Patent Application
20060136311
The invention relates to a charging management system and method for a website, and more particularly to an intellectual charging management system and a method for a website.
As the internet becomes more and more popular, many users start enjoying the convenient and entertaining contents it provides. Bandwidth can ultimately be increased, and lengthy data transmission can be performed by the network. Consequently, problems relating to on-line charges can occur.
Indeed, much enjoyment has been provided by the network; however, such enjoyment is not established for free. It is often that the user spends a significant amount of money for a slow-speed connection. Sometimes, documents downloaded with wide-band connection speed are similar to a dial-up service, and downloaded movies play like slow motion. Sometimes the connection is too slow to play the movie. Users are charged the same exorbitant fee for network performance like this. Therefore, many of the current charging methods are not reasonable. Some networks charge the users based on the data flow, which indicates that more money is required for large bandwidth. However, a majority of network or service providers still charge for connection time. In such a manner, the users who have less service are always the ones who pay more. There is thus a substantial need to provide a more reasonable on-line charge management system and method to overcome the above-mentioned problems.
To resolve the above drawbacks, an intellectual charging management system and method is provided. The charging mechanism is automatically adjusted in response to the connection speed of the user, such that the payment of the user is proportional to the service provided. Particularly during internet rush hours, the users will not be charged more by waiting.
The intellectual charging management system and method as provided automatically adjusts the cost for visiting a website according to network performance for each individual user. The network performance is determined based on the actual network access speed when the user visits the website, while the cost is calculated based on the network performance. The network performance and the estimated cost can be provided to the user before the user uses the service provided by the website. In addition, the cost and cost estimation are automatically refreshed at a predetermined time interval, such that the real cost can properly reflect the network access speed in real time.
The above objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent with the following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which:
Referring to
The network access speed module 120 includes a network speed detector, which detects the speed when the user visits a specific website. When the user visits the website at different time, the access speed is very likely different. Likewise, when a user visits different websites at the same time, the access speed may also vary. Many factors will affect the access time, including locally occurring viruses, server conditions, parameters of the local system, operating conditions of CPU, etc. The network speed detector operates to detect the index of various bandwidths using scientific calculations. The access speed of each individual user can be tested via such on-line testers to monitor the network condition. The user can also install such a module in his or her own machine to perform test of transmission speed and send the test result to the comparison module for comparison.
The comparison module 130 then compares the tested result obtained by the network access speed module 120 to the network transmission speed division list 110, so as to determine the group to which the current user belongs. The comparison results provide an indication of the network performance to the user, who can then decide whether the website should be visited or not according to the network performance.
The cost-adjusting module 140 provides cost calculation according to the network performance provided by the network transmission speed division list 110. The service provider can determine how to charge the user based on the network performance as detected. Therefore, when the user has slow or relatively slow network performance for visiting a specific website, the service provider can determine whether the user will be charged less because of poor network performance. The user will then be charged in a more reasonable way. In addition to the above, the system may further comprise an automatic refresh module 150 and a hint module 160.
Referring to
The hint module 160 is used to provide the current network access speed and the cost that may be incurred for visiting a specific website. The user can thus determine whether the website should be visited based on the network performance and the cost, or the amount of time to visit the website.
Referring to
When the user logs onto the internet, the system can determine what the current network performance is in step 420, and refreshes the cost evaluated based on the network performance. When the refreshing interval is completed in step 430, the cost calculation program is activated to refresh the cost. In this embodiment, the refreshing interval is set at 3 seconds.
The network access speed for a specific website can then be detected in step 440. All users can use a network access speed module provided by the website to detect the access speed, so as to estimate the cost incurred by visiting the website.
The access speed is compared to transmission speed of the lookup table, so that the current network performance can be determined and provided to the user in step 450. The cost is then estimated based on the network performance in step 460. The estimated cost can be displayed by the local monitor or display of the user in step 470.
Therefore, the service provider can adjust the cost for each individual user based on the network speed and actual visit time of the website. For example, when the user has a relatively slow network performance, although the time used for visiting the website is relatively long, the cost may be less because of relatively slow network performance. The user may thus be more willing to use the service provided by the website.
While the invention has been shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
