Web-based interactive meeting facility with recommendations to users

• US 8,904,295 B2
• Filed: 01/20/2011
• Issued: 12/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meetup Incorporated (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Meetup Incorporated (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Whalin, Gregory P., Meeker, Matthew, Kamali, Peter, Heiferman, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): SALOMON, PHENUEL S
• Application Number:
  US13/009,891
• Publication Number:
  US 20110289433A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,412 Days
• Field of Search: 715/753, 705/6, 705/8, 705/9
• US Class Current: 715/753
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/903 Querying for retrieval from the web G06F16/953
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications

Abstract

A computer implemented method for providing recommendations for an in-person meeting group, the method comprising: collecting user information, wherein the user information provides information related to topical interests and location information for at least one of a plurality of users; comparing the user information with a topical listing of in-person meeting groups in the same geographical region as the at least one user, wherein the in-person meeting group is formed and maintained through a web-based meeting facility; and providing an in-person meeting group recommendation to the at least one user based on the comparison.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for providing recommendations for at least one of an in-person meeting group and an in-person event, the method comprising:

collecting user information through at least one user interface, wherein the user information provides topical interests and location information for at least one of a plurality of users;

comparing, with at least one processor, at least a portion of the topical interests of the user information with in-person meeting groups and/or in-person events in the same geographical region as the at least one user to identify a plurality of topical matches comprising a plurality of in person meeting groups in-person events, wherein the in-person meeting groups and/or in-person events are formed and maintained through a web-based meeting facility;

generating, with at least one processor, a recommendation for at least one of an in-person meeting group and an in-person event from the plurality of topical matches, the recommendation based at least partially on a percentage of members of an in-person meeting group that have submitted RSVPs to in-person events associated with the in-person meeting group; and

providing the recommendation to the at least one user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user information is gathered from a user database maintained through the web-based meeting facility.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the recommendation is based at least partially on group memberships or RSVPs of at least one other user with whom the user shares group membership.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the recommendation is based at least partially on group memberships or RSVPs of at least one other user with whom the user has shared a previous in-person meeting group or an in-person event.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the sharing is indicated through the user and the other user RSVP'"'"'ing to the same meeting.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the sharing is indicated through the user and the other user checking-in to the same meeting.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the recommendation is based at least partially on group memberships or RSVPs of users on a friends list of the user, the friends list imported from a third-party service.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the friends list is provided by the user.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one user is friends with at least one friend, and wherein the at least one friend is friends with at least one other user, wherein the recommendation is based at least partially on information associated with the at least one other user.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the user information is gathered from a third-party social networking facility.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the user information from the social networking facility is provided by the user to the social networking facility.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the user information from the social networking facility is contained in a social network diagram.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the recommendation is transmitted to the user.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the recommendation is provided to the user though the user interface of the web-based meeting facility.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the recommendation is provided to a third-party social networking site.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the recommendation is based on a collaborative filtering algorithm that is based on analyzing similarities between interests of a user and interests of members of a group.

17. A computer-implemented method for providing at least one recommendation for an in-person meeting group and an in-person meeting, the method comprising:

providing a web-based meeting facility to a plurality of users;

collecting user information from at least a portion of the plurality of users, the user information for each user of the plurality of users comprising at least one topic-related interest and location information;

determining, with at least one processor, at least one recommendation for at least one in-person meeting group based at least partially on at least a portion of the user information collected from a user;

transmitting the at least one recommendation to the user;

determining, with at least one processor, at least one recommended event based at least partially on information associated with at least one other user, wherein the user is friends with at least one friend, and wherein the at least one friend is friends with the at least one other user; and

transmitting the at least one recommended event to the user.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, wherein the at least one recommendation is based at least partially on the location information and the at least one topic-related interest for the at least one user.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, wherein the at least one recommendation is based at least partially on at least one meeting group that the at least one user is already a member of.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, wherein the at least one recommendation is based at least partially on at least one meeting group that at least one other user is a member of, wherein the at least one other user and the at least one user are members of at least one common meeting group.

21. A computer-implemented method for providing recommendations to users for at least one web-based group associated with at least one in-person meeting, the method comprising:

transmitting, to a plurality of user computers, data configured to display, on the plurality of user computers, at least one graphical interface configured to provide options to the plurality of users to join at least one web-based group of a plurality of web-based groups associated with at least one in-person meeting, wherein each web-based meeting group of the plurality of web-based meeting groups is identified by at least one topic and at least one location;

collecting user information from at least a portion of the plurality of users, the user information for at least one user of the plurality of users comprising at least one topic-related interest and location information;

determining, with at least one processor, at least one recommended meeting group of the plurality of web-based meeting groups by analyzing similarities between the at least one topic-related interest of the at least one user and topic-related interests of other users, wherein the other users are each members of at least one meeting group of the plurality of web-based meeting groups, wherein the at least one user is friends with at least one friend, wherein the at least one friend is friends with at least one other user, and wherein the at least one recommended meeting group is determined based at least partially on information associated with the at least one other user; and

transmitting, to the at least one user, the at least one recommended meeting group.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 21, wherein the determination of the at least one recommended meeting group is based at least partially on at least one meeting group that at least one other user is a member of, wherein the at least one other user and the at least one user are members of at least one common meeting group.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 21, wherein the user information comprises information from at least one of the following:

a friends list of the at least one user, information inputted by the at least one user, a third-party, a third-party social networking facility, or any combination thereof.

24. The computer implemented method of claim 21, wherein the at least one user is friends with the at least one friend through at least one of the following:

a friends list of a web-based meeting facility, a friends list of a third-party social networking site, or any combination thereof.