PROMOTIONAL CONTENT PROVIDED PRIVATELY VIA CLIENT DEVICES

• US 20130060641A1
• Filed: 06/01/2012
• Published: 03/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Faisal Al Gharabally
• Original Assignee: Faisal Al Gharabally
• Inventors: Al Gharabally, Faisal
• Application Number:
  US13/487,045
• Publication Number:
  US 20130060641A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.66
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/63 for services of sales data processing systems or methods specially adapted for electronic commerce G06Q30/00

Abstract

Techniques are described for providing a promotional content server system for conditionally displaying promotional content to qualified users of client devices. In certain situations, advertising providers are enabled to remotely create and configure promotional offers via interactions with the promotional content server system. Information related to each offer is encoded as a promotional package and stored on client mobile devices of users, including in some situations to protect the stored packages to prevent unauthorized access to the offer or its associated terms and rewards. A client-side software module on a user'"'"'s mobile device determines whether the user qualifies to receive the offer for a package based at least in part on private information stored on the client device, without making such information externally available. If the user is qualified, the client-side module displays an indication of the offer to the user on the mobile device.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving, by one or more configured processors of a mobile computing device, information about multiple promotional packages that are sent from at least one remote computing server of an advertising system, each promotional package having an associated promotional offer and having information that includes associated eligibility criteria for that associated promotional offer and one or more associated rewards for that associated promotional offer;

encrypting the information about the multiple promotional packages, and storing the encrypted information on the mobile computing device to prevent any unauthorized access to the information about the multiple promotional packages;

retrieving, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, private data stored on the mobile computing device related to prior activities of a first user of the mobile computing device, the prior activities including one or more of a history of commercial transactions of the first user and of a history of locations of the first user;

analyzing, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, the retrieved private data to determine one or more patterns of prior behavioral activities of the first user;

determining, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, and for each of the multiple promotional packages, whether the first user qualifies for the associated promotional offer of the promotional package based on whether the determined one or more patterns of prior behavioral activities of the first user satisfy the associated eligibility criteria for that promotional offer, the determining including decrypting at least some of the stored encrypted information and being performed without making any of the retrieved private data or information about the determined patterns of prior behavioral activities accessible externally to the mobile computing device; and

for each of the multiple promotional packages, if it is determined that the first user does not qualify for the associated promotional offer of the promotional package, preventing the first user from obtaining access to any information about the associated promotional offer of the promotional package, and if it is determined that the first user does qualify for the associated promotional offer of the promotional package;

generating, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, a redemption token for use by the first user in obtaining the one or more associated rewards for the associated promotional offer of the promotional package; and

displaying, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, the generated redemption token to the first user on the mobile computing device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the retrieved private data includes both of the history of commercial transactions of the first user and the history of locations of the first user, wherein the determined one or more patterns of prior behavioral activities of the first user include a first pattern of multiple purchases of one or more products of one or more specified product types at one or more specified locations, and wherein the first user is determined to qualify for the associated promotional offer of a first promotional package of the multiple promotional packages based on the first pattern satisfying the associated eligibility criteria for the associated promotional offer of the first promotional package.

3. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving, by one or more configured processors of a mobile computing device of a first user, information about multiple promotional offers, the received information indicating, for each of the multiple promotional offers, one or more associated eligibility criteria for the promotional offer and one or more associated rewards for the promotional offer;

storing the received information on the mobile computing device in a manner that is not accessible to the first user;

retrieving, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, private data stored on the mobile computing device related to prior activities of the first user;

analyzing, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, the retrieved private data related to the prior activities of the first user in order to determine one or more prior behavioral activities of the first user;

determining, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, whether the first user qualifies for a first promotional offer of the multiple promotional offers based at least in part on whether the determined one or more prior behavioral activities of the first user satisfy the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the first promotional offer, the determining being performed without making the retrieved private data or information about the determined prior behavioral activities accessible externally to the mobile computing device; and

if it is determined that the first user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional offer, displaying to the first user on the mobile computing device information that enables the first user to obtain the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional offer, and otherwise preventing the first user from obtaining access to the information that enables the first user to obtain the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional offer.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein it is determined that the first user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional offer, and wherein the method further comprises generating, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, a redemption token for the first promotional offer and displaying the generated redemption token to the first user on the mobile computing device to enable the first user to obtain the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional offer.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the first promotional offer is part of a first defined promotional package that further indicates a first encoding scheme for generating redemption tokens for the first promotional offer, and wherein the generating of the redemption token is performed using the first encoding scheme.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the multiple promotional offers further include a second promotional offer that is part of a second defined promotional package distinct from the first defined promotional package, wherein the second defined promotional package includes configuration information for a second encoding scheme that is distinct from the first encoding scheme, wherein the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the second promotional offer are distinct from the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the first promotional offer, wherein it is determined by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device that the first user qualifies to obtain access to the second promotional offer based at least in part on the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the second promotional offer, and wherein the method further comprises generating, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, a second redemption token using the second encoding scheme for use in redeeming the second promotional offer.

