ACCESS CONTROL

• US 20080287096A1
• Filed: 01/24/2008
• Published: 11/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: CVON
• Inventors: Aaltonen, Janne, Ahopelto, Timo, Antikainen, Ismo
• Granted Patent: US 8,254,880 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/406
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

A monitoring device makes decision on whether a service requested by a consumer is a sponsored service to the specific consumer or not based on sponsoring rules, i.e. the delivery of the requested service to the consumer can be sponsored if a sponsoring value of the consumer is sufficient in relation to a charge of delivery of the requested service. The sponsoring rules contain various pieces of information for recognizing a sponsored service and for determining the sponsoring value and the cost of the delivery. The sponsoring of different services to different consumers can be controlled, created, deleted, maintained or modified by means of the sponsoring rules. The sponsor, such an advertiser is able to control the cost of sponsoring by affecting the sponsoring value.

Claims

1. An access control method, comprising:

receiving a service request from a mobile terminal of a recipient;

determining a resource requirement for provision of the requested service;

determining a sponsoring value for sponsoring the requested service to the specific recipient based on sponsoring rules, if the requested service is a sponsored service; and

sponsoring the provision of the requested service to the recipient if the sponsoring value of the recipient reaches a predetermined level in relation to the determined resource requirement for provision of the requested service.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising:

enabling an unsponsored provision of the requested service to the recipient if the sponsoring value of the recipient for the requested service is not sufficient in relation to the determined resource requirement for provision of the requested service or if the requested service is not a sponsored service.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 or 2, comprising:

informing the recipient of a sponsoring party, if the provision of the requested service to the recipient is sponsored.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, comprising:

updating a sponsoring database with data indicative of the sponsored provision of the requested service.

5. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the sponsoring comprises one or more of following events:

a delivery free of charge;

a delivery with a discounted resource requirement;

a delivery with an extra benefit.

6. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising:

applying a resource quota for the sponsored provision of the service to an account associated with a sponsoring party.

7. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the requested service may include one or more of following services;

a web page, a browsing, a file download, a video download, a picture download, a music download, a document download, a streaming service, a video service, a voice service, a messaging service, a music service, and any other digital content or service which can be accessed through a communications system.

8. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the sponsoring rules include predetermined sponsoring values for sponsoring the requested service to a specific recipient or an algorithm for determining sponsoring values for sponsoring the requested service based on at least one further piece of information contained in the sponsoring rules.

9. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the sponsoring rules include one or more of the following pieces of information:

a data plan indicating resource requirements for each sponsored service to a specific recipient; and

data size of the sponsored service.

10. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the sponsoring rules include an algorithm for determining the resource requirement for provision of a service based on at least one other piece of information in the sponsoring rules.

11. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the sponsoring rules include one or more of the following:

a data plan indicating resource requirements for each sponsored service to a specific recipient;

profiles of recipients;

a data plan indicating resource requirements for each sponsor;

a data plan indicating resource requirements for each service request receiver;

status of recipients;

a list of services which are sponsored to which recipients;

recipient groups and/or recipient profiles;

an allowed number of accesses to a sponsored service;

a number of accesses already made to a sponsored service;

a location of a recipient;

historical data of a recipient'"'"'s behavior;

historical data on a behavior of a profile of recipients;

information of direct advertisement sent to a recipient;

information of content vouchers or coupons sent to a recipient;

codes of vouchers or coupons sent to a recipient;

a time of day or week or month or date of a sponsored access;

amount of time which can be used to access a sponsored service;

amount of data which can be consumed when accessing a sponsored service;

amount of money which can be used when accessing a sponsored service;

list of sponsored services;

actions to be made after a sponsoring event;

actions related to a sponsoring event;

actions to be made before a sponsoring event.

13. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12, comprising:

indicating the sponsored resource quota to the recipient, if the provision of the requested service is not fully sponsored.

14. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 13, comprising:

allowing the recipient to choose between continuing and aborting the access, if the provision of the requested service is not sponsored.

15. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 14, comprising:

sending at least one advertisement message to the customer before and/or during and/or after the provision of the service.

16. A method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said advertisement message contains an indication of at least one sponsored service.

17. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 16, wherein the service request is a search query.

