Systems and methods for profile building using location information from a user device

• US 9,160,689 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2013
• Issued: 10/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bonforte, Jeff
• Primary Examiner(s): Lim, Krisna
• Application Number:
  US14/065,268
• Publication Number:
  US 20140052803A1
• Time in Patent Office: 715 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide systems and methods for building a profile for a contact. In one exemplary embodiment, a computer-implemented method includes: identifying, via a computing device, missing information from a profile of a contact of a user, wherein the missing information includes a current physical location of the contact; determining whether to include the missing information in the profile based on satisfaction of a threshold; and in response to a determination to include the missing information: obtaining the missing information, wherein obtaining the current physical location of the contact includes retrieving a current physical location of a device of the contact; and adding the missing information to the profile.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method comprising:

identifying, via a computing device, missing information from a profile of a contact of a user, wherein the missing information includes a current physical location of the contact;

determining to include the missing information in the profile based on satisfaction of a threshold related to a communication between the user and the contact; and

in response to the determination to include the missing information;

obtaining the missing information, wherein obtaining the current physical location of the contact includes retrieving a current physical location of a device of the contact from the contact'"'"'s device; and

adding the missing information to the profile.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the current physical location of the contact is only added to the profile in response to a determination that the user has permission to view the current physical location of the contact.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein adding the missing information to the profile includes generating a map showing the current location of the contact.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the map is displayed as part of the profile of the contact.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein adding the missing information to the profile includes generating directions to the current location of the contact.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the directions are displayed as part of the profile of the contact.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the current physical location of the contact further includes determining the current physical location of the contact based on a travel itinerary for the contact.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the current physical location of the contact is based on information from the travel itinerary that includes one or more of:

a destination city, a departure city, an expected departure time, an expected arrival time, an expected delay, weather, and a change in a flight scheduled for the contact.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the missing information includes retrieving the missing information from one or more of:

a social network, a partner network, a non-partner network, a map and direction website, a location server, and a travel website.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold is a value indicative of communication frequency between the user and the contact.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold is a value indicative of communication volume between the user and the contact.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold is an event.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold is set by the user.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold depends on the relationship type between the user and the contact.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising prompting the user to request the missing information from the contact, wherein the prompting includes generating a message to request the missing information, the message editable by the user and configured to be included in a communication from the user to the contact.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein determining whether to include the missing information in the profile includes analyzing received messages of a first communication medium type to determine whether the threshold has been satisfied, and wherein prompting the user includes generating a message to request the missing information.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the missing information includes dated information, the method further comprising replacing the missing information in the profile with updated information.

18. A system comprising:

a processor; and

memory coupled to the processor and storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to;

identify missing information from a profile of a contact of a user, wherein the missing information includes a current physical location of the contact;

determine to include the missing information in the profile based on satisfaction of a threshold related to a communication between the user and the contact; and

in response to the determination to include the missing information;

obtain the missing information, wherein obtaining the current physical location of the contact includes retrieving a current physical location of a device of the contact from the contact'"'"'s device; and

add the missing information to the profile.

19. A tangible, non-transitory machine readable medium storing instruction that, when executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to:

identify missing information from a profile of a contact of a user, wherein the missing information includes a current physical location of the contact;

determine to include the missing information in the profile based on satisfaction of a threshold related to a communication between the user and the contact; and

in response to the determination to include the missing information;

obtain the missing information, wherein obtaining the current physical location of the contact includes retrieving a current physical location of a device of the contact from the contact'"'"'s device; and

add the missing information to the profile.