SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TIERED WEBSITE ACCESS

• US 20080141367A1
• Filed: 09/17/2007
• Published: 06/12/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GANZ An Ontario Partnership Consisting of SH GANZ Holdings Incorporated and 816877 Ontario Limited
• Original Assignee: Ganz
• Inventors: Ganz, Howard, Borst, Karl Joseph
• Granted Patent: US 7,983,955 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/21
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]

Abstract

A method of selling products and/or services using an interactive entertainment system. The method includes steps of: providing access to interactive content to a user at a first level of access over a computer network; selling a product and/or service to the user; responsive to the selling, providing access to the content at a second level of access over the network; receiving consent from the user to display advertisements along with the content; and responsive to the selling and the receiving, providing access to the content at a third level of access over the network. The first level of access provides first access privileges, the second level of access provides second access privileges that are excluded from the first level of access, and the third level of access provides the second access privileges and third access privileges that are excluded from the second level of access.

Claims

1. A method of selling products and/or services using an interactive entertainment system, comprising steps of:

providing access to interactive content to a user at a first level of access over a computer network, said first level of access providing first access privileges;

selling a product and/or service to said user;

responsive to said selling, providing access to said interactive content to said user at a second level of access over said computer network, said second level of access providing second access privileges that are excluded from said first level of access;

receiving consent from said user to display advertisements to said user along with said interactive content; and

responsive to said selling and said receiving, providing access to said interactive content to said user at a third level of access over said computer network, said third level of access providing said second access privileges and third access privileges that are excluded from said second level of access.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said providing access to said interactive content to said user at said first level of access includes displaying said advertisements to said user, and further comprising a step of, after said selling, disabling said advertisements.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said product and/or service is at least one of a toy, a figurine, a trading card, a consumer product, an image representing a character, a membership and a subscription.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said third access privileges include at least one of free currency, free items, prizes, discounts, priority access to contests and other activities, and access to content excluded from said first level of access and said second level of access.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising a step of, after a predetermined period of time has passed after said selling, providing access to said interactive content at a fourth level of access over said computer network, said fourth level of access providing said second access privileges without said third access privileges, and said fourth level of access requires said user to view said advertisements in order to access said interactive content.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein at said fourth level of access said user will be subject to restrictions in accessing said interactive content.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said interactive content includes images representing a world in which rooms may be obtained by said user, wherein said restrictions include said user being limited to obtaining a predetermined number of rooms.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said interactive content includes allowing said user to register one of a plurality of characters, wherein at said first level of access, said user is limited to registering one or more predetermined characters of said plurality of characters, and wherein at said second level of access, additional characters of said plurality of characters may be registered by said user.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein a code is provided with a product that was purchased, and wherein said code causes said one of said plurality of characters that is registered by said user to correspond to said product.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the product includes at least one of the code printed on a tag and the code stored in a memory device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said interactive content includes a plurality of games, wherein at said first level of access, said user is limited to playing one or more predetermined games of said plurality of games, and wherein at said second level of access, said user may play additional games of said plurality of games.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein said interactive content includes images representing a world in which rooms may be obtained by said user, wherein at said first level of access, said user is limited to obtaining a predetermined number of rooms, and wherein at said second level of access, said user may obtain more than said predetermined number of rooms.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein said second access privileges include allowing said user to access additional interactive content.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said additional interactive content includes at least one of rooms, games, chatting activities, messaging activities, sending objects to other users, and receiving objects from other users.

15. A method of selling products and/or services using an interactive entertainment system, comprising steps of:

providing access to interactive content to a user at a first level of access over a computer network, said first level of access providing first access privileges and including displaying advertisements;

selling a product and/or service to said user, said product and/or service being at least one of a toy, a figurine, a trading card, a consumer product, an image representing a character, a membership and a subscription;

responsive to said selling, providing access to said interactive content to said user at a second level of access over said computer network, said second level of access providing second access privileges that are excluded from said first level of access and includes permitting said advertisements to be disabled;

receiving consent from said user to display said advertisements to said user along with said interactive content;

responsive to said selling and said receiving said consent, providing access to said interactive content to said user at a third level of access over said computer network, said third level of access providing said second access privileges and third access privileges that are excluded from said second level of access; and

after a predetermined period of time has passed after said selling, providing access to said interactive content at a fourth level of access over said computer network, said fourth level of access providing said second access privileges without said third access privileges, and said fourth level of access requires said user to view said advertisements in order to access said interactive content.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said third access privileges include at least one of free currency, free items, prizes, discounts, priority access to contests and other activities, and access to content excluded from said first level of access and said second level of access.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein at said fourth level of access said user will be subject to restrictions in accessing said interactive content.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein said interactive content includes images representing a world in which rooms may be obtained by said user, wherein said restrictions include said user being limited to obtaining a predetermined number of rooms.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein said interactive content includes allowing said user to register one of a plurality of characters, wherein at said first level of access, said user is limited to registering one or more predetermined characters of said plurality of characters, and wherein at said second level of access, additional characters of said plurality of characters may be registered by said user.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said product and/or service is a product, wherein a code is provided with said product, and wherein said code causes said one of said plurality of characters that is registered by said user to correspond to said product.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the product includes at least one of the code printed on a tag and the code stored in a memory device.

22. The method of claim 15, wherein said interactive content includes a plurality of games, wherein at said first level of access, said user is limited to playing one or more predetermined games of said plurality of games, and wherein at said second level of access, said user may play additional games of said plurality of games.

23. The method of claim 15, wherein said interactive content includes images representing a world in which rooms may be obtained by said user, wherein at said first level of access, said user is limited to obtaining a predetermined number of rooms, and wherein at said second level of access, said user may obtain more than said predetermined number of rooms.

24. The method of claim 15, wherein said second access privileges include allowing said user to access additional interactive content.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein said additional interactive content includes at least one of rooms, games, chatting activities, messaging activities, sending objects to other users, and receiving objects from other users.