Providing an actionable event in an intercepted text message for a mobile device based on customized user information

• US 8,170,584 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2006
• Issued: 05/01/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pinterest, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kim, Ben, Henderson, Irvin, Zhu, Tong
• Primary Examiner(s): Corsaro, Nick
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lebassi, Amanuel
• Application Number:
  US11/422,534
• Publication Number:
  US 20070282954A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,156 Days
• Field of Search: 455/433, 455/456.3
• US Class Current: 455/456.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/063 Content adaptation, e.g. replacement of unsuitable content
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/166 at the transport layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

A network device, method, and apparatus are directed towards intercepting a message, such as an SMS, EMS, MMS message, email message, or the like, from a source device directed towards a mobile device. The intercepted message'"'"'s contents are analyzed. In addition, a mobile user profile is determined from characteristics of the mobile device and tracked usage of a mobile user of the mobile device. An actionable event may then be inserted into the intercepted message based, in part, on the analysis and the mobile user profile. The modified message is then provided to the mobile device, where the mobile user may select the actionable event to receive non-requested content.

Claims

1. A network device for use in providing content to a mobile device over a network, comprising:

a memory component for storing data; and

a processing component configured to execute data that enables actions, including;

intercepting a message from a source device directed to a mobile device;

determining a mobile user profile from characteristics of the mobile device, and from a tracked usage of the mobile device by a mobile user;

analyzing content of the intercepted message;

analyzing the tracked usage of the mobile device to detect one or more patterns of usage over time;

analyzing the one or more patterns of usage over time to determine one or more consumer categories for which to describe the mobile user;

modifying the intercepted message with an actionable event based on the mobile user profile, the detected one or more patterns of usage over time, the one or more consumer categories, and the analyzed content;

providing the modified message to the mobile device, wherein the mobile user is enabled to select the actionable event to receive non-requested content; and

revising the mobile user profile based on a determination that the actionable event is not selected by the mobile user.

2. The network device of claim 1, wherein determining the mobile user profile further comprises determining a geographic location of the mobile device, and wherein modifying the intercepted message further comprises also employing the geographic location to determine the actionable event with which the intercepted message is modified.

3. The network device of claim 1, wherein the tracked usage of the mobile device further includes logging indirect information that includes a weather condition on a day when the mobile device is used to access a particular website.

4. The network device of claim 1, wherein modifying the intercepted message further comprises weighting different elements within the mobile user profile and the detected one or more patterns to modify the intercepted message.

5. The network device of claim 1, wherein the intercepted message is at least one of a Short Message Service (SMS) message, Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) message, or an Enhanced Message Service (EMS) message.

6. The network device of claim 1, wherein the actionable event further comprises at least one of a text message, a graphic, an audio file, or a video file that is arranged to prompt an action over the network by the mobile user of the mobile device.

7. The network device of claim 1, wherein modifying the intercepted message further comprises inserting the actionable event into the intercepted message.

8. The network device of claim 1, wherein modifying the intercepted message further comprises replacing the contents of the intercepted message with at least a portion of the intercepted message and the actionable event.

9. The network device of claim 1, wherein modifying the intercepted message further comprises replacing the contents of the intercepted message with a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or a phone number to the contents of the intercepted message and the non-requested content.

10. A non-transitory processor readable storage medium comprising instructions, wherein the execution of the instructions provides for managing a communication over a network with a mobile device by enabling actions, including:

intercepting a message from a source device directed to a mobile device;

analyzing content of the intercepted message;

determining a mobile user profile from characteristics of the mobile device, and from a tracked usage of the mobile device by a mobile user;

modifying the mobile user profile to include a detected one or more patterns of usage determined from the tracked usage of the mobile device by the mobile user over time;

modifying the mobile user profile to further include a determined one or more consumer categories for which to describe the mobile user based on analysis of the detected one or more patterns of usage;

selecting non-requested content based on the analysis, and the mobile user profile including the detected one or more patterns of usage;

generating an actionable event based on the non-requested content and at least one characteristic of the mobile device;

modifying the intercepted message by combing the actionable event with the intercepted message;

forwarding the modified message to the mobile device, wherein the mobile user is enabled to select the actionable event to receive non-requested content; and

revising the mobile user profile if the actionable event is not selected.

