Method and system for aggregating searchable web content from a plurality of social networks and presenting search results

• US 8,577,859 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2012
• Issued: 11/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Wajam Internet Technologies Inc.
• Original Assignee: Wajam Internet Technologie Incorporated
• Inventors: Archambault, Martin-Luc, Paquet, Andr-Philippe, Giroux, Sbastien
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Hung Q
• Application Number:
  US13/346,342
• Publication Number:
  US 20130179427A1
• Time in Patent Office: 666 Days
• Field of Search: 707/705, 707/706
• US Class Current: 707/705
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9536 Search customisation based on social or collaborative filtering
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

There is disclosed a method and system for presenting indexed search results from a social network, concurrently with customary search results returned by a search engine hosted on a website, to a user performing a search from a user interface of a user device using the search engine. The user is registered on the social network and has connections thereon. The method comprises: indexing data related to users registered on the social network to produce indexed data, the data obtained from the social network hosted on a website different from the website hosting the search engine; receiving a search query along with a user identifier; performing a search on the indexed data specific to the user'"'"'s connections to obtain indexed search results specific to the user'"'"'s connections on the social network; and returning to the user device the indexed search results for presentation on the user interface.

Claims

1. A method for presenting indexed search results from a social network, concurrently with customary search results returned by a search engine hosted on a website, to a user performing a search from a user interface of a user device using the search engine, the user being registered on the social network and having connections thereon, the method comprising:

indexing, by a social search server, data related to users registered on the social network to produce indexed data, the data obtained from the social network hosted on a website that is different from the website hosting the search engine, the social search server being different from the search engine;

installing a widget on a web browser used for accessing websites on the user device, the widget forwarding to the social search server a user identifier along with a search query entered on the website associated with the search engine;

receiving, by the social search server, the search query along with the user identifier from the user device;

using the search query and the user identifier, performing, by the social server, a search on the indexed data specific to the user'"'"'s connections to obtain indexed search results specific to the user'"'"'s connections on the social network;

returning, by the social search server, to the user device the indexed search results specific to the user'"'"'s connections;

receiving customary search results returned by the search engine in response to the search query;

using the widget installed on the web browser, reserving a space on the user interface for the indexed search results; and

presenting, on the user interface, the indexed search results specific to the user'"'"'s connections concurrently with the customary search results returned by the search engine, the indexed search results being presented in the space reserved by the widget on the user interface;

wherein the indexed search results and the customary search results are concurrently presented on websites accessed from the browser having the widget installed thereon.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the performing a search comprises performing a search on the indexed data specific to the user'"'"'s connections and on indexed data specific to connections of the user'"'"'s connections.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of indexing data comprises indexing pieces of web content related to the users comprising at least one of photos, links, messages, comments, recommendations, and videos.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the presenting comprises displaying a thumbnail providing a link to each of the photos and/or videos.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising creating, upon selecting a thumbnail, a pop-up window or an area on the user interface displaying the photo and/or video to which the thumbnail is linked.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the creating a pop-up window or an area on the user interface is performed without redirection to a source website from which the photos and/or videos were previously indexed.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising creating, on the user interface, a button for re-ranking results based on a given criterion.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the given criterion comprises at least one of:

a connection of the user, a social network, recency, and relevancy.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising obtaining an indication of the user'"'"'s interests from a profile of the user and wherein the performing a search ranks the search results based on the user'"'"'s interests.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of indexing data comprises indexing data indicative of information relating to activities of users on the website of the social network to produced indexed activity data.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the indexing data further comprises indexing data comprising an indication of the user connection associated with each activity data, that is, the user connection which is the source for each activity data.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the social network comprises a plurality of social networks and the indexing data thereby comprises indexing data related to users registered on the plurality of social networks.