7. The method of claim 3 wherein it is determined that the first user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional offer, and wherein the method further comprises:

displaying to the first user on the mobile computing device the information that enables the first user to obtain the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional offer;

determining, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, that the first user does not qualify to obtain access to a second promotional offer of the multiple promotional offers based at least in part on the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the second promotional offer; and

preventing the first user from obtaining access to the one or more rewards associated with the second promotional offer based on the determining that the first user does not qualify to obtain the access to the second promotional offer.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the first promotional offer and the second promotional offer are alternative promotional offers included within a single defined promotional package and have distinct associated eligibility criteria corresponding to distinct prior user behavioral activities of the first user.

9. The method of claim 3 wherein the first promotional offer and a second promotional offer of the multiple offers are alternative promotional offers included within a single defined promotional package and have distinct associated eligibility criteria corresponding to distinct prior user behavioral activities of the first user, wherein it is determined that the first user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional offer, and wherein the method further comprises:

displaying to the first user on the mobile computing device the information that enables the first user to obtain the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional offer;

determining, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, that the first user does not qualify to obtain access to the second promotional offer based at least in part on the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the second promotional offer; and

preventing the first user from obtaining access to the one or more rewards associated with the second promotional offer based on the determining that the first user does not qualify to obtain the access to the second promotional offer.

10. The method of claim 3 wherein the method is performed by one or more software modules executing on the mobile computing device to configure the one or more processors, wherein the private data stored on the mobile computing device includes data generated by one or more application programs executing on the mobile computing device that are provided by one or more entities distinct from a first entity that provides the one or more software modules, and wherein the retrieving of the private data stored on the mobile computing device includes interacting with the one or more executing application programs using configuration information provided by the first entity that is specific to the one or more executing application programs.

11. The method of claim 3 wherein the method is performed by one or more software modules executing on the mobile computing device to configure the one or more processors, wherein the private data stored on the mobile computing device includes data generated by one or more application programs executing on the mobile computing device that are provided by one or more entities distinct from a first entity that provides the one or more software modules, and wherein the retrieving of the private data stored on the mobile computing device includes retrieving and decoding stored data generated from the one or more application programs by using configuration information provided by the first entity that is specific to the one or more application programs.

12. The method of claim 3 further comprising retrieving, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, additional private data that is related to the prior activities of the first user and that is stored externally to the mobile computing device, and wherein the determining of the one or more prior behavioral activities of the first user is further based in part on the additional private data, the retrieving of the additional private data including interacting with one or more other computing devices of the first user to obtain confidential data for the first user that is stored on the one or more other computing devices.

13. The method of claim 3 further comprising retrieving, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, additional private data that is related to the prior activities of the first user and that is stored externally to the mobile computing device, and wherein the determining of the one or more prior behavioral activities of the first user is further based in part on the additional private data, the retrieving of the additional private data including interacting with one or more user accounts of the first user that are provided by remote network-accessible computing systems to obtain confidential data for the first user that is associated with the one or more user accounts.

14. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

receiving information about one or more triggering criteria that are associated with one or more actions performable by the mobile computing device;

determining, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, that the one or more triggering criteria are currently satisfied; and

initiating, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, performance of the one or more actions.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the one or more actions include monitoring for availability of one or more promotional packages from one or more sources external to the mobile computing device, wherein the triggering criteria are based at least in part on one or more of a current location of the mobile computing device and of a current time and of current operating characteristics of the mobile computing device, and wherein the initiating of the performance of the one or more actions includes downloading one or more promotional packages from the one or more sources external to the mobile computing device.

16. The method of claim 3 further comprising, before the determining of whether the first user qualifies for the first promotional offer:

filtering, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, one or more of the multiple promotional offers as not being of interest to the first user, the filtering being based at least in part on the retrieved private data, the filtered one or more offers not including the first promotional offer; and

and wherein the determining of whether the first user qualifies for the first promotional offer further includes determining, for each of the multiple promotional offers other than the filtered one or more offers, whether the first user qualifies for that promotional offer based on the one or more eligibility criteria associated with that promotional offer.

17. The method of claim 3 further comprising, for each of the multiple offers other than the first promotional offer:

determining, by the one or more configured processors of the mobile computing device, whether the first user qualifies for the promotional offer based at least in part on the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the promotional offer; and

if it is determined that the first user qualifies to obtain access to the promotional offer, providing information to the first user that enables the first user to obtain the one or more rewards associated with the promotional offer, and otherwise preventing the first user from obtaining access to information about the promotional offer.

18. The method of claim 3 wherein the receiving of the information about the multiple promotional offers includes at least one of the mobile computing device contacting a remote server system to request at least one of the multiple promotional offers, of the mobile computing device receiving at least one of the multiple promotional offers from a communication directed to the mobile computing device from a remote server system, and of the mobile computing device receiving at least one of the multiple promotional offers via a broadcast transmission sent by an external device.

19. The method of claim 3 wherein the stored received information on the mobile computing device is encrypted in a manner that is accessible by one or more software modules executing on the mobile computing device to configure the one or more processors.

