System and method for responding to information requests from users of personal communication devices

• US 8,107,929 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2007
• Issued: 01/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Gloto Corp.
• Original Assignee: Gloto Corp.
• Inventors: Citrin, Warren, Conn, Eric
• Primary Examiner(s): Appiah, Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): STEPHEN, EMEM O
• Application Number:
  US11/752,709
• Publication Number:
  US 20080293387A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,714 Days
• Field of Search: 4554141-4144, 455/418, 455/456.5, 370259-270, 379157-158, 379201-218, 348 21- 22, 348/24, 348/383, 348/387.1, 348/390.1, 348/220
• US Class Current: 455/414.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/78 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0225 Avoiding frauds
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1063 Application servers providing network services systems providing special services to telephonic subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4872 Non-interactive information services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 Advertisement messages

Abstract

There are provided methods and systems for responding to information requests from users of personal communication devices, such as mobile telephones and more particularly cellular telephones. In one embodiment, information requests issued from a plurality of user'"'"'s cellular telephones are received and processed at a central host site. Processing comprises parsing the user requests to determine the content and category type of the request and retrieving relevant content configured as a sequence of images (frames), referred to as a “video strip”. When a user plays back a video strip on his or her personal communication device, the sequence of images appear on the user'"'"'s display as a sequence of still images, played back at a slow rate, unlike conventional movie playback frame rates. When viewing a video strip, a viewer may stop, start, and pause the video strip. Pausing playback of a video strip enables the user to easily peruse the contents of each video strip frame.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for responding to information requests from users of personal communication devices, the method comprising:

(a) a plurality of users aperiodically requesting content from a central host site by sending messages from personal communication devices of the users, to the central host site, the messages including a request for content from the central host site, the request being generated from the personal communication devices via conventional manufacturer supplied internal software instructions stored and running on the personal communication devices, wherein said internal software instructions are not downloaded from an external source, and wherein said internal instructions are neither included nor embedded as content-client software;

(b) receiving the messages at the central host site,

(c) responding to the messages at said central host site by;

(i) validating the message;

(ii) parsing the validated message to identify at least a content category and a content type;

(iii) retrieving said requested content according to said identified content category and type;

(iv) incorporating the retrieved content in a response message, wherein said response message is constructed in a slideshow presentation format comprised of a non-temporal sequence of primary images, each primary image including at least a portion of said retrieved content,

(v) transmitting the response message from the central host site to the personal communication device of the user making the request for content, and

wherein the sequence of primary images are transmitted for display on said user'"'"'s personal communication device at an image display rate in the range of substantially one image per second to one image per three seconds,

wherein each primary disjoint image of said slideshow presentation is transparently displayed to the user as a plurality of substantially identical underlying video frames at an underlying pre-determined frame rate.

2. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein each primary image is a still image in said sequence of images transparently displayed on said user'"'"'s personal communication device in a slideshow presentation format as a plurality of underlying video frames, rendered at said underlying pre-determined frame rate.

3. The computer-implemented method according to claim 2, wherein the pre-determined frame rate is at least 10 frames per second for a rendering format in accordance with the 3gp technical standard.

4. The computer-implemented method according to claim 3, wherein the pre-determined frame rate is 12 frames per second in accordance with said 3gp technical standard.

5. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein the network is one of a wireless and wired network.

6. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein the act of incorporating the retrieved content in a response message, further comprises:

rendering the images through a multi-phase process into a single continuous format.

7. The computer-implemented method according to claim 6, wherein the continuous format is encoded according to the 3g2 technical specification.

8. The computer-implemented method according to claim 6, wherein the continuous format is encoded according to the 3g2 technical specification.

9. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein a request message protocol for receiving said request message is selected from the group of text messaging protocols comprising a Short Text Messaging protocol, an Internet Address Messaging protocol, an email messaging protocol, and an instant messaging protocol.

10. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein a response message protocol for transmitting said response message is selected from the group of text messaging protocols comprising a Short Text Messaging protocol, an Internet Address Messaging protocol, a Multi Messaging Service protocol, an email protocol, and an instant messaging protocol.

11. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein the personal communication device is one of a wired or wireless device.

12. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein the act of retrieving said requested content according to said identified content category and type, further comprises:

accessing at least one remote content source based on said identified content category and content type; and

retrieving said content from the at least one remote content source.

13. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein the act of retrieving said requested content, according to said identified content category and type, further comprises:

accessing at least one local database based on said identified content category and content type; and

retrieving said content from the at least one local database.

14. The computer-implemented method according to claim 1, wherein the act of retrieving said requested content according to said identified content category and type, further comprises:

determining at least one of the group comprising;

(a) a geographical position of said user, (b) a demographic of said user and (c) a time of day associated with making said request;

determining appropriate advertising themes corresponding to said at least one of the group comprising (a) geographical position of said user, (b) said demographic of said user and (c) said time of day associated with making said request; and

accessing at least one of a remote content source and a local database to retrieve appropriate advertising content consistent with said determined appropriate advertising themes.

15. A non-autonomous system for linking data related to a set of similar digital images, the system comprising:

at least one processor;

a memory connected to the at least one processor and storing instructions for operating the at least one processor to perform the steps of;

(a) receiving a message including a user request for content, the request being received over a network from a user of a personal communication device using conventional manufacturer supplied internal software not downloaded from an external source for making said request, and wherein said internal instructions are neither included nor embedded as content-client software;

(b) responding to the request message by;

(i) validating the request message;

(ii) parsing the validated request message to identify at least a content category and a content type;

(iii) retrieving said requested content according to said identified content category and type;

(iv) incorporating the retrieved content in a response message, wherein said response message is constructed in a slideshow presentation format comprised of a non-temporal sequence of primary images, each primary image including at least a portion of said retrieved content, and

(v) transmitting the response message from a central host site of the system to the personal communication device of the user making the request for said content, and

wherein the sequence of primary images are transmitted for display on said user'"'"'s personal communication device at an image display rate in the range of substantially one image per second to one image per three seconds,

wherein each primary disjoint image of said slideshow presentation is transparently displayed to the user as a plurality of substantially identical underlying video frames at an underlying pre-determined frame rate.

