Aggregation system for downloading resources

• US 8,880,543 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2012
• Issued: 11/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Lee, Paul, Hecht, Gregory M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Leroux, Etienne
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jacob, Ajith
• Application Number:
  US13/559,925
• Publication Number:
  US 20130246224A1
• Time in Patent Office: 830 Days
• Field of Search: 707/758
• US Class Current: 707/758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1737 for reducing power consumption or coping with limited storage space, e.g. in mobile devices saving storage space on storage devices G06F3/0608; power saving in storage systems G06F3/0625
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, and including a method for aggregating data rates. The method comprises identifying plural mobile devices configured for communication with a carrier-associated network for downloading network resources, and creating a data bundle representing data download capacity to be shared among mobile devices for data downloads from the network. The method further comprises negotiating a data bundle price with the carrier, and receiving requests from mobile devices for downloading network data. The method further comprises presenting data to a mobile device user that has provided a request, including rate information for initiating a download associated with the request, the rate information based on the negotiated price irrespective of airtime or data charges for the download ordinarily charged by the carrier. The method further comprises debiting a user account using a group price based on the rate information.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

identifying a plurality of mobile devices associated with different users, each mobile device configured for communication with a network for downloading resources from the network, the network associated with a carrier that charges users for data consumption based on airtime or data charges associated with downloads of requested data;

creating a resource bundle, the resource bundle representing download capacity that is to be shared in a time period among the plurality of mobile devices for resource downloads from the network;

determining, by an entity other than one of the different users, a negotiated price for the resource bundle with the carrier, wherein the negotiated price is less than an actual cost that would be incurred by the users individually for downloads of the resources in the time period and less than the airtime or data charges;

receiving requests for downloading resources from the network from ones of the plurality of mobile devices, each request including a resource address identifying a location of the resource on the network;

prior to downloading a requested resource to a respective one of the plurality of mobile devices, providing data, responsive to a received request, to a respective user of a mobile device that has provided a request, the data including rate information for initiating a respective download associated with the request, the rate information being based at least in part on the negotiated price and being irrespective of airtime or data charges for the download that would ordinarily be charged by the carrier; and

after successful receipt of the resource at the user'"'"'s mobile device, debiting an account associated with the user based on the rate information.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising estimating the capacity for the plurality of mobile devices over a period of time, and wherein determining the negotiated price further includes determining a negotiated price for all data downloads associated with the plurality of devices that are completed during the time period up to the capacity.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the requests are requests for downloading a resource that is free but for airtime or data charges ordinarily imposed by the carrier for transmission of the free resource over the network.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the requests are for downloading a webpage from the network.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the rate information includes a price.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the price is a fixed price to load a unit of data.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the unit of data is selected from a group comprising a single webpage, an email message, an email header, a text message, an audio stream, a video stream, or at least a portion of a game.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein the fixed price is based on one or more content types associated with the single webpage selected from a group comprising web pages, images or video.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein the fixed price is associated with any page for a given domain to which the single webpage is associated.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the price is based on an amount of time required to watch a requested video.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the price is based on a number of web pages to be provided in response to the request.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the price is based on a popularity of content associated with the request.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the price is based on a time of day.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the mobile device is a mobile telephone, a smart phone or a tablet computer.

15. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving a confirmation from the respective user acknowledging the rate information and initiating the download responsive to the request.

16. The method of claim 2 further comprising determining a cost for the data download responsive to the request, aggregating costs for downloads over the time period and determining a correction factor to be applied to either the price or the negotiated price for a subsequent time period based at least in part on the aggregate cost.

17. A computer program product embodied in a non-transitive computer-readable medium including instructions, that when executed, cause one or more processors to:

identify a plurality of mobile devices associated with different users, each mobile device configured for communication with a network for downloading resources from the network, the network associated with a carrier that charges users for data consumption based on airtime or data charges associated with downloads of requested data;

create a resource bundle, the resource bundle representing download capacity that is to be shared in a time period among the plurality of mobile devices for resource downloads from the network;

determine, by an entity other than one of the different users, a negotiated price for the resource bundle with the carrier, wherein the negotiated price is less than an actual cost that would be incurred by the users individually for downloads of the resources in the time period and less than the airtime or data charges;

receive requests for downloading resources from the network from ones of the plurality of mobile devices, each request including a resource address identifying a location of the resource on the network;

prior to downloading a requested resource to a respective one of the plurality of mobile devices, provide data, responsive to a received request, to a respective user of a mobile device that has provided a request, the data including rate information for initiating a respective download associated with the request, the rate information being based at least in part on the negotiated price and being irrespective of airtime or data charges for the download that would ordinarily be charged by the carrier; and

after successful receipt of the resource at the user'"'"'s mobile device, debit an account associated with the user based on the rate information.