Patent Grant
9232077
I. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to wireless telecommunications and computer networks. More specifically, the present invention relates to a system and method for providing an infrastructure to support an automatic subscription of wireless devices and an end-to-end billing arrangement for services provided to wireless device service subscribers by network carriers and third parties.
II. Description of the Related Art
Wireless devices, such as cellular telephones, communicate packets including voice and data over a wireless network. In existing wireless telecommunication systems, such as cellular telecommunication systems, a wireless service provider or carrier has wireless service subscribers that pay the provider for the time that the wireless device of the subscriber accesses the cellular network. Fees are typically charged to the subscriber for the initial activation of a telecommunication device and then fees can be charged for ongoing airtime and device usage. However, existing systems typically do not account for other activities at the telecommunication device beyond airtime usage.
Further, if the subscriber of the wireless device desires to download and use a software application or upgrade the functionality of the telecommunication device, the user will typically either call a service provider or contact the service provider through another electronic means, such as through a separate Internet access. In some instances, the service provider can transmit the application to the wireless device across the wireless network (through a one time direct access download) or allow the user access a network site with the wireless device through the wireless network and at such site the application is downloadable or accessible to the subscriber. Otherwise service personnel of the provider must have physical access to the telecommunication device to install the software or upgrade the components thereof.
Further, the proliferation of computer technology has made it easier and cheaper to develop software application. A computer programmer can easily develop a video game or a utility application on a personal computer, and the programmer can tailor the game to run on different computer hardware platforms including on a wireless handset. However, the individual application developer encounters difficulty in getting the product to market, especially for applications that are executable on wireless devices. The developer must first create a full version of the application and then sell it to the carriers in order to derive any income. Consequently, creating application for the wireless device market is a huge investment by the developer without the guarantee of return.
Wireless telecommunications carriers may rely on independent developers to develop applications for their users, but this arrangement would create new problems for the carriers. Now, the carriers, instead of hiring many developers, needs to track usages of products developed by these independent developers and pay them accordingly, which can be a huge task itself.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a system and method that handles end-to-end billing for carriers. Such system should allow wireless services provides to deliver value-added products and services to their subscribers beyond simple airtime, and allow the application developer to receive payments for their products. It is thus to such a system and method for automatically managing subscription billing for wireless device subscribers that the present invention is primarily directed.
The present invention discloses a system, method, and computer program that automatically manages an application or service subscription price plan for applications and services provided to wireless devices from other computer devices on a wireless network during wireless device end-user interaction with the computer devices. Once an application or subscription is activated, the subscription requires periodic payment (such as monthly) by the wireless device carrier service subscriber (who is not necessarily the end-user at the wireless device interacting on the network) for continued access to the application or service. The wireless device end-user interaction with other computer devices, such as application download servers, is monitored, either directly if the interaction is with the same server that records application or service subscription data, or across the wireless network when the end-user obtains an application or service from another computer device. The application or service subscription can either be billed directly to the wireless device subscriber for the subscription(s) or a bill transmitted to the carrier or other entity to bill the subscriber. In one embodiment, the system includes one or more wireless devices selectively in communication with other computer devices across a wireless network, where each wireless device has an end-user thereof and a computer platform that is able to selectively download and execute software applications thereupon and is accessible by the end-user. At least one server is selectively in communication and interacts with the one or more wireless devices across the wireless network, such interaction typically occurring upon request of the end-user of the wireless device through the wireless network to download or interact with the server. The end-user interaction with at least one server across the wireless network causes a subscription of an application or service, which can be recorded and billed for at the same server or through the interaction of several computer devices on the wireless network.
The method for managing subscription price plans for applications and services provided to wireless devices from computer devices on a wireless network particularly includes the steps of causing a subscription of an application and service to occur from end-user interaction between the wireless device and a server, and recording the subscriptions for the wireless devices at the server. The method can also include the steps of billing the wireless device carrier service subscriber and tracking subscription deletion at the wireless device to automatically discontinue the subscription.
The present system and method thus enable wireless telecommunications carriers to offer value-added services from individual developers providing applications and services to wireless service subscribers without needing to build up a requisite infrastructure for providing the application and services. The system can provide further support by generating invoices to the carrier themselves, carrier subscribers, and can disburse payments for the subscriptions to the applications and service providers, however, in one embodiment, the system simply forwards the subscription records to the carrier for billing and collection. The user of the system can thus tailor the degree of control and responsibility of the billing server(s) in supporting third party applications and services to the wireless devices.
Other objects, advantages, and features of the present invention will become apparent after review of the hereinafter set forth Brief Description of the Drawings, Detailed Description of the Invention, and the claims.
