System and method for providing a data mall

• US 8,572,666 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2009
• Issued: 10/29/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bugenhagen, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Chenea
• Application Number:
  US12/508,360
• Publication Number:
  US 20100023986A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,559 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/119
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0246 Traffic
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0264 based upon schedule
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0274 Split fees
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0283 Price estimation or determination
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/254 Management at additional data server, e.g. shopping server, rights management server arrangements for maintenance or administration in data networks H04L41/00; network services using third party service providers H04L67/53
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2665 Gathering content from different sources, e.g. Internet and satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02

Abstract

A system and method for providing content providers with network distribution nodes for distributing content to subscribers of a communications service provider may include maintaining multiple network nodes by the communications service provider, where the network nodes may be in communication with the Internet and be configured to enable subscribers of the communications service provider to access and download content without the content having to be communicated over the Internet. Multiple respective content service providers may be enabled to store content at the network nodes for subscribers local to each respective network node to download the content. Multiple customer databases configured to store information associated with subscribers of the communications service provider may be operated. Limited access to the information stored in the customer databases may be provided to prevent the respective content providers from accessing personal information of the subscribers.

Claims

1. A system for providing content providers with network distribution nodes for distributing content to subscribers of a communications service provider, said system comprising:

a plurality of network nodes maintained by the communications service provider and in communication with the public Internet, said network nodes configured to maintain a plurality of storefronts for a plurality of content providers, said network nodes configured to receive content from a content provider over the public Internet, store the content in a content store of the content provider, and enable subscribers of a communications service provider to access and download the content from the content store without the content having to be communicated over the public Internet from the plurality of network nodes to the subscribers;

a plurality of remote content management applications configured to be executed on each of the respective network nodes and enable a plurality of respective content providers to maintain control over stored content in their respective content store at the network nodes for subscribers local to each respective network node to download the content, the plurality of remote content management applications further configured to enable the content provider to set a quality of service level for distributing content in their respective content store, control whether a fee is charged to the subscribers for retrieving the content, control whether advertising is displayed with a retrieved content, and assign available channels for distributing the content received from the content provider; and

a plurality of customer databases operated by respective remote content management applications, said customer databases configured to store information associated with subscribers of the communications service provider, said remote content management applications providing limited access to the information stored in the customer database to prevent the respective content provider from accessing personal information of the subscribers.

2. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of content control setting modules operated by respective remote content management applications, and configured to enable the respective content providers to enable and disable the subscribers from accessing content.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein said content control settings modules provide selectable dates and times that the content is available for subscribers to access the content.

4. The system accordingly to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of billing databases in communication with respective customer databases and operated by respective remote content management applications, said billing databases configured to identify users who download content and apply a charge to the users who download the content.

5. The system accordingly to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of advertising bins in which advertisements are stored, said advertising bins being operated by respective remote content management applications and configured to store local and national ads.

6. A system according to claim 5, further comprising a plurality of administration modules operated by respective remote content management applications and in communication with said ad bins, said ad administration module configured to enable a content provider to manage national ads stored in respective advertising bins for communication to users who download content.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein said ad administration modules are further configured to enable the communications service provider to manage distribution of local ads stored in said respective advertising bins to users who download content from respective network nodes.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein said ad administration modules are configured to manage distribution of the local ads based on geographic locations of the users in communication with respective network nodes.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein said network nodes are further configured to provide users with minimum guaranteed QoS, and said respective remote content management applications are further configured to provide the content provider with digital rights management of the content.

10. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of codec bins configured to store codec software associated with each respective content provider to enable users in communication with respective network nodes to download content.

11. A method for providing content providers with network distribution nodes for distributing content to subscribers of a communications service provider, said method comprising:

maintaining a plurality of network nodes by the communications service provider, the plurality of network nodes being in communication with the public Internet and being configured to maintain a plurality of storefronts for a plurality of content providers, said network nodes configured to receive content from at least one content provider over the public Internet, store the content in a content store of the content provider, and enable subscribers of the communications service provider to access and download content from the content store without the content having to be communicated over the public Internet from the plurality of network nodes to the subscribers, wherein the plurality of network nodes are configured to enable the content provider to maintain control over stored content in their respective content store including enabling the content provider to set a quality of service level for distributing content in their respective content store, control whether a fee is charged to the subscribers for retrieving the content, control whether advertising is displayed with a retrieved content, and assign available channels for distributing the content received from the content provider;

operating a plurality of customer databases configured to store information associated with subscribers of the communications service provider; and

providing limited access to the information stored in the customer databases to prevent the respective content providers from accessing personal information of the subscribers.

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising enabling the respective content providers to enable and disable the subscribers from accessing content.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising providing selectable dates and times that the content is available for subscribers to access the content.

14. The method according to claim 11, further comprising:

identifying users who download content; and

applying a charge to the subscribers who download the content.

15. The method according to claim 11, further comprising storing local and national ads at the network nodes for display to the subscribers.

16. The method according to claim 11, further comprising enabling a content provider to manage national ads being communicated to subscribers who download content.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising enabling the communications service provider to manage distribution of local ads to subscribers who download content from respective network nodes.

18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising distributing the local ads based on geographic locations of the subscribers in communication with respective network nodes.

19. The method according to claim 11, further comprising:

providing minimum guaranteed QoS for downloading content by the subscribers; and

providing digital rights management of the content to the respective content providers.

20. The method according to claim 11, further comprising storing codec software associated with respective content providers to enable subscribers in communication with respective network nodes to download content stored thereat.