Method and apparatus to provide pay-per-call performance based advertising

• US 7,876,886 B2
• Filed: 08/21/2006
• Issued: 01/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thryv, Inc. (Mudrick Capital Management LP)
• Original Assignee: UTBK, Inc.
• Inventors: Van Der Linden, Sean, Barach, Marc, Somorjai, John, Altberg, Ebbe, Faber, Scott, Hickson, Chris, Fordyce, Michael, Hirson, Ron
• Primary Examiner(s): TIEU, BINH KIEN
• Application Number:
  US11/508,015
• Publication Number:
  US 20070116217A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,618 Days
• Field of Search: 379/110.01, 379/111, 379/112.01, 379/112.06, 379/112.07, 379/114.01, 379/114.05, 379/114.13, 379/121.02, 379/124, 705/14, 705/26, 705/32, 705/14.4, 705/14.49, 705/14.55, 705/14.69, 705/14.72
• US Class Current: 379/114.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0256 User search
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0275 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0276 Advertisement creation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement

Abstract

In one embodiment, the invention provides a method. The method includes assigning a unique telephone number to an advertiser; providing an advertisement on a media channel on behalf of the advertiser, the advertisement including one of the unique telephone number and a reference to the unique telephone number; monitoring telephone calls to the unique telephone number; and billing the advertiser for telephone calls to the unique telephone number in accordance with a predefined model.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

assigning a reference to be included in an advertisement, the reference to be used to initiate a real time communication connection;

monitoring communications initiated via the reference;

determining, using a computing device, whether repeated real time communication connections have occurred between two parties within a predetermined time period; and

billing for the advertisement in response to the real time communication connection being initiated via the reference, if the real time communication connection is not a repeated connection between the parties that occurs within the predetermined time period.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the real time communication connection comprises a telephonic connection for a voice communication.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the telephonic connection is at least partially via voice over Internet protocol.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the billing comprises billing a fee per telephone call connected via the reference.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving a specification of the fee from a party who is connected via the real time communication connection.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the reference comprises a telephone number.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the reference comprises a click to call reference.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

associating one or more key words with the advertisement.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more key words include a geographic location.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing the advertisement in response to a search request.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a price bid from an advertiser;

wherein said billing for the advertisement comprises billing the advertiser for the advertisement based on the price bid; and

wherein the price bid received from the advertiser is not conditioned on receiving a bid on a reference.

12. A method comprising:

in response to receiving requests from a set of advertisers, assigning the advertisers with separate references for their respective advertisements which can be displayed concurrently, the references to be used to initiate real time communication connections;

monitoring communications initiated via the references;

determining, using a computing device, whether each of the communications initiated via the references is a repeated connection between two parties within a predetermined time period; and

billing for the advertisements in response to real time communications initiated via the separate references for the real time communications that are not a repeated connection between two parties within the predetermined time period.

13. The method of claim 12, the assigning of the separate references comprising:

assigning a first reference to a first advertiser, the first reference to be embedded in a first advertisement to facilitate initiation of real time communications with the first advertiser;

assigning a second reference to a second advertiser, the second reference to be embedded in a second advertisement to facilitate initiation of real time communications with the second advertiser;

wherein the billing for the advertisements comprises;

billing for the first advertisement in response to a real time communication initiated via the first reference; and

billing for the second advertisement in response to a real time communication initiated via the second reference.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first advertisement and the second advertisement are for a common field of service.

15. A method, comprising:

assigning to an advertiser a placement for an undefined advertisement and a communication reference for the advertisement, the communication reference to be used to initiate a real time communication connection;

determining, using a computing device, whether the real time communication connection is a repeated connection between two parties within a predetermined time period; and

billing for the advertisement in response to the real time communication connection initiated via the communication reference, if the real time communication connection is not a repeated connection within the predetermined time period.

16. A method, comprising:

assigning a communication reference to an advertiser to be included in an advertisement, the communication reference assigned independent of a price to be paid by the advertiser for the advertisement, the communication reference to be used to initiate a real time communication connection;

determining, using a computing device, whether each real time communication connection initiated via the communication reference is a repeated connection between two parties within a predetermined time period; and

billing for the advertisement in response to each real time communication that is initiated via the communication reference and that is not a repeated connection within the predetermined time period.

17. A method, comprising:

providing a communication reference to be included in an advertisement for an advertiser, without the advertiser having to bid to receive the communication reference, the communication reference to be used to initiate a real time communication connection;

determining, using a computing device, whether a real time communication connection initiated via the communication reference is a repeated connection between two parties within a predetermined time period; and

billing for the advertisement in response to a real time communication initiated via the communication reference, if the real time communication is not a repeated connection within the predetermined time period.

18. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon a sequence of instructions, which when executed by a data processing system, cause the system to perform a method, the method comprising:

assigning a reference to be included in an advertisement, the reference to be used to initiate a real time communication connection;

after a real time communication is initiated via the reference, determining using a computing device, whether the real time communication connection is a repeated connection between two parties within a predetermined time period; and

billing for the advertisement, if the real time communication connection is not a repeated connection within the predetermined time period.

19. The medium of claim 18, wherein the real time communication connection comprises a voice communication over a telephonic connection.

20. The medium of claim 19, wherein the telephonic connection is at least partially via voice over Internet protocol.

21. The medium of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving a specification of a fee from a party who is connected via the real time communication, wherein the billing is in accordance with the specification of the fee.

22. The medium of claim 19, wherein the reference comprises one of:

a telephone number and a click to call reference.

23. The medium of claim 18, wherein the assigning is independent of a price to be paid by an advertiser for the advertisement.

24. A data processing system, comprising:

a memory to store a set of instructions; and

at least one processor coupled to the memory to execute the instructions, the instructions configured to cause the at least one processor to;

assign a reference to be included in an advertisement, the reference to be used to initiate a real time communication connection;

determine whether the real time communication connection is a repeated connection between two parties within a predetermined time period; and

billing for the advertisement as a response to the real time communication connection, if the real time communication connection is not a repeated connection within the predetermined time period.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the real time communication connection comprises a telephonic connection for a voice communication.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the telephonic connection is at least partially via voice over Internet protocol.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the reference comprises one of:

a telephone number and a click to call reference.

28. The system of claim 24, wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the at least one processor to receive a price bid from an advertiser, wherein the billing is in accordance with the price bid and wherein the price bid received from the advertiser is not conditioned on receiving a bid on a reference.

29. The system of claim 24, wherein the assigning is independent of a price to be paid by an advertiser for the advertisement.