Call limiter for web services

• US 7,908,363 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2007
• Issued: 03/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kumar, Amit, Secthana, Sidharta, Kothari, Pankaj
• Primary Examiner(s): Walsh; John B.
• Application Number:
  US11/951,138
• Publication Number:
  US 20090106821A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,196 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]

Abstract

Embodiments of methods, apparatuses, devices and systems associated with web services are disclosed. In a particular implementation, web services calls from one or more subscribers to a first server location may be tracked. One or more other server locations may be contacted to determine whether additional web services calls for the at least one of the one or more subscribers are available in response to at least one of the one or more subscribers reaching an established subscriber limit.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

tracking, by a first server location comprising at least one computing platform comprising at least one processor, web services calls from one or more subscribers to the first server location;

determining, by the first server location, whether at least one of the one or more subscribers has reached a subscriber limit for the web services calls processed by the first server location, the subscriber limit comprising a threshold number of web services calls; and

contacting one or more other server locations via an electronic network to determine whether additional web services calls for the at least one of the one or more subscribers are available in response to the at least one of the one or more subscribers reaching the subscriber limit for the web services calls processed by the first server location; and

leasing, by the first server location, one or more additional web services calls from one or more of the other server locations in response to an availability of additional web services calls by the one or more other server locations, wherein in response to the leasing, the subscriber limit is increased to process the one or more additional web services calls by the first server location.

2. The method of claim 1, and further comprising:

in response to a request from a second computing platform, leasing, by the first server location, additional web services calls to a second server location, if said subscriber limit associated with one of the subscribers has not been reached for said first server location.

3. The method of claim 1, and further comprising:

contacting, by the server location, at least one successive other server location of the one or more other server locations to determine whether additional web services calls are available for that subscriber in response to an unavailability of additional web services calls at a contacted one of the one or more other server locations.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said subscriber limit comprises the threshold number web services calls for the one or more subscribers to be processed by the first server location.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein an order for contacting the other server locations is determined based at least in part on one or more prior contacts with the other server locations.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said subscriber limit is based at least in part on a distribution of prior web services calls from a particular subscriber to the server locations and/or one or more subscriber preferences.

7. An article comprising:

one or more memories having instructions stored thereon which are executable by a processor to;

track web services calls from one or more subscribers to a first server location;

determine whether at least one of the one or more subscribers has reached a subscriber limit for the web services calls processed by the first server location, the subscriber limit comprising a threshold number of web services calls;

contact one or more other server locations via an electronic network to determine whether additional web services calls for the at least one of the one or more subscribers are available in response to the at least one of the one or more subscribers reaching the subscriber limit for the web services calls processed by the first server location; and

lease one or more additional web services calls from one or more of the other server locations in response to an availability of additional web services calls by the one or more other server locations, wherein in response to the leasing, the subscriber limit is increased to process the one or more additional web services calls by the first server location.

8. The article of claim 7, wherein said instructions are further executable to:

contact at least one successive other server location of the one or more other server locations to determine whether additional web services calls are available for that subscriber in response to an unavailability of additional web services calls at a contacted one of the one or more other server locations.

9. The article of claim 7, wherein said subscriber limit comprises a portion of a total limit of web services calls for one or more subscribers.

10. The article of claim 7, wherein an order for contacting the other server locations is determined based at least in part on one or more prior contacts with the other server locations.

11. The article of claim 7, wherein said subscriber limit is based at least in part on a distribution of prior web services calls from a particular subscriber to the server locations and/or one or more subscriber preferences.

12. The article of claim 7, wherein said instructions are further executable to:

in response to a request from a second computing platform, lease additional web services calls to a second server location, if said subscriber limit associated with one of the subscribers has not been reached for said first server location.

13. An apparatus comprising:

a computing platform comprising at least one processor to track web services calls from one or more subscribers to a first server location;

said computing platform further to determine whether at least one of said one or more subscribers has reached a call limit for the web services calls associated with said first server location, the call limit comprising a threshold number of web services calls;

said computing platform further to contact another computing platform via an electronic network to attempt to lease additional web services calls from another server location for said one of said one or more subscribers in response to one of said subscribers reaching said call limit for the web services calls; and

said computing platform further to increase the call limit to process the additional web services calls by the first server location in response to a successful attempt to lease the additional web services calls.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, said at least one processor further to lease one or more additional web services calls from the contacted computing platform in response to an availability of additional web services calls at the contacted computing platform.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, said at least one processor further to contact at least one successive other computing platform to attempt to lease additional web services calls from other server locations in response to an unavailability of additional web services calls at the contacted computing platform.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein said call limit comprises a portion of a total limit of web services calls for one or more subscribers.

17. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein said call limit is based at least in part on a distribution of prior web services calls from a particular subscriber to the server locations and/or one or more subscriber preferences.

18. The apparatus of claim 13, said at least one processor further to lease additional web services calls to a second computing platform, in response to a request from said second computing platform, and in response to said call limit associated with one of the subscribers not having been reached for said computing platform.

19. A system comprising:

means for processing one or more web services calls comprising a first server location including at least one computing platform comprising at least one processor;

means for tracking a number of web services calls to said means for processing from one or more subscribers;

means for determining whether at least one of the one or more subscribers has reached a subscriber limit for the web services calls processed by the first server location, the subscriber limit comprising a threshold number of web services calls; and

means for contacting other server locations via an electronic network in response to the at least one of the subscribers reaching the subscriber limit for the web services calls processed by the first server location;

means for leasing one or more additional web services calls from one or more of the other server locations in response to an availability of additional web services calls by the one or more other server locations, wherein in response to the leasing, the subscriber limit is increased to process the one or more additional web services calls by the first server location.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein said subscriber limit comprises a portion of a total limit of web services calls for one or more subscribers.

21. The system of claim 19, and further comprising:

means for determining said subscriber limit, based at least in part on a distribution of prior web services calls from a particular subscriber to the server locations and/or one or more subscriber preferences.

22. The system of claim 19, and further comprising:

means for leasing one or more web services calls to one of said other server locations in response to a request from said second server location, and in response to a subscriber not having reached said subscriber limit at said means for processing.