Methods and apparatuses to track information via passing information during telephonic call process

• US 9,094,486 B2
• Filed: 06/12/2007
• Issued: 07/28/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thryv, Inc. (Mudrick Capital Management LP)
• Original Assignee: YellowPages.com LLC (Mudrick Capital Management LP)
• Inventors: Altberg, Ebbe, Faber, Scott, Hirson, Ron, Van Der Linden, Sean, Agarwal, Anuj, Ahuja, Nitin, Jain, Mehul
• Primary Examiner(s): KASSIM, KHALED M
• Application Number:
  US11/761,932
• Publication Number:
  US 20070230671A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,968 Days
• Field of Search: 370352-356, 405/35, 405/14, 405/26
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2757 by data transmission, e.g. downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/154 Functional or symbolic dial plan such as license plate numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4935 Connection initiated by DAS system
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0036 where the data service is an information service
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42

Abstract

Methods and systems to facilitate real time communications via a telephonic apparatuses that support data communications. In one embodiment, a telephonic apparatus includes: a network interface to submit a query over a data communication network and to receive a listing with embedded information about the query; and a call module coupled to the network interface, the call module to provide the received information about the query in a message sent over the data communication network for a telephonic connection according to the listing. In one embodiment, the telephonic apparatus receives a telephonic reference of a callee of the listing as a response to the message and initiates a telephonic connection to the callee using the telephonic reference of the callee received as a response to the message. In another embodiment, telephonic apparatus receives a callback responsive to the message for the telephonic connection.

Claims

1. A method implemented in a telephonic apparatus, comprising:

submitting, by the telephonic apparatus, a query for a listing over a data communication network to a server;

receiving, by the telephonic apparatus, the listing over the data communication network from the server, the listing embedded with information including first information identifying the query used to identify the listing, wherein the first information identifying the query comprises one or more of a search criterion and/or an identification of an advertisement;

processing, by the telephonic apparatus, a user request for a telephonic connection to an advertiser identified in the listing; and

responsive to the user request, causing, by the telephonic apparatus, association of the first information identifying the query used to identify the listing and second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query with the telephonic connection to the advertiser, the causing comprising;

providing, by the telephonic apparatus, the first information identifying the query used to identify the listing and the second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query in a message transmitted to a connection server over the data communication network during establishing the telephonic connection between the telephonic apparatus and the advertiser identified in the listing, wherein the connection server associates the telephonic connection with the query used to identify the listing and the one or more circumstances related to the query based at least in part on the first information and the second information received during the establishing of the telephonic connection;

wherein the second information identifying the one or more circumstances related to the query indicates one or more of a hierarchy of directories processed prior to the submitting the query for the listing, a predefined query, a link to the listing, a time related to the query, and/or a location related to the query; and

wherein the telephonic connection is based at least in part on a telephonic reference, the telephonic reference comprising encrypted information, the encrypted information comprising at least some of the first information identifying the query and at least some of second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the telephonic reference corresponds to the advertiser and the method further comprises:

receiving the telephonic reference responsive to the message; and

initiating the telephonic connection using the telephonic reference received as a response to the message.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the listing includes an encrypted telephonic reference of the callee; and

the telephonic reference received as the response to the message is decrypted from the encrypted telephonic reference.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the listing includes a reference corresponding to the advertiser; and

the telephonic reference received as the response to the message is retrieved from a database using the reference.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the telephonic reference comprises at least one of a session initiation protocol uniform resource identifier, a telephone number without an extension, a telephone number with an extension, a user identifier, and/or an Internet address.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a callback responsive to the message for the telephonic connection.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the message comprises a hypertext transfer protocol request to the connection server.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the message includes the telephonic reference, and the telephone reference corresponds to the telephonic apparatus.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the telephonic connection comprises a peer to peer voice over Internet protocol connection.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the listing comprises the advertisement presented on the telephonic apparatus on behalf of the advertiser; and

the advertiser is charged an advertisement fee in response to the telephonic connection being connected to the advertiser.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first information identifying the query further includes at least one of a position of the advertisement in a result of a search performed in response to the query and/or a price of an advertisement fee offered by the advertiser.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the second information identifying the one or more circumstances related to the query includes at least one of at least an identification of a distributor of the telephonic apparatus, an identification of a distribution channel of the advertisement, and/or an identifier of a party who has a contribution in a process of delivering the advertisement to the telephonic apparatus.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the telephonic reference corresponds to the advertiser and the message includes the telephonic reference.

