Web-based interactive meeting facility, such as for progressive announcements

• US 10,742,433 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2019
• Issued: 08/11/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meetup Incorporated (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Meetup Incorporated (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Whalin, Gregory P., Meeker, Matthew, Kamali, Peter, Heiferman, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Dasgupta, Shourjo
• Application Number:
  US16/417,393
• Publication Number:
  US 20190273627A1
• Time in Patent Office: 449 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• 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 51/18 Commands or executable codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communication real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM] H04L51/04; selective video distribution H04N21/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications

Abstract

In embodiments of the present invention improved capabilities are described for a computer system for organizing in-person gatherings of users of topic-related interest, comprising a web-based meeting management facility having a user interface accessible to multiple users, wherein each of the multiple users may use the user interface to join at least one of multiple meeting groups based on at least one of topic-related interest and geographic locale, where a user becomes a member when they join the meeting group; and a server-based progressive announcement facility for enabling an organizer to control a time-staged meeting announcement release related to a meeting group based on an announcement delivery parameter, wherein the time-staged meeting announcement release includes multiple time-staged meeting announcements each including at least one user within the multiple users.

Claims

1. At least one non-transitory computer-readable medium, carrying instructions, which when executed by at least one processor, executes instructions related to in-person gatherings of users of topic-related interest, the operations comprising:

providing a user interface accessible to multiple users, wherein each of the multiple users may use the user interface to join at least one of multiple meeting groups based on at least one of topic-related interest and geographic locale,

wherein users become members when they join the meeting group; and

enabling an organizer, via the user interface, to control a time-staged meeting announcement release related to a meeting group based on an announcement delivery parameter,

wherein the time-staged meeting announcement release includes multiple time-staged meeting announcements each including at least one user within the multiple users,

comparing topic-related interest information received from users with in-person meeting groups or in-person events in the same geographical local to identify multiple topical matches comprising in-person meeting groups or in-person events; and

generating a recommendation for at least one in-person meeting group or in-person event from the multiple topical matches,

wherein the recommendation is based at least partially on a percentage of members of an in-person meeting group that have submitted RSVPs to in-person events associated with the in-person meeting group.

2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from the organizer to start a chapter;

automatically creating the chapter, wherein the chapter corresponds to a topic and a geographic locale;

receiving from multiple users a respective same selection of the topic from multiple predefined topics, a respective same indication of the geographic locale, and a respective same selection of the chapter;

adding the multiple users to the chapter as respective members;

receiving from the organizer a selection of a date, time, and physical venue for an in-person gathering of the members of the chapter, wherein the physical venue is associated with the geographic locale; and

,

transmitting to the members data corresponding to the date, time, and physical venue.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 2, further comprising

identifying a subset of users that plan to attend the in-person gathering based on user input;

automatically determining when the in-person gathering has taken place based on the date or time received from the organizer; and

automatically polling the subset of users after the in-person gathering has taken place by transmitting a feedback request to the subset of users, wherein the feedback request is configured to obtain quantitative information, qualitative information, or both, regarding the in-person gathering.

4. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

providing meeting management resources, wherein the meeting management resources enable a meeting group organizer to manage a meeting group, and

wherein the meeting management resources enable the meeting group organizer to provide voting options for users to vote on at least one of the following;

meeting venue, meeting agenda, meeting activity, meeting time, meeting date, or any combination thereof.

5. The computer-readable medium of claim 4, further comprising:

providing to a user an indication of at least one meeting group of multiple meeting groups based on meeting group criteria received from the user;

receiving from the user a selection of a meeting group to join; and

enabling the organizer to accept the user as a new member to the meeting group and to manage meeting group user resources available to the user.

6. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the organizer, at least one request to create or schedule an in-person gathering or event associated with the at least one meeting group, wherein the at least one organizer has privileges or control over the at least one meeting group.

7. The computer-readable medium of claim 6, further comprising:

providing, to the organizer, via user interface, at least one financial management tool configured to facilitate the organizer to;

(i) accept an offer submitted by a third-party sponsor, and (ii) record revenue received from the third-party sponsor, or provide an advertisement related to the third-party sponsor.

8. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the announcement is an announcement to users that a new meeting group is forming, and that the users should join to become members of the new group, and wherein at least one of the stages of an announcement release is restricted to a subset of users signed up for the new meeting group.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the staging has at least a first stage announcement at a date and time for at least a first user, and a second stage meeting announcement at a subsequent date and time for at least a second user.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the announcement delivery parameter is related to a user'"'"'s status, and wherein the status is being a co-organizer, a new member, or an active member of an existing meeting group where active is determined by meeting attendance over a period of time as selected by the organizer.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the parameter is related to user being included on a list maintained by the organizer.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the organizer is able to utilize a member database maintained by the meeting management facility for creating a member list associated with the staged announcement releases, and wherein the member list is a preferred member list.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein an announcement release stage subsequent to the first announcement stage is associated with a notification of a meeting as a meeting of interest to other users as a result of the meeting achieving a predetermined number of RSVPs at the time of the subsequent announcement release.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the announcement is a meeting announcement that includes attendance information, and wherein the attendance information includes members that have already signed up for the meeting.

15. At least one non-transitory computer-readable medium, carrying instructions, which when executed by at least one processor, executes instructions related to in-person gatherings of users of topic-related interest, the operations comprising:

providing a user interface accessible to multiple users, wherein each of the multiple users may use the user interface to join at least one of multiple meeting groups based on at least one of topic-related interest and geographic locale,

wherein users become members when they join the meeting group; and

enabling an organizer, via the user interface, to control a time-staged meeting announcement release related to a meeting group based on an announcement delivery parameter,

wherein the time-staged meeting announcement release includes multiple time-staged meeting announcements each including at least one user within the multiple users,

wherein an announcement release stage subsequent to the first announcement stage is associated with a notification of a meeting as a meeting of interest to other users as a result of the meeting achieving a predetermined number of RSVPs at the time of the subsequent announcement release.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:

receiving a request from the organizer to start a chapter;

automatically creating the chapter, wherein the chapter corresponds to a topic and a geographic locale;

receiving from multiple users a respective same selection of the topic from multiple predefined topics, a respective same indication of the geographic locale, and a respective same selection of the chapter;

adding the multiple users to the chapter as respective members;

receiving from the organizer a selection of a date, time, and physical venue for an in-person gathering of the members of the chapter, wherein the physical venue is associated with the geographic locale; and

,

transmitting to the members data corresponding to the date, time, and physical venue.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:

providing meeting management resources, wherein the meeting management resources enable a meeting group organizer to manage a meeting group, and

wherein the meeting management resources enable the meeting group organizer to provide voting options for users to vote on at least one of the following;

meeting venue, meeting agenda, meeting activity, meeting time, meeting date, or any combination thereof.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:

receiving, from the organizer, at least one request to create or schedule an in-person gathering or event associated with the at least one meeting group, wherein the at least one organizer has privileges or control over the at least one meeting group.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the announcement is an announcement to users that a new meeting group is forming, and that the users should join to become members of the new group, and wherein at least one of the stages of an announcement release is restricted to a subset of users signed up for the new meeting group.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the staging has at least a first stage announcement at a date and time for at least a first user, and a second stage meeting announcement at a subsequent date and time for at least a second user.