System and method for wireless communication between previously known and unknown users

• US 8,023,929 B2
• Filed: 02/27/2009
• Issued: 09/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pinterest, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lee, Man-ho Lawrence, Mgrdechian, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): LE, NHAN T
• Application Number:
  US12/395,174
• Publication Number:
  US 20090164309A1
• Time in Patent Office: 935 Days
• Field of Search: 455/414.1, 455/414.2, 455/418, 455/419, 455/420, 455/550.1, 705/14
• US Class Current: 455/414.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention include improved communication system and methods. In one embodiment, the present invention includes a wireless communication method comprising, on a first wireless device, receiving one or more wireless device identifications associated with one or more other wireless devices, and transmitting at least one of the one or more wireless device identifications from the first wireless device to a remote computer system, and on the remote computer system, receiving the at least one wireless device identification, and accessing information associated with the at least one wireless device identification. Embodiments of the present invention may be used for electronic dating, social networking and other communication applications.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a first wireless device that is configured to perform actions, including;

automatically querying one or more other wireless devices to receive a wireless device identifier from each of the respective one or more other wireless devices;

selectively receiving one or more single user profiles, each single user profile being associated with one of the wireless device identifiers;

sending a request to have an advertisement sent to at least one of the other wireless devices based on the selectively received one or more single user profiles; and

a remote computer device being configured to perform actions, including;

receiving the one or more wireless device identifiers from the first wireless device;

selecting one or more single user profiles based on a filtering parameter associated with the first wireless device;

selectively sending the one or more selected single user profiles to the first wireless device;

receiving the request to have an advertisement sent to at least one of the other wireless devices; and

selectively delivering the advertisement to the at least one of the other wireless devices based on other filtering parameters being associated with a respective one of the other wireless devices.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein selecting one or more single user profiles based on a filtering parameter associated with the first wireless device further comprises:

comparing a marketing filtering parameter identified with the first wireless device to each single user profile based on the received wireless device identifiers;

selecting a subset of single user profiles as persons of interest; and

providing the subset of single user profiles to the first wireless device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein automatically querying one or more other wireless devices further comprises sending a broadcast query over a wireless network, wherein at least one of the other wireless devices automatically issues another wireless query to at least one more wireless device, thereby extending a range of operation of the query of the first wireless device.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein selectively delivering the advertisement to the at least one of the other wireless devices based on other filtering parameters associated with a respective one of the other wireless devices further comprises:

analyzing a profile associated with the first wireless device based on the other filtering parameters to determine if a user associated with a respective single user profile has indicated an interest in receiving messages from someone having a profile such as that associated with the first wireless device; and

rejecting sending of the advertisement to any of the respective one or more of the other wireless devices based on a result of the analysis.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein selectively receiving one or more single user profiles further comprises receiving an alert from the remote computer device indicating that a person of interest is within a defined proximity of the first wireless device.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the filtering parameter associated with the first wireless device further comprises information useable to filter based on at least a financial income associated with a user of a single user profile.

7. A network device, comprising:

a transceiver to send and receive data over a network; and

a processor that is operative to perform actions, comprising;

receiving one or more wireless device identifiers from a first wireless device, wherein each of the one or more wireless device identifiers are associated with different wireless devices within a defined proximity to the first wireless device;

selecting one or more single user profiles based on a filtering parameter associated with the first wireless device, wherein each single user profile is associated with a different one of the one or more wireless device identifiers;

selectively sending the one or more selected single user profiles to the first wireless device;

receiving, from the first wireless device, a request to have an advertisement sent to one or more of the wireless devices based on the single user profiles; and

selectively delivering the advertisement to each of one or more wireless devices based at least on a respective indication of an interest to receive the advertisement by each one or more of the other wireless devices.

8. The network device of claim 7, wherein selectively delivering the advertisement to one or more of the wireless devices further comprises selectively delivering the advertisement based on at least one of a form of the advertisement, or a number of other messages received by a respective other wireless device within a give time period.

9. The network device of claim 7, wherein selecting one or more single user profiles based on a filtering parameter associated with the first wireless device further comprises determining whether the single user profile indicates that an associated single user is a person of interest for an associated advertiser.

10. The network device of claim 7, wherein at least one of the single user profiles includes information associated with a financial income of an associated single user.

11. The network device of claim 7, wherein the first wireless device is embedded in at least one of a watch, a broach, a pendant, a necklace, an earring, an article of clothing, a clothing label, a wallet, or a key-chain.

12. The network device of claim 7, wherein selecting one or more single user profiles based on a filtering parameter associated with the first wireless device further comprises:

comparing a marketing filtering parameter identified by a merchant associated with the first wireless device to each single user profile based on the received wireless device identifiers;

selecting a subset of single user profiles as persons of interest; and

providing the subset of single user profiles to the first wireless device.

13. The network device of claim 7, wherein within a defined proximity to the first wireless device further comprises enabling a maximum number of hops across wireless devices within the one or more wireless devices to extend a range of proximity.

14. A system, comprising:

a first wireless device that is configured to perform actions, including;

automatically querying one or more other wireless devices to receive a wireless device identifier from each of the respective one or more other wireless devices;

automatically sending the received wireless device identifiers to a remote computer device; and

the remote computer device being configured to perform actions, including;

receiving the one or more wireless device identifiers from the first wireless device;

identifying a single user profile for each of the received one or more wireless device identifiers;

comparing the identified single user profiles to a filtering parameter associated with the first wireless device to select one or more single user profiles indicating that a respective wireless device includes a specified gaming application and a respective user of the wireless device has a specified gaming skill level; and

selectively delivering an invite to join the gaming application to each wireless device associated with a selected single user profile.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the remote computer device performs actions, further including:

automatically notifying a user of the first wireless device that another user having the gaming application and the specified gaming skill level is within a defined proximity.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the first wireless device is configured to automatically enable the gaming application based on receiving an indication that at least one of the one or more other wireless devices is within a defined proximity and an associated single user profile indicates the respective wireless device includes a gaming application, and a respective user has a specified gaming skill level.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein automatically querying one or more other wireless devices further comprises extending a query range by having at least one of the one or more other wireless devices automatically initiate another query.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the first wireless device is configured to perform action, further including:

sending a request to the remote computer device to send an advertisement to at least one of the one or more other wireless devices.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein selectively delivering the invite to join further comprises sending the invite based on a number of messages respective user of a wireless device has identified as willing to receive in a given time period, or based on an indication of an interest by the respective user in receiving messages from someone having a profile of a user associated with the first wireless device.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein at least one of the wireless devices receiving the invite is configured to automatically enable the gaming application.