Method and system to facilitate interaction between and content delivery to users of a wireless communications network

• US 9,623,336 B2
• Filed: 11/18/2013
• Issued: 04/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Simon, Daniel, Westling, Mark Ford, Wherry, Phillip
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan, Allen
• Application Number:
  US14/083,225
• Publication Number:
  US 20140087884A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,247 Days
• Field of Search: 463 42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/792 for payment purposes, e.g. monthly subscriptions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5506 using advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5546 using player registration data, e.g. identification, account, preferences, game history
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5566 by matching opponents or finding partners to build a team, e.g. by skill level, geographical area, background, play style
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management

Abstract

A system and method of creating affinity groups of portable communication device users, and distributing targeted content to said users is disclosed. The user affinity groups may be formed by comparing user profiles with each other or with a predefined affinity group profile definition.

Claims

1. A system for distributing content to an affinity group of portable communications device users, the system comprising:

a wireless network to facilitate communication between a content server computing device and a portable communication device and further between the portable communication device and said users;

a storage device to store profile data relating to each of said users, wherein the storage device is operatively connected to the content server computing device; and

the content server computing device to serve as a content selection device to perform one or more content selection functions, wherein the content server computing device is centrally-located in the system and includes a processor, a memory, and an input/output interface, wherein the content server computing device to;

compare, by the processor, the profile data of different ones of said users, and associating users with the affinity group based on the profile data comparison to create the group;

receive, by the processor, a request from a portable communications device user to be associated with the affinity group;

associate, by the processor, the portable communications device user with the affinity group in response to the request and based on the comparison; and

select, by the processor, content for and distribute the content to the users based on their association with the affinity group.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user news preferences, user sports preferences, user advertisement preferences, user purchase preferences, user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, user portable communications device capabilities, user portable communications device model, user portable communications device usage level, user occupation, user income level, user education level, user residence, user sex, user religion, and user frequent location,

wherein the profile data further comprises one or more of information selected from the group consisting of user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, and user portable communications device capabilities,

wherein the portable communications device user includes a previous user being excluded from the affinity group and seeking to rejoin the affinity group or a new user seeking to join the affinity group for a first time, and wherein the request includes an input from the previous user to overcome the exclusion of the previous user from the affinity group.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the interactive game preferences comprise information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user individual game selection history, user game genre selection history, and user ranking of interest in games, and wherein the targeted content comprises a game application.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless network comprises a plurality of portable communications devices, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device located in each portable communications device.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the content server computing device comprises a centrally located server computing device, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device associated with the centrally located server computing device.

6. A system for distributing content to an affinity group of portable communications device users, the system comprising:

a wireless network to facilitate communication between said users;

a storage device to store profile data relating to each of said users, wherein the storage device is operatively connected to a content server computing device;

the content server computing device to serve as a content selection device to perform one or more content selection functions, wherein the content server computing device is centrally-located in the system and includes a processor, a memory, and an input/output interface, wherein the content server computing device to;

compare, by the processor, the profile data of each of said users with a predefined affinity group definition, and associating users with the affinity group based on the comparison of user profile data with the predefined affinity group definition to create the group;

receive, by the processor, a request from a portable communications device user to be associated with the affinity group;

associate, by the processor, the portable communications device user with the affinity group in response to the request and based on the comparison; and

select, by the processor, content for and distribute the content to the users based on their association with the affinity group.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user news preferences, user sports preferences, user advertisement preferences, user purchase preferences, user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, user portable communications device capabilities, user portable communications device model, user portable communications device usage level, user occupation, user income level, user education level, user residence, user sex, user religion, and user frequent location, and

wherein the profile data further comprises one or more of information selected from the group consisting of user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, and user portable communications device capabilities,

wherein the portable communications device user includes a previous user being excluded from the affinity group and seeking to rejoin the affinity group or a new user seeking to join the affinity group for a first time, and wherein the request includes an input from the previous user to overcome the exclusion of the previous user from the affinity group.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the interactive game preferences comprise information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user individual game selection history, user game genre selection history, and user ranking of interest in games, and wherein the targeted content comprises a game application.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the wireless network comprises a plurality of portable communications devices, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device located in each portable communications device.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the content server computing device comprises a centrally located server computing device, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device associated with the centrally located server computing device.