16. The system according to claim 15, wherein the sequence of images are disjoint images.

17. The system according to claim 15, wherein the images are transmitted for display on said user'"'"'s personal communication device at an image display rate in the range of substantially one image per second to one image per three seconds.

18. The system according to claim 15, wherein each image in said sequence of images is comprised of a plurality of video frames, rendered at an underlying pre-determined frame rate.

19. The system according to claim 18, wherein the pre-determined frame rate is at least 10 frames per second for a rendering format in accordance with the 3gp technical standard.

20. The system according to claim 15, wherein the pre-determined frame rate is 12 frames per second in accordance with said 3gp technical standard.

21. The system according to claim 15, wherein the network is one of a wireless and wired network.

22. The system according to claim 15, wherein the act of incorporating the retrieved content in a response message, further comprises:

rendering the images through a multi-phase process into a single continuous format.

23. The system according to claim 22, wherein the continuous format is encoded according to the 3gp technical specification.

24. The system according to claim 22, wherein the continuous format is encoded according to the 3g2 technical specification.

25. The system according to claim 15, wherein a request message protocol for receiving said request message is selected from the group of text messaging protocols comprising a Short Text Messaging protocol, an Internet Address Messaging protocol, an email messaging protocol, and an instant messaging protocol.

26. The system according to claim 15, wherein a response message protocol for transmitting said response message is selected from the group of text messaging protocols comprising a Short Text Messaging protocol, an Internet Address Messaging protocol, a Multi Messaging Service protocol, an email protocol, and an instant messaging protocol.

27. The system according to claim 15, wherein the personal communication device is one of a wired or wireless device.

28. The system according to claim 15, wherein the act of retrieving said content responsive to said request message, further comprises:

accessing at least one remote content source based on said identified content category and content type; and

retrieving said content from the at least one remote content source.

29. The system according to claim 15, wherein the act of retrieving said content responsive to said request message, further comprises:

accessing at least one local database based on said identified content category and content type; and

retrieving said content from the at least one local database.

30. The system according to claim 15, wherein the act of retrieving said content responsive to said request message, further comprises:

determining at least one of the group comprising a geographical position of said user, a demographic of said user and a time of day associated with making said request;

determining appropriate advertising themes corresponding to said at least one of the group comprising a geographical position of said user, said demographic of said user and said time of day associated with making said request; and

accessing one of a remote content source and a local database to retrieve appropriate advertising content consistent with said determined appropriate advertising themes.

31. A computer program product operable on a processor at a central host site including computer-executable instructions for performing processing functions in accordance with a method for responding to information requests from users of personal communication devices,

(a) receiving a message, over a carrier network, including a user request for content, the request being received over a network from a user of a personal communication device using conventional internal software not downloaded from an external source for making said request and wherein said internal instructions are neither included nor embedded as content-client software;

(b) responding to the message at said central host site including;

validating the message;

parsing the message to identify a content category and a content type;

retrieving said content responsive to said request message;

incorporating the retrieved content in a response message wherein said response message is constructed in a slideshow presentation format comprised of a non-temporal sequence of primary images, each primary image including at least a portion of said retrieved content, and

transmitting the response message from the central host site to the personal communication device of the user making the request for said content

wherein the sequence of primary images are transmitted for display on said user'"'"'s personal communication device at an image display rate in the range of substantially one image per second to one image per three seconds,

wherein each primary disjoint image of said slideshow presentation is transparently displayed to the user as a plurality of substantially identical underlying video frames at an underlying pre-determined frame rate.

32. A non-autonomous system for linking data related to a set of similar digital images, the system comprising:

at least one communications manager connected to receive aperiodic messages including a request for content, the request being received over a network from a user of a personal communication device using conventional manufacturer supplied internal software for making said request, and wherein said internal software is neither included nor embedded as content-client software and is not downloaded from an external source;

the at least one communications manager being further configured to transmit a response message from a central host site to the user making the request for content;

an interpretation manager connected to receive the message from the communications manager, validate the request message and parse the validated request message to identify at least a content category and a content type of the message;

a content manager connected to retrieve and aggregate said requested content according to said identified content category and type;

an interpretation manager connected to receive the retrieved content and incorporate the retrieved content in a response message, wherein said response message is constructed in a slideshow presentation format comprised of a non-temporal sequence of primary images, each primary image including at least a portion of said retrieved content, and

a presentation manager connected to construct a video strip constructed in said slideshow presentation format from the retrieved content,

wherein the sequence of primary images are transmitted for display on said user'"'"'s personal communication device at an image display rate in the range of substantially one image per second to one image per three seconds,

wherein, each primary disjoint image of said slideshow presentation is transparently displayed to the user as a plurality of substantially identical underlying video frames at an underlying pre-determined frame rate.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein the presentation manager is further configured to additionally incorporate advertising content in said video strip.

34. The system of claim 32, wherein the communications manager receives said request message over a network from a user of a personal communication device.

35. The system of claim 32, wherein the content manager is further configured to retrieve and aggregate targeted ads and/or sponsorships from advertisers.