14. A non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to:

submit a query for a listing over a data communication network to a server;

receive the listing over the data communication network from the server, the listing embedded with information including first information identifying the query used to identify the listing, wherein the first information identifying the query comprises one or more of a search criterion and/or an identification of an advertisement;

process a user request for a telephonic connection to an advertiser identified in the listing; and

responsive to the user request, cause association of the first information identifying the query used to identify the listing and second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query with the telephonic connection to the advertiser, the causing comprising;

providing the first information identifying the query used to identify the listing and the second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query in a message transmitted to a connection server over the data communication network during establishing the telephonic connection between the telephonic apparatus and the advertiser identified in the listing, wherein the connection server associates the telephonic connection with the query used to identify the listing and the one or more circumstances related to the query based at least in part on the first information and the second information received during the establishment of the telephonic connection;

wherein the second information identifying the one or more circumstances related to the query indicates one or more of a hierarchy of directories processed prior to the submitting the query for the listing, a predefined query, a link to the listing, a time related to the query, and/or a location related to the query; and

wherein the telephonic connection is based at least in part on a telephonic reference, the telephonic reference comprising encrypted information, the encrypted information comprising at least some of the first information identifying the query and at least some of second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query.

15. A telephonic apparatus, comprising:

a processor;

a network interface configured to submit a query over a data communication network to a server and to receive from the server a listing with embedded information including first information identifying the query used to identify the listing, wherein the first information identifying the query comprises one or more of a search criterion and/or an identification of an advertisement; and

a call module executed by the processor and coupled to the network interface, the call module configured to;

process a user request for a telephonic connection to an advertiser identified in the listing; and

responsive to the user request, cause association of the first information identifying the query used to identify the listing and second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query with the telephonic connection to the advertiser, the causing comprising;

providing the first information identifying the query used to identify the listing and the second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query in a message sent over the data communication network to establish the telephonic connection between the telephonic apparatus and the advertiser identified in the listing, wherein the connection server associates the telephonic connection with the query used to identify the listing and the one or more circumstances related to the query based at least in part on the first information and the second information received during the establishing of the telephonic connection;

wherein the second information identifying the one or more circumstances related to the query indicates one or more of a hierarchy of directories processed prior to the submitting the query for the listing, a predefined query, a link to the listing, a time related to the query, and/or a location related to the query; and

wherein the telephonic connection is based at least in part on a telephonic reference, the telephonic reference comprising encrypted information, the encrypted information comprising at least some of the first information identifying the query and at least some of second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query.

16. A method, comprising:

responsive to a query received over a data communication network, providing, by a computing device and via the communication network, a listing with embedded information including first information identifying the query used to identify the listing for presentation on a telephonic apparatus to provide a telephonic connection from the telephonic apparatus, wherein the first information identifying the query comprises one or more of a search criterion and/or an identification of an advertisement;

receiving, by the computing device and via the communication network, a message from the telephonic apparatus during establishing of the telephonic connection, the message including the first information identifying the query used to identify the listing and the second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query;

extracting, by the computing device, from the message the information identifying the query used to identify the listing; and

associating, by the computing device, the telephonic connection with the query used to identify the listing and the one or more circumstances related to the query based at least in part on the first information and the second information;

wherein the second information identifying the one or more circumstances related to the query indicates one or more of a hierarchy of directories processed prior to the submitting the query for the listing, a predefined query, a link to the listing, a time related to the query, and/or a location related to the query; and

wherein the telephonic connection is based at least in part on a telephonic reference, the telephonic reference comprising encrypted information, the encrypted information comprising at least some of the first information identifying the query and at least some of second information identifying one or more circumstances related to the query.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the telephonic reference corresponds to the advertiser and the method further comprises:

resolving the telephonic reference; and

providing the telephonic reference to the telephonic apparatus as a response to the message.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

determining the telephonic reference, the telephonic reference corresponding to the telephonic apparatus; and

initiating the telephonic connection with the telephonic apparatus in response to the message.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the telephonic reference corresponds to the advertiser and the method further comprises:

initiating a separate telephonic connection using the telephonic reference; and

bridging the telephonic connection from the telephonic apparatus and the separate telephonic connection.