18. A method as claimed in claim 17, comprising:

sending to a customer a search query response containing search results;

indicating in the search query response the one of said search results which are linked to sponsored services.

22. A method as claimed in any one of claims 18 to 21, comprising:

receiving from a search service provider a search query response containing search results, the search query response being arranged to indicate the one or ones of said search results which are linked to sponsored services; and

sending the search query response further to the customer.

23. A method as claimed in claim 22, comprising:

sending to the search service provider in association of a search query at least one or more of the following pieces of sponsoring rules information;

a data plan indicating resource quotas for each sponsored service to a specific recipient so as to enable the search service provider determine the one or ones of said search results which are linked to sponsored services.

24. A method according to any one of claims 17 to 23, wherein said service request from the mobile terminal of the recipient is responsive to activation of one of said search results in the search query response by the customer.

25. A method according to any one of claims 18 to 24, comprising:

billing the provision of the requested service to the search service provider.

26. An access control system, comprising means for performing the steps of any one of method claims 1 to 25.

27. An access control system as claimed in claim 26, wherein said access control system is at least partly embodied in a charging gateway of a communication system.

28. A database for storing the sponsoring rules utilized in the steps of any one of method claims 1 to 25.

29. A database as claimed in claim 28, wherein said database is configured to communicate with an access control system as claimed in claim 23 or 24.

30. An advertisement system, comprising a database as claimed in claim 28 and arranged to communicate with the access control system as claimed in claim 26 or 27.

34. A search service system as claimed in claim 32 or 33, wherein said access control system is a system as claimed in claim 26 or 27.

35. A search service system as claimed in any one of claims 31 to 34, comprising means for communicating with a database as claimed in claims 28 to 29 or with an advertisement system as claimed in claim 30.

37. A search service system as claimed in 36, comprising means for communicating with a database as claimed in claims 28 to 29 or with an advertisement system as claimed in claim 30.

38. A search service system as claimed in 36 or 37, wherein said access control system is a system as claimed in claim 26 or 27.

39. A computer program, particularly on a computer readable storage medium, comprising program code which, when executed on a computer device, performs the steps of any one of claims 1 to 25.

12. A method as claimed in any one of claims I to 11, comprising:

indicating the lack of sponsoring to the recipient, if the provision of the requested service is not sponsored.

19. A method as claimed in any one of claims I to 18, comprising:

receiving an initial search query response containing search results from a search service provider;

determining which ones of the received search results is linked to services which are sponsored to the customer based on said sponsoring rules;

providing sponsoring information which indicates the one or ones of said search results in the initial search query response which are linked to sponsored services; and

sending both said initial search query response and said provided sponsoring information to the customer.

21. A method as claimed in claim 19 or 20, comprising:

receiving at least one piece of information for the sponsoring rules from the search service provider.

20. A method as claimed in any one of claims I to 19, comprising:

receiving an initial search query response containing search results from a search service provider;

determining which ones of the received search results is linked to services which are sponsored to the customer based on said sponsoring rules;

modifying the initial search query response to indicate the one or ones of said search results which are linked to sponsored services; and

sending the modified search query response to the customer.

31. A search service system, comprising:

means for receiving a search query from a mobile terminal of a recipient;

means for carrying out a search and obtaining search results in response to receiving said search query;

means for determining which one or ones of the search results is linked to services which are sponsored to the customer based on sponsoring rules;

means for providing a search query response which indicates which one or ones of said search results are linked to sponsored services; and

sending the search query response to the customer.

32. A search service system as claimed in claim 31, wherein said means for receiving and said means for sending are configured to communicate with the recipient via an access control system of a connectivity provider system.

33. A search service system as claimed in claim 32, comprising:

means for receiving from the access control system, in association of a search query at least one or more of the following pieces of sponsoring rules information;

a data plan indicating resource requirements for each sponsored service to a specific recipient;

a data plan indicating resource requirements for each sponsor;

a data plan indicating resource requirements for each service request receiver.

36. A search service system, comprising:

means for receiving a search query from a mobile terminal of a recipient via an access control system of a connectivity provider system;

means for carrying out a search and obtaining search results in response to receiving said search query;

means for sending a search query response containing the search results to the customer via the access control system; and

means for sending, to the access control system, at least one piece of information for sponsoring rules so as to enable the access control system to determine which one or ones of said search results are linked to sponsored services.