Systems and methods for organizing content for mobile media services

• US 8,949,340 B2
• Filed: 02/05/2008
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aloft Media, LLC (Oso IP, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Boadin Technology LLC (Oso IP, LLC)
• Inventors: Odell, Jack, Singh, Rekha, Massey, Kevin W, Smith, Daniel C.
• Primary Examiner(s): MIRZA, ADNAN M
• Application Number:
  US12/026,286
• Publication Number:
  US 20080250035A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,555 Days
• Field of Search: 709/205, 709/206
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 Advertisement messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals
• 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 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals

Abstract

In embodiments of the present invention, systems and methods for organizing content for media services may comprise organizing content from a plurality of data sources having information relevant to a channel, transforming the content into short messages suitable for delivery to a user via at least two of SMS, MMS, WAP, e-mail, and the Internet, and managing a script of such messages, wherein the next short message in a series is based on a user response to a prior short message in the series. User engagement may be facilitated by developing locally produced, personalized channels for delivery of relevant content. The mobile platform may enable building mobile-oriented communities around original content. Content may be local, authentic, relevant, insider, original, aggregated, a multi-modal mash-up, and the like.

Claims

1. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium, comprising:

computer code for identifying content from one or more of a plurality of data sources;

computer code for transforming the content into one or more messages;

computer code for delivering a first message of the one or more messages to a handset for presentation;

computer code for managing a message flow based on user responses, the message flow determining a next message based on a user response to a previous message;

computer code for receiving a delivery mode selection of at least two delivery modes, the at least two delivery modes including a first delivery mode in which at least a first portion of the content is to be delivered to a user and a second delivery mode in which at least a second portion of the content is to be delivered to the user, at least one of the two delivery modes including a short message service delivery mode involving a short message service;

computer code for delivering the at least first portion of the content to the user utilizing the first delivery mode;

computer code for delivering the at least second portion of the content to the user utilizing the second delivery mode;

computer code for receiving a command sequence including a first constant portion and a second variable portion, utilizing the short message service;

computer code for delivering a response to the command sequence utilizing the short message service, the response including response information identified as a function of both the first constant portion and second variable portion of the command sequence;

computer code for delivering a content menu utilizing the short message service in the form of a menu short message service message including;

a first menu selection option indicating a first menu short form command including a first one or more characters associated with a first content, a second menu selection option indicating a second menu short form command including a second one or more characters associated with a second content, and a third menu selection option indicating a third menu short form command including a third one or more characters associated with a third content;

computer code for receiving the first menu short form command associated with the first content;

computer code for receiving the second menu short form command associated with the second content;

computer code for receiving the third menu short form command associated with the third content;

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the first menu short form command associated with the first content, delivering the first content;

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the second menu short form command associated with the second content, delivering the second content; and

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the third menu short form command associated with the third content, delivering the third content.

3. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising computer code for causing display of at least one user profile page for receiving user input data that is capable of being used to define the user profile associated with the user.

4. The computer program product of claim 3, further comprising computer code for allowing receipt of a selection of content, utilizing the at least one user profile page, the computer program product being operable such that the content includes an event channel including event-related information.

5. The computer program product of claim 4, further comprising computer code for updating the user profile based on the selection of content.

6. The computer program product of claim 4, further comprising computer code for suggesting additional content based on the selection of content.

7. The computer program product of claim 4, further comprising:

computer code for tracking user participation associated with at least one of the plurality of channels;

computer code for identifying at least one metric associated with the user participation; and

computer code for providing rewards based on the at least one metric.

8. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

computer code for causing delivery of event-related information utilizing the short message service in the form of an event-related short message service message including a first selection option indicating a first event short form command associated with a first event and a second selection option indicating a second event short form command associated with a second event;

computer code for allowing receipt of the first event short form command associated with the first event, in response to the event-related short message service message;

computer code for allowing receipt of the second event short form command associated with the second event, in response to the event-related short message service message;

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the first event short form command associated with the first event, causing delivery of first event information associated with the first event; and

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the second event short form command associated with the second event, causing delivery of second event information associated with the second event.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the computer program is operable such that the first event information describes the first event.

10. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the computer program is operable such that the second event information describes the second event.

11. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

computer code for causing delivery of particular channel information associated with a particular channel; and

computer code for allowing receipt of posted information in association with the particular channel information associated with the particular channel.

20. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the computer program is operable such that each page includes a web page.

23. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising computer code for including application code for receiving and formatting at least a portion of the content, utilizing the handset.

34. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

computer code for identifying at least one aspect of the handset; and

computer code for altering the delivering of the first message, based on the at least one aspect.

35. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

computer code for identifying a type of the handset; and

computer code for altering at least one aspect of at least one of the transforming or delivering, based on the type.

37. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising application code for installation on the handset for supporting at least one of the at least two delivery modes including a WAP delivery mode.

38. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising application code for installation on the handset for supporting advertising in connection with the content.

40. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the computer program is operable such that the one or more messages delivered utilizing the short message service includes an Internet link for retrieving additional related content utilizing a browser.

2. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium, comprising:

computer code for identifying content from a plurality of data sources that is relevant to a channel;

computer code for transforming at least a portion of the content into one or more messages;

computer code for delivering a first message of the one or more messages to a handset for presentation;

computer code for managing a message flow based on a user input by determining a next message based on the user input;

computer code for receiving at least one delivery selection involving at least two delivery modes, the at least two delivery modes including a first delivery mode in which at least a first portion of the content is to be delivered to a user and a second delivery mode in which at least a second portion of the content is to be delivered to the user, at least one of the two delivery modes including a short message service delivery mode involving a short message service;

computer code for delivering the at least first portion of the content to the user utilizing the first delivery mode;

computer code for delivering the at least second portion of the content to the user utilizing the second delivery mode;

computer code for receiving a schedule for receiving the one or more messages utilizing the short message service;

computer code for delivering the one or more messages utilizing the short message service, based on the schedule;

computer code for receiving a command sequence including a first constant portion and a second variable portion, utilizing the short message service, where the first constant portion provides context for the second variable portion;

computer code for delivering a response to the command sequence utilizing the short message service, the response including response information identified as a function of both the first constant portion and second variable portion of the command sequence;

computer code for populating a user profile based on an interaction with the short message service;

computer code for receiving a first short form command associated with a first content;

computer code for receiving a second short form command associated with a second content;

computer code for receiving a third short form command associated with a third content;

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the first short form command associated with the first content, delivering the first content;

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the second short form command associated with the second content, delivering the second content; and

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the third short form command associated with the third content, delivering the third content.

12. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for allowing receipt of a content rating from the user in association with at least a particular portion of the content;

computer code for updating the user profile based on the content rating; and

computer code for causing delivery of content rating-based information to others based on the content rating.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the computer program is operable such that the content rating includes a thumbs up rating.

14. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for causing delivery of an advertisement to the user, based on the user profile;

computer code for allowing receipt of an advertisement rating from the user in association with the advertisement;

computer code for updating the user profile based on the advertisement rating; and

computer code for causing delivery of the advertisement to others based on the advertisement rating.

15. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for determining a location of the user;

computer code for updating the user profile based on the location of the user; and

computer code for causing delivery of at least a location-related portion of the content based on the location of the user.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, further comprising computer code for causing delivery of another advertisement to the user, based on the location.

17. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the computer program is operable such that the location of the user is determined utilizing a global positioning system.

18. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for causing display of at least one advertisement page for receiving advertiser input that is capable of being used to create at least one created advertisement associated with an advertiser, and for receiving additional advertiser input that is capable of being used to define an advertisement campaign associated with the at least one created advertisement of the advertiser;

computer code for receiving a time of day to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page;

computer code for receiving an advertisement-related location to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page;

computer code for receiving a user type to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page; and

computer code for delivering the at least one created advertisement of the advertiser, based on the time of day of the advertisement campaign, the advertisement-related location of the advertisement campaign, and the user type of the advertisement campaign.

19. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the at least two delivery modes include at least two of a SMS delivery mode, a WAP delivery mode, a MMS delivery mode, an IVR delivery mode, a SMTP delivery mode, a GSM delivery mode, an Internet delivery mode, and a GPRS delivery mode.

21. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for allowing receipt of a location rating from the user in association with a particular location of the user; and

computer code for causing delivery of location-rating related information to others based on the location rating.

22. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for allowing receipt of an event rating from the user in association with a particular event; and

computer code for causing delivery of event rating-based information to others based on the event rating.

24. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the user profile is capable of including age information, lifestyle information, location information, and culture information.

25. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the content relates to at least one of weather, advertising, news, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, culture, community, user-generated content, or social networking content.

26. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the channel is for at least one of a particular type of content, a particular content provider, a particular advertisement, or a particular promotion.

27. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the data sources include personal information received utilizing at least one of a website, a feed, a blog, or a database.

28. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the schedule includes at least one hour indicator.

29. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the schedule includes at least one hour indicator that is selected via an hour dropdown menu.

30. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that the content is individual-generated and at least one other of the two delivery modes includes at least one of e-mail or Internet delivery;

and the data sources include personal information received utilizing at least one of a website, a feed, a blog, or a database; and

further comprising computer code for causing display of at least one user profile page for receiving user input data that is capable of being used to define the user profile associated with the user; and

comprising computer code for allowing receipt of a selection of content, utilizing the at least one user profile page;

the computer program product being operable such that the content includes a plurality of channels capable of including an event channel including event-related information, a news channel including news-related information, an interest channel including interest-related information, a social-networking channel including social-networking-related information, and a group channel including group-related information.

31. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for allowing receipt of content ratings each including a thumbs up rating from multiple users in association with at least a particular portion of the content; and

computer code for aggregating the content ratings.

32. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising:

computer code for allowing receipt of content ratings each including a thumbs up rating from multiple users in association with at least a particular portion of the content; and

computer code for aggregating the content ratings.

33. The computer program product of claim 32, further comprising computer code for affecting delivery of content rating-based information based on the aggregating.

36. The computer program product of claim 2, further comprising computer code for allowing commenting on the content, where the content includes the commenting.

39. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the computer program is operable such that advertisements are targeted to the user based on received information, the user profile, a user response to the content, and a user location.

41. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a computer program product, comprising:

computer code for providing at least one user page for receiving user input that is capable of being used to define a user profile associated with a user;

computer code for receiving a selection of content, utilizing the at least one user page;

computer code for delivering different portions of the content to the user utilizing a plurality of delivery modes including at least two of;

a SMS delivery mode, a WAP delivery mode, a MMS delivery mode, an IVR delivery mode, a SMTP delivery mode, a GSM delivery mode, an Internet delivery mode, and a GPRS delivery mode;

computer code for delivering a first portion of the content to the user utilizing a first delivery mode including at least one of;

the SMS delivery mode, the WAP delivery mode, the MMS delivery mode, the IVR delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, the GSM delivery mode, the Internet delivery mode, and the GPRS delivery mode;

computer code for delivering a second portion of the content to the user utilizing a second delivery mode that is different from the first delivery mode and includes at least one of;

the SMS delivery mode, the WAP delivery mode, the MMS delivery mode, the IVR delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, the GSM delivery mode, the Internet delivery mode, and the GPRS delivery mode;

computer code for receiving a first command associated with a first content;

computer code for receiving a second command associated with a second content;

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the first command associated with the first content, delivering the first content;

computer code for, in response to the receipt of the second command associated with the second content, delivering the second content; and

computer code for receiving information in association with at least a portion of the content.

42. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, and further comprising:

computer code for causing display of at least one advertisement page for receiving advertiser input that is capable of being used to create at least one created advertisement associated with an advertiser, and for receiving additional advertiser input that is capable of being used to define an advertisement campaign associated with the at least one created advertisement of the advertiser;

computer code for receiving a time of day to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page;

computer code for receiving an advertisement-related location to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page;

computer code for receiving a user type to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page; and

computer code for delivering the at least one created advertisement of the advertiser, based on the time of day of the advertisement campaign, the advertisement-related location of the advertisement campaign, and the user type of the advertisement campaign.

43. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, further comprising:

computer code for causing delivery of an advertisement to the user, based on the user profile;

computer code for allowing receipt of an advertisement rating from the user in association with the advertisement;

computer code for updating the user profile based on the advertisement rating; and

computer code for causing delivery of the advertisement to others based on the advertisement rating.

44. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 43, wherein the computer program is operable such that the advertisement rating includes a thumbs up rating.

45. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 44, further comprising:

computer code for causing display of at least one advertisement page for receiving advertiser input that is capable of being used to create at least one created advertisement associated with an advertiser, and for receiving additional advertiser input that is capable of being used to define an advertisement campaign associated with the at least one created advertisement of the advertiser;

computer code for receiving a time of day to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page;

computer code for receiving an advertisement-related location to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page;

computer code for receiving a user type to be stored in association with the advertisement campaign, utilizing the at least one advertisement page; and

computer code for delivering the at least one created advertisement of the advertiser, based on the time of day of the advertisement campaign, the advertisement-related location of the advertisement campaign, and the user type of the advertisement campaign.

46. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 45, further comprising:

computer code for allowing receipt of additional content ratings each including a thumbs up rating from multiple users in association with the particular portion of the content; and

computer code for aggregating the additional content ratings.

47. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 46, further comprising:

computer code for allowing receipt of an event rating from the user in association with a particular event; and

computer code for causing delivery of event rating-based information to others based on the event rating.

48. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 47, wherein the computer program is operable such that the content is individual-generated and the plurality of delivery modes includes the SMS delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, and the Internet delivery mode;

and the content channels include personal information received utilizing at least one of a website, a feed, a blog, a post, or a database;

the computer program product being operable such that the content is capable of including an event channel including event-related information, a news channel including news-related information, an interest channel including interest-related information, a social-networking channel including social-networking-related information, and a group channel including group-related information.

49. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 47, wherein the computer program is operable such that the content is individual-generated and the plurality of delivery modes includes the SMS delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, and the Internet delivery mode;

and the content channels include information received utilizing at least one of a website, a feed, a blog, or a database;

the computer program product being operable such that the content is capable of including an event channel including event-related information, a news channel including news-related information, an interest channel including interest-related information, a social-networking channel including social-networking-related information, and a group channel including group-related information.

68. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the computer code for delivering is for delivering the different portions of the content to the user utilizing the plurality of delivery modes including each of the SMTP delivery mode, the Internet delivery mode, and a portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by application code.

69. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the computer code for delivering is for delivering the different portions of the content to the user utilizing the plurality of delivery modes including each of the SMS delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, and the Internet delivery mode.

70. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the computer code for delivering is for delivering the different portions of the content to the user utilizing the plurality of delivery modes including each of the Internet delivery mode and a portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by application code.

71. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 70, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the application code is operable for displaying advertisements with the at least part of the content.

72. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the delivery modes are selectable via a web page interface.

73. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that at least a portion of the content includes business-related event information.

74. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that an SMS reply is capable of being received for confirmation purposes.

75. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that a verification message is sent to in connection with a mobile phone number indicating that a user is required to text back a unique command alias.

76. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that a verification message is sent to in connection with a mobile phone number indicating that a user is required to text back a unique command alias, where such text is required to be received within a predetermined timeframe.

77. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that that one or more messages are delivered utilizing the SMS delivery mode and include an Internet link for retrieving additional related content utilizing a browser.

78. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that that one or more messages are delivered utilizing the SMS delivery mode and include a phone number for retrieving additional related content utilizing the IVR delivery mode.

79. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the information received in association with at least the portion of the content is posted.

80. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 41, and further comprising:

computer code for receiving a schedule, and computer code for delivering at least a component of the content utilizing the SMS delivery mode, based on the schedule.

50. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a computer program product, comprising:

code for causing display of at least one user page for receiving user input that is capable of being used to define a user profile associated with a user;

code for receiving a selection of content, utilizing the at least one user page;

code for delivering different portions of the content to the user utilizing a plurality of delivery modes including at least three of;

a SMS delivery mode, a MMS delivery mode, an IVR delivery mode, a SMTP delivery mode, a GSM delivery mode, an Internet delivery mode, a GPRS delivery mode, and a portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by application code;

code for delivering a first portion of the content to the user utilizing a first delivery mode including at least one of;

the SMS delivery mode, the MMS delivery mode, the IVR delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, the GSM delivery mode, the Internet delivery mode, the GPRS delivery mode, and a portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by the application code;

code for delivering a second portion of the content to the user utilizing a second delivery mode that is different from the first delivery mode and includes at least one of;

the SMS delivery mode, the MMS delivery mode, the IVR delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, the GSM delivery mode, the Internet delivery mode, the GPRS delivery mode, and the portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by application code;

code for receiving a first command associated with a first content;

code for receiving a second command associated with a second content;

code for, in response to the receipt of the first command associated with the first content, delivering the first content;

code for, in response to the receipt of the second command associated with the second content, delivering the second content; and

code for delivering at least a portion of the content to the user via an application which is configured for installation on a portable device to;

receive at least part of the content;

format the at least part of the content involving at least one of a font, a color, or a placement associated with the at least part of the content; and

store a plurality of words that are reused in association with the at least part of the content.

51. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the code for delivering is for delivering the different portions of the content to the user utilizing the plurality of delivery modes including each of the Internet delivery mode and the portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by application code.

52. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the code for delivering is for delivering the different portions of the content to the user utilizing the plurality of delivery modes including each of the SMTP delivery mode, the Internet delivery mode, and the portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by application code.

53. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the code for delivering is for delivering the different portions of the content to the user utilizing the plurality of delivery modes including each of the SMS delivery mode, the SMTP delivery mode, the Internet delivery mode, and the portable device-related delivery mode facilitated by application code.

54. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the application is operable for displaying advertisements with the at least part of the content.

55. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the delivery modes are selectable via a web page interface.

56. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that at least a portion of the content includes business information.

57. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that at least a portion of the content includes profile management information.

58. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that at least a portion of the content includes event information.

59. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that an SMS reply is capable of being received for confirmation purposes.

60. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that a verification message is sent to in connection with a mobile phone number indicating that a user is required to text back a unique command alias.

61. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that a verification message is sent to in connection with a mobile phone number indicating that a user is required to text back a unique command alias, where such text is required to be received within a predetermined timeframe.

62. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that that one or more messages are delivered utilizing the SMS delivery mode and include an Internet link for retrieving additional related content utilizing a browser.

63. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that that one or more messages are delivered utilizing the SMS delivery mode and include a phone number for retrieving additional related content utilizing the IVR delivery mode.

64. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the application includes a plug-in.

65. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the portable device-related delivery mode includes a WAP delivery mode.

66. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the portable device-related delivery mode includes an XML delivery mode.

67. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 50, wherein the computer program product is operable such that the first portion of the content is capable of being the same as the second portion of the content.