by a processor of the computing system, the provisioning of wireless telecommunication services under the wireless telecommunications service account of the customer to enable content to be transmitted from the on-line content repository associated with the digital frame to the digital frame at the frame address via a wireless telecommunications network.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising transmitting the frame address to an electronic notice address associated with the customer.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the electronic notice address is an email address and the frame address is transmitted via an email message.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the email message includes a control to store the frame address on a device that receives the email message.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the electronic notice address is an SMS address and the frame address is transmitted via an SMS message.

22. The method of claim 17, further comprising confirming the availability of the wireless telecommunications network at a proposed installation location of the digital frame.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein the personally-identifiable customer information is a mobile phone number.

24. The method of claim 17, wherein the frame identifier and the frame address are identical.