11. The non-transitory processor readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the generating the actionable event is further based on weightings for elements in the mobile user profile including weightings for the one or more patterns of usage over.

12. The non-transitory processor readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the actionable event further comprises at least one of a text message, a graphic, an audio file, or a video file that is arranged to prompt an action over the network by the mobile user of the mobile device.

13. The non-transitory processor readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the non-requested content further comprises at least one of the following:

an advertisement, a notice of an event related to the content of the intercepted message, additional content from the source device, or instructions on an available service.

14. The non-transitory processor readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the characteristics of the mobile device are determined from at least one of a mobile device identifier or a mobile user agent profile.

15. A method of managing a mobile communication over a network, comprising:

intercepting a message from a source device directed to a mobile device;

analyzing content of the intercepted message;

determining a mobile user profile from characteristics of the mobile device, and from a tracked usage of the mobile device by a mobile user;

analyzing the tracked usage of the mobile device to detect one or more patterns of usage of the mobile device over time by the mobile user;

analyzing the one or more patterns of usage to identify at least one consumer category for which to classify the mobile user;

modifying the mobile user profile with the detected one or more pattern of usage, and the at least one consumer category;

generating an actionable event based, in part, on non-requested content that is selected based on the analysis, and the mobile user profile including the detected one or more patterns of usage over time and the at least one consumer category;

modifying the intercepted message by combing the actionable event with the intercepted message;

forwarding the modified message to the mobile device, wherein the mobile user is enabled to select the actionable event to receive non-requested content; and

revising the mobile user profile if the actionable event is not selected.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein modifying the intercepted message further comprises replacing the contents of the intercepted message with at least a portion of the intercepted message and the actionable event.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein modifying the intercepted message further comprises replacing the contents of the intercepted message with a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or a phone number to the contents of the intercepted message and the non-requested content.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the source device is another mobile device, and the method further comprises:

intercepting a response message from the mobile device destined for the source device;

analyzing content of the intercepted response message;

determining another mobile user profile from characteristics of the source device, and from a tracked usage of the source device;

generating another actionable event based, in part, on the analysis of the response message, and the other mobile user profile;

modifying the intercepted response message by combing the other actionable event with the intercepted response message; and

forwarding the modified response message to the source device, wherein the other actionable event enables access to the other non-requested content.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the method is performed using program instructions operating within a computer.

20. A mobile device for use in receiving a message over a network, comprising:

a transceiver that is arranged to receive and to send messages over the network; and

a processing component that is configured to execute data that enables actions, including;

receiving a Short Message Service (SMS) message, wherein the SMS message was intercepted from an originator and modified by the interceptor to insert an actionable event based on a tracked usage of the mobile device, a characteristic of the mobile device, and one or more detected patterns of usage of the mobile device over time that are detected based on an analysis of the tracked usage, at least one consumer category describing a mobile user of the mobile device based on analysis of the one or more detected patterns of usage; and

Content of the intercepted SMS message;

displaying the SMS message including the actionable event;

enabling the mobile user of the mobile device to select the actionable event to receive non-requested content; and

if the actionable event is not selected, providing information usable to update a mobile user profile for the mobile device.

21. The mobile device of claim 20, wherein the actionable event further comprises at least one of a text message, a graphic, an audio file, or a video file that is arranged to prompt an action over the network by the mobile user of the mobile device.

22. The mobile device of claim 20, wherein the actionable event further comprises a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) that is configured to launch a browser application within the mobile device to enable access to the non-requested content.

23. An apparatus for use in managing a communication over a network, comprising:

a transceiver that intercepts a message directed to a mobile device from a computing device;

means for analyzing a tracked usage of the mobile device over time to detect one or more patterns of usage of the mobile device over time;

means for analyzing the one or more patterns of usage to detect at least one consumer category that describes a mobile user of the mobile device;

means for determining a mobile user profile from characteristics of the mobile device, and from the tracked usage of the mobile device by the mobile user and further the

detected one or more patterns of usage over time and the at least one consumer category;

means for analyzing content of the intercepted message;

means for modifying the intercepted message with an actionable event based on the mobile user profile and the analyzed content;

means for forwarding the modified message to the mobile device, wherein the mobile user is enabled to select the actionable event to receive non-requested content; and

means for revising the mobile user profile if it is detected that the actionable event is not selected.