Method for providing a conference system allowing advisors to offer conference sessions to clients

• US 9,218,603 B2
• Filed: 05/07/2009
• Issued: 12/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gopesh Kumar
• Original Assignee: Gopesh Kumar
• Inventors: Kumar, Gopesh
• Primary Examiner(s): Daftuar, Saket K
• Application Number:
  US12/436,857
• Publication Number:
  US 20100287242A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,420 Days
• Field of Search: 709204-207, 709227-229, 705/1, 705/3, 705/7, 705/8, 705/26, 705/35, 705/36, 705/37, 705/FOR.108, 705/FOR.110, 705/FOR.111, 705/26.1, 705/26.41, 705/38, 379/202.01, 379/202.1, 370/260, 370/267, 370/270, 370/282, 370/352, 370/493
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/22 Payment schemes or models
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/016 After-sales
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1818 Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4038 with floor control

Abstract

A Conference System that allows Advisors to offer conference sessions to Users who buy conference session time through the system. All conference sessions shall be conducted over the phone. During the conference session, the Advisor shall be talking while all the Users shall be in listening only mode in order to maintain the Users privacy. Advisors and Users can email each other through the system message center before the conference session. During the conference session, the User and Advisor can chat real time online to answer specific questions. The Advisor and Users information such name, address, bank information, credit card info, email, phone numbers, etc are kept confidential through out the process and only “Account Name” is disclosed. The price per conference session varies from conference session to conference session. Each Advisor sets their individual conference session rate.

Claims

1. Method for providing a phone conference system allowing advisors to offer conference sessions to clients comprising:

a processor;

setting up, by the processor, an account for an advisor;

having an advisor click on an internet-based icon to create a conference session, by the processor, by inputting date and time, charge, subject, and description information about the conference in an online system;

providing, by the processor, a conference information link to said advisor to integrate the conference information link with online and other marketing media;

having a client click on an internet-based icon to find available conference sessions;

registering, by the processor, a user for a conference session;

notifying, by the processor, the advisor of said registration;

providing, by the processor, advisor the user account name;

allowing, by the processor, a conference call at a scheduled conference time between one or more users and an advisor;

ending, by the processor, the conference;

proceeding, by the processor, to final settlement;

calculating, by the processor, the services fees and crediting the net revenue to an advisor account balance;

crediting, by the processor, the account for an amount based upon the number of users in a conference minus service fee; and

paying the advisor.

2. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising providing, by the processor, a conference session between an advisor and one or more clients.

3. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising a phone conference system providing, by the processor, the conference session between said advisor and said clients.

4. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising providing, by the processor, a messaging center in the online system wherein users can email the advisor any questions before the conference using said messaging center, and advisors can email the user any question before the conference using said messaging center to maintain confidentiality.

5. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising checking, by the processor, with an advisory by a user to find available conference sessions.

6. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising searching, by the processor, for a conference by a conference ID or advisor name.

7. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising setting up, by the processor, an account for users.

8. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising announcing, by the processor, a message before the clients are connected to a conference session.

9. The method as described in claim 8 wherein the message announced notifies client that this is a listening only conference.

10. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising providing, by the processor, a passive conference experience for the clients.

11. The method as described in claim 10, wherein said passive experience includes listening only, wherein clients are not able to talk to the advisor or any other client in the conference.

12. The method as described in claim 10, further comprising announcing a message before the clients are connected to a passive conference session.

13. The method as described in claim 8 wherein the message announced notifies client that this during the conference, an advisor will be talking while all the clients will be in a listen only mode.

14. The method as described in claim 10, further comprising providing, by the processor, a conference chat messaging in the online system wherein clients can chat the advisor any questions during the conference using said conference chat messaging, and advisor can send chat messages and reply to a client'"'"'s question during the conference using said conference chat messaging to maintain confidentiality.

15. The method as described in claim 3, further comprising joining, by the processor, a conference by a client by providing a unique dial in ID and current PIN prior to the start of the conference session after dialing in to the appropriate number.