Access and use of ad content loaded onto wireless telephones

• US 8,000,749 B1
• Filed: 03/09/2007
• Issued: 08/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Hammerberg, Karl W., Schempp, Dale, Borchert, Bradley A., McConnell, Von K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelin; Jean
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Michael
• Application Number:
  US11/716,301
• Time in Patent Office: 1,621 Days
• Field of Search: 455/566, 455/412.1, 4554141-4144
• US Class Current: 455/566
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements

Abstract

Ad content for display on a display of a wireless telephone is loaded onto the phone, e.g., at the time of manufacture or distribution, or later after initial sale of the phone. The phone memory also includes software features by which the user of the phone can access specific ad content. The ad content includes information, e.g., a coupon or bar code, for presentation to a merchant on the display of the phone at the point of sale of a product or service promoted in the ad.

Claims

1. In a wireless telephone having a user interface, the improvement comprising:

storing in a memory in the wireless telephone a plurality of advertisements; and

providing a set of instructions in the memory for (1) displaying a first advertisement to a user of the wireless telephone upon powering on the wireless telephone while an operating system of the wireless telephone boots up, (2) allowing the user to access a specific item of content in the first advertisement using the user interface, wherein the user interface includes icons associated with applications executable by the wireless telephone, wherein one of the icons is an advertisement icon which, when activated, allows the user to access the plurality of advertisements, and (3) causing the plurality of advertisements to be displayed in a rotation in which placement of each advertisement in the rotation is based on a priority of a supplier of each advertisement,

wherein the specific item of content further comprises information for presentation to a merchant in association with a purchase of a product or service associated with the specific item of content, and wherein at least a portion of the plurality of advertisements and the set of instructions are stored in the memory of the wireless telephone prior to activation of the wireless telephone.

2. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the information comprises a UPC code.

3. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the information comprises a bar code.

4. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the information comprises a coupon.

5. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the plurality of advertisements comprises splash ads.

6. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the plurality of advertisements comprises splash ads, and wherein the splash ads are presented to the user upon loading of an application resident in the memory of the wireless telephone.

7. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the memory further includes a store of statistics on presentation of the plurality of advertisements on the wireless telephone.

18. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the icons are displayed on a home page of the user interface.

19. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the portion of the plurality of advertisements and the set of instructions are stored in the memory of the wireless telephone at a time of manufacture of the wireless telephone.

20. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the portion of the plurality of advertisements and the set of instructions are stored in the memory of the wireless telephone at a time of sale of the wireless telephone.

8. A method of outfitting a wireless telephone having a memory and a user interface for subsequent distribution to a user, comprising the steps of:

a) storing in a memory a plurality of advertisements; and

b) providing a set of instructions in the memory for (1) displaying a first advertisement to the user of the wireless telephone upon powering on the wireless telephone while an operating system of the wireless telephone boots up, (2) allowing the user to access a specific item of content in the first advertisement using the user interface, wherein the user interface includes icons associated with applications executable by the wireless telephone, wherein one of the icons is an advertisement icon which, when activated, allows the user to access the plurality of advertisements, and (3) causing the plurality of advertisements to be displayed in a rotation in which placement of each advertisement in the rotation is based on a priority of a supplier of each advertisement;

wherein the specific item of content further comprises information for presentation to a merchant in association with a purchase of a product or service associated with the specific item of content and wherein at least a portion of the plurality of advertisements and the set of instructions are stored in the memory of the wireless telephone prior to activation of the wireless telephone.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein steps a) and b) are performed by a manufacturer of the wireless telephone.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein steps a) and b) are performed by a distributor of the wireless telephone.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the information comprises a UPC code.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the information comprises a bar code.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the information comprises a coupon.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of advertisements comprises splash ads.

15. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of advertisements comprises splash ads, and wherein the instructions loaded in the memory cause the splash ads to be presented to the user upon loading of an application resident in the memory.

16. The method of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises the step of providing instructions on the phone for storing statistics on presentation of the plurality of advertisements on the wireless telephone.

17. The method of claim 8, wherein the set of instructions further comprise instructions for periodically obtaining downloads of new advertisements over an air interface.