System and method for managing sponsorships

• US 8,666,901 B2
• Filed: 06/17/2008
• Issued: 03/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Delgado, Marcus, Evans, Sandra J., Lantz, Harrison P., Sherwood, Amy L., Furth, David L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nigh, James D
• Application Number:
  US12/140,455
• Publication Number:
  US 20080275822A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,086 Days
• Field of Search: 705/59, 705/80
• US Class Current: 705/59
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/188 Electronic negotiation

Abstract

A system and method for managing sponsorships by a sponsor, in which the party requesting the sponsorship requests to use content owned and protected by the sponsor, such as trademarks, logos, and copyrighted material. An embodiment of the method involves receiving, at a computer network site, a request for sponsorship from a requester and responding to the request by sending either an approval or a rejection. If an approval is sent, the method further involves providing the requestor with access to content of the sponsor through the site. As part of providing this access, the method can involve requiring the requestor to accept an agreement posted on the site. The method can also include monitoring the requestor'"'"'s actual use of the content.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer at least to:

provide a communication to a requestor having access to controlled content associated with a sponsor in accordance with a sponsorship agreement between the sponsor and the requestor, wherein

the communication comprises a request for a sample use of the controlled content for monitoring use by the requestor of the controlled content,

the controlled content comprises intellectual property owned by the sponsor,

the sample use of the controlled content comprises a usage of the controlled content by the requestor during an event held at least in part by the requestor under sponsorship of the sponsor in accordance with the sponsorship agreement, and

the sponsorship agreement comprises conditions under which use of the controlled content is proper and conditions under which use of the controlled content is improper;

in response to receiving the sample use of the controlled content, determine whether the sample use of the controlled content complies with the sponsorship agreement; and

in response to not receiving the sample use of the controlled content, determine whether a predetermined number of communications requesting the sample use of the controlled content have been provided to the requestor, wherein

in response to determining that the predetermined number of communications has not been provided to the requestor, provide another communication to the requestor requesting the sample use of the controlled content for monitoring use by the requestor of the controlled content, and

in response to determining that the predetermined number of communications has been provided to the requestor, terminating, by the sponsor server computer, access by the requestor to the controlled content.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1 comprising further computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to, in response to determining that the sample use of the controlled content does not comply with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content;

notify the requestor that the sample use of the controlled content is improper; and

terminate access by the requestor to the controlled content.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1 comprising further computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to, in response to determining that the sample use of the controlled content does not comply with the sponsorship agreement terms of the sponsor for using the controlled content, determine whether a predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has been received from the requestor;

in response to determining that the predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has not been received from the requestor, provide another communication to the requestor requesting another sample use of the controlled content; and

in response to determining that the predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has been received from the requestor, terminate access by the requestor to the controlled content.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to determine whether the sample use of the controlled content complies with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content comprise computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform at least one of the following:

determine whether the sample use of the controlled content is consistent with the controlled content, wherein the controlled content is a trademark and the sample use of the trademark demonstrates that the requestor is utilizing the trademark such that characteristics of the sample use of the trademark are consistent with characteristics of the trademark as defined in the sponsorship agreement; and

determine whether the sample use of the controlled content assumes a prominence in relation to other content promoting the event, wherein the prominence is defined in the sponsorship agreement.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1 comprising further computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to:

monitor data associated with a plurality of requestors having access to the controlled content; and

based on the data, generate a list of requestors from the plurality of requestors to receive requests to provide sample uses for monitoring use by the requestors of the controlled content, wherein the requestor is included in the list of requestors.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the intellectual property owned by the sponsor is at least one of the following:

a trademark and a copyrighted material.

7. A method for monitoring use of controlled content, the method comprising:

providing, by a sponsor server computer, a communication to a requestor having access to the controlled content associated with a sponsor in accordance with a sponsorship agreement between the sponsor and the requestor, wherein

the communication comprises a request for a sample use of the controlled content for monitoring use by the requestor of the controlled content

the controlled content comprises intellectual property owned by the sponsor,

the sample use of the controlled content comprises a usage of the controlled content by the requestor during an event held at least in part by the requestor under sponsorship of the sponsor in accordance with the sponsorship agreement, and

the sponsorship agreement comprises conditions under which use of the controlled content is proper and conditions under which use of the controlled content is improper;

in response to receiving the sample use of the controlled content, determining, by the sponsor server computer, whether the sample use of the controlled content complies with the sponsorship agreement; and

in response to not receiving the sample use of the controlled content, determining, by the sponsor server computer, whether a predetermined number of communications requesting the sample use of the controlled content have been provided to the requestor , wherein

