Method and system to facilitate interaction between and content delivery to users of a wireless communications network

• US 8,238,950 B2
• Filed: 08/31/2010
• Issued: 08/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Cricket Communications Incorporated (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Simon, Daniel, Westling, Mark Ford, Wherry, Phillip
• Primary Examiner(s): MILLER, BRANDON J
• Application Number:
  US12/872,836
• Publication Number:
  US 20110059729A1
• Time in Patent Office: 707 Days
• Field of Search: 455/466, 455517-519, 455418-420, 455/500, 455/412.1, 455/422.1, 455/416, 463 39- 42, 370/312
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/792 for payment purposes, e.g. monthly subscriptions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5506 using advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5546 using player registration data, e.g. identification, account, preferences, game history
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5566 by matching opponents or finding partners to build a team, e.g. by skill level, geographical area, background, play style
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management

Abstract

A system and method of creating affinity groups of portable communication device users, and distributing targeted content to said users is disclosed. The user affinity groups may be formed by comparing user profiles with each other or with a predefined affinity group profile definition.

Claims

1. A system for creating an affinity group of portable communications device users comprising:

means for providing wireless communication between said users;

means for accessing profile data relating to selected ones of said users, said means for accessing being operatively connected to the means for providing wireless communications;

means for (a) comparing the accessed profile data of the selected ones of said users, and (b) associating users with the affinity group based on the profile data comparison to thereby create the group, said means for comparing and associating being operatively connected to the means for accessing;

means for receiving input from a portable communications device user excluded from the affinity group based on the comparing, the input overriding the exclusion;

means for associating the excluded portable communications device user with the affinity group in response to the input overriding the exclusion; and

means for selecting content for and distributing content to users based on their association with the affinity group, said means for selecting and distributing content being operatively connected to the means for providing communication and the means for comparing and associating.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group consisting of:

user news preferences, user sports preferences, user advertisement preferences, user purchase preferences, user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, user portable communications device capabilities, user portable communications device model, user portable communications device usage level, user occupation, user income level, user education level, user residence, user sex, user religion, other users precluded from communicating with the user, and user frequent location.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group consisting of user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, and user portable communications device capabilities.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the profile data includes user electronic game preferences.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the profile data includes user interactive game preferences.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the interactive game preferences comprise information selected from the group consisting of:

user individual game selection history, user game genre selection history, and user ranking of interest in games.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the profile data includes user game skill level.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the profile data includes user interactive game preferences and user game skill level.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the means for providing wireless communication includes plural mobile wireless devices.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the means for providing wireless communication includes a centrally located server, and wherein the system further comprises means for storing profile data that comprises a memory device associated with the centrally located server.

11. The system of claim 1 further comprising means for a user to include herself in an affinity group notwithstanding the failure of the means for comparing and associating to associate the user with the affinity group.

12. A system for creating an affinity group of portable communications device users comprising:

mobile communication devices;

a wireless network configured to provide wireless communication between said users of the mobile communication devices; and

a content server including processor electronics configured to perform operations comprising;

accessing profile data relating to selected ones of said users of the mobile communication devices, comparing the profile data of select ones of said users with a predefined affinity group definition, associating mobile communication device uses with the affinity group based on the comparison of the user profile data with the predefined affinity group definition to thereby create the group, said content server being communicatively connected to the wireless network, excluding a user from the affinity group based on the profile data comparison;

receiving input from the excluded user overriding the exclusion, associating, based on the received input, the excluded user with the affinity group, and providing interactive wireless communication between the users of portable communication devices associated with the affinity group.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group consisting of user news preferences, user sports preferences, user advertisement preferences, user purchase preferences, user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, user portable communications device capabilities, user portable communications device model, user portable communications device usage level, user occupation, user income level, user education level, user residence, user sex, user religion, and user frequent location.

14. The system of claim 12 wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group consisting of user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, and user portable communications device capabilities.

15. A method performed by a server system, the method comprising:

accessing, at the server system, profile data relating to users of portable communication devices;

comparing the accessed profile data of the users of portable communication devices;

associating users with an affinity group based on the profile data comparison;

excluding a user from the affinity group based on the profile data comparison;

receiving input from the excluded user overriding the exclusion;

associating, based on the received input, the excluded user with the affinity group; and

providing interactive wireless communication between the users of portable communication devices associated with the affinity group.

16. The method of claim 15, comprising:

updating the profile data of the users of portable communication devices; and

modifying, based on the updating, the affinity group comprising at least one of associating a new user with the affinity group or removing a user from the affinity group.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the accessing is performed by the server system in response to a request from one of the users of portable communication devices to initiate an online activity.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the request from one of the users of portable communication devices to initiate an online activity comprises a request to initiate an online game;

and

the accessing comprises accessing, at the server system, profile data relating to users of portable communication devices to find users to participate in the online game with the requesting user.

19. The method of claim 15, comprising:

delivering content to the users of portable communication devices based on the association with the affinity group.

20. The method of claim 19, comprising:

receiving user response to the delivered content; and

modifying the deliver of content to provide a type of content corresponding to the user response.