In this description, the terms “communication device,” “wireless device,” “hand held telephone,” and “handset” are used interchangeably, the terms “server” and “end-to-end billing system” are used interchangeably, and the term “application” as used herein is intended to encompass executable and non-executable software files, raw data, aggregated data, patches, and other code segments. A “wireless device service subscriber” is a carrier service customer that pays a carrier for network airtime, i.e. voice and data calls from the wireless device. And an “application or service subscription” is a value-added service or application purchased by the wireless device end-user from another computer device on the network, such as an application download server, which is typically billed periodically, e.g. monthly. A “value-added” subscriber” is a party who subscribes to a value-added service and does not have to initiate an automatic subscription when accessing the subscribed value-added service. Thus, in some instances, the purchasing end-user may not be the same person as wireless device subscriber, an example being a child end-user using the wireless device of the parent who is actually the wireless device service subscriber. Further, like numerals refer to like elements throughout the several views. With the advent of 3rd generation (3G) wireless communication technology, more bandwidth becomes available for wireless communications, and handsets and wireless telecommunication devices, such as cellular telephones, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) with increasing capabilities have become available. Now, users can check weather, receive e-mails, receive paging messages, traverse the Internet, and play an interactive game with a remote party all through his wireless handset, in addition to using it for maintaining audio communications with another party. At the same time, proliferation of computer technology has made easier and cheaper to develop digital media and deliver it to the wireless devices. The provision of more value added services, such as downloadable applications, can bring revenue to a wireless service provider or carrier, and one manner to achieve the additional revenue is to provide support to independent application developers. The present invention thus provides the billing support for third party independent application providers who provide applications to end-users of a network carrier as is further described herein.
The PSTN 110 is connected to the Internet 120 and to the wireless communication network through a MSC 108. The PSTN 110 supports users accessing the Internet using a computer 116 through dial up services. The user utilizes the computer 116 and dials through a telephone line 118 to access an Internet service provider (ISP) 122. The ISP 122 provides connection between the user at the computer 116 and the Internet 120. Users at computers 114 may also access directly the ISP 122 through high-speed data connections such as digital subscriber line (DSL), T1 connections, and the like. The Internet 120 is a high-speed data network. A user may access the Internet directly by connecting to a hub on the Internet 120 or access through an ISP 122 connected to the Internet 120. A billing server 112 may be connected to the Internet 120, to the MSC 108, or to the PSTN 110. Preferably, the billing server 112 is connected directly to the MSC 108. However, the server 112 does not necessarily need access to the wireless device 106 but can solely reside on the network and a file level interface from the server can collect and transform the device download event into a billable usage record.
In one embodiment, before a developer 202 is allowed to submit his product, such as a software application, to the virtual marketplace 206, the developer 202 must certify that the product conforms to the standards established by the virtual marketplace 206. The virtual marketplace 206 publishes a set of standards for its environment that should be followed by developers who wish to submit their products to the virtual marketplace 206. Standardizing the products ensures the product can run without problems on a user handset that supports the virtual marketplace's environment. One example of such environment is Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless (BREW™) and BREW Distributed System (BDS) developed by Qualcomm Corporation. The product may also be required to be tested for conformance by a third party testing organization.
After the developer 202 submits the product, the developer extranet enables negotiation of the price for the product between the developer 202 and carrier. The negotiation may be conducted directly between the carrier(s), other third parties, and the developers 202 within the virtual marketplace 206 using the developer extranet (204), or through the carrier (212) using the carrier extranet 208. Thus, developers 202 can negotiate with other developers, and carriers, to deliver applications and services to carrier customers. After the negotiation, the virtual marketplace 206 retains an agreed to application price plan between developer 202 and carrier 212. The product can be associated with the originating developer before negotiation starts.
After the product is included in the product catalog and made available to the users 210 of communication devices 106. An end-user 210 of the wireless device accesses the wireless telecommunications services through the carrier 212 receives the product catalog from the carrier 212. The end-user 210 can view the product catalog and select a product from the product catalog. The step of “selection” can be an application download, menu display, data transfer, diagnosis tool, or any other computer interaction between the wireless device 106 and billing server 112 or other communication device.
The selection is sent from the user wireless device 106 to the carrier 212, which forwards to the server 112, which is this capacity acts as an application download server. The server 112 checks the selection and downloads the product to the wireless device. The application is dispatched to the end-user's wireless device 106 via the carrier 212. After receiving the application, the end-user 210 can activate it on that end-user's wireless device 106. For certain products, the server 112 needs not to dispatch the entire product to the user device 106, but only a user interface portion of the product. The user interface interacts with the end-user 210 through the user wireless device 106 and sends information back to the server 112 where the application runs. Note that in another embodiment, the application runs on the device or it accesses services/content from a third party server and does not run on the server 112.