in response to determining that the predetermined number of communications has not been provided to the requestor, providing, by the sponsor server computer, another communication to the requestor requesting the sample use of the controlled content for monitoring use by the requestor of the controlled content, and

in response to determining that the predetermined number of communications has been provided to the requestor, terminating, by the sponsor server computer, access by the requestor to the controlled content.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising, in response to determining that the sample use of the controlled content does not comply with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content:

notifying, by the sponsor server computer, the requestor that the sample use of the controlled content is improper; and

terminating, by the sponsor server computer, access by the requestor to the controlled content.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising, in response to determining that the sample use of the controlled content does not comply with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content:

determining, by the sponsor server computer, whether a predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has been received from the requestor;

in response to determining that the predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has not been received from the requestor, providing another communication to the requestor requesting another sample use of the controlled content; and

in response to determining that the predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has been received from the requestor, terminating, by the sponsor server computer, access by the requestor to the controlled content.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein determining whether the sample use of the controlled content complies with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content comprises at least one of the following:

determining whether the sample use of the controlled content is consistent with the controlled content, wherein the controlled content is a trademark and the sample use of the trademark demonstrates that the requestor is utilizing the trademark such that characteristics of the sample use of the trademark are consistent with characteristics of the trademark as defined in the sponsorship agreement; and

determining whether the sample use of the controlled content assumes a prominence in relation to other content promoting the event, wherein the prominence is defined in the sponsorship agreement.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

monitoring, by the sponsor server computer, data associated with a plurality of requestors having access to the controlled content; and

based on the data, generating, by the sponsor server computer, a list of requestors from the plurality of requestors to receive requests to provide sample uses for monitoring use by the requestors of the controlled content, wherein the requestor is included in the list of requestors.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the intellectual property owned by the sponsor is at least one of the following:

a trademark and copyrighted material.

13. A sponsor server computer for monitoring use of controlled content, the sponsor server computer comprising:

a processor; and

a memory in communication with the processor, the memory comprising computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor at least to

provide, a communication to a requestor having access to controlled content associated with a sponsor in accordance with a sponsor, wherein

the communication comprises a request for a sample use of the controlled content for monitoring use by the requestor of the controlled content,

the controlled content comprises intellectual property owned by the sponsor,

the sample use of the controlled content comprises a usage of the controlled content by the requestor during an event held at least in part by the requestor under sponsorship of the sponsor in accordance with the sponsorship agreement, and

the sponsorship agreement comprises conditions under which use of the controlled content is proper and conditions under which use of the controlled content is improper,

in response to receiving the sample use of the controlled content, determine whether the sample use of the controlled content complies with the sponsorship agreement; and

in response to not receiving the sample use of the controlled content, determine whether a predetermined number of communications requesting the sample use of the controlled content have been provided to the requestor, wherein

in response to determining that the predetermined number of communications has not been provided to the requestor, provide another communication to the requestor requesting the sample use of the controlled content for monitoring use by the requestor of the controlled content, and

in response to determining that the predetermined number of communications has been provided to the requestor, terminating, by the sponsor server computer, access by the requestor to the controlled content.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the memory further comprises computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to, in response to determining that the sample use of the controlled content does not comply with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content:

notify the requestor that the sample use of the controlled content is improper; and

terminate access by the requestor to the controlled content.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the memory further comprises computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to, in response to determining that the sample use of the controlled content does not comply with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content, determine whether a predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has been received from the requestor,

in response to determining that the predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has not been received from the requestor, provide another communication to the requestor requesting another sample use of the controlled content, and

in response to determining that the predetermined number of noncompliant sample uses has been received from the requestor, terminate access by the requestor to the controlled content.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to determine whether the sample use of the controlled content complies with the sponsorship agreement for using the controlled content comprise computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform at least one of the following:

determine whether the sample use of the controlled content is consistent with the controlled content, wherein the controlled content is a trademark and the sample use of the trademark demonstrates that the requestor is utilizing the trademark such that characteristics of the sample use of the trademark are consistent with characteristics of the trademark as defined in the sponsorship agreement; and

determine whether the sample use of the controlled content assumes a prominence in relation to other content promoting the event, wherein the prominence is defined in the sponsorship agreement.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the memory further comprises computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:

monitor data associated with a plurality of requestors having access to the controlled content, and

based on the data, generate a list of requestors from the plurality of requestors to receive requests to provide sample uses for monitoring use by the requestors of the controlled content wherein the requestor is included in the list of requestors.