Booking method and system

• US 8,589,194 B2
• Filed: 04/23/2013
• Issued: 11/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Smartcom Labs OY
• Original Assignee: Bookit Oy Ajanvarauspalvelu
• Inventors: Salonen, Jukka
• Primary Examiner(s): CAMPBELL, SHANNON S
• Application Number:
  US13/868,369
• Publication Number:
  US 20130238734A1
• Time in Patent Office: 210 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1.1, 705/5, 709/204, 709/206, 380/270
• US Class Current: 705/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/025 Coordination of plural reservations, e.g. plural trip segments, transportation combined with accommodation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1095 Meeting or appointment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3221 Access to banking information through M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3255 using mobile network messaging services for payment, e.g. SMS
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4014 Identity check for transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0623 Item investigation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/14 Travel agencies
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/207 with respect to certain areas, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas with possible alerting when inside or outside boundaries
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/37 E-mail addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/18 Commands or executable codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/23 Reliability checks, e.g. acknowledgments or fault reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• 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: H04M 3/42382 : Text-based messaging services in telephone networks such as PSTN/ISDN, e.g. User-to-User Signalling or Short Message Service for fixed networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 : Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/71 : Hardware identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/72 : Subscriber identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 : Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 : Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 : for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 : Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

A method and system for communicating over a telecommunications network between a service provider and one or more users, wherein the service provider can have access to multiple distinct addresses in the telecommunications network and each user is identified by an address, more specifically, where a first message can be sent over at least a portion of the telecommunications network to a user'"'"'s address and based on a response from the user determining the message to which the response is a reply.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory recording medium, having encoded thereon a computer readable program executable by a computer, for performing functions of a mediator for controlling communications between a service provider and a client terminal device having a client identifier address, where communications between the service provider and the client terminal device use technology in which a reply to an inquiry does not automatically include an explicit reference to the inquiry, the mediator functions comprising:

preparing at least one inquiry message pertaining to the service provider, the at least one inquiry message including a choice selection inquiry;

associating a particular reply address to the at least one inquiry message, the particular reply address being selected from a plurality of addresses at which the mediator receives communications regarding the service provider;

sending the at least one inquiry message to the client terminal device;

receiving, from the client terminal device, a reply to the at least one inquiry message at the particular reply address associated with the received reply, the received reply including the client identifier address and a choice selection;

determining the choice selection in the received reply;

identifying the at least one inquiry message that the client has responded to based on the particular reply address at which the received reply is received; and

storing information pertaining to the received reply including the client identifier address, the reply address and information indicating the choice selection, wherein the storing information includes relating the client identifier address, the reply address and information indicating the choice selection, wherein the client identifier address, reply address and information indicating the choice selection are related to one another by storing the client identifier address, reply address and information in a multi-dimensional data structure.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the multi-dimensional data structure is a three dimensional data structure including an axis corresponding to each of client identifier address, reply address and information indicating the choice selection.

3. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the mediator functions further comprise identifying currently available addresses within the plurality of different addresses, wherein the association of the particular reply address selects the particular reply address from the currently available addresses.

4. A method for controlling communication between a client using a client terminal device having a client identifier address and a service provider via a mediator wherein communications between the service provider and the client terminal device use technology in which a reply to an inquiry does not automatically include an explicit reference to the inquiry, the method comprising:

preparing at least one inquiry message pertaining to the service provider, the at least one inquiry message including a choice selection inquiry;

associating a particular reply address to the at least one inquiry message, the particular reply address being selected from a plurality of addresses at which the mediator receives communications regarding the service provider;

sending the at least one inquiry message to the client terminal device;

receiving, from the client terminal device, a reply to the at least one inquiry message at the particular reply address associated with the received reply, the received reply including the client identifier address of the client terminal device and a choice selection;

determining, by at least one processor, the choice selection in the received reply;

identifying the at least one inquiry message that the client has responded to based on the particular reply address at which the received reply is received; and

storing information pertaining to the received reply including the client identifier address, the reply address and information indicating the choice selection, wherein the storing information includes relating the client identifier address, the reply address and information indicating the choice selection, wherein the client identifier address, reply address and information indicating the choice selection are related to one another by storing the client identifier address, reply address and information in a multi-dimensional data structure.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the multi-dimensional data structure is a three dimensional data structure including an axis corresponding to each of the client identifier address, reply address and information indicating the choice selection.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising identifying currently available addresses within the plurality of different addresses, wherein the association of the particular reply address selects the particular reply address from the currently available addresses.

7. A system that controls communication between a client terminal device having a client identifier address and a service provider, wherein communications between the service provider and the client terminal device use technology in which a reply to an inquiry does not automatically include an explicit reference to the inquiry, the system comprising:

a client terminal device; and

a mediator that prepares at least one inquiry message pertaining to the service provider based on information received by the mediator from the service provider, the at least one inquiry message including a choice selection inquiry, wherein a particular reply address is associated with the at least one inquiry message by the mediator, the particular reply address being selected from a plurality of addresses at which the mediator receives communications,

wherein the mediator sends the at least one inquiry message to the client terminal device via a communication network and receives, from the client terminal device, a reply to the at least one inquiry message at the particular reply address associated with the received reply, the received reply including the client identifier address of the client terminal device and a choice selection,

wherein the mediator determines the choice selection in the received reply and identifies the at least one inquiry message that the client has responded to based on the particular reply address at which the received reply is received by the mediator; and

wherein the mediator stores information pertaining to the received reply including the client identifier address, the reply address and information indicating the choice selection, wherein the storing of the information includes relating the client identifier address, the reply address and information indicating the choice selection, wherein the client identifier address, reply address and information indicating the choice selection are related to one another by storing the client identifier address, reply address and information in a multi-dimensional data structure.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the multi-dimensional data structure is a three dimensional data structure including an axis corresponding to each of the client identifier address, reply address and information indicating the choice selection.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the mediator identifies currently available addresses within the plurality of different addresses, wherein the association of the particular reply address selects the particular reply address from the currently available addresses.