Coordinated Location Aware Brokering of Social Networks

• US 20110153553A1
• Filed: 12/18/2009
• Published: 06/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Christopher S. Klotz
• Original Assignee: Christopher S. Klotz
• Inventors: Klotz, Christopher S.
• Application Number:
  US12/641,502
• Publication Number:
  US 20110153553A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/607
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

Social networking has become a significant aspect of many people'"'"'s lives as they communicate with others who are members of the same social networking application. In many instances members who have joined these social networks to find other individuals with similar interests are unaware that people who have these same interests have not joined the same social network but are members of another social network. Today these social networks are discrete, jealously guarding their member profiles, and limiting their member'"'"'s ability to achieve the goal they joined the social network for. Accordingly, the invention allows members to search and manage activities on multiple social networks through a brokering service, the partner social networks deriving benefit through providing expanded resources to their own members which they do not have to acquire and also from revenue flowing from the brokering service.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

(a) providing a brokering service, the brokering service being accessible through the Internet and relating to an activity;

(b) receiving at the brokering service a request from a user, the request being associated with an aspect of the activity;

(c) retrieving from a predetermined subset of a plurality of databases information stored within the predetermined subset of databases, the retrieved information determined in dependence upon at least the request, each database of the plurality of databases being associated with a database source comprising at least one of the brokering service and at least one partner service of a plurality of partner services partnered with the brokering service;

(d) processing the retrieved data in dependence upon an indicator to generate presentation data;

(e) presenting the presentation data to the user;

(f) determining whether a service fee is payable to the database source of at least one partner service of the plurality of partner services, the determination being made in dependence upon at least the request; and

(g) where a service fee is payable to at least one partner service of the plurality of partner services storing an indication of the magnitude of the service fee within a fee database for subsequent use in paying the service fee.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein;

the predetermined subset of the plurality of databases is at least one of a database associated with the brokering service, a database associated with the brokering service and databases associated with a predetermined portion of the plurality of partner services, and all databases associated with the brokering service and the plurality of partner services.

3. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

the service fee is determined in dependence upon a ratio of the retrieved information retrieved from the one partner service of the plurality of partner services to the total retrieved information.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

the service fee is subsequently adjusted, the adjustment being determined in dependence upon an action of the user upon presentation of the presentation information to the user.

5. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

the activity relates to at least one of identifying occurrences of information within the brokering service and the plurality of partner services that match to a predetermined level information relating to the user.

6. A method according to claim 5 wherein,

the information relating to the user is stored within a database associated with at least one of the brokering service, a predetermined partner service of the plurality of partner services, and a mobile device associated with the user.

7. A method according to claim 5 wherein,

the information relating to the user comprises one set of profile information of a plurality of sets of profile information, each one of the sets of profile information of the plurality of sets of profile information being stored within a database associated with at least one of the brokering service, a partner service of the plurality of partner services, and a mobile device associated with the user.

8. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

determining the retrieved information includes determining the information based upon at least one of a service level of the user with the brokering service, a range, the range being the separation between a current location of the user and a last known location of a member registered with at least one of the brokering service and a partner service of the plurality of partner services, the member having information stored within at least one of the brokering service and the partner service of the plurality of partner services that matches information relating to the user to a predetermined degree and includes the last known location.

9. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

determining the retrieved information comprises;

firstly retrieving the information relating to members having information stored within at least one of the brokering service and the partner service of the plurality of partner services that matches information relating to the user to a predetermined degree;

establishing a location for each member whose information is retrieved;

storing the location as the last known location of the member whose information is retrieved; and

filtering the retrieved information to remove members whose information is retrieved where their separation from the user as determined by their last known location exceeds a predetermined value.

10. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

determining the retrieved information comprises retrieving the information relating to members having information stored within at least one of the brokering service and the partner service of the plurality of partner services that matches at least one set of information of a plurality of sets of information relating to the user to a predetermined degree.

11. A method according to claim 10 wherein,

each set of information of the plurality of sets of information relating to the user is stored within at least one of a database associated with the brokering service, a database associated with a partner service of the plurality of partner services, and a mobile device associated with the user.

12. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

processing the retrieved information comprises at least one of filtering the retrieved information, adjusting an image within the retrieved information to reduce the amount of data required to transmit the image, encoding the retrieved information, formatting the retrieved information, and deleting repeated retrieved information.

13. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

processing the retrieved information comprises at least one of associating, highlighting, merging, and deleting retrieved information having a common entry within a predetermined field of information stored within the database associated with at least one of the brokering service and the plurality of partner services.

14. A method according to claim 13 wherein,

the predetermined field of information relates to at least one of a name of an individual, a telephone number, a mobile device identifier, an electronic mail address, a credit card number and a social security number.

15. A method according to claim 1 wherein,

the indicator relates to at least one of a quality of wireless service for a mobile device associated with the user, a measure of service plan for a mobile device associated with the user, an aspect relating to a mobile device associated with the user, and the presence of multiple profiles relating to a single individual.

16. A method according to claim 1 further comprising:

(h) waiting a predetermined period of time;

(i) repeating steps (c), (d), and (e).

17. A method according to claim 1 further comprising:

(h) waiting a predetermined period of time;

(i) establishing a new current location for the user;

(j) establishing a new location for each individual of a plurality of individuals for whom information was retrieved in step (c);

(k) updating the presentation data to include at least one of the new location for each individual or a plurality of new ranges, each new range of the plurality of new ranges being determined in dependence upon at least the new current location of the user and the new location of an individual of the plurality of individuals.

18. A method according to claim 17 wherein,

steps (h), (i), (j), (k) are performed at least one of upon receipt of a new request from at least one of the user and a mobile device associated with the user, automatically by the brokering service based upon the activity of the user with the brokering service, in dependence upon the time of day, and in dependence upon a minimum separation between the user and an individual of the plurality of individuals meeting a predetermined value.

19. A method according to claim 1 further comprising:

(l) receiving from the user a second request, the second request relating to a request to contact an individual of a plurality of individuals for whom information was retrieved in step (c);

(m) generating a contact message from the user to the individual of the plurality of individuals, the contact message being generated in dependence upon at least one of an identity of the user within at least one of the brokering service and a partner service of the plurality of partner services, the one of the brokering service and a partner service of the plurality of partner services associated with the individual of the plurality of individuals, the one of the brokering service and a partner service of the plurality of partner services associated with the user, and content received from the user; and

(n) transmitting the contact message to the individual of the plurality of individuals.

20. A method according to claim 19 wherein,

step (n) comprises sending the contact message at least one of to the partner service of the plurality of partner services, an electronic address, and a mobile device associated with the individual of the plurality of individuals.

21. A method comprising:

(a) providing a brokering service, the brokering service being accessible through the Internet and relating to an activity;

(b) receiving at the brokering service a request from a user, the request being associated with an aspect of the activity;

(c) retrieving from a predetermined subset of a plurality of databases information stored within the predetermined subset of databases and determined in dependence upon at least the request, each database of the plurality of databases being associated with a database source comprising at least one of the brokering service and at least one partner service of a plurality of partner services partnered with the brokering service;

(d) filtering the retrieved data in dependence upon a measure of distance between the user and the last known current location of each individual of a plurality of individuals associated with a predetermined portion of the retrieved data;

(e) processing the filtered retrieved data in dependence upon an indicator to generated presentation data;

(f) presenting the presentation data to the user;

(g) determining whether a service fee is payable to the database source of at least one partner service, the determination being made in dependence upon at least the request;

(h) where a service fee is payable to the at least one partner service storing an indication of the magnitude of the service fee within a fee database for subsequent use in paying the service fee;

(i) waiting a predetermined period of time;

(j) establishing a new current location for the user;

(k) establishing a new location for each individual of a plurality of individuals for whom information was retrieved in step (c);

(l) updating the presentation data to include at least one of the new location for each individual or a plurality of new ranges, each new range of the plurality of new ranges being determined in dependence upon at least the new current location of the user and the new location of an individual of the plurality of individuals.