20. The method of claim 3 wherein the received information for the first promotional offer includes the one or more associated eligibility criteria for the first promotional offer but does not include additional information associated with the first promotional offer, and wherein the method further comprises not obtaining the additional information unless it is determined that the first user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional offer.

21. The method of claim 3 wherein the retrieved private data related to the prior activities of the first user includes data corresponding to at least one of prior commercial transactions of the first user and of prior locations of the first user.

22. The method of claim 3 wherein the retrieved private data related to the prior activities of the first user includes data corresponding to prior commercial transactions of the first user, to prior locations of the first user, and to prior interactions of the first user with the mobile computing device.

23. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored contents that configure a computing device to perform a method, the method comprising:

storing information about first promotional content on the configured computing device without providing a user of the configured computing device with access to the stored information, the first promotional content being associated with one or more prerequisite criteria and one or more rewards;

retrieving, by the configured computing device, private data stored on the configured computing device related to prior activities of the user;

determining, by the configured computing device, whether the user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional content based at least in part on whether the prior activities of the user satisfy the one or more prerequisite criteria associated with the first promotional content, the automatic determining being performed without making the retrieved private data accessible externally to the configured computing device by any entities other than the user; and

if it is determined that the user qualifies for the first promotional content, providing to the user access to the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content, and otherwise preventing the user from obtaining the access to the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content.

24. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the method further comprises analyzing, by the configured computing device, the retrieved private data related to the prior activities of the user and determining one or more prior behavioral activities of the user based on the analyzing, and wherein the determining of whether the prior activities of the user satisfy the one or more prerequisite criteria associated with the first promotional content includes determining that the determined one or more prior behavioral activities of the user satisfy the one or more prerequisite criteria.

25. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the configured computing device is a mobile client device of the user, wherein the first promotional content is part of a defined promotional package that includes at least one promotional offer, wherein the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content include a monetary benefit related to purchase of a product, wherein the one or more prerequisite criteria are eligibility criteria for the at least one promotional offer, wherein it is determined that the user qualifies for the first promotional content, and wherein the method further comprises using the mobile client device to provide the monetary benefit as part of a subsequent purchase of the product by the user.

26. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the first promotional content includes digital content having at least one of digital media data and of executable software, wherein the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content include access to the digital content, wherein the determining of whether the prior activities of the user satisfy the one or more prerequisite criteria associated with the first promotional content includes determining that the prior activities of the user from the retrieved data do satisfy the one or more prerequisite criteria associated with the first promotional content, and wherein the method further comprises providing to the user access to the digital content on the configured computing device.

27. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the stored contents are instructions that, when executed, program the configured computing device to perform the method, and wherein the computer-readable medium is a memory of the configured computing device.

28. A system, comprising:

one or more processors;

one or more storage devices that store private data related to prior activities of a user of a mobile device and that store information about first promotional content in a manner that is inaccessible to the user, the first promotional content being associated with one or more eligibility criteria and one or more rewards; and

one or more modules that are configured to, when executed by at least one of the one or more processors, provide to the user conditional access to the first promotional content by;

retrieving the stored private data, and identifying at least one of the prior activities of the user from the retrieved private data;

determining whether the user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional content based at least in part on whether the identified at least one prior activities of the user satisfy the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the first promotional content; and

if it is determined that the user qualifies to obtain access to the first promotional content, providing to the user access to the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content, and otherwise preventing the user from obtaining the access to the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content.

29. The system of claim 28 wherein the one or more processors and the one or more storage devices are part of the mobile device, and wherein the one or more modules includes software instructions for execution on the mobile device to configure the mobile device to perform the providing to the user of the conditional access to the first promotional content.

30. The system of claim 29 wherein the providing to the user of the conditional access to the first promotional content further comprises analyzing the retrieved private data related to the prior activities of the user and determining one or more prior behavioral activities of the user based on the analyzing, and wherein the determining of whether the prior activities of the user satisfy the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the first promotional content includes determining that the determined one or more prior behavioral activities of the user satisfy the one or more eligibility criteria.

31. The system of claim 29 wherein the first promotional content is part of a defined promotional package that includes at least one promotional offer, wherein the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content include a monetary benefit related to acquisition of a product, wherein it is determined that the user qualifies for the first promotional content, and wherein the providing to the user of the conditional access to the first promotional content further comprises using the mobile device to provide the monetary benefit as part of a subsequent acquisition by the user of the product.

32. The system of claim 28 wherein the first promotional content includes digital content having at least one of digital media data and of executable software, wherein the one or more rewards associated with the first promotional content include access to the digital content, wherein the determining of whether the prior activities of the user satisfy the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the first promotional content includes determining that the prior activities of the user from the retrieved data do satisfy the one or more eligibility criteria associated with the first promotional content, and wherein the providing to the user of the conditional access to the first promotional content further comprises providing access to the digital content on the mobile device.

33. The system of claim 28 wherein the system comprises one or more server computing systems that provide the information about the first promotional content.

34. The system of claim 28 wherein the one or more modules consist of one or more means for performing the providing to the user of the conditional access to the first promotional content.