Self-targeting local AD system

• US 9,015,595 B2
• Filed: 01/20/2010
• Issued: 04/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Nussel, Dale, Watfa, Allie K., Kilroy, Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): Bycer, Eric J
• Application Number:
  US12/690,706
• Publication Number:
  US 20110179359A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,917 Days
• Field of Search: 715/738, 705/14.1, 705/14.19, 705/14.25, 705/14.36, 705/14.39, 705/14.4, 705/14.41, 705/14.42, 705/14.43, 705/14.44, 705/14.49, 705/14.5, 705/14.51, 705/14.52, 705/14.53, 705/14.54, 705/14.55, 705/14.57, 705/14.58, 705/14.6, 705/14.64, 705/14.66, 705/14.67, 705/14.68, 705/14.69, 705/14.72
• US Class Current: 715/738
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0242 Determining effectiveness of advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0257 User requested
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0272 Period of advertisement exposure
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement

Abstract

A system for serving localized advertisements receives data that defines an advertisement from an advertiser and determines a geographic location of the advertiser. The system also receives a request to serve an advertisement from a browser operated by a user and determines a geographic location associated with the user. The system communicates the advertisement to the browser if the geographic location associated with the user matches the geographic location of the advertiser.

Claims

1. A method for serving advertisements in a networked system, the method comprising:

receiving, at a server, one or more criteria from a user via a browser, the one or more criteria including one or more preferences of the user;

receiving, at the server, data that defines advertisements from one or more advertisers;

determining, by the server, one or more attributes of the one or more advertisers;

receiving, at the server, a request to serve advertisements from the browser;

communicating, by the server, the advertisements to the browser if the one or more criteria from the user match the one or more attributes of the one or more advertisers; and

communicating browser code to the browser that is executable by the browser to cause the browser to display a localized advertisement region on a user home page, wherein the user home page is a web portal, and wherein the localized advertisement region includes;

an area configured to display one or more of the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially,

a first icon, wherein the first icon, when clicked on by the user, is configured to cause the browser to scroll manually through the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially, and

a second icon, wherein the second icon, when clicked on by the user, is configured to cause the browser to display an interface within the user home page, wherein the interface is configured to;

receive user input that includes a timing value per preference of the user, resulting in one or more timing values; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially according to the one or more timing values, wherein the one or more timing values includes;

a first speed associated with a speed of switching a displayed ad to another ad resulting from the manual scrolling by the click on the first icon, and a second speed corresponding to automatic scrolling of the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more criteria from the user include one or more of a geographic location preference of the user, a real-time geographic location of the user, or a non-geographic location preference of the user.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more attributes of the one or more advertisers include one or more of a respective geographic location of the one or more advertisers or a non-geographic location attribute.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the interface is configured to receive user input includes a pop up window.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the interface is configured to:

receive user input that includes an advertising subject matter preference; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements according to the advertising subject matter preference.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the interface is configured to:

receive user input that includes a geographic location preference of an advertiser; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements according to the geographic location preference.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the geographic location preference includes a zip code.

8. A system comprising one or more servers configured to:

receive one or more criteria from a user via a browser, the one or more criteria including one or more preferences of the user;

receive data that defines advertisements from one or more advertisers;

determine one or more attributes of the one or more advertisers;

receive a request to serve advertisements from the browser;

communicate the advertisements to the browser if the one or more criteria from the user match the one or more attributes of the one or more advertisers; and

communicate browser code to the browser that is executable by the browser to cause the browser to display a localized advertisement region on a user home page, wherein the user home page is a web portal, and

wherein the localized advertisement region includes;

an area configured to display one or more of the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially,

a first icon, wherein the first icon, when clicked on by the user, is configured to cause the browser to scroll manually through the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially,

a second icon, wherein the second icon, when clicked on by the user, is configured to cause the browser to display an interface within the user home page, wherein the interface is configured to;

receive user input that includes a timing value per preference of the user, resulting in one or more timing values; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially according to the one or more timing values, wherein the one or more timing values includes;

a first speed associated with a speed of switching a displayed ad to another ad resulting from the manual scrolling by the click on the first icon, and a second speed corresponding to automatic scrolling of the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more criteria from the user include one or more of a geographic location preference of the user, a real-time geographic location of the user, or a non-geographic location preference of the user.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more attributes of the one or more advertisers include one or more of a respective geographic location of the one or more advertisers or a non-geographic location attribute.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the interface is configured to receive user input includes a pop up window.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the interface is configured to:

receive user input that includes an advertising subject matter preference; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements according to the advertising subject matter preference.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the interface is configured to:

receive user input that includes a geographic location preference of an advertiser; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements according to the geographic location preference.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the geographic location preference includes a zip code.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium that includes processor executable instructions executable to:

operate and display a browser that is operable by a user;

send, to a server, a request for the server to send advertisements to the browser;

receive, from the server, one or more criteria from the user, the one or more criteria including one or more preferences of the user;

receive, from the server, one or more attributes of the advertisements;

receive, from the server, the advertisements sent from the server, if the one or more criteria from the user match the one or more attributes of the advertisements; and

receive, from the server, additional instructions executable by the browser to cause the browser to display a localized advertisement region on a user home page, wherein the user home page is a web portal, and

wherein the localized advertisement region includes;

an area configured to display one or more of the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially,

a first icon, wherein the first icon, when clicked on by the user, is configured to cause the browser to scroll manually through the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially, and

a second icon, wherein the second icon, when clicked on by the user, is configured to cause the browser to display an interface, wherein the interface within the user home page, is configured to;

receive user input that includes a timing value per preference of the user, resulting in one or more timing values; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially according to the one or more timing values, wherein the one or more timing values includes;

a first speed associated with a speed of switching a displayed ad to another ad resulting from the manual scrolling by the click on the first icon, and a second speed corresponding to automatic scrolling of the advertisements one or more at a time sequentially.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the one or more criteria from the user include one or more of a geographic location preference of the user, a real-time geographic location of the user, or a non-geographic location preference of the user.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the one or more attributes of the advertisements include one or more geographic locations of one or more respective advertisers or one or more non-geographic location attributes of the one or more respective advertisers.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein a sequence to display the advertisements is based on ratings associated respectively with the advertisements.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the ratings associated respectively with the advertisements are based at least on one or more of web browsing behaviors of the user, actual distance between a location of an advertiser and a current location of the user, or an advertising subject matter preference inputted by the user.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the interface is configured to:

receive user input that includes an advertising subject matter preference; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements according to the advertising subject matter preference.

21. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the interface is configured to:

receive user input that includes a geographic location preference of an advertiser; and

cause the browser to display the advertisements according to the geographic location preference.

22. The computer-readable medium of claim 21, wherein the geographic location preference includes a zip code.