11. A system of distributing targeted content to an affinity group of portable communications device users, the system comprising:

a wireless network to facilitate wireless communication between a plurality of users;

a storage device to store profile data relating to said users, wherein the storage device is operatively connected to a content server computing device; and

the content server computing device to serve as a content selection device to perform one or more content selection functions, wherein the content server computing device is centrally-located in the system and includes a processor, a memory, and an input/output interface, wherein the content server computing device to;

receive, by the processor, the profile data relating to selected ones of said users;

compare, by the processor, the stored profile data of different ones of said users;

associate, by the processor, users with the affinity group based on the profile data comparisons;

receive, by the processor, a request from a user to join the affinity group;

associate, by the processor, the user with the affinity group in response to the request and based on the profile data comparisons; and

distribute, by the processor, targeted content to the affinity group including the user.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user news preferences, user sports preferences, user advertisement preferences, user purchase preferences, user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, user portable communications device capabilities, user portable communications device model, user portable communications device usage level, user occupation, user income level, user education level, user residence, user sex, user religion, and user frequent location,

wherein the profile data further comprises one or more of information selected from the group consisting of user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, and user portable communications device capabilities,

wherein the portable communications device user includes a previous user being excluded from the affinity group and seeking to rejoin the affinity group or a new user seeking to join the affinity group for a first time, and wherein the request includes an input from the previous user to overcome the exclusion of the previous user from the affinity group.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the interactive game preferences comprise information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user individual game selection history, user game genre selection history, and user ranking of interest in games, and wherein the targeted content comprises a game application.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the wireless network comprises a plurality of portable communications devices, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device located in each portable communications device.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the content server computing device comprises a centrally located server computing device, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device associated with the centrally located server computing device.

16. A system of distributing targeted content to an affinity group of portable communications device users, the system comprising:

a wireless network to facilitate wireless communication between a plurality of user;

a storage device to store profile data relating to said users, wherein the storage device is operatively connected to a content server computing device; and

the content server computing device to serve as a content selection device to perform one or more content selection functions, wherein the content server computing device is centrally-located in the system and includes a processor, a memory, and an input/output interface, wherein the content server computing device to;

receive, by the processor, the profile data relating to selected ones of said users;

compare, by a processor, the profile data of a plurality of said selected users with a predefined affinity group definition;

associate, by the processor, users with the affinity group based on the profile data comparisons of the user profile data with the predefined affinity group definition to create the affinity group;

receive a request from a user to join the affinity group;

associate, by the processor, the user with the affinity group in response to the request and based on the profile data comparisons; and

distribute, by the processor, targeted content to said users in the affinity group including the user.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the profile data comprises information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user news preferences, user sports preferences, user advertisement preferences, user purchase preferences, user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, user portable communications device capabilities, user portable communications device model, user portable communications device usage level, user occupation, user income level, user education level, user residence, user sex, user religion, and user frequent location,

wherein the profile data further comprises one or more of information selected from the group consisting of user electronic game preferences, user interactive game preferences, user game skill level, user virtual reality character characteristics, and user portable communications device capabilities,

wherein the portable communications device user includes a previous user being excluded from the affinity group and seeking to rejoin the affinity group or a new user seeking to join the affinity group for a first time, and wherein the request includes an input from the previous user to overcome the exclusion of the previous user from the affinity group.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the interactive game preferences comprise information selected from the group comprising one or more of:

user individual game selection history, user game genre selection history, and user ranking of interest in games, and wherein the targeted content comprises a game application.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the wireless network comprises a plurality of portable communications devices, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device located in each portable communications device.

20. The system of claim 16, wherein the content server computing device comprises a centrally located server computing device, and wherein the storage device comprises a memory device associated with the centrally located server computing device.