Systems and methods to process transactions based on social networking

• US 8,160,943 B2
• Filed: 05/27/2009
• Issued: 04/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Boku Incorporated, Vidicom Limited
• Original Assignee: Boku Incorporated
• Inventors: Smith, Glyn Barry, Hirson, Ron, Reidy, Nicholas
• Primary Examiner(s): Monfeldt, Sarah
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ziegle, Stephanie M
• Application Number:
  US12/473,230
• Publication Number:
  US 20100250687A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,056 Days
• Field of Search: 705 35- 45
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/2295 Parent-child type, e.g. where parent has control on child rights
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3223 Realising banking transactions through M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/384 using social networks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/425 using two different networks, one for transaction and one for security confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes

Abstract

Systems and methods to verify and process requests received via social networking websites. In one aspect, a system includes a data storage facility to store data associated with a first phone number; and an interchange coupled with the data storage facility. The interchange includes a common format processor and a plurality of converters to interface with a plurality of controllers of mobile communications. The converters communicate with the controllers in different formats and with the common format processor in a common format. The common format processor receives a request from a first user via a social networking website, identifies a first phone number of the first user and a second phone number of a second user, based on the social networking website, and uses the converters to communicate with at least one of the mobile phones at the first and second phone numbers to confirm and/or approve the request.

Claims

1. A method implemented on a data processing system, the method comprising:

receiving at a server computer of a mobile phone interchange a request from a first user via a social networking website of a social networking system, the request identifying a first phone number of the user;

communicating by the server computer of the mobile phone interchange with the social networking website of the social networking system to identify a second phone number of a second user based on data stored in a social network database of the social networking system coupled to the social networking website the data including a social distance between the users having the first and second phone numbers;

communicating by the server computer of the mobile phone interchange with a mobile phone at the first phone number to confirm the request;

determining whether the user at the second phone number is within a predetermined social distance from the user at the first phone number;

in response to a confirmation of the request confirmed via the mobile phone at the first phone number, transferring, by the server computer of the mobile phone interchange, funds between the user at the first phone number and a user at the second phone number according to the request, wherein the providing the funds is in response to a determination that the user at the second phone number is within a predetermined social distance from the user at the first phone number in the social network of the user at the first phone number; and

Wherein the social distance is the smallest number of direct connections (ea friend connections) between the two users in a collection of connections stored in the social network database.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the social network database associates the first phone number with the second phone number based on a social network of the user.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the transferring funds comprises providing funds from the user at the first phone number to the user at the second phone number.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the providing of the funds comprises:

transmitting at least one premium message to the mobile phone to collect the funds from a telecommunication carrier of the mobile phone at the first phone number.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the providing of the funds comprises:

determining at least one premium message based on an amount of the funds required to fulfill the request and a set of predetermined prices of premium messages; and

transmitting the at least one premium message to a mobile phone at the second phone number to provide the funds via a telecommunication carrier of the mobile phone at the second phone number.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the funds are provided to a stored value account hosted on the server computer.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the communicating with the social networking website is in response to the request.

8. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

identifying account information of the user at the second phone number based on association between the second phone number and the account information in a database coupled to the server computer;

wherein the account information is used to receive the funds on behalf of the user at the second phone number.

9. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

identifying account information of the user at the first phone number based on association between the first phone number and the account information in a database coupled to the server computer;

wherein the account information is used to charge the user at the first phone number to collect the funds.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the account information comprises an account number of one of:

a credit card account, a debit card account, and a bank account.

11. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

communicating with the social networking website to release to the user at the first phone number an item, offered by the user at the second phone number in exchange for the funds, in response to the providing of the funds.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the item comprises one of:

an image, a video clip, an audio clip, an article, and a virtual object.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the item comprises a physical object to be shipped to the user at the first phone number.

14. The method of claim 2, wherein the transferring funds comprises providing funds to the user at the first phone number from the user at the second phone number, and the method further comprises:

communicating by the server computer with a mobile phone at the second phone number to confirm the request.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the communicating with the mobile phone at the second phone number is in response to a determination that a social distance between the user at the first phone number and the user at the second phone number is within a predetermined threshold;

and the request is rejected if the social distance is above the predetermined threshold.

16. A system, comprising:

a data storage facility to store data associated with a first phone number; and

a mobile phone interchange coupled with the data storage facility, the mobile phone interchange including a common format processor and a plurality of converters to interface with a plurality of controllers, the converters configured to communicate with the controllers in different formats, the converters to communicate with the common format processor in a common format, the common format processor to receive a request from a user via a social networking website of a social network system, the request identifying the first phone number of the user, the common format processor to communicate with the social networking website of the social network system to identify a second phone number of a second user based on data stored in a social network database of the social network system coupled to the social networking website of the social network system, the social network database including data with a social distance between the users of the first phone number and the second phone numbers based on a social network of the user, the common format processor to instruct a first controller of the controllers, via a first converter of the converters, to communicate with a mobile phone at the first phone number to confirm the request, and to determine whether the user at the second phone number is within a predetermined social distance from the user at the first phone number;

wherein in response to a confirmation of the request confirmed via the mobile phone at the first phone number, the system is to transfer funds between the user at the first phone number and a user at the second phone number according to the request

wherein the providing the funds is in response to a determination that the user at the second phone number is within a predetermined social distance from the user at the first phone number in the social network of the user at the first phone number; and

Wherein the social distance is the smallest number of direct connections (e.g. friend connections) between the two users in a collection of connections stored in the social network database.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing instructions, the instructions causing a server computer to perform a method, the method comprising:

receiving at a server computer of a mobile phone interchange a request from a first user via a social networking website of a social networking system, the request identifying a first phone number of the user;

communicating by the server computer of the mobile phone interchange with the social networking website of the social networking system to identify a second phone number of a second user based on data stored in a social network database of the social networking system coupled to the social networking website the data including a social distance between the users having the first and second phone numbers;

communicating by the server computer of the mobile phone interchange with a mobile phone at the first phone number to confirm the request;

determining whether the user at the second phone number is within a predetermined social distance from the user at the first phone number;

in response to a confirmation of the request confirmed via the mobile phone at the first phone number, transferring, by the server computer of the mobile phone interchange, funds between the user at the first phone number and a user at the second phone number according to the request, wherein the providing the funds is in response to a determination that the user at the second phone number is within a predetermined social distance from the user at the first phone number in the social network of the user at the first phone number; and

Wherein the social distance is the smallest number of direct connections (e.g. friend connections) between the two users in a collection of connections stored in the social network database.