If so embodied, if the user is not a monthly subscriber, then the server 112 can check the user information received to see whether the user is a authorized subscriber of a wireless carrier, which would occur at decision 412. Conversely, the server 112 could be contacted by a prepaid wireless device or other device not subscribed to a specific carrier's service, and in which case another method of payment can be arranged with the end-user. Alternately, at this point a user authorization check can be made from the server 112 to a carrier 212 authorization service to validate that the user is a an authorized carrier user for the service. The user may be a wireless service subscriber and not yet a value-added service subscriber, and this would be a pay per use situation. If the wireless device 106 is a wireless service subscriber, then the server 112 has that wireless subscriber's information and an account set up for him. The server 112 records the request, as shown in step 414, and generates a one-time billable event, as shown in step 416. The server 112 can also generate a monthly billing record, step 418, and sends the billing record to the carrier 212, step 420. It should be noted that steps 414, 416, 418, 420 may not occur until after 410 as a billable event is not logged or account created at 422 a successful download is confirmed was successful. Alternately, the server 112 can send data to cause another device on the network to create a billing record for downloaded applications. For pay per use value-added subscribers, a billing record is generated for each application download or other subscription event. After the billing process is taken care of (pre-pay only), the server 112 proceeds to retrieve the product, step 408, and sends it to the user, step 410. For post pay events, the download proceeds and the download event is recorded and billing is handled after the end-user has the application on the device.
In another embodiment, the system also handles the situation when the user is using a pre-paid wireless telephone, i.e., the user is not a monthly wireless service subscriber. The wireless telephone device can be a pre-paid device, where the user can purchase in advance for wireless communications services. Further, an application download server can make a call to a carrier provided pre-pay service first to authorize the application download and secondly to debit the customer account. Pre-pay consumers are then not able to download subscription based applications. The amount of services purchased may be stored in the wireless device itself or in a card that can be inserted into the wireless device. This amount is debited each time the user makes a wireless call. When the amount is depleted, the wireless device can no longer place a wireless call, unless the user replenishes it at a dealer or purchases a new pre-paid card.
When a wireless device subscriber that has no existing subscription account selects a product for download, the server 112 can automatically create an account for this user, as shown in step 422, and then proceed similarly as if the user were a monthly subscriber. Such step is unnecessary if only usage records exist on the server 112. If so embodied, a billing record is generated, as shown at step 418, and sent to the carrier, as shown at step 420, before the product is retrieved, as shown at step 408, and sent to the user, as shown at step 410. The carrier 212 may deduct the amount from the billing record for the product from the user's pre-paid amount.
When recording the request as shown in step 406 or step 414, the server 112 can extract demographic information from the user information and record it along with the product information. One method of obtaining demographic information is using the Subscriber ID (SID) to derive detailed information about their customers and buying trends. The demographic information may be made available to the product's developer, so the developer may have an idea about the user of his product. The demographic information may also be provided to the carriers and allowing the carriers to have a better picture about the users who tend to subscribe to similar products or services.
The system accordingly can support flexible subscription plans. A user may subscribe to a flat price service plan, where the user pays a fixed price per month and the wireless device subscriber can access all products listed in the catalog. The end-user may also subscribe to an adjustable price service plan, where the monthly subscription fee depends on how many products or what products the user has subscribed to. The user may also purchase an application based on a one-time flat fee for a specified number of uses service plan. The system will automatically account for the subscription in whatever method provided.
The relationship 800 shows the advantage of the present invention. For developers 202, the present invention allows for easy marketing of their products and eliminates the hassle of dealing with individual buyers or the trouble of searching for publishers to carry their products. For carriers 212, the present invention provides a way to make more products available to end users 210, thus providing new venues to generate more profits, without the need to hire a large number of software developers. For users 210, the present invention makes more applications available to the users 210 and maybe be eliminates the need for the users 210 to carry multiple electronic devices, such as pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), or even game devices.
A developer can access the server 112 through the interface 204, which is handled by the developer interface 1106, by entering his developer identification number. The server 112 assigns to each developer an identification number and a password. After entering the identification number and the password, the billing server 112 allows the developer to access at least billing support services associated with the developer identification number.
It can thus be seen that the system yields a method for providing an end-to-end billing system 802 that supports multiple parties, where the subscription billing system 802 supports plurality of developers and a multitude of end-users through various carriers. The system is transparent to the end-user that only sees the subscription-causing event and the subscription-ending event, with the system handling the billing between those events. The billing system 802 sets up individual accounts for each developer, where the products developed by each developer is listed in his own account. The subscription billing system 802 also can associate each end-user with a carrier and records each end user's service plan. The system can also record product requests, deliver the product requested to the end-user, and generate invoices individually on per use basis or monthly on subscription basis. If so embodied, the payment collected from each carrier is recorded and an appropriate portion of the collected payment is distributed to the developers whose products have been used or subscribed by the end users.
In view of the method being executable on the computer platform of a computing device such as server 112, the present invention includes a program resident in a computer readable medium, where the program directs a server or other computing device having a computer platform to perform the steps of the method. The computer readable medium can be the memory of the server 112, or can be in a connective database. Further, the computer readable medium can be in a secondary storage media that is loadable onto a wireless device computer platform, such as a magnetic disk or tape, optical disk, hard disk, flash memory, or other storage media as is known in the art.
In the context of
While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail maybe made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set for the in the following claims. Furthermore, although elements of the invention may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated.
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| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20040181591 A1 | Sep